Land Estate Committee (LEC) Terms of Reference

Terms of Reference agreed: November 2023
Next review date: September 2024

Purpose

The Land Estate Committee (LEC) is a standing committee established to provide the Board with timely advice and assurance in relation to its remit and to make specific decisions and undertake specific functions as delegated to it by the Board.

The remit of LEC, includes, therefore to advise on the sustainable management of NRW’s land estate, to include investment in the estate, its management, and proposals for changes in its use.

Scope

The LEC is required and authorised by the Board to:

Provide thought leadership and scrutiny of the use of NRW’s managed land estate, to ensure that it is used and managed in a way that promotes the Sustainable Management of Natural Resources (SMNR).
Scrutinise and provide assurance to the Board on performance towards the Corporate Plan Wellbeing Objectives as relevant to LEC.
The scope of the land estate is limited to land under NRW’s ownership and/or management. LEC’s remit includes the Welsh Government Woodland Estate (WGWE); National Nature Reserves (NNRs) in NRW’s direct care; visitor centres; other established recreation or tourism facilities on the Estate; recreational use of inland bodies of water that are included within NRW’s land estate; sustainable commercial development on and/or using the NRW Estate including, for example, timber sales and tourism, recreation and culture developments; and reservoirs; mine tips; and metal mines on the NRW Estate. It excludes the management of flood assets, including among other assets reservoirs covered by the Flood Risk and Incident Management function with the Flood Risk Management Committee.
LEC will complement and avoid overlap with the remit of the Protected Areas Committee (PrAC). The PrAC has particular responsibilities in relation to designation and protected areas and related case work and for mainstreaming SMNR through this context. Specifically, PrAC will be responsible for sub-committee level decisions on designation of areas of the NRW Estate.

Responsibilities

The responsibilities of the LEC are to:

Promote innovative and progressive ways of using and adapting NRW’s land estate to tackle the climate and nature emergencies and the minimisation of pollution;
Leverage its collective authority, experience and influence with external partners such as local communities to work together in tackling the nature and climate emergencies and to minimise pollution;
Consider and advise on high-level proposals for sustainable commercial development of the land estate, including diversification and promotion of green enterprise, with a focus on the 3Ps- planet, people and prosperity;
Provide advice and direction in the development of strategy and policy in relation to the direct use of land by Government for SMNR;
Provide high level advice on development and delivery of the Land Stewardship Service Plan and the elements of the Commercial Service Plan related to the NRW Estate, including the Land Stewardship risk framework and relevant risks in the Commercial risk framework;
Other key land estate management issues on a ‘needs-be’ basis.

Meetings

LEC will aim to meet three times per year, with a regular summation of key issues collated online for communication to the Board, and to assist the budgetary cycle. Additional meetings may be convened as required.

The meetings will primarily be supported by the Secretariat team and members of the Land Stewardship and Sustainable Commercial Development team, and other subject matter experts as required.

Membership

LEC will be chaired by Professor Calvin Jones.

Membership will include four non-executive Board members (inclusive of the Committee Chair).

The Executive Director of Evidence, Policy & Permitting; the Executive Director of Operations, the Head of Land Stewardship; and the Head of Sustainable Commercial Development will also normally attend meetings.

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