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Time Commitment

Governors act as a team and as such, the amount of time that each of them can give to the role will vary.

 

Attending Meetings:

• Governing bodies are legally required to meet at least once a term, although many meet twice.
• Governing bodies have a committee structure enabling issues to be discussed in detail. These meetings are called when required however, good practise would be to hold one/two a term. As a governor you may sit on one or more committees.

Timing of meetings:

• Governors are responsible for the work life balance of the head teacher and therefore, the timing of the meeting should be given consideration as the head may have been on site since 8.30am.
• Governors should also take into account the work life balance of fellow governors. Many employers understand the valuable role governors play and grant time off for governors to attend meetings, please check with your employer.

In order to fulfil your role as a governor you would need to become familiar with the school. This can be done in a number of ways:

• Visits to the school, by prior arrangement, during session time to see the pupils at work. You must, however, make sure your visit does not cause any disruption to classes.
• Governors will receive invitations to a variety of events; assemblies, sports days, fetes etc. These can be an ideal opportunity to meet staff and see the school working in a less formal way.
• Have you got a particular skill you could use to benefit the school? Have you got an interesting hobby you could talk to pupils about?

Being a governor does not just mean attending a business meeting, now and again, in a deserted school!