Chairing Skills

Tuesday 3rd July 2007

Introductions & Housekeeping

Course Objectives

• To enable governors to clearly identify the role, remit, boundaries and personal skills required to be an effective and successful Chair.

• To raise awareness of the advice and guidance that is available to support you in your role.

Expectations of the Chair

Job Description

Person Specification

Expectations of the Chair

An insight from

Gill Crandon - Headteacher, Markham Primary School

Alan Howells – Chairman, Markham Primary School

Expectations of the Chair

• Job Description

• Person Specification

The 7 Key QuestionsEstyn Inspection Framework

Jane Lancastle

Key Role• Give a clear lead in organising the Governing

Body’s work• Delegate roles and ensure other governors are fully

involved• Manage meetings effectively• Hold regular meetings with the Headteacher• Keep other governors fully informed• Co-operate with other agencies to support school

improvement

Support

• New Governors

• Liaison– Parents– Staff

• Public Face – Assemblies, Awards, Sports day, Parents

Evenings, Fund Raising, PTA

Additional Powers

• The Chair has no more authority than any other Governor

• Emergency- Discharge any power of the Governing Body which can be delegated.

• Emergency Meetings

• Additional Agenda Items

• Casting Vote

The most effective Chair

• “The most effective Chair of Governors galvanises the rest of the Governing Body into action, delegating responsibilities to make the most of the expertise that exists, and reforming ways in which governors conduct their business so that the needs of the school are most efficiently met” OFSTED 2001

Governors Strategic Role

Liz Everson

What does it mean?

Effectively this can be more simply expressed as follows:-

• Planning

• Monitoring– Checking that the school is doing what the

Governing Body planned it should do.

• Evaluating

Monitoring

• How do you do this?

• What can you do if the Head won’t ‘play ball’?

• What can you do if your governors are just not interested?

How can you Monitor

Monitoring – How?

• Head’s report to governors

• Governing Body Committee reports

• Data on examination results, attendance etc

• School Development Plan /Self Evaluation Report

• Estyn Inspection Reports

• School Visits

Getting the Head ‘on side’

How to ‘Use Your Head’

• Head’s Written Report – Meet, discuss, ask governors what they need – be realistic.

• Data – APR / ADAR – Always take the opportunity for all governors to receive this information

• SDP / Self Evaluation – Ask to be involved – show you are interested.

Governor Visits

• Estyn Inspections

“Governors are regular visitors to the school. The school has an effective ‘governor of the month’ arrangement so that all governors are able to judge at first hand the outcomes of decisions, which they have previously made”

• “Governors observe lessons, discuss aspects of teaching during workshops with staff and write their own self evaluation reports.

This is outstanding practice, which fosters an open and professional relationship between governors and teachers”

How to promote visits

• Ensure that all governors, staff and the head understand what monitoring means in this context

• Stress the benefits• Suggest a protocol be agreed• Introduce on a trial basis• Accept the heads right to determine who is

on site and move on

How can you motivate your governors to visit

Governor’s Not Interested• Is this a sign of a greater malaise? – do you need to

revitalise your governors• Look at your membership/ attendance, are meetings

too long/boring?• Is it a time commitment problem – could other

arrangements be made?• Have governors checked if their employer allows

special leave for Governor Duties/ consider governor expenses review

Governors’ Strategic Role

Liz Everson

Break

HANDLING

TRICKY ISSUES

Boardroom Split

You notice a rift developing within the Governing Body. The parent governors are moaning about the school and the staff representatives feel undervalued.

Other governors are noticing this and are staying away from meetings.

How would you tackle this situation?

• You are the Chairman of Anytown Governing Body• A member of the teaching staff approaches you to ask your approval to

take the last two days of the Summer Term off in order to go on holiday. The teacher explains that her husband is restricted in the dates he can take and if they do not leave for their holidays on that particular date it is unlikely that they will be able to go at all. She would prefer not to approach the Headteacher as he has been less than accommodating in the past.

• How would you approach this issue?• Are there other issues to tackle here?

STAFF QUERY

Disgruntled Staff

You hear rumours of discontent in the staffroom. Some feel the Headteacher dictates his/her will to them whilst others feel he/she is only doing what is necessary to move the school forward.

There are fears of an “us and them” situation developing.

What do you do?

A Headteacher in Difficulty• A member of staff has raised concerns about the

Headteacher’s health.

• You have noticed ‘mood swings’ by the Headteacher.

• The Headteacher has dealt with issues inconsistently

• The Headteacher has made bizarre and inappropriate comments about a teacher

• You notice that the Deputy Headteacher is more involved in the day to day management of the School

• Gossip starts to reach you from parents concerned about the Headteacher’s unusual behaviour.

Child Protection

An angry parent has approached you, alleging their child has been struck by

the Headteacher .

Who needs to be consulted?

The Press

If you are contacted by the Press for any reason we strongly recommend that, along with informing the Head teacher, you consult our Communications Team based at Tredomen.

They will be pleased to help you and offer appropriate advice.

Who to contact

Mrs. Rosemary Mathews

Communications

Manager

Policy & Central Services

01443-864262

Mr. Stephen Pugh

Media Officer

Policy & Central Services

01443-864264

Chairing Styles

Steve Cresswell

Do You Recognise Yourself?

• Visionary

• Coaching

• Affiliative

• Democratic

• Pacesetting

• Commanding

Do You Recognise Others? 

I belong to...

A Group

A number of persons or things considered as a collective unit.

A Team

A group of people organised to work together.

From: Oxford English Dictionary

The Consequences Of Failure• Alliances and cliques. -A and B teams• Chaos and confusion.- Power controlled by a few.• Individually motivated. - Effect upon others?• Disillusionment - Lack of Action.• Objectives inadequately set and communicated.-

Effect? Power centralised to whom?• Little commitment - Why bother?• End of an idea.- Who suffers?

Managing Conflict

for all for life . i bawb am byth

Irene Jones

By

Managing Conflict

Conflict can be inevitable part of decision making. Research shows that teams who do not always agree, make better decisions and achieve more than teams who are always in agreement

Conflict

When faced with conflict, we sometimes become emotionally involved and become challenging or defensive. This sort of reaction can cause tong-term damage rather than resolving the situation.

Listen Stop Think Stop Speak

Strategies for resolving Conflict

Asking people who are upset to explain why they feel strongly so that everyone understands

Asking for the views of those who are less emotionally involved but who will give a frank answer.

Strategies for resolving Conflict

Summarising the different view points, which may clarify the situation.

Remaining emotionally uninvolved.

Considering a vote to help come to a resolution.

Ensuring that the views of all are given a fair hearing by not rushing the decision making.

Being firm about the need to make a decision – if not immediately, then in the very near future.

Strategies for resolving Conflict

Strategies for resolving Conflict

Securing commitment to a corporate decision so that the disagreement does not continue.

Being clear about the process for revisiting the decision in the future.

Strategies for resolving Conflict

Being sensitive to those who have lost their argument.

Being positive about the value of a healthy debate.

Chairing Skills

There is an up side

Tell us yours!

Course Objective

• To enable governors to clearly identify the role, remit, boundaries and personal skills required to be an effective and successful Chair.

• To raise awareness of the advice and guidance that is available to support you in your role.

Thank you for attending

Good luck with putting into practice the skills you have learnt

today