How we are run
The MS Society is a charitable company limited by guarantee. This means our Board of Trustees are also (unpaid) company directors who take on important legal responsibilities for our organisation.
We are here for everyone affected by MS in the UK. We support our community, help people live well, and promote research into MS and conditions like it. This is our charitable purpose.
What does the Board do?
Our Board of Trustees is collectively responsible for making sure everything we do meets our charitable purpose - now and in the future.
They set our strategy and review our progress against it. They agree our annual plans, budget and performance targets. They oversee how we manage our finances and risk, and ensure we comply with the law.
Our Chief Executive (CEO) is appointed by the Board to manage our day-to-day running on their behalf. The CEO and their team report to the Board at their meetings.
Read the Board of Trustees Register of Interests
Board meetings
The Board meets four times a year. Most trustees also sit on expert committees that meet regularly to oversee specific areas of our work.
Read board meeting summary reports
How do we choose trustees?
Trustees are chosen for their skills and diversity of lived experience. This ensures that our Board has a wide range of expertise to effectively scrutinise and challenge our work. And that our strategic direction, values and culture reflect what's important to all parts of the MS community.
Most of our trustees have a personal connection to MS, either because they have MS or someone they care about does.
Our Board is made up of 10 to 13 people. Some are appointed to fill specific roles (chair and treasurer) or co-opted because they have certain skills we need. Eight of them are voted for by our electorate.
Trustees stay on the Board for a set number of years, depending on whether they are appointed, co-opted or elected. They are all chosen through an open recruitment process.
Vote in trustee elections
You need to be a member of our electorate to vote for new trustees to join the Board. When you join, we’ll ask if you’d prefer to vote online or by post.
Listening to our community
Our Board is committed to putting the experiences of people affected by MS at the heart of the decisions they make about how we’re run.
National Councils
One of the ways we listen to our community is through our National Councils.
Council members are appointed by the Board to be a voice for our MS community in the nation they represent. Council chairs attend Board meetings so our trustees hear about what matters most to different groups of people affected by MS throughout the UK.
Hearing from our volunteers
Every day, people like you volunteer to help their local communities, support people with MS and raise vital funds for our work.
We run monthly online sessions where our volunteers come together to hear updates, ask questions, and share successes and challenges.
Our trustees and council chairs join Volunteer Voice sessions to keep up-to-date with what’s happening locally.
Board meeting summary reports
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About us
We’re the MS Society – a community of people living with MS, scientists, campaigners, volunteers and fundraisers.
We understand what life’s like with MS, and we support each other through the highs, lows and everything in between.
And we’re driving research into more – and better – treatments. For everyone.
Together, we are strong enough to stop MS.