School governors

[DoingTheBestICan]

Ds has just come home from school with a newsletter saying that they are advertising for school governors & nomination forms can be picked up from reception.

I am interested in becoming a governor but to be perfectly honest i dont really know the full ins & outs of being one,can anyone tell me & can you nominate yourself?

Thanks.

You cant nominate yourself at our school, you need a proposer and a seconder and would assume most work that way.

There are main termly meetings, few other meetings and then the rest depends upon how many sub-committees you join.

Its very interesting but not always what people to believe it to be. Sometimes you'll have to make decisions you may not agree with for your child but its the over all school that has to be taken into consideration.

You can nominate yourself at our school.
You are a parent which means you are entitled to stand as parent governor. Ask to speak to the clerk of governors and they should be able to get a governor to talk to you about the role.
Being interested in the school is a great starting point.
Good luck.

Go for it!

I've been a governor at 2 schools, and found it really interesting.

Doesn't take up much time. 2 or 3 meetings a term.

You normally fill in the form and ask your friend to sign it saying that she's nominated you.

Often there's no elections because the same number of people apply as places.

I think i might pop into the reception Mon morning & ask for a form,if you cant nominate yourself i'll ask my friend to get me one.

I love our school,it has a lovely feeling to it & dh absolutely thrives there.

Thanks ladies for the encouragement,i havent got that much confidence in myself but i really want to do this.

Doh,ds not dh

My DH is a Governor at our DD's infant school.

I think he could nominate himself .

There were more "applicants" than vacancies so they each had to write a short paragraph detailing what experience etc they could bring to the role. The other parents then had to vote for 2 applicnts, and he was really surprised to be elected - especially as we are new to the area/school /and other parents. Maybe it was because he was a man - with business experience!

He heads the finance committee and is on another couple of subcommittees. The other parent appointed at the time was a teacher (not at the school) and with everybody pulling together and getting new measures/systems in place they've just achieved Outstanding Ofsted status

I am the chair of Gov's at my DS's school. Its a fantastic opportunity to get involved. As a Gov, you are there as a critical friend to the school. You are not there to agree with everything the Head says, but you are there to support and challenge in a constructive way. All our Guv's also sit on a committee, such as finance, curriculum or premises/H and S. It isn't just about going to meetings, but actively taking part in the decision making that goes on.

I expect all the Guv's at our school to contribute to meetings and also get involved in things like observing lessons, challenging policy and procedure and attending training sessions, so they understand how school finance works, how to access and use Raiseonline and more importantly understanding the roleof a Guv.

It is a very interesting and worthwhile thing to do, but good Guv's do more than just attend 2-3 meetings a year.

The thing that you do need to recognise is that being a school governor can involve some really difficult decisions, that as others have said are about what is best for the school, not an individual pupil or staff member.
The role of school governor is to set the strategic direction of the school, as opposed to be involved in the day to day running of the school (that is the head's responsibility). As such as a parent governor you are a representative parent on the governing body, not representing the views of parents to the governing body.
Do it, it is a really worthwhile if low paid (as in none) job.

Being a Governor varies slightly from school to school. The main thing is ?time and commitment?. You should think of the Governor meetings as meetings that you must attend and arrange your social/work life around them. You should attend the training sessions that your Local Authority provides.

School Governors are the biggest volunteer organisation in the UK. We estimate that it takes up about 35hrs per year although, of course, it depends on how involved you want to be.

Governors deal with Budgets, Policies, Targets and things which are 'a step away' from the 'day to day' running of the school.
Any question like 'My child doesn't ... isn't ... can't ...' is not for a Governors meeting.

Two useful sites: ukgovernors and Governor Line.

I?m sure you can Google ?being a school governor? yourself but:-

Being a Governor can be extremely rewarding and interesting but for most people there is a steep learning curve before they feel that they are doing something worthwhile. As the Governing Body operates at a mainly strategic level there is a fair amount of paperwork that comes our way that at times can seem daunting.

The Role of a School Governor

1 To Provide a Strategic View
2 To Act as a ?Critical Friend?
3 To Ensure Accountability

Good Luck