School Governor Reflections Resource

What was the issue addressed?

There have been exclusion hearings relating racist behaviour by two children. One in particular, was persistently using inappropriate language and actions to ethnic minority students in the school.

What happened?

I have previously dealt with similar issues but not from young students. The education department and staff assisted me with information on the issues. The Headteacher is now resolving the issue with trained staff and governors.

What lessons were learnt?

Staff dealing with issues of this kind need to be properly trained and supported.

Reflections…

Have there been any serious incidents of racism in your school? If so, how has the governing body supported the school in addressing this?

Do staff and governors at your school receive regular training on racism and other forms of discrimination?

Have your say…

Have you had experiences similar to these? What do you think about the situation described?

The demands of the governor role

Read the commentary here

Welsh

What was the issue addressed?

I don’t think most governors are aware of the full range of their responsibilities and if I’m honest I don’t think they fulfil many of those responsibilities.

From my perspective as Chair, (and most Chairs are there not because they are hugely enthusiastic to do the job but because they are the ones who didn’t say ‘No’ when asked), it is quite alarming how much we are expected to know and do and we only get away with not knowing or not doing them, because no-one checks and if events don’t expose any shortfalls.

What happened?

We are undertaking a self-evaluation exercise based on a framework devised by Governors Wales and it keeps revealing things we should be doing or have done or should do in the future, which we aren’t doing or aren’t doing as well as we should.

What lessons were learnt?

I’d like to see examples of how all the work of governance can be managed in a structured properly monitored way: maybe some kind of program which contains all the responsibilities and flags up when they need to be addressed.

Reflections…

What advice and guidance would you give to fellow governors about managing the workload?

Do tensions arise in your governing body caused by the demands of the role? What could you do to address these?

Have your say…

Have you had experiences similar to these? What do you think about the situation described?

Becoming a federated governing body

Read the commentary here

Welsh

What was the issue addressed?

Our governing body changed to become a federated governing body. It took time to understand and address the merger of policies and staffing into a federated model.

What happened?

We received support from the Local Authority in forward planning a timetable for review of policies. There was heavy reliance on our policies committee to volunteer time. Most policies required significant input from professionals.

The policy merger and new governing body was successfully set up over the course of two terms.

What lessons were learnt?

There needs to be realistic recognition concerning the time it takes to review and change policies. A timetable and good planning are essential.

Reflections…

Has your governing body had to conduct a major review of policies in response to changes in the status of your school or composition of your governing body?

What challenges do you think there are in becoming a federated governing body?

Have your say…

Have you had experiences similar to these? What do you think about the situation described?

How to agree pay for staff migrating to a new school

Read the commentary here

Welsh

What was the issue addressed?

Tough issue – negotiate and agree salary levels for a new substitute team for a brand new school. Difficult because some members of the governing body want to place all new deputies on the same pay as they are all going to be new in their job, while others want to acknowledge previous experience through salary variations.

I felt that the discussion was led by everyone on a ‘gut instinct’ basis rather than a firm and professional approach. I was happy with the final decisions but a little uncomfortable as it felt like ‘guess work’. No attendees made reference to guidelines or rules.

What happened?

Individuals on the governing body give their individual views. Local Authority officers advise. Proposals have been put forward.

What lessons were learnt?

The issue was resolved but I still feel a bit uncomfortable as we had not followed any recognized guidelines. Lesson – next time in a matter of this nature we will ask if guidance is available.

Reflections…

What policies does your school have in place to agree salary levels for new staff?

Is there a culture in your governing body of seeking professional advice and guidance?

Have your say… Have you had experiences similar to these? What do you think about the situation described?

Accepting the closure of a school

Read the commentary here

Welsh

What was the issue addressed?

Our headteacher was overworked and under pressure, facing the prospect of becoming the only teacher in our small school. The governors wanted to support her but knew that the position of our school was probably untenable, due to dwindling numbers. Some governors wanted to fight on and remain open, but others were more realistic. As a GB, we had to seek advice from multiple sources to form a definite opinion on how to proceed.

What happened?

The GB sought advice from the county council, requested numerous meetings (which were arranged) and met with community representatives to discuss the prospect of closure.

The GB ultimately decided to enter into voluntary closure, against the wishes of some governors.

