Tuesday 17 March 2026
10:00 – 12:20
Hybrid: Lord Clerk Registers Room and Microsoft Teams
Attendees
- Alison Byrne NRS Chief Executive (Chair)
- Maggie Waterston Non-Executive Director
- Bryan Robertson Non-Executive Director
- Jennet Woolford Non-Executive Director
- Albert King Non-Executive Director
- Anne Moises Non-Executive Director
- Tim Wright Non-Executive Director
- Karis Raeburn FCDO (Foreign, Commonwealth, Development Office)
- Linda Sinclair Director of Corporate Services & NRS Accountable Officer
- Jane Milne Director of Customer Services Operations & Archives
- Carla McHendry Director of Delivery
- Alan Ferrier Interim Director of Statistical Services
- Michael Oloughlin Interim Director of Digital & IT Services
- Tracey Thompson NRS Chief Finance Officer
- Scott Robertson NRS Head of Portfolio and Governance (10:25)
- Kate Hawkins NRS Head of Portfolio and Governance (Business Change) (10:35)
- Matt Deary Head of NRS Policy (10:35)
- Guy Westoby NRS Buisness Change Manager (10:35)
- Louise Crichton NRS Senior Service Designer (10:35)
- Steven Andison NRS Head of People Services (10:45)
- David Rowley NRS Senior Assistant Statistician (10:45)
- Ruth Davies NRS Census 2031 Programme Director
- Graham Thomson NRS BMU - Corporate Governance Manager
- Louise Edwards NRS BMU – Secretariat
Apologies
John McDonough Non-Executive Director
1. Welcome, Introductions and Apologies
1.1 The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting and apologies were listed as above.
1.2 The Chair highlighted the following NRS staffing changes:
- Michael O’Loughlin had been permanently appointed Director of Strategy, Delivery & Digital Transformation
- Ruth Davies had been appointed NRS Census 2031 Programme Director
- The permanent Director of Statistics, Data Services & Census would be confirmed week commencing 23 March 2026
- Jon Wroth Smith had left NRS to join the Office for National Statistics
- Carla McHendry would be leaving NRS to start a new role within the Scottish Government
1.3 The Chair highlighted that the NRS Strategy had been published marking a major milestone for the organisation.
2. Review of previous minutes/action log and Declarations of Interest
2.1 Minutes of 11 December 2025
The minutes from NRS Strategic Board meeting on 11 December were approved and would be published on the NRS website.
2.2 Action log
Action log was reviewed and updated accordingly.
2.3 Declarations of Interest
No new declarations of interest.
3. Budget 26/27
3.1 The Director of Corporate Services and NRS Accountable Officer confirmed that Scottish Government had published the 3-year budget and highlighted the following points:
- NRS would receive a flat cash settlement, which would result in a real terms reduction after pay and inflation
- NRS would require £1–1.5m additional funding per year to maintain current service levels
- Income target remained £5.8m, but NRS typically generates £7.2m and must reach £7.4m in 26/27 to balance the budget
- The recruitment freeze since December 2025 had created underspend, but operational pressures had increased. Around 30 posts had been removed, which had created capacity challenges
- Capital budget had slightly increased, but it remained insufficient for major projects
- Unfunded services for other public bodies continued to create pressure under SPFM (Scottish Public Finance Manual) rules
- Statutory fee increases were being explored but parliamentary approval would be required
- Forecasts highlighted a £1m gap by 2028/29 without increased income or efficiencies
3.2 In discussion the following points were raised:
- The Chair noted that under PSR (Public Sector Reform), NRS and other public bodies were invited to submit Culture Cluster proposals, including options for greater income and year end flexibility. A joint submission may strengthen the case for additional flexibility
- NXDs noted PSR offered an opportunity to revisit long term archival storage needs, potentially shifting future solutions to the Culture Cluster
- NXDs explored whether NRS could establish a wholly owned commercial entity. This would currently not be possible, and any alternative model would require SG discussions, PSR alignment and consideration of SPFM constraint
4. NRS Corporate Plan Update
4.1 The NRS Corporate Plan would set out what NRS would deliver over the next five years, covering both strategic change and day to day operational activity. The Head of Portfolio and Governance provided an update on the Corporate Plan, this covered:
- Phase 1 of the Corporate Plan was due for completion by 31 March 2026
- The Corporate Plan had been aligned with the new NRS Strategy and the confirmed budget, ensuring all activity were deliverable within current constraints
- Work was underway to map resources, dependencies, costs, timelines, and local plans into a single coherent plan
- A comprehensive communication and engagement plan would be developed. A stakeholder mapping exercise was being used to define internal and external stakeholders, including suppliers, partners, and customers
- A corporate dashboard was being developed to integrate strategic KPIs, operational KPIs and risk reporting
- The Corporate Plan would be reviewed annually, aligned to the budget, reporting, and project cycles
