Is this fair? School governors

[MrsNeil]

I was scheduled to have an interview for a school governor position last night at 7pm, at nearly 8pm I received an email telling me that they already had someone with my skill mix on the governing body and therefore would not be interviewing me. I’ve probably been a bit of pain to the school - setting up a parents Facebook page and raising the odd concern over the 10 years or so that I’ve had children there but I thought I could add value. The governing body didn’t ask for my skills prior to offering me an interview, but I did outline some of my specific skills that were mentioned in one of the documents they sent me in my reply to their invitation - if that makes sense. I’m almost sure they didn’t ask the other person that was being interviewed for their skills. Does this sound right?

I was a school governor for a while and certainly we wouldn't have chosen a new governor who duplicated the skills we already had is there were candidates whose skills filled gaps.

No one can say what your school thinks or why they might not have chosen you but their reasoning is very sensible

It was a few years ago but I thought you weren't allowed to interview, has that changed, do parents no longer vote for parent Governors?

If it's a co-opted position, I'm pretty sure they have a duty to recruit people with a specific skill set not already demonstrated by the governing body. They've not gone about it very well, granted. The thing is, most people misunderstand the role - a governor is a representative, not a mouthpiece. It doesn't fall to them to voice parental grievances, so they may be a bit wary if you've already identified yourself thus.

Why would the school need to co-op a governor if there are candidates who want the role?

What type of governor is it, at the school I was a Gov there was a limit on parents filling non parent roles, could it be that?

If it's a straightforward parent governor position at a LA school, then I'm pretty sure there has to be an election if there's more than one candidate, and I'm surprised the clerk/chair doesn't know this. I expect the LA would take a very dim view if they're trying to finagle things to exclude you.

Well, you can always co-opt a governor if you think the board is persistently having elected to it people who don't fill the skill set you need. I lost the election for parent governor to a bloke whose statement read: 'My years as a top businessmen mean I'm not afraid to make tough choices . . . ' but was co-opted because I had a background in family law, which they thought would be helpful.

Was it for a position as a parent governor or co-opted? If it’s a parent governor then yes, there must be an election if more than one person decides to apply. I would contact the Clerk as ask why that wasn’t done (if it wasn’t)
If it was for a co-opted position then the Clerk would have a skills matrix they work to. Sometimes recruitment would be for a specific set of skills, for example finance or HR.
Also, as another poster has pointed out, your role as a governor is as a trustee of the school. It is not to take on parental complaints and lobby other members of the governing body. Maybe look at whether the position of a governor is really for you.

agree if a parent governor there needs to be some kind of election.

Our GB often has a particular skill set that has been highlighted as a gap (eg. finance, HR, legal) so if we have candidates with experience and qualifications in those areas we would always invite them for interview over those without eg. if we already have a qualified accountant on the GB but no one with HR experience, we would be keen to recruit an HR expert rather than someone else with finance experience. We always have loads of people with education experience so the other professional skills are harder to find, especially for primaries. Each governing body has to do a skills audit each year to identify any gaps, so we are held to account to ensure we cover all necessary skills across the team, it's not about personalities. I'm afraid you're just unlucky here, it won't be anything personal. I'd try another school as you'll probably be snapped up by another school GB that is missing your skills - try governors for schools and you can register your skills there.

It’s not co-opted, and in the past they have had elections. The other person who has been interviewed is another parent who works in another school. To be clear, I’m don’t want the role to raise concerns or to lobby for parents. I have had two children go through the school already, another currently at the school and one due to start next September and we live across the road from it. My reasons really are genuine, I thought I could make a positive difference to the school and our community.

I think they have to have an election, then, and I'd tell them so.

Why did they schedule an interview if they didn't need your skills? And am I reading it right that they contacted an hour after the scheduled interview to tell you they didn't want you? Very shoddy behaviour.

@CloudPop yes you read that right.

Well that's shocking

They have to have an election if it's for a parent governor position. I would contact the chair of governors to clarify if it is indeed a parent governor vacancy they're recruiting for.

Thanks @tiredanddangerous that’s what I’ll do. I had no idea where to start so this gives me something to go with.

I'd also suggest contacting the clerk to the governing body.

You would normally do a skills check of the GB before any interview and do a job description of any gaps.

A parent Governor would go to election but others may be by selection depending on the school.

If you had an online interview at 7pm they should have cancelled earlier rather than later.

Me too. If it’s a parent governor vacancy there must be an election. They don’t get to choose. The parents do following a ballot. The Head Teacher usually organises the ballot and sends round info about each candidate to the parents. Anything less than this is not legal. The governors have to accept who is elected unless they are legally unable to be a governor!

If the position is co opted, the governors have every right to choose someone with the requisite skills. Thats the whole reason for co opting. They should have identified the skills they require and recruit accordingly. It’s true many governing bodies don’t always find the skills they want, but they should seek to do so.

You urgently need to clarify which type of governor vacancy it is. Parents can be co opted.

Foundation positions are selective as are associates.

What type of Governor was this?

I meant to say, if all the parent positions are full, a parent with specific skills could be co
Opted, could become a foundation governor and could be a staff governor if they happened to be on the staff. But, if there is a parent governor vacancy and more than one parent is interested, there must be a ballot. Do come back when you know what type of vacancy it was. The Clerk is the best qualified to tell you and will know the rules.

In my LA volunteers who want to be governors are like gold dust. Your willingness to be a governor doesn't have to be this school ( and given the history you've shared might be better off not being) but get in touch with your LA, I'm sure they will offer you a role with another school.

And register here, this is where we also ask schools to look - bit of a match making service!

www.inspiringgovernance.org/volunteers/

From the timings it sounds as though, rightly or wrongly, they decided they didn't want you on the GB so had to come up with a reason.

If they were specifically looking for a governor with finance/HR expertise etc they should have specified that or at least replied far more quickly to you to explain why they weren't going to interview you.

Although if it’s a parent governor role, they have no business interviewing at all!

Any update?