Well done, Michael Gove, for alienating a large section of the electorate. The speech last week to the Freedom and Autonomy for Schools - National Association (Fasna), the organisation for self-governing schools, revealed prejudice over the role and motivation of school governors. A few, no doubt, believe that joining a governing body is a way to gain kudos. Such people tend not to last long. The job, done properly, is time-consuming and demands considerable commitment. Most governors take on the role to give something back: to contribute, indeed, to David Cameron’s “Big Society”. When will politicians realise that there is far more evidence of the successful role played by governors in school improvement than the contrary, and stop denigrating this 300,000-strong volunteer force?
Judith Bennett, Oxfordshire.