Our approach
Board and governance structure
Maintaining high standards of corporate
governance is vital to ensuring effective
decision making by the Board and therefore the
ongoing success of the Company.
We also adhere to various internal governance
frameworks and practices which ensure that we
have the right systems and controls in place to
allow the Board to effectively oversee the
business and provide challenge where needed.
These include:
–The UK Group Framework, which defines
clearly our responsibilities and relationship
with Banco Santander SA, our shareholder,
taking account of our fiduciary and regulatory
responsibilities. This gives us the autonomy to
discharge our responsibilities in the UK in line
with best practice as an independent board
while providing Banco Santander SA with the
oversight it needs. Clarity of roles and
responsibilities is key to ensuring proper
accountability for decisions and outcomes.
–The Corporate Governance Framework (CGF),
which is designed to support the Boards in
discharging their responsibilities and ensuring
an appropriate degree of delegation throughout
the Santander UK group.
We review the CGF regularly to confirm that
governance arrangements remain effective and
appropriate. The corporate governance structure is
supported by internal control and risk management
systems. An important principle applied throughout
the CGF is the delegation of executive authority
from the Board to the CEO, who further delegates
aspects of their authority to Executive level
committees or other individuals. This supports
effective decision making and accountability in
discharging their responsibilities.
Santander UK group structure and ring-
fencing governance arrangements
The substantive business of the Santander UK
group continues to be conducted by Santander UK
plc, our principal ring-fenced bank (RFB). Ring-
fenced banks operate within governance rules
defined and overseen by the PRA who granted
Santander UK plc certain ring-fencing governance
rule modifications, recognising our ownership
structure and chosen ring-fencing business model.
As set out in last years' report, with effect from
1 January 2024, the PRA approved revisions
to our ring-fencing rule modifications which
simplified our governance arrangements,
including the ability to have common Santander
UK Group Holdings plc and Santander UK plc
Board and Board Committee memberships,
subject to certain safeguards. As such, Mark
Lewis, Dirk Marzluf and Nicky Morgan were
appointed to the Board of Santander UK Group
Holdings plc, and the composition of the Board
Committees was aligned.
One of the safeguards agreed is that if a conflict
matter (as defined by the PRA) arises between the
two companies, three INEDs holding PRA senior
management functions (SMF) will have veto rights
on Board decisions. These INEDs are Nicky
Morgan, Mark Lewis and Ed Giera. David Oldfield
will succeed Ed Giera in this role with effect from
10 March 2025. Nicky Morgan will chair the RFB
Board meeting in the event of a conflict matter
decision.
The role and responsibilities of the Board
The Board is collectively responsible for promoting
the success of Santander UK for the benefit of its
stakeholders, taking into account the likely impact
of our decisions in the long-term, as well as
balancing the interests of our other stakeholders
and our contribution to wider society. Our
Stakeholder voice statement in the Strategic
Report explains how we engaged with our
stakeholders in the year.
The key decisions and matters reserved for the
Board's approval, such as the long-term strategy
and priorities, are set out in the CGF. A copy of the
Schedule of Matters Reserved for the Board is also
available on our website, which does not form part
of this Annual Report.
As Chair, I have overall responsibility for the
leadership of the Board, for ensuring its
effectiveness in all aspects of operation and for
promoting a culture of openness and debate.
These responsibilities are formalised in the
CGF. The composition of the Board helps to
ensure that no one individual or small group
dominates the Board's decision-making. The
diversity of skills, experience and background of
Directors enables them to provide constructive
challenge, strategic guidance and offer
specialist advice.
There is a clear division of responsibilities
between the leadership of the Board and the
executive leadership of the business. The
responsibilities of the Chair, CEO, Senior
Independent Director (SID) and Non-Executive
Directors (NEDs) are agreed by the Board and
set out in separate role statements within the
CGF and are available on our website, which
does not form part of this Annual Report. The
Board is also supported by its Committees, who
make decisions and recommendations on
specific responsibilities delegated to them. This
enables the Board to spend more of its time on
strategic, forward-looking matters.
Board Committees
The Committees play an essential role in
supporting the Board, giving focused oversight
of key areas and aspects of the business. Their
roles and responsibilities are set out in their
Terms of Reference which are available on our
website and which do not form part of this Annual
Report. The Terms of Reference are regularly
reviewed by each Committee to make sure they
remain appropriate. Cross-Committee
memberships provide visibility and awareness of
matters relevant across the Committees, and the
chair of each Committee reports back to the Board
on its activities after each meeting.
In addition to our five core Board Committees,
shown on the previous page, the Board are also
supported by committees which are stood up as
needed to allow dedicated time for topics at a
more focused forum. In December 2024, we
created a Board Special Projects Committee to
focus on remediation, special projects and
transformation matters.
Each of the core Committees is chaired by and
comprised of only INEDs, except for the Board
Nomination & Governance Committee, where
Pamela Walkden, a Banco Santander group
appointed NED (GNED) is a member.
The Chair of each of the core Board Committees
has each prepared a report which includes a
description of their role and composition. These
are presented in the sections that follow.
How governance contributes to the delivery of
our strategy
Our governance arrangements contribute to the
development and delivery of our strategy by
promoting accountability and responsibility, and
ensuring information flows and independent insight
from the NEDs.
While all Directors are collectively responsible for
the success of the Company, the NEDs exercise
objective judgement in respect of Board decisions,
and scrutinise and challenge management
constructively. They also have responsibilities on
the integrity of financial information, internal
controls and risk management.
As a Board, we are responsible for ensuring that
the business is purpose-led and that our
decision making and activities reflect our core
purpose to help people and businesses prosper.
We do this by setting and developing our
strategy, approving risk appetite and policies and
overseeing their delivery and implementation by
management. The Board is accountable to our
shareholders for the proper conduct of the
business and seeks to represent the interests of
all stakeholders.
The Board has identified the following key
stakeholders: Customers, Employees,
Regulators, Communities and Investors. For
more on how the Board balances the interests of
these stakeholders, see the Board Responsible
Banking Committee Chair's report and our
Stakeholder voice statement in the Strategic
Report.
Culture and hearing the views of the
workforce at the Board
The Board recognises that culture plays a
fundamental role in delivering our strategic
priorities and ensuring the success of the business,
we are ultimately responsible for ensuring that our
activities reflect the culture we wish to instil
throughout the business to deliver on our values of
simple, personal and fair.
Our Code of Conduct sets out how we and all
employees of Santander UK should act and
behave towards everyone we encounter through
our work. This, alongside our TEAMS behaviours -
Think Customer, Embrace Change, Act Now, Move
Together and Speak Up - contribute to drive our
culture and maintain the standards that underpin it.
All new employees are required to complete
training on the Code of Conduct and annual
refresher training is required for all employees.