A Day in the Life of a Governor

School Case Study – Using the Pupil Voice

Primary School E – Governors use pupil voice to conduct school evaluation and monitor school improvement.

When the governors at the School were asked to provide evidence for the pupil-outcome based Ofsted evaluations, they realised that it was relatively straightforward to present the actions the school had taken, but it was not quite as easy to show the difference they had made. So for example, when asked about how children in the school felt about bullying or staying healthy, evidence presented tended to be about what had been done to tackle the issues, rather than the impact of those actions.

So working together with link adviser, they followed a scheme that brought governors, senior management and pupils together to check whether the support strategies being delivered were making a difference.

So how did they do it?

  • They focused on three or four children from each class and invited them to attend a session, asking them to take some of their books. Members of the senior leadership team and governing bodies were invited to the group (but not class teachers).
  • During the group session, after being put at ease, the children were asked a series of 20 questions about enjoyment, safety, health, participation, standards and suggestions. Some examples of questions included:
    • What subjects do you like at school?
    • Which subjects are hardest for you?
    • Why does your teacher mark your books?
    • What gets in the way of your learning?
    • Is your work too easy, too hard or just right?
    • Do you feel safe in school? What have you learnt about being safe?
    • How do you keep healthy?

The link adviser initially ran the pupil meeting; however, the governors soon got the hang of it and started to lead with the questioning. After the first group had finished, the governors split into two teams to conduct the sessions simultaneously with different year groups.

  • Following the discussion, the outcomes were shared with teachers and any actions agreed.

The Chair of Governors, attended the sessions with two other governors and the head teacher. He said: “It was lovely to see the children react to the questions posed to them and it proved an interesting and worthwhile exercise. “With one group, we were particularly pleased about how well aware they were of safety – both in and out of the school – and with another group, how they valued the work of the school council.” A number of other primary schools in the North have also adopted this approach and each discovered areas where the schools could improve their performance.

In one school, it was found that despite achieving good outcomes, the children weren’t clear on their targets, therefore governors left knowing they would have to question the head about how they would communicate with the children about targets. In another, children said how much they liked the extracurricular homework club, so the school increased the time it was made available and also widened the criteria for attendance.

How have governors benefited from this approach?

  • It provided an opportunity to gain first-hand knowledge of learning and issues in the classroom
  • It enabled them to participate in the school monitoring and self-evaluation processes
  • It helped to inform the Ofsted process
  • It gave them a better understanding of the self-evaluation framework (SEF) and the links to the school improvement process.

How has this supported school improvement?

  • It has provided a great opportunity to collect evidence for the SEF, especially regarding personal development and wellbeing
  • Schools can reflect on whether the support strategies they are delivering are appropriate and making an impact
  • Governors and staff receive feedback directly from the children to help identify areas for school improvement
  • Schools get a better understanding of how they can extend and accelerate the progress of underachieving children
  • The school has an evidence trail of actions being taken to address underachievement and can monitor the impact of agreed strategies.

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Recruiting for success

Governor D is the Chair of Governors at Primary School F, a special school catering for pupils aged 2–16 with complex medical conditions. In May 2007 it was judged as outstanding, and therefore when the headteacher announced she was retiring, it was crucial to find the right replacement. We spoke to Governor D about the school’s journey, which involved three recruitment campaigns before they finally got their headteacher.

How did you prepare for the recruitment process?

We convened a full governing body meeting, where we formed a five-person selection panel (helpful to avoid a split vote). It was important that we had different types of governors on the panel and that each understood the commitment required of them. We enlisted the support of experienced representatives from the local authority, who could guide us on areas such as safeguarding, equal opportunities, salaries and so on. We also prepared a contingency plan, in case we were not able to appoint first time round – worthwhile planning, as we ended up appointing the deputy after our first round failed to find the right person.

How did you define the type of person you were looking for?

We thought about the future development of the school and the specific leadership qualities needed. We are part of the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme and are bidding for specialist status in the Special Educational Needs (SEN) strand of communication and interaction, so we needed someone who could develop the school in this direction, while maintaining our ‘outstanding’ Ofsted judgement. We used the School Improvement Plan and Ofsted reports, looked at our self-evaluation data, and of course the criteria outlined in the National Standards for Headteachers. We changed the person specification second time round as we felt our first attempt was too narrow and that we were excluding some good candidates by being too specific about experience required.

How did you attract the right quality of candidate?

We were supported by management support advisers in putting together the job advert. I would strongly urge other governing bodies not to scrimp on advert placement – making it stand out will cost a little more up front, but will pay dividends if it gets the attention of the right candidates. We prepared a high-quality recruitment pack, which included job description, person specification, school information and the recruitment timetable (including interview dates). On our third attempt, we even invited people on a tour around the school before they applied – this helped candidates make a decision about whether it was the right school for them, and helped our short-listing process.

How did you select?

