DEATHS and accidents on school trips and conflicts with headteachers and other school staff cause governors most anxiety, helpline advisers say.

The government-funded Governorline has taken more than 7,000 calls in its first year - 2,000 more than expected.

Chairs of governing bodies are the biggest single group of callers, followed by parent governors, according to sample figures covering November.

Jane Phillips, chairwoman of the National Association of Governors and Managers, which is represented on the helpline’s management board, said:

“We have feedback from our members that they are very pleased with the service. We are not surprised that the volume of calls has exceeded expectations. Governors need support and Governorline helps to fill this need.”

Advisers have identified four key issues from the year’s calls. Concerns about school trips peaked over the summer, following the death, among others, of Lambeth schoolgirl Bunmi Shagaya, 11, who drowned in a French lake.

September’s queries were dominated by procedural concerns about electing chairs, while performance management of headteachers - particularly whether the whole governing body should be told the head’s performance targets - was an issue in December. The other big issue was managing conflict within school.

In November alone, around three in 10 calls about teachers related to conflict, with 12 per cent specifically mentioning problems with the head.

“It’s not everyone behind barriers shouting at each other. But because you have so many people there (in schools), you have many conflicting interests,” said Cliff Baldrey, a Governorline adviser.

“You’ve got people in local education authorities requiring things, you’ve got governors who are volunteers getting involved in the running of schools, and you’ve got the teachers.”

Appointments and pay headed the list of most common staff-related issues, while exclusions and admissions were the biggest concern about pupils. However, pupil-related calls made up only 5 per cent of Governorline’s business in November, and parent-related ones only 4 per cent.

The biggest single category - more than a third - covered governor responsibilities and procedures, including technical issues such as elections, nominations, and meetings.

A spokesman for TBF, which runs both Governorline and its equivalent for teachers, said: “Most of the calls are looking for clarification of policy issues. It’s a pleasant surprise the service has been accessed by so many people so quickly. People seem to trust it.”

More analysis of Governorline data will be published in an annual report, due out later this year.

Governorline (08000 722181) provides legal and other advice and information to school governors. Teacherline (08000 562561) offers counselling and advice to teachers. Calls are free Governors, pages 28-29