Hansard Society

Who we are

The Hansard Society is the UK’s independent charity dedicated to strengthening Parliament. As Westminster's "critical friend", we explain how Parliament works, why it matters, and how it could be more effective.

Founded in 1944 as a non-partisan membership organisation, the Society counted Winston Churchill and Clement Attlee as its first members. 
 

Our work

A more effective Parliament means better decisions, better laws and better use of public money. The Hansard Society works to make that happen.

We are an independent, non-partisan charity working to improve how Parliament serves the public. We combine authoritative research with practical proposals for change, informed debate and accessible explanations of how Westminster works.

Our “A More Effective Parliament” programme puts that ambition at the heart of our work. It connects parliamentary reform to outcomes that matter in everyday life: better policy, clearer accountability, more predictable law-making and public money well spent. Our research exposes weaknesses in parliamentary processes, shows their consequences and proposes practical solutions. 

We are a leading source of expertise on delegated legislation and statutory instruments—the often-opaque process through which much of our law is made. Parliamentary committees and the media regularly turn to us for analysis, while our Statutory Instrument Tracker® helps people outside Parliament follow and understand these changes.

Our work also spans Private Members’ Bills, scrutiny of public finances, and Parliament’s role in examining treaties and trade agreements. We bring evidence and practical ideas to ministers, parliamentarians, officials, businesses and civil society organisations. 

Through our weekly Parliament Matters podcast, Director Dr Ruth Fox and former BBC parliamentary correspondent Mark D’Arcy explain what is happening at Westminster, why it matters and how Parliament could work better - informing, educating and entertaining along the way.

We publish Parliamentary Affairs, an international journal on representative democracy, and bring people together through debates, lectures, seminars and workshops. In the past year, we hosted the official hustings for the election of the Lord Speaker and the new Lord Speaker’s first public speech on the future of the House of Lords.

Joining the Hansard Society means helping turn ideas for a more effective Parliament into practical action. We are a small team with a wide reach, working on questions that matter to the future of our democracy.

Our governance

A registered charity, the Society is a membership organisation which is governed by an independent Board of Trustees including representatives from across the political spectrum. Underpinning our commitment to non-partisanship, the Speakers of the two Houses serve as honorary Co-Presidents of the Society.