First time round, we didn’t even short-list. Second and third time round we got a much better response, probably due to the revised person specification, more prominent advert and better timed placement (by advertising earlier in the year we caught those looking for a new job for the new school year). As well as a match to the job description and person specification, we looked for two things in particular in the application letters: did they include how they could address the needs of our particular school, and did they include what impact their actions had in previous schools? We used a simple scoring matrix and short-listed up to three candidates to invite for interview. We used a variety of activities over two days to assess candidates, including teaching a class, undertaking a written task, a presentation and a formal interview. However, one of the most interesting and perceptive activities was the use of pupils from the school council, who fed back to the selection panel following time spent questioning each candidate.

How did you make sure you’d made the right choice?

We were confident that we had an outstanding candidate however, we took up references from his current school in as well as previous schools. We also advised the local authority, which did its own checks, before ratifying the decision with the full governing body.

What did your induction programme look like?

We kept in contact with the new head by email, and set up a number of meetings with the current acting head and the chair. He was invited to key events at the school (such as the SIP visit and BSF meetings) and spent a day with the senior leadership team. An assembly was held to introduce the new head to the school before the end of the summer term.

How would you summarise your recruitment campaign?

We had three attempts to recruit, but it was well worth the wait to get the right person. My advice to others would be to have the courage to keep going until you find the candidate you need. Getting the right headteacher is vital for the whole school community, but most importantly for the pupils.

Further guidance materials from the NCSL are available to help governors recruit headteachers and senior leaders. You can access them via http://www.nationalcollege.org.uk/ and Seven steps to successful recruitment

A research study by the National College for School Leadership (NCSL) found that the process of recruiting and appointing staff can be broken down into seven stages:

Step 1: Preparation

Getting ready to run an effective recruitment campaign

Step 2: Definition

Understanding and describing your ideal candidate

Step 3: Attraction

Getting the right people to apply

Step 4: Selection

Choosing the best candidate

Step 5: Appointment

Securing your chosen candidate

Step 6: Induction

Giving you a strong head start

Step 7: Evaluation

Learning from the experience

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Extended Schools Case Study

Barrie Chalmers, headteacher at St Mary’s C of E, Moss Side, tells us how his school has developed a wide range of extended services for pupils, parents and the community, and gives us his top tips:

At St Mary’s C of E we offer a wide range of extended provision, from breakfast and after-school clubs, to a weekend Arabic school used by the local Arabic speaking community. The school is open from 8am to 6pm on weekdays. Some pupils take T’ai Chi classes before lessons begin, and until recently we worked with the local karate centre to provide a karate club.

We provide the Webster-Stratton parenting course, and our first group of 16 parents have recently completed the ten-week programme. Four of our staff are now trained as family intervention workers, which has made a real difference. Instead of referring families to social workers, we can now intervene and offer support ourselves where appropriate. We run an ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) course for parents in collaboration with the Windrush Centre, which is invaluable to our many parents who don’t speak English as their first language.

“Our governing body has been key. It has put in a lot of time and effort to achieve this success.” It has been key in allowing us to develop our range of extended provision. It put in a formal bid to become one of the city’s pilot extended schools and put in a lot of time and effort to achieve this. We realised some time ago that the key to improving outcomes for our children was not just teaching and learning, but in offering a wider range of opportunities for children and particularly their parents. The governors have always recognised the impact extended schooling can have and have offered their full support for this.

We have found that working with partners has been an important part of our extended provision. We work with Manchester Academy to provide vocational experience for our year 5 and 6 pupils in a range of industries, and we have also developed close links with Whalley Range and Trinity High Schools.

“The rewards for creating as wide a range of opportunities as possible for pupils, parents and the community are massive.”

Building a successful extended offer takes a lot of time and effort, but the opportunities are there in any school and do not require special facilities. Providing good teaching and learning will, of course, always be a hugely important part of any school, but the rewards for creating as wide a range of opportunities as possible for pupils, parents and the community are massive. One final thing to remember is that extended provision is not a ‘bolt-on’ to your school. It will completely change the way the school works but, if done effectively, the benefits will be reaped by everyone.

Top Tips

  • Don’t try and do too much too soon. Building an effective extended offer will take time, so build slowly and consolidate.
  • Involve parents in any plans to introduce new provision – either they or their children will almost certainly be using it.
  • Remember that things will go wrong. If something does not work, learn from it, and do not be afraid to try new things.
  • Governing bodies have a vital role to play. Discuss how advanced your school’s extended offer is. Ask the leadership team what plans they have to develop extended provision and what benefits they would expect these to bring.
  • Be imaginative! There is no right or wrong type of extended provision. Build on the opportunities that exist in your school and respond to the needs of your pupils, parents and community

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Improving Attendance: A Governor’s Perspective

Sue Murphy is chair of governors at Brookway High School. She tells us how governors have been involved in helping to reduce absence at the school.

What measures have been used by Brookway to try and improve attendance?

We have tried as a governing body to really focus on attