Becoming a Governor

Being a School Governor

 

Being a governor gives you the opportunity to support and challenge school.  It will also give you an insight into how schools are run on an operational and strategic level. 

 

You may be interested in becoming a school governor and contributing to the development of school.  Below is some information for you to consider if you are thinking about putting yourself forward as a governor.

 

Time commitment

 

You are expected to attend a Full Governing Body meeting every half term.  Each meeting lasts about 2 hours and there is usually some pre-reading and preparation to do prior to the meeting.  Meetings generally start at 6:30pm.

 

All governors are also expected to sit on a committee. There are committee meetings every half term.  

 

Governors are expected to fill in a SKILLS AUDIT to assess their skills, knowledge and understanding of specific areas required for effective governance.  On the basis of the Skills Audit governors are matched to a committee where their skills can be best utilised.

 

We have two commitees:

 

Standards Committee - This committee focuses on Special Educational Needs and Disability, pupil progress, attainment, staffing, the quality of teaching and learning, Continuing Professional Development and standards.

 

Resources Committee - This committee focuses on the Health and Safety, pay, staffing, the budget, the condition of the school premises and prioritises areas for improvement and development.

 

In addition to attendance at governors' meetings there is a requirement that governors commit additional time to school to undertake a range of joint activities such as planning and book scrutinies; attend staff meetings and INSET Days; Learning Walks; Parent and Pupil questionnaires and meet with staff to focus on specific tasks. Following activities and tasks in school governors are expected to write a short Governor Visit Report which is shared at Full Governing Body meetings.  This way the whole governing body is kept informed about the wide range of support and challenge activities taking place in school.

 

Please note that governors are not expected to undertake all monitoring activities.  It is important that these tasks are shared out amongst governors and are matched to identified governor skills.

 

Governors are also expected to attend training events to learn about school governance and to keep up to date with latest information linked to Governance and School Inspections.

 

School governors are key to continued school improvement and we appreciate the commitment that our governors make to school.

 

Current governors would be happy to have an informal chat with you to answer any questions you may have about being a governor.  We are very keen to ensure that new governors are aware of what the role entails so that they are able to fully commit to supporting and challenging school.

 

If you require any further information please do not hesitate to contact school and we will be able to point you in the right direction to make an informed decision.

 

Zoe Fletcher