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Scratching away at the Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust to boost its Foundation Trust membership drive, I learn that the regulator, , has this to say in its Guide for Applicants:

"1. A minimum age to be appointed as a governor should be included in the constitution, being at least 16 at the closing date for nominations.
2. Monitor will not specify a minimum age for members. It is for the trust to justify the age.
However, it should be noted that it is not permissible, pursuant to the 2006 Act to
establish lesser categories of membership, such as associate membership."

I was interested to note that the requires its members to be at least 14-years-old. And I was relieved to discover that Monitor requires all governors to maintain a register of interests. But I'm afraid I'm still none the wiser about how or why membership affords greater influence over hospital management - or indeed anything else - than that enjoyed by any other citizen.