Thinking of becoming a school governor?
What is a Parent Governor?
The definition of a parent governor, is a person who is elected as a member of the Governing Body of the school, by parents of registered pupils at the school and who is a parent at the time of their election. Governors come from all walks of life and bring a rich variety of skills and experience to schools. You do not have to be a specialist in education to take on this voluntary role.
Parents are eligible to become a school governor if you meet the following criteria;
A person is disqualified from serving for election (or appointment) as a parent governor if s/he is:
The Role of a School Governor
To contribute to the work of the governing body in ensuring high standards of achievement for all children and young people in the school by:
Activities: As part of the governing body team, a governor is expected to:
1. Contribute to the strategic discussions at governing body meetings which determine:
2. Hold leaders to account by monitoring the school’s performance; this includes:
3. Ensure the school staff have the resources and support they require to do their jobs well, including the necessary expertise on business management, external advice where necessary, effective appraisal and CPD (Continuing Professional Development), and suitable premises and that the way in which those resources are used has impact.
4. When required, serve on panels of governors to:
The role of a governor is largely a thinking and questioning role, not a doing role.
A governor does NOT:
1. write school policies
2. undertake financial audits – even if the governor has the relevant professional experience;
3. spend a great deal of time with the pupils of the school
4. fundraise – this is the role of the Parent Council – the governing body should consider income streams and the potential for income generation, but not carry out fundraising tasks;
5. undertake classroom observations to make judgements on the quality of teaching
6. do the job of the school staff; if there is not enough capacity within the paid staff team to carry out the necessary tasks, the governing body need to consider and rectify this.
As you become more experienced as a governor, there are other roles you could volunteer for which would increase your degree of involvement and level of responsibility (e.g. as a chair of a committee).
In order to perform this role well, a governor is expected to:
Qualifications to serve as a governor
A governor must be aged 18 or over at the time of his/her election or appointment and cannot hold more than one governorship at the same school. A person is disqualified from holding or continuing to hold office as a governor or associate member if he or she:
o a disqualification order or disqualification undertaking under the Company Directors Act 1986;
o a disqualification order under the Companies Directors Disqualification (Northern Ireland)
Order 2002;
o a disqualification undertaking accepted under the Company directors Disqualification
(Northern Ireland) Order 2002;
o an order made under section 429(2)(b) or the Insolvency Act 1986 (failure to pay under a
county court administration order).
There is lots of training and support available to help you to develop in the role. We have four parent governors in total, so other parent governors could talk to you about this role which gives a unique insight into what happens in school.
If you would like to be a part of Alderman Payne Primary's Governing Body please enquire about any vacancies.
Contact Paul Stratford chair@aldermanpayne.cambs.sch.uk, the Chair, or Sue Blyth the Headteacher.
Visit Cambridgeshire County Council website, https://www.learntogether.org.uk/services/governors , for guidance and advice about being a governor plus an application form.
Unfortunately not the ones with chocolate chips.
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