What do governors do?

Working alongside the headteacher, governors' responsibilities include:-

• attending meetings regularly and contributing to discussions.  Governing Bodies must meet at least once per school term.

• helping to establish the aims, policies and objectives of the school, and how standards of education can be improved (this is known as governors' strategic role)

• helping to draw up the school development plan

• setting the school budget and monitoring expenditure

• ensuring that the national curriculum is implemented and hearing any complaints about its delivery

• appointing, promoting, supporting and disciplining
  school staff, and deciding their salaries

• acting as a link between the local community and the
  school

• producing an action plan after an OFSTED inspection
  and monitoring how the plan is put into practice

• considering cases of excluded pupils

• reporting to parents at an annual meeting.

• establishing a Performance Management Policy

• ensuring accountability.

Some areas of the Governing Body's work ( 30kb) are delegated to committees (made up from a smaller number of governors).

Interested in becoming a school governor?

The constitution of all Governing Bodies is set out in their individual 'Instrument of Government'. There are a number of different types of governor ( 29kb).

If you are interested in being considered as a governor in Sunderland, why not apply on line?

Support to School Governors

The Governor Support Team was established in 1985 and provides Governing Bodies in Sunderland with a professional clerking and support service.  The Governor Support Team also organises and delivers the Authority's comprehensive Governor Training programme.

Over 97% of Sunderland Schools use the Authority's Clerking Service.  In addition, the clerking service is used by headteachers' groups in the city, Connexions, Schools Forum, collaborative joint committees with City of Sunderland College for sixth form provision, Pupil Referral Unit and a number of central services' user groups.

What the clerking service does for its schools:

• Provision of trained, well-informed clerks and associated advice and support to governing bodies to ensure that the business of governing bodies and their committees is carried out efficiently and within the law
• Under the terms of the Education (School Government) Regulations, governors must appoint an independent Clerk to the Governing Body.  The Authority’s Clerking Service S.L.A. not only complies with this legal requirement but also offers the service for all committees of the Governing Body
• Disseminating information to schools and governors through production of publications for governors which advise schools/governors of changes in legislation, Council policies, national and local initiatives
• Regular correspondence updates for headteacher, chairs and other governors
• Arrange meetings of Governing Body and all committees
• Prepare and distribute agenda (with associated papers) for all meetings within statutory time limits
• Ensure attendance at meetings of a suitably trained and briefed clerk at all meetings where requested
• Advise and offer objective guidance on meeting procedure, governing body organisation and responsibilities
• Produce accurate, high quality, minutes of meetings
• Complete any follow up action and correspondence on behalf of Governing Body
• Monitor the membership of the governing body and attendance at meetings
• Prepare material and advise on election for new governors and organise governor election/appointment (we will even count the ballot papers for you if you wish)
• Advice on annual parents reports
• Direct liaison with other Authority services to assist Governing Bodies in the appointment of staff (for example, the headteacher appointment process) and other Authority services (for example the annual review of salaries, redundancy procedures, staff dismissal etc.)
• Access to general advice and support on all governance issues
• Processing CRB checks on school governors.

Other useful information:

Disqualifications from holding the office of governor ( 27kb)

FAQ ( 35kb) - frequently asked questions concerning school governance

Governor training programme ( 324kb)

Agenda Booklet and Governors' Gazette are now on line

Sunderland Schools Forum - Find out more about how the Forum is constituted and what it does.  You can also access minutes of the Forum and the Standards Fund Monitoring Group here

Sunderland Governors Association ( 29kb) find out more about the activities of this independent group

Links for related external web sites:

	Information for school governors
	Office for Standards in Education the inspectorate for children and learners in England
	To improve the educational welfare of children by promoting high standards in schools, and raising the effectiveness of governing bodies
	Education Service to support those involved in education; to address current and future needs and faithfully express and promote the Church’s pastoral mission in education
	How the diocese is organised, how it seeks to fulfil its calling, and how it relates to ecumenical partners and to the world Church

How to contact us:

You can contact the Governor Support Team  in any of the following ways:-

E-mail: governor@sunderland.gov.uk

Central office - Governor Support Team, Children's Services Department, PO Box 101, Civic Centre, Sunderland SR2 7DN

Tel:  0191 553 1368
Fax: 0191 553 1400

Governor Training office and Clerking Service office - Governor Support Team, Stannington Centre, Stannington Grove, Sunderland SR2 9JT

Tel: 0191 553 2626 (clerking service)
Tel: 0191 553 2780 (training)
Fax: 0191 553 2784

Some of the documents above are in PDF () format, which requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.

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