The support of local people was invaluable and their input led to a series of events to celebrate the life of the school and turn our final year into a joyful one.

What lessons were learnt?

Despite the sad outcome, the closure of our school was dignified and positive, so, our actions were successful in resolving the issue. The lesson we can learn from this process is that making the right decision will not always be the outcome we, as governors want. Making difficult choices is part of being an effective governor and the needs of the children must always remain paramount.

Reflections…

Do you any worries about the possibility that your school may have to close sometime in the near future?

What difficult decisions has your governing body had to take in the interests of pupils?

Have your say…

Have you had experiences similar to these? What do you think about the situation described?

Managing the turmoil of school merger

Read the commentary here

Welsh

What was the issue addressed?

We are in a slightly turbulent time as the school is newly amalgamated and we are currently awaiting completion of work building work.

What happened?

The teaching staff have all been changed around and this has been challenging for everyone but has definitely provided huge learning and training opportunities for staff and pupils alike. The issues are still ongoing but many battles have been won!

What lessons were learnt?

I would like to think that the governors have been on hand to facilitate and help in many ways. We have been working with the council, planners and funding bodies to enable speedy progress of the merger process.

Reflections…

Has your school had any major building work done recently? How did the school manage the disruption this can cause?

If your school went through a merger process, what do you think would be the biggest challenges for the governing body?

Have your say…

Have you had experiences similar to these? What do you think about the situation described?

Challenges of recruiting senior members of staff

Read the commentary here

Welsh

What was the issue addressed?

Sometimes there are very few applicants for more senior posts e.g. deputy head. It begs the question, why? Are senior positions seen as stressful, underpaid? It makes it quite difficult when there is a very small field to choose from.

What happened?

We had no choice but to interview a very small number of shortlisted candidates. The local advisor was very helpful and supported us through the process. The head was also excellent in visiting the candidates’ schools, seeing them at work and in providing us with full information. In the end, we found an excellent candidate and he was appointed.

What lessons were learnt?

Perhaps, the deadlines, time frames for interviews like this can be relaxed somewhat to allow a school to ensure that it has a wide field of candidates.

Reflections…

Has your school encountered problems recruiting senior members of staff?

What things do you think could help improve the recruitment process for senior members of staff?

Have your say…

Have you had experiences similar to these? What do you think about the situation described?

Managing difficult decisions about staff redundancies

Read the commentary here

Welsh

What was the issue addressed?

Mostly around decreasing budgets, having to face cuts and implement these cuts. For example, there was a HR process required to decide which TA contracts will be renewed/redundant. We decided that infants TA hours would not be reduced as much as junior TA hours.

What happened?

There was then an appeal letter sent from junior TAs and a response from infant TAs. Staff morale was reported as very low. The Governing body had good reasons for not cutting infant TAs due to higher levels of need for young children. This was accepted and staff morale seemed to settle, as expected, once changes were in place.

What lessons were learnt?

Our close and trusted relationship with the previous and current head was a help. We recognise the need for better understanding of HR processes.

Reflections…

Has your school had to make any difficult decisions about staff redundancies? How did the school manage the impact of these?

What do you do to maintain positive staff morale in time of financial restrictions?

Have your say…

Have you had experiences similar to these? What do you think about the situation described?

Addressing the fallout from a poor school evaluation

Read the commentary here

Welsh

What was the issue addressed?

I was appointed as Chair of Governors of a school in a low Estyn category. The senior staff were in denial and governors felt that they had not been properly advised about issues in the school

What happened?

A new Headteacher was appointed who had a totally different outlook.

We reviewed the Post-inspection Action Plan (PIAP) with a new & experienced Challenge Advisor.

Progress against the PIAP was carefully monitored.

What lessons were learnt?

School now has a better reputation in the Community and has verified high standards of Wellbeing.

Staff have a pupil focus that has resulted in all pupils being valued.

KS4 Examination results have recovered.

Reflections…

Have you ever had cause to doubt the judgement of your school’s leadership on the issues relating to the quality of provision? If so, what did you and/or the governing body do about those concerns?

What do you think would be the challenges and opportunities of implementing a PIAP?

Have your say…

Have you had experiences similar to these? What do you think about the situation described?