Call for Committee Chair Nominations 2026

Call for SRF Committee Chairs

Nomination to Council for 2027

Members of the Society are cordially invited to stand for nomination for the following role, due to retirement or being elected to new positions as indicated below:

• Grants and Membership Chair and General Secretary (GMC): Dr Rebecca Blanchard (1 position)
• Programme and Awards Chair (PAC): Dr Kim Jonas (1 position) being elected to SRF Chair

If elected, full responsibility will start at the SRF AGM, currently scheduled to take place on Thursday, 14 January, 2027 during the Fertility 2027 meeting.

Please note that there will be a further call for nominations later in the year for Ordinary Council members.

What does the role of a SRF Council Member and Chair of Committee entail?

Successful candidates will be working alongside the Council Members, Journal Editors in Chief and Earl Career Representatives listed below.  At the AGM, all members of Council will be invited to confirm their intention, given their current circumstances, to fulfil the next year of their term on Council.

Period of Office
Both Chair roles will hold office for a period of four years.

Under the current constitution Trustees (all voting and Ex Officio members) may not be beneficiaries of the Society and are ineligible to receive, awards, grants, travel support and other such benefits available to members.

Attendance at meetings

The Committee Chairs will be expected to attend the following meetings during each year;

• Three Council Meetings (in person in January at Fertility, May and November dates tbc)
• Three Officer meetings (virtual, scheduled between the main Council meetings)
• Organise and chair regular committee meetings to complete the committee activities, see below for further information.

Council Meetings are held at a hotel in an accessible UK location, currently at Manchester Airport on Thursday/Friday, attendance will be required for both days. Meetings will start on Thursday at 14.00, followed by a working dinner (the meeting is on location) and continue Friday from 09.00 – 16.00. Overnight accommodation and food will be provided during the meetings and travel (economy) expenses reimbursed according to the SRF Expense policy.

You should expect to attend all in-person

• May and November this will require two working days to include travel time.
• Fertility 2027 you will be expected to arrive a day preceding the Fertility Conference for an afternoon meeting and partake in the full programme of activities including, chairing, judging SRF awards and posters, and social activities.

Virtual meetings

• Officer meetings are scheduled between the main Council meetings, held virtually, and are usually two hours
• Committee meetings – these will be organised by the chair, the frequency will depend on the responsibility of the committee, but is expected to be once a month.

Council Members are also expected to be available throughout the year to assist in ad-hoc decision making and have a key role in running and leading the Society, supported by the Secretariat.

Below are the responsibilities of the committee chairs, who will work closely with the SRF secretariat and committee members to manage and process them.

PAC Chair Responsibilities

• Work with the PAC committee to come up with Programme ideas that support the interests of SRF membership at Fertility meetings
• Attend monthly Fertility Programme planning meetings with joint hosts, ARCS and BFS.
• Attend 2 in person Fertility Programme meetings, typically in March and September, for programme design and abstract vetting, respectively.
• Invite speakers for sessions assigned.
• Work with the EC Reps to support the EC symposium.
• Assign markers and evaluate the nominations for SRF prizes and medal lectures and communicate the outcomes to the awardees.
• Represent SRF, alongside SRF Chair, on the Roger Short award joint panel.
• Assign session Chairs to the SRF satellite day and Fertility meetings
• Coordinate oral communication and poster judging at the SRF satellite day and Fertility meetings.
• Chair the Fertility meeting (rotating through the 3 societies), typically once during the term of office.

GMC Chair Responsibilities

Membership

• Applications are processed monthly accordance with the society membership criteria.

Grants – SRF Grants and Scholarships (Grants & Awards | Society for Reproduction and Fertility).

• Travel Grants – three times a year
• Fertility Bursary – annually
• Vacation Scholarship – annually
• Research Grant – annually
• Stuart Rhind Communication Award – annually
• Educational Equipment Grant – annually

Role as Charity Trustee

As a Member of the Council, you are taking on the responsibility as a Charity Trustee, whose responsibilities cover the following:

You and your co-trustees must make sure that the charity is carrying out the purposes for which it is set up, and no other purpose. This means you should:

• ensure you understand the charity’s purposes as set out in its governing document
• plan what your charity will do, and what you want it to achieve
• be able to explain how all of the charity’s activities are intended to further or support its purposes
• understand how the charity benefits the public by carrying out its purposes

To assist with your understanding of the Society, please refer to the Articles of Association and Byelaws which can be found under the “Who We Are” tab on the SRF Website www.srf-reproduction.org

Further details about the duties of a Charity Trustee can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-essential-trustee-what-you-need-to-know-cc3/the-essential-trustee-what-you-need-to-know-what-you-need-to-do#trustees-duties-at-a-glance

Eligibility (Articles of Association 47 – 50)

• Under the Society’s rules, eligible SRF Members (fully paid as of Monday 29 June 2026) may stand for election.
• Members who have previously served on Council as an Officer may stand if one year has elapsed since the end of their previous years of service.
• Nominations must be supported by two references from two fully paid (as of Monday 29 June 2026) members of the Society. (For reference, a list of current Members can be found in the Members Area of the SRF website under “Notice of Elections”).
• Please note that under the current constitution Trustees (all voting and Ex Officio members) may not be beneficiaries of the Society and are ineligible to receive, awards, grants, travel support and other such benefits available to members.

How to apply

Members wishing to stand for election must complete the Council Nominations form with their letters of recommendation to the SRF Secretariat via the SRF website.  Nominations must be submitted by application on the SRF member area by 09.00 hrs BST on Monday, 6 July 2026.  

Please include:

• What you would bring to the role and goals for your term as a Committee Chair.
• Brief details about yourself including your research and interest in reproductive biology.
• Previous experience in a similar and/or trustee role (knowledge of the Society is preferred).

• Nominees must obtain at least two letters of support from at least two SRF Members (who have paid for 2026 membership). Letters must be uploaded with their applications.
• Recent photo – head and shoulders.

Timeline

Monday 09.00 BST on Monday 6 July 2026 – Deadline for Nominations 

Article 50.5

To be eligible for election candidates must be nominated by at least two Company Members and must be recommended for election by the Council. The Council will review all nominations and may invite candidates for an interview prior to being put forward to an election.

Week Commencing Monday 13 July 2026 Candidate interviews as necessary.

Monday 20 July 2026

Providing the above, should the number of nominations put forward by the Council exceed the number of vacancies, then, as indicated in the Articles of Association Article 50.7 to 50.10, the Secretary shall issue voting instructions to each eligible member of the Society who has paid for their membership by Monday, 29 June 2026.

Monday 9 August 2026:

Voting closes. Results of the elections will be announced by Monday, 10 August 2026 and confirmed at the SRF AGM 2027.

January 2027: The names of those successfully elected as Trustees will be formally announced at the SRF AGM.