Governors

The governing board is responsible for setting and maintaining its own effectiveness and ensuring that its work has a measurable impact on school improvement. As part of this responsibility, the board develops and regularly reviews a governance action plan.

This plan is a strategic document that identifies how the governing board will strengthen its practice, address areas for development, and ensure it is fulfilling its core functions effectively. It is informed by self-evaluation, external reviews (where appropriate), and the school’s priorities.

The governing board’s role in creating the action plan includes:

• Undertaking honest self-evaluation of its effectiveness, including the quality of challenge, decision-making, and oversight
• Identifying key priorities for improvement, such as strengthening monitoring processes, developing skills, or improving use of data.
• Aligning governance actions with school priorities, ensuring the board is focused on what will have the greatest impact on pupils’ outcomes.
• Allocating responsibilities and setting clear timescales for actions, often through committees or link governor roles.
• Monitoring progress against the plan, reviewing impact regularly and adapting where necessary.

The governance action plan ensures that the board remains focused on its strategic role, continually improves its practice, and provides robust support and challenge to school leaders. Ultimately, it helps ensure that governance contributes effectively to improved quality of education, leadership, safeguarding, and pupil outcomes.

The governing board plays a strategic role in overseeing the development, implementation, and impact of the School Improvement Plan (SIP). While school leaders are responsible for drafting and delivering the plan, governors ensure that it is robust, focused, and aligned with the school’s vision and priorities.

Governors contribute to the SIP by:

• Providing strategic challenge and support during its development, ensuring that priorities are ambitious, evidence-informed, and focused on improving outcomes for all pupils.
• Ensuring alignment with key areas of school effectiveness, including quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and safeguarding
• Monitoring progress against the SIP priorities, using a range of evidence such as data, reports from leaders, and governor visits
• Holding school leaders to account for the impact of actions identified within the plan, particularly on pupil achievement and wellbeing
• Ensuring appropriate use of resources, so that funding and staffing are effectively targeted to support improvement priorities

The governing board does not deliver the SIP or become involved in operational detail.

Instead, it maintains a clear strategic focus, ensuring that the plan leads to sustained improvements in the quality of education and outcomes for pupils. Through regular review and challenge, governors ensure that the SIP remains a live document, responsive to the school’s needs and driving continuous improvement.

Governor visits are an important part of how the governing board fulfils its strategic role by gaining first-hand understanding of the school while maintaining appropriate boundaries.

The purpose of governor visits is not to inspect, judge, or manage staff, but to support effective governance by:

• Developing a deeper understanding of the school’s context, strengths, and priorities
• Gathering evidence linked to strategic priorities, particularly those within the School Improvement Plan (SIP)
• Triangulating information, alongside data and reports from school leaders, to ensure an accurate view of the school’s performance
• Strengthening relationships and professional dialogue between governors and school leaders

All visits are carefully planned, linked to clear objectives, and conducted in a way that respects the professional roles of staff. Governors focus on observing and asking strategic questions, rather than making judgements about teaching or operational practice.

Following visits, governors record key points and report back to the governing board, ensuring that findings contribute to informed discussion, robust challenge, and effective decision-making.

Through well-planned visits, governors are better equipped to hold leaders to account, monitor the impact of improvement work, and ensure that school priorities are making a positive difference to pupils.

The governing board has a strategic responsibility to monitor pupils’ attainment and progress, ensuring that all learners achieve well and that no groups are left behind. While school leaders are responsible for collecting and analysing data in detail, governors use this information to provide effective challenge and support.

Governors carry out this role by:

• Reviewing pupil attainment and progress data at key points throughout the year, including national and internal assessment information
• Focusing on trends and patterns over time, rather than isolated data points, to evaluate the school’s performance
• Considering the achievement of different groups of pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, those with SEND, and higher attainers, to ensure equity and inclusion
• Using data to ask informed, strategic questions about the quality of education, curriculum impact, and effectiveness of interventions
• Triangulating data with other evidence, such as reports from school leaders and findings from governor visits, to ensure a well-rounded understanding

Governors do not analyse data at an operational or technical level. Instead, they maintain a strategic overview, ensuring that leaders’ evaluations are accurate and that appropriate actions are in place to address any areas of concern.

Through this approach, the governing board ensures that pupil attainment and progress remain central to decision-making, and that the school continues to deliver high standards of education and improved outcomes for all pupils.

The governing board plays a strategic role in promoting and sustaining high standards of teaching across the school. While governors do not evaluate individual teachers or become involved in the day-to-day management of teaching, they are responsible for ensuring that effective systems are in place to support high-quality teaching and learning.

Governors contribute to raising standards of teaching by:

Holding school leaders to account for the quality of teaching and its impact on pupils’ learning, progress, and attainment

Ensuring there is a clear and ambitious curriculum, supported by effective teaching practices that meet the needs of all pupils

Monitoring how leaders support and develop staff, including professional development, coaching, and performance management systems

Using evidence such as pupil outcomes, reports, and governor visits to evaluate whether improvements in teaching are having a positive impact.

Ensuring that safeguarding, behaviour, and staff wellbeing support effective learning environments.

Governors focus on the strategic oversight of teaching quality, asking informed questions and seeking assurance that leaders are taking appropriate action where improvements are needed.

Through effective challenge and support, the governing board helps ensure that teaching across the school continues to improve, leading to strong outcomes and high-quality learning experiences for all pupils.

The governing board plays a strategic role in promoting and sustaining high standards of teaching across the school. While governors do not evaluate individual teachers or become involved in the day-to-day management of teaching, they are responsible for ensuring that effective systems are in place to support high-quality teaching and learning.

