Charitable status

The University of Manchester’s status as an exempt charity (exemption number: XR82062) is derived from the Charities Act 2011. We are responsible to the Office for Students, which is charged, as our principal regulator, with monitoring our compliance with charity law obligations.

The University is aware of its responsibilities as a charity to act for the public benefit and has had due regard to the Charity Commission’s public benefit guidance. The objects of the University, as set out in the Royal Charter awarded in 2004, are “to advance education, knowledge and wisdom by research, scholarship, learning and teaching, for the benefit of individuals and society at large".

Corporate documents

Download the University Charter (PDF document, 21KB) or visit our corporate documents page to download our full financial statements, up to and including the year ended 31 July 2023.

Trustees of the University

The trustees of the University as of 1 September 2024 were as follows:

Category 1, ex officio members (2) 

  • Professor Duncan Ivison, President and Vice-Chancellor
  • Alexandra Baynes, Union Affairs Officer of the Students' Union

Category 2, lay members (13) 

  • Phillippa Hird (2028) – Chair
  • Ann Barnes, BA (Hons), Diploma IHM (2026) – Deputy Chair
  • David Buckley BSc (Hons), MSc (2025)
  • Anna Dawe LLB (Hons), LLM, PGCE (2025)
  • Deirdre Evans, BA (Hons), ACMA (2025)
  • Nick Hillman, MA, PGCE (2025)
  • Guy Grainger, BSc (Hons) (2026)
  • Jatin Patel, MEng BA (Hons), MEng and MA (Cantab) (2027)
  • Robin Phillips, BA (Hons) (2025)
  • Dr Tony Raven, BSc (Hons), MSc, DPhil, MIoD, FInstP (2026)

Associate member

  • Natasha Traynor, BA, MBA (2025)

Category 3, members of the Senate (6) 

  • Professor Danielle George, MBE, CBE, BSc, MSc, PhD, CEng, FIET, FRSA, FCGI, FBCS (2025)
  • Dr Reinmar Hager, MSc, PhD (2026)
  • Professor Paul Mativenga, PhD, MSc, BEng Hons, FRSA (2027)
  • Professor Hema Radhakrishnan, BOptom, PhD, MCOptom, PFHEA, FHEA (2026)
  • Professor Fiona Smyth, BSc (Hons), PhD, FRGS (2026)
  • Professor Soumhya Venkatesan, BA, MA, MPhil, PhD (2027)

Category 4, members of staff other than academic or research staff (1) 

  • Tom Jirat, BA (Hons) (2025)

Category 5, student member (1) 

  • Katie Jackson, Humanities Officer, The University of Manchester Students' Union (2025)

The following members of the Board of Governors have declared trusteeships as follows:

NameTrusteeships
Alexandra Baynes

Trustee Board Chair, The University of Manchester Students' Union

Anna Dawe

Trustee, Wigan Foundation for Technical Education

Professor Danielle George Trustee, The Institution of Engineering and Technology 
Nick Hillman Trustee, Nfer
Alice Webb Trustee of the Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales

Contact us

The University of Manchester
Oxford Road
Manchester
M13 9PL