The role and responsibilities of school governors

As a community school with a delegated budget, the Governing Body at Headlands Primary has a general responsibility for the conduct of the school with a view to promoting high standards of educational attainment within a caring environment, whilst ensuring the safety and well-being of all its pupils.

The Role of the Governing Body consists of three interwoven strands:

• To exercise a largely strategic role in the running of the school.
• To act as a critical friend to the school’s Leadership Team through support and challenge.
• To be accountable to all of the stakeholders of the school.

The strategic element of the role can be achieved by:

• Establishing a strategic framework for the school.
• Setting its aims and objectives.
• Setting and regularly reviewing a set of policies and targets for achieving the objectives set.
• Reviewing progress and reviewing the strategic framework in the light of progress.
• Facilitating all necessary resources to enable the achievement of the aims and objectives set.

The critical friend element involves the Governors role in the achievement of school improvement. This element of the role can be achieved through:

• The monitoring and evaluation of the work of the school.
• Visiting the school.
• The monitoring and evaluation of the schools’ annual performance data.
• Governors being prepared to provide strong challenge to school leaders when necessary. Such challenge should always be in a supportive context.
• Having strong links between the Governing Body and the school Senior Leadership Team.
• Ensuring that a strong positive relationship exists between the Headteacher and the Chair of Governors.

The accountability element of the role must be exercised to include all of the schools’ stakeholders. This can be achieved by:

• Regularly reporting on progress made by the school and what is happening in school.
• Ensuring that the views of stakeholders are always taken into account.
• Ensuring that the school is accountable for all of its actions.

Statutory responsibilities of the Governing Body include:

• To appoint a Chair and Vice-Chair of the Governing Body.
• To appoint a Clerk to the Governing Body.
• To approve the annual school budget, and to allocate and monitor the budget.
• To act, on behalf of the LA, as the employer of all staff at the school.
• To appoint all staff to the school.
• To establish and annually review the schools’ pay policy.
• To promote high standards of education and achievement in the school.
• To give due regard to any views expressed by parents or guardians of pupils at the school.