Governing for Real PaJeS Wednesday 21 October 2015 © NGA 2014 1 .

Governing for Real

PaJeSWednesday 21 October 2015

© NGA 2014 1www.nga.org.uk


NGA is a membership organisation

• Representing the governors and trustees in all state funded schools in

England

• Our aim to improve the effectiveness of governing boards by providing expert

and tailored information and advice, and challenge when appropriate

Standard governing body membership is £75

GOLD governing body membership is £260

and includes an advice line


Purpose of the session

The purpose of the session is to practice being a governor.

It will cover:

1. Principles and starting points

2. Tips and pointers

3. Example School - introduction

4. A practice governing body meeting

5. Review of the session


1. Principles and Starting Points


Governors are holders of public office

The seven principles of public life, also known as the Nolan principles:

1. Selflessness

2. Integrity

3. Objectivity

4. Accountability

5. Openness

6. Honesty

7. Leadership

How governance is conducted says a lot about an organisation


Starting points

1. Set the vision, ethos and strategic direction for the school

2. Stay strategic and focus on improvement priorities: delegate the

operational to school leaders

3. Don’t get overwhelmed by compliance and reviewing policies: focus on

principles; delegate procedures

4. Recruit great school leaders … and trust them to recruit great staff

5. Ensure school leaders are equipped to do their jobs, with outstanding

HR, procurement, financial and legal advice

6. Make sure the CPD budget is overspent every year – you can’t afford

not to invest in your staff


The NGA’s Eight Elements of Good Governance

1. The right people round the table

2. Understanding role and responsibilities

3. Good chairing

4. Professional clerking

5. Good relationships based on trust6. Knowing the school – the data, the staff, the parents, the

children, the community

7. Committed to asking challenging* questions 8. Confident to have courageous conversations in the

interests of the children and young people* “Challenging” does not mean aggressive or threatening. It means searching, rigorous,

thought provoking


2. Tips and Pointers


Questions a new governor might ask

• When will I receive papers for a GB meeting?

• Where and when will the meeting be held?

• Will have I have difficulty with the venue such as steps? hearing?

• Will the meeting start and finish on time?

• Will there be refreshments?

• Where should I sit?

• Who else will be at the meeting?

• Will I have to speak?


Question Suggested answer

When will I receive papers for a GB meeting?

Should be 1 week in advance; should never have tabled papers

Where and when will the meeting be held?

Room should be appropriate for a board meeting, at a reasonable time for most members

Will have I have difficulty with the venue such as steps? hearing?

Should be fully accessible and encourage governors with disabilities

Will the meeting start and finish on time?The chair is in charge of the clock – some GBs have time limits (eg 90 minutes only)

Will there be refreshments? Yes – you should look after your volunteer governors

Where should I sit?Let the chair sit in the middle of the long side in order to facilitate eye-contact

Who else will be at the meeting?Make sure there are proper introductions, and consider name plates

Will I have to speak?Oh yes! So read the papers, and if in doubt ask for a briefing before the meeting


Chair and Clerk

Chair – elected annually, trained, subject to annual appraisal (if it is good

enough for the staff, it is good enough for the Chair) … and does not hang

around too long (4-6 years is long enough)

Clerk – paid and trained to give proper advice to the GB as well as take the

minutes. A clerk can be put in a difficult position if he/she is asked to serve two

bosses – so try to find a clerk who does not have another job in the school.


If a GB meeting were an orchestral recital …

Governing Body

Chair

Head teacher

Clerk

Governor

Orchestra

Leader of the Orchestra

Principal Soloist

Conductor

Trombonist

Some other role


Knowing the school

Try to triangulate from (at least) 3 sources:

•What the head teacher and senior staff tell you

•What you see or hear with your own eyes and ears

•What you are told by trusted third parties


The headteacher’s report – or is it?

“The headteacher must give the governing body any information asked for to help it carry out its functions.” (Governors’ Handbook)

The HT should report on:

•Progress towards achieving targets

•Reasons for targets not being met as expected - with particular reference to budget allocation and staffing structures and specific initiatives

•Actions taken to address issues raised

•Adjustments to the plans in order for targets to be met

The HT should provide evidence (data) for progress towards and achievement of targets

REMEMBER – the report is by the headteacher, but it is for the governors.


Visiting the school

• Is the purpose of school visits clear?

– Getting to know the school

and / or

– Monitoring improvement priorities

• Is there a policy and are there protocols which have been agreed and

shared with staff?

• Do all governors visit?

• How do governors report on visits?


What sort of questions, and why?

Monitor

What is happening? What are the

facts?

Evaluate

Is it good news?

What might the future

hold?

Act

What next for the SLT?

What next for governors?

Holding the headteacher to account

How many teachers on the intensive support

programme?

How many do you expect to exit the support programme

this term?

Do we need to praise the headteacher?

Financial resources well spent

How much was spent on supply teachers?

Is that over budget?

Alter budget, or control costs?


Do we need a courageous conversation?

S.W.O.T. (Where are we now?)

Our vision (Where do we want to go?)

Our priorities for improvement (How are we going to get there?)

SMART targets for each priority (How will we know when we have arrived?)

Termly milestones (Are we nearly there yet?)

Monitoring arrangements (Are we happy with the progress we are making?)


NGA training ….

Observe somebody else’s governing body (or similar board) meeting ?“Borrow” an experienced chair or clerk from another GB until you have sufficient experience to fly solo ?Appoint an additional governor with particular skills and experience for a fixed period ?

Ideas to consider


When is the dress rehearsal?

• If you were putting on the school play, you’d have rehearsals,

including a full dress rehearsal

• If you were coaching the school first team, you’d have training

sessions before the big match

• If you were teaching a GCSE class, you’d have mock examinations

• If you were holding a governing body meeting ….


A practice governing body meeting

• The rest of our session will be a “walk-through” of a governing body

meeting

• Some of you will take on roles of the governors, principal etc

• The rest of you will observe

• At each stage we will pause, reflect, hear from the observers, take

questions and discuss any learning points


3. Example School

- introduction


Example School

• Example School opened as new free school in September 2013.

• The School is a Jewish school, and has a strong and committed

group of trustees and governors who have seen the school through

founding and early growth

• The School will be an all-through school, taking ages 3-19.

• This year there are only year groups R, 1 and 2 in the primary

section and years 7, 8 and 9 in the secondary section

• The current Principal took up post in September 2014 following the

departure of the founding Principal.


Practice governing body meeting

See handouts: Setting the scene

•In your folders are a governing body agenda and papers

•There is further information and/or instructions for those with active roles and observers in the envelopes

(not in your folders)

• First we will have reading time

• Second we will have preparation time

• Third we will hold a practice governing body meeting, pausing to discuss learning points, and

taking feedback from observers

I will be on hand to keep to time and facilitate


Reviewing the session

The session has covered …

1.Principles and starting points

2.Tips and pointers

3.Example School - introduction

4.A practice governing body meeting

5.Review of the session


Remember …

– Set the vision, ethos and strategic direction for the

school

– Recruit great school leaders … and trust them to recruit

great staff

– Triangulate at least 3 views of the school

– Give praise and thanks where it is due OR have the

courage to intervene when necessary

Governing for Real PaJeS Wednesday 21 October 2015 © NGA 2014 1 .

Documents

Transcript of Governing for Real PaJeS Wednesday 21 October 2015 © NGA 2014 1 .