Trustees

Governance Arrangements 

The Books Council of Wales has had charitable status since it was established in 1961 and our governance arrangements are in line with the requirements of the Charities Commission.

On 1 April 2021, the Books Council transferred from being an unregistered charity to a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) with a new Board of Trustees.

There are 11 members on the Board of Trustees, including the four Chief Officers who transferred from the Council’s former Executive Committee and seven new appointments which were announced on 1 April 2021 following an open recruitment process.  

The Trustees are responsible for the governance of the Books Council and oversee the strategic direction of the charity, supporting the work of the specialist in-house team of experienced professionals serving the book industries of Wales in both Welsh and English.

The Board holds full meetings four times a year and ensures the Books Council meets and maintains its objectives as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO).

Board of Trustees

Linda Tomos (Chair)

Rona Aldrich (Vice-Chair)

Alfred Oyekoya (Treasurer)

Professor Jane Aaron

Meinir Ebbsworth

Rajvi Glasbrook Griffiths

Alwena Hughes-Moakes

Lowri Ifor

Professor Carwyn Jones

Ruth Thomas

Professor M. Wynn Thomas

Dr Caroline Owen Wintersgill

 

Objectives 

The aim of the Books Council is to promote, encourage and develop the public’s appreciation and interest in books, literature and reading in Wales without limiting the overall objectives identified but rather to further those aims and not otherwise:

  • to support and assist the book industry in Wales through grant awards and other means;
  • to support, promote and assist the production and distribution of books and other literary and artistic material, in whatever form it may have been recorded (whether known or as yet unknown) in the two official languages ​​of Wales, Welsh and English, or relating to Wales;
  • to organise events supporting book promotion, reading and the book sector as a whole;
  • to support the promotion and publication of such books and other material in Wales.

The Books Council’s Council

Under the new constitutional arrangements which came into effect on 1 April 2021, all other members of the Executive Committee and members of the Books Council’s Council – which includes representatives from the county councils and other organisations – transferred on 1 April 2021 to become ‘Council’ members of the charity. 

An Annual General Meeting of the Council, which includes all members of the charity, is held once a year in July. The meeting is public and open to all.

COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP: 2024/25

All Members of the Board of Trustees (see details above)

Honorary Counsel
Gwydion Hughes

Honorary Solicitor
Alun P. Thomas

Local Authority Representatives

Gwynedd
Cllr Paul Rowlinson

Conwy
Cllr Cathy Augustine

Denbighshire
Cllr

Flintshire
Cllr Ian B. Roberts

Wrexham
Cllr Beverley Parry-Jones

Powys
Cllr Edwin Roderick

Ceredigion
Cllr

Pembrokeshire
Cllr John T. Davies

Carmarthenshire
Cllr Lewis Davies

Swansea
Cllr Elliott King

Neath Port Tablot
Cllr Dan Thomas

Bridgend
Cllr

Merthyr Tudful
Cllr Lisa Mytton

Rhondda Cynon Taf
Cllr Rhys Lewis

Torfaen
Cllr Joanne Gauden

Blaenau Gwent
Cllr Sue Edmunds

Newport
Cllr Pat Drewett

Anglesey
Cllr Ieuan Williams

Caerphilly
Cllr Julian Simmonds

Vale of Glamorgan
Cllr Rhiannon Birch

Cardiff
Cllr Jane Henshaw

Monmouthshire
Cllr Emma Bryn

Other Representatives

Chief Librarians
Richard Bellinger
Gareth Griffiths

ESTYN
Claire Morgan

Arts Council of Wales

WJEC
Dr D. Mark Smith

National Library of Wales
Pedr ap Llwyd

CILIP
Lou Peck

Friends of the Books Council
Ion Thomas / Bethan Gwanas
Marian Delyth

Books Council Sub-Committees
Dr Siwan Rosser
Robat Arwyn
Professor Matthew Jarvis

Co-opted Members
Jonathan Adams

The Books Council has three subcommittees which make decisions on the allocation of grants for publishing and reading promotion. Members of the Subcommittee are appointed as part of an open recruitment process and are independent.

All members of the Board of Trustees, the Council of the Books Council and the Subcommittees carry out their work voluntarily and do not receive payment except for relevant expense claims.

PUBLISHING DEVELOPMENT SUBCOMMITTEE (WELSH-LANGUAGE)

Robat Arwyn (Chair)
Nia Gruffydd (Vice-Chair)
Esyllt Maelor
Dr Llion Pryderi Roberts
Dorian Morgan
Glenys Llewelyn
Dr Richard Crowe
Gruff Ywain

PUBLISHING DEVELOPMENT SUBCOMMITTEE (ENGLISH-LANGUAGE)

Prof Matthew Jarvis (Chair)
Alan Watkin (Vice-Chair)
Philip Gwyn Jones
Prof Emeritus Ian Gregson
Lee Coveney
Akosua Darko
Chinyere Chukwudi-Okeh
Rhodri Mogford Jones

READING PROMOTION SUBCOMMITTEE

Dr Siwan M. Rosser (Chair)
Delyth P. Huws
Menna Beaufort Jones
Gwawr Maelor
Simon Fisher
Jo Bowers
Carly Gray
Kate Cubbage
Carys Dawson
Amanda Bennett
Ela Parri Huws
Sioned Jacques
Rajvi Glasbrook Griffiths

DESIGN GROUP

Prof Jane Aaron (Chair)
Bethan Mair
Angharad Morgan
Elinor Wigley

IT SUBCOMMITTEE

Avril E. Jones (Chair)
Dafydd Thomas