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Audience Councils
The BBC Trust works very closely with the Audience Councils in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. These councils play a key role helping the BBC Trust understand the needs, interests and concerns of audiences.
Each council is chaired by the BBC Trust member for that nation. The councils' role is to bring a wide range of licence fee payers' perspectives to bear on the work of the Trust.
Community links
The councils have links with many different communities in their nations and organise outreach programmes and other activities enabling them to advise the Trust on how well the BBC is promoting its Public Purposes, and how well it is serving licence fee payers in different parts of the UK.
Consultative role
The councils have the right under the Charter and Agreement to be consulted on a range of issues including reviews of Service Licences and any proposal requiring a public value test.
Membership
The councils for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland each have 12 members, including the Chairman. The council for England is larger because it is supported by a network of Regional Audience Councils, one for each of the broadcasting regions within England. The Chairman of each Regional Council is a member of Audience Council England.
Council members are recruited to ensure they reflect the diversity of the UK, have connections with communities and are able to take a view on how the Public Purposes should be promoted.
Remit
The formal remit of the Audience Councils can be found in the Charter and Agreement.
Protocol
The Audience Councils' Protocol giving full details of the councils and their constitutions is available on the Accountability page.
