Any parent governors out there?

[chewybacca]

My children's primary school has a parent governor position up for election.
I'm tempted to run.
What does the position involve in terms of time commitment?
What issues have you had to deal with?
Do you feel that you have actually made a difference?
The school is Currently of E controlled. What does this mean in terms of governance?
Any input would be appreciated.
Thanks.

1. meetings plus monitoring plus training plus reading
2. everything from safeguarding to maintenance
3. I don't know
4. in addition to the standard requirements you also have a duty to ensure the Christian ethos and character of the school

Parent governors have all the responsibilities of other governors, but the burden of confidentiality can be tough to bear, especially if things are going wrong.

You need to be strategic, challenging and willing to learn all sorts about legislation, data etc.

One meeting each half term, visits if you can. Lots of policies. Different to any other meetings i had done at work.

I really enjoyed it. Time - two meetings per term minimum then as much as you can give on top. I felt I definitely made a difference - dealt with recruitment of about 5 staff including a Head teacher, disciplinaries including a sacking, ofsted inspection, head teacher performance management.
It was hard work, but at the time I had lots of free time to give - others were able to do far less time wise and still make an invaluable contribution.
The thing I found most difficult was the assumption that some people made that if they bought you a coffee, you’d spill the beans. Some people were completely shameless about asking stuff that was clearly confidential and I found it difficult to say “ sorry, poke your nose out” without sounding arsey.
But I’d do it again, I really enjoyed it.

It’s important to remember that the parent governor is a representative parent, and not a parent rep. There’s quite a difference and you are not there to listen to parents views/concerns and bring them to the table. You are also involved in strategic leadership and not operational matters so you can’t have a say on the day to Day running of the school. It’s time consuming but very interesting and rewarding.

The time commitment can be substantial and there are the main meetings of the Governing body which might be one or two a term, but the main area of your work will be done via committees. These may meet more often.

The other side of the work is getting up to speed with what you need to know. Your LA should run induction courses and offer training to help you in the role. For example, a big one is always data interpretation. You might be interested in Safeguarding, school improvement, performance management, buildings, health and safety, pupil premium, SEND, finance etc etc etc. You need to find your niche. It’s impossible to do everything. Some schools also have Governors with specific attachments to classes and/or subjects. You will be required to visit the school and write reports on your visits, usually via a template. It will become vital that you understand what Ofsted will be looking at and you must interpret data and question the Head on progress towards targets. A good Head will be giving you detailed data and insight into how well the school is doing.

As for making a difference: a Governing Body can, an individual shouldn’t, unless the GB is dire. You work as a team. You are not a group of individuals. Head teachers run schools. Governors do not in the same sense. You hold the Head to account. You get to know the school and make sure the information you are receiving is robust and is working towards the goals set out in the Improvement Plan. As a parent, you don’t take up individual causes. You also respect confidentiality.

My children went to C of E controlled. They have Governors appointed by the Church. In all other respects in Governance they are pretty similar to a community school. The C of E Aided schools have more autonomy. Controlled schools may access church education services too for advice.

If you have the time and interest, go for it. If you write a an election statement, don’t say you will take up complaints or change things for the better immediately. You cannot. What you can do is work as part of a team and share a vision for the school. Promise to work hard and train for the role. Good luck.

I agree with the previous posters.

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. You can expect about 2 meeting per term (one on a committee and one for the Full Governing Body meeting) leading to about 6 meetings of about 2hrs each per year.

I repeat, it varies slightly from school to school and it depends on how involved you want to be.

In all types of schools, governing bodies should have a strong focus on three core strategic functions:
a. Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction;
b. Holding the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils; and
c. Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.

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.

School Governors do not run the school; they are there to take an overview and see that it delivers.

Sometimes one can get involved with sacking, redundancies and discipline matters.

Some useful sites: The Governance Handbook and UK Governors Forum and Being a School Governor and Governors for Schools.

I enjoy it and I've learnt a lot. I like being involved with the school and making a contribution - watching and learning how others deal with and solve problems. I have gained in self-confidence and speaking up in meetings.

I’m sure you can Google ‘being a school governor’ yourself.

Good Luck

The thing that you do need to be prepared for is the unexpected challenges, which then tend to test the governing board in a way that is not always appreciated until it happens.
Could you for instance take on active role in the necessary discipline panel for a pupil who has been permanently excluded or for a staff member who is appealing being disciplined by the head teacher. Almost for sure you will need to get up to speed on being financially aware of the school finances as many schools are now feeling the effects of no funding increases.
All these things need you to undertake appropriate training, so whilst the figures for meetings already quoted might be about right for a school that is doing OK, you do need to figure in extra hours for training and other meetings.
I am a governor at more than one school so yes very much do it because it gives so much back to the community and secondly you do learn a lot not only about your capabilities but about schools generally.

35 hours a year is a bit low. That’s less than 1 hour a week. With training,time taken reading and interpreting Head Teacher reports and data, not to mention monitoring visits, writing up visit notes and prep time for meetings, less than 1 hour a week is very light. You would certainly do more if you chair a committee or lead on PP or Finance for example.

The Governing Body should not really allow a few Governors to do the bulk of the work and others to sit back and do a lot less. If every governor did the minimum it would be an ineffective Governing Body. I think the more you take part, the more satisfying it is. Just turning up to the odd meeting doesn’t get anyone anywhere and certainly not the children in the school.

I find it painful. The governing board is weak and does not challenge the HT - in fact any attempt to challenge is shot down in flames. I have sleepless nights over it and will be quitting soon.
Sorry, its not what you wanted to hear but its been a massive disappointment.