Governors contribute to raising standards of teaching by:

• Holding school leaders to account for the quality of teaching and its impact on pupils’ learning, progress, and attainment
• Ensuring there is a clear and ambitious curriculum, supported by effective teaching practices that meet the needs of all pupils
• Monitoring how leaders support and develop staff, including professional development, coaching, and performance management systems
• Using evidence such as pupil outcomes, reports, and governor visits to evaluate whether improvements in teaching are having a positive impact
• Ensuring that safeguarding, behaviour, and staff wellbeing support effective learning environments.

Governors focus on the strategic oversight of teaching quality, asking informed questions and seeking assurance that leaders are taking appropriate action where improvements are needed.

Through effective challenge and support, the governing board helps ensure that teaching across the school continues to improve, leading to strong outcomes and high-quality learning experiences for all pupils.

The governing board has a range of statutory duties set out in education legislation and national guidance. These duties ensure that the school is well-led, accountable, and provides a safe, high-quality education for all pupils.

Governors fulfil their statutory responsibilities by:

Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos, and strategic direction, setting high expectations for all pupils

Holding the Headteacher and school leaders to account for the educational performance of the school, including the quality of education, pupil outcomes, behaviour, and safeguarding

Overseeing financial management, ensuring that public funds are used effectively, transparently, and provide value for money

Ensuring safeguarding and safer recruitment requirements are met, maintaining a strong culture of vigilance and compliance with statutory guidance

Promoting equality, inclusion, and the welfare of all pupils, including those with SEND and disadvantaged pupils

Ensuring statutory policies are in place, reviewed, and published as required.

Monitoring compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, including health and safety, data protection, and curriculum obligations

The governing board operates at a strategic level and does not become involved in the day-to-day management of the school. Instead, it ensures that appropriate systems, processes, and leadership are in place to meet all statutory requirements.

Through fulfilling these duties, governors ensure that the school remains compliant, accountable, and focused on delivering high standards of education and positive outcomes for all pupils.

The governing board has a statutory and strategic responsibility for ensuring that theschool has a clear, up-to-date framework of policies in place to support effective leadership, safeguard pupils, and meet legal requirements.

Governors do not write or manage policies in detail on a day-to-day basis. Instead, their role is to provide strategic oversight and assurance by:

• Approving key statutory policies, ensuring they reflect current legislation, guidance, and the school’s context
• Establishing a policy review schedule, so that all policies are regularly evaluated and remain effective and compliant
• Ensuring policies align with the school’s vision, values, and strategic priorities, including those within the School Improvement Plan (SIP)
• Seeking assurance from school leaders that policies are consistently implemented and have a positive impact in practice
• Monitoring the impact of key policies, particularly those relating to safeguarding, behaviour, curriculum, and equality
• Delegating detailed review work to committees, while retaining overall accountability as a full governing board

Governors focus on whether policies are fit for purpose, understood, and making a difference, rather than becoming involved in operational detail or drafting procedures.

Through this strategic approach, the governing board ensures that the school operates within a clear, compliant framework that supports high standards, pupil wellbeing, and effective leadership.

The governing board has a statutory responsibility to oversee the financial management of the school, ensuring that public funds are used effectively, transparently, and in a way that supports the best possible outcomes for pupils.

Governors do not manage the day-to-day finances of the school. This is the responsibility of the Headteacher and school leaders. Instead, the governing board provides strategic oversight and accountability by:

• Approving the school’s budget, ensuring it aligns with the School Improvement Plan (SIP) and reflects the school’s priorities
• Monitoring income and expenditure throughout the year, ensuring financial stability and identifying any risks at an early stage

• Ensuring value for money, so that resources are used efficiently to improve the quality of education and pupil outcomes
• Overseeing the use of additional funding, such as pupil premium and sports funding, ensuring it is targeted effectively and has measurable impact
• Ensuring robust financial controls and compliance, including adherence to audit requirements and financial regulations
• Planning for long-term financial sustainability, considering staffing, resources, and future pressures

Governors receive regular financial reports and use this information to ask strategic questions, provide challenge, and seek assurance that leaders are managing resources effectively.

Through strong financial governance, the governing board ensures that the school’s resources are used responsibly and are directly linked to improving teaching, supporting pupils, and delivering high standards of education.

The governing board has a strategic and statutory role in ensuring that the school’s staff recruitment processes are effective, fair, and support the delivery of high-quality education.

Governors do not manage the day-to-day recruitment process. This is the responsibility of the Headteacher and senior leaders. Instead, the governing board provides oversight and assurance by:

• Ensuring robust recruitment procedures are in place, including safer recruitment practices that meet statutory safeguarding requirements
• Appointing the Headteacher and, where appropriate, other senior leaders, often through a panel of governors
• Participating in recruitment panels, particularly for leadership roles, to provide strategic input and ensure alignment with the school’s vision and priorities
• Ensuring equality, fairness, and transparency throughout all recruitment processes
• Monitoring staffing structures, making sure they are sustainable, effective, and aligned with the School Improvement Plan (SIP)
• Ensuring that all staff are suitable to work with children, including oversight of checks such as DBS clearance and references

Governors focus on ensuring that the school recruits and retains high-quality staff who are well-equipped to deliver an ambitious curriculum and support pupils’ wellbeing and achievement.

Through this strategic role, the governing board helps ensure that staffing decisions contribute to strong leadership, effective teaching, and improved outcomes for all pupils, while maintaining a safe and supportive environment.