Being a School Governor

Being a school Governor is interesting, worthwhile and rewarding. To be an effective Governor, you will need to be clear about your role and responsibilities.

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In Blackburn with Darwen there are approximately 1000 people acting voluntarily as governors, bringing to that role their experience of everyday life in their wish to help children and schools.

Effective governors do not need educational expertise but do need to be committed to their school, willing to ask questions, to both challenge and support the Head Teacher. They also need to be able to devote the time necessary to work as an enthusiastic member of the governing body team, and to attend meetings and get involved in the life of the school.

Blackburn with Darwen Local Authority (LA) values the contribution from governors from all walks of life, bringing their unique life experiences and skills which can be utilised to support school improvement. New governors will be supported by other governors on the governing body as well as Blackburn with Darwen LA. The Governor Services Team working for the LA provide services such as clerking of meetings, a comprehensive termly training programme and advice and guidance to help governors be effective in their role.

The Governing Body

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The governing body is made up of representatives of parents, staff, the community, sponsor and the LA. In church-sponsored ('aided') schools, the majority of governors are appointed by the sponsoring body, known as 'the foundation.'

The headteacher is entitled to attend all meetings of the governing body, and also its committees. Normally a governing body will meet every term, with between three to five committees doing the more detailed work, feeding into the main meeting.

Governing Board Diversity Data

The governors of Holy Trinity CE Primary School believe it is important that boards reflect the diversity of the school communities they serve. Diverse boards promote inclusive school environments and provide diverse role models for staff and young people. 

The governors are in the process of collecting data on the diversity of the board, including data on age, gender and ethnicity. This data will be used to inform their recruitment and training needs and ensure there is always a diverse range of perspectives around the table to support decision making. 

Due to the size of our governing board, we will not publish this data online as it may be possible to identify individual governors and we have a legal obligation to protect personal data.