Co-op votes in favour of radical changes

In addition to the board overhaul, the Co-op will create a “Senate” of 10 to 15 members to oversee a “Council” of up to 100 tasked with protecting its values.

The Co-op has been plagued by a series of setbacks in the last 18 months since discovering a £1.5bn hole in its finances last year. The Mutual has since lost its banking arm, and has been forced to sell off certain businesses to plug debt.

Euan Sutherland, the former chief executive, called the mutual “ungovernable” when he quit in March amid opposition to his attempted reforms.

Among the changes:

• A group board of 11 people will be set up, with a majority of independent directors. The recruitment process for the new board will start immediately

• The board will be made up of an independent non-executive chair, five independent non-executive directors, two executive directors (including the group chief executive) and three member-nominated directors

• A council will represent members and act as the group's guardian of the purpose, values and principles of the society. The body, to comprise a maximum of 100 members, will have power to hold the group board to account

• A senate, elected by the council, will help co-ordinate the activities of the council and act as a nexus for interactions between the council, the board, the executive and members.

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