4.2 NXDs welcomed the strong alignment and clear analysis underpinning the Corporate Plan.
4.2.1 In discussion the following points were raised:
- A question was raised about whether KPIs would be fully public, or whether only a subset would be published externally. Two KPI sets would be developed; Internal and External
- NXDs highlighted the importance of using the Corporate Plan to identify activities that do not contribute to strategic objectives
- NXDs also noted the importance of tracking progress toward long term strategic outcomes
- NXDs stressed the need to communicate clearly to staff how workload and priorities would be managed, given budget pressures, and recognised that staff wellbeing and organisational capacity must be factored into decisions
- The Chair confirmed that extensive staff engagement would continue, including all staff, C band and team level sessions, to ensure colleagues clearly understood organisational pressures, upcoming decisions, and how priorities and workload would be managed
4.3 Actions were noted as follows:
SB A60: A paper on Strategic KPI’s to be produced and discussed at a future Strategic Board meeting: Owners: Linda Sinclair/Adam Bruton
5. Service Planning Review
5.1 The Head of Portfolio and Governance and the Head of Policy provided and update on Service Planning Review and noted:
- The data gathering phase was 95% complete, with a finalised list of around 49–50 services and five cross cutting capabilities identified
- Initial data validation showed the information was consistent, with no major issues found
- The next phase included categorising services by low/medium/high potential for efficiency or income opportunities, using criteria such as cost, demand, income and performance
- Outputs would inform decisions on prioritisation, efficiency, investment, or stopping work that does not align with organisational priorities
- Findings would also support wider programmes, including digital archiving, income generation and Scottish Government invest to save activity
5.2 NXDs highlighted the robustness of the organisation’s strategic planning work, noting that it was focusing on the key issues.
5.2.1 In discussion the following points were raised:
- NXDs stressed the need for clarity on statutory vs non statutory services, noting that many valuable statistical outputs were non statutory, and this distinction must be used to inform prioritisation
- NXDs highlighted that evidence from service planning would be crucial for future decisions, particularly where difficult choices arose about what NRS can realistically deliver within financial constraints
- NXDs encouraged building stronger evidence of the economic value of NRS services, drawing on examples from the wider cultural sector to support future funding or investment cases
5.3 Actions were noted as follows:
SB A61: Provide a further update at a future Strategic Board meeting on NRS Services at the end of the financial year following completion of evidence gathering, including what options are available and the value of service. Owners Matt Deary/Linda Sinclair
6. People Survey Results 2025
6.1 The NRS Head of People Services and Senior Assistant Statistician presented People Survey Results 2025, This covered the following key points:
- A 66% response rate was achieved, this was a significant increase from the previous year
- Overall staff engagement scored 64%, which was higher than the Scottish Government average and just below the civil service benchmark
- Scores improved across all themes, especially leadership, managing change, organisational objectives, culture and line management
- Learning & Development remained the weakest area, still below government benchmarks
- Workload, wellbeing and work–life balance continued to be a concern due to financial pressures and reduced resourcing
- Bullying and harassment, though low in number, still required ongoing attention under NRS’s zero tolerance approach
- Awareness of wellbeing resources needed improvement, with further communications planned
- The People Survey Action Plan had been refreshed and would now be overseen year round by the EMB and People Board
- Next steps included directorate level results, enhanced communication, pulse surveys and continued collaboration with Scottish Government partners
6.2 NXD’s welcomed the update and complimented the quality of the work. They highlighted the strength of two way communication and expressed appreciation for the progress made in challenging circumstances
7. Fees, Charges, and Income Workshop
7.1 The NRS Chief Finance Officer presented Fees, Charges and Income Workshop and the following key points were highlighted:
- NRS was undertaking a major commercialisation review with Deloitte, exploring modernised charging models, including potential subscription options
- Benchmarking was underway with other cultural and genealogy providers to understand alternative models
- Statutory limits continued to restrict charging flexibility
- NRS currently lacked a dedicated commercial team, limiting capacity to pursue income opportunities
- Opportunities were being explored across data, archival services, digitisation and partnerships, alongside clarifying where charging flexibility exists
7.2 NXDs expressed strong approval of the approach and openness taken in the commercialisation work
7.2.1 In discussion, the following observations were made by the NXDs:
- Stronger understanding of markets, pricing sensitivity and customer behaviour would be essential before changing fees or launching new products
- Opportunities existed in sponsorship, membership, patronage and naming rights
- NXDs encouraged exploring a wholly owned trading entity to increase commercial flexibility
- Tiered or usage based charging models may be viable, particularly for high volume/specialist users
- CivTech would offer a low cost route for innovation
- Learning from international archival and statistical bodies was encouraged
- Suggested beginning with one commercial specialist supported by internal backfill, rather than establishing a full team immediately
7.3 Board Members noted the following Points
- Digitisation partnerships presented strong opportunities
- There was potential to develop packaged data propositions for universities and research bodies
- Capacity would be a limiting factor; members noted the need to build commercial capability, including invest to save options
- Government funding models and internal constraints continued to shape what NRS can progress
- Further digitisation opportunities existed, drawing on models such as The National Archives (TNA)
- FOI enquiries occasionally highlighted areas of public interest that could help inform future service offerings, though charging was restricted
- An invest to save funding bid would been submitted for a small commercial function
8. Any Other Business
8.1. No other business was raised.
9. Date and time of next meeting
9.1. Next meeting was scheduled for 25 June 2026.
