School governors represent one of the largest volunteer forces in England and Wales. However, public knowledge about governance remains relatively low.
According to a recent GovernorHub poll, 57 per cent of members of the public in England are unaware that governors and trustees are responsible for ensuring strategic direction in a school. At the same time, those who do understand the role of governance are more likely to be older, highly educated and white.
Furthermore, that same research shows that most governors and trustees arrive in the role through a “closed shop” route, meaning they have worked in the education sector or are parents of school-age children.
Only 9 per cent of governors who responded to a poll had no prior knowledge of the school sector when they volunteered.
Unsurprisingly, given all of this, many governing boards lack diversity, with schools missing out on valuable insights from different voices across society.
Attracting more diverse school governors
As a charity, Governors for Schools works to help diversify the governance landscape by recruiting a wide range of volunteers for school boards - and things are improving.
In the past 12 months, Governors for Schools has helped to place over 2,000 volunteers, of which 40 per cent are from an ethnic minority and 36 per cent are under 35. Both of these latter figures represent an increase on the previous year.
We hear about what motivates people to take up the role, and we have many examples of governors who are making a real difference on the front line.
Naeem Younis applied to be a school governor in 2018 following a direct approach from Governors for Schools and is now chair at a school in West London.
He believes that board diversity is key to creating a healthy tension that encourages debate and leads to better decisions and outcomes.
“Having the cultural understanding of your community is important in building an effective relationship with it, understanding its values, and this all contributes to knowing what will produce the best outcomes for the children attending the school,” he says.
Louisa Roberts applied to be a governor after attending a presentation that we gave via her employer. She works in the professional services sector and was driven to apply by wanting to give back while using her skills. Having a supportive employer, KPMG, made it easier for her to take up the role.
“KPMG is fantastic at promoting our place in society and that sense that we are not just here to work, and we are always encouraged to focus on skilled volunteering and leveraging our expertise elsewhere,” she says.
Clearly then, there are budding governors out there, ready and willing to help to improve educational standards for young people.
The primary challenge for today’s schools is in reaching this untapped talent pool and nurturing the governors of the future to ensure that more individuals like this are found on school boards.
How do we find them?
What will motivate more people to volunteer their time and skills on governing boards?
To improve the diversity on school boards, the education sector must share the message that if you are over 18, have a few hours to spare per month (our surveys suggest around seven hours), and want to make a difference in young people’s lives, you, too, can become a school governor.
For schools, this can be achieved by taking some direct action when it comes to finding new governors.
- Look at your board - what are you missing? Tailor your adverts to say that you’re keen to receive applications to fill the gaps you have, and think about where you can publicise the adverts to make sure they are seen.
- Reach out directly to your networks, parents and wider community - many people are flattered to be asked, and it’s that tap on the shoulder that makes them apply. They may not see themselves in the role but letting them know why their perspective is needed makes them think twice.
- Talk about the role - tell people what a school governor does and why it’s important. So many still think it’s not a role for them, and we need to change the public’s perception. Do your pupils know who the governors are? Do they know that could be them in three, five or 10 years’ time?
- Ask local workplaces to promote the role to their staff as an opportunity where you can make a difference, using your skills and developing new ones. We believe all employers should be encouraging their employees to apply
Of course, we know that schools can’t do this alone, which is why we’re committed to supporting schools and academies in finding new volunteers. Our job is far from done and we’ll continue to help bring new perspectives and skills to boards by finding the right person for their vacancy.
How can you help?
If you are interested in becoming a governor, we are always open to applications of interest - especially today on National School Governors’ Awareness Day, which aims to highlight the key role governors play in schools in the hope of inspiring more volunteers.
Overall, it’s vital that the thousands of governor vacancies are filled by people who bring new skills and perspectives to the role.
Hannah Stolton is CEO of Governors for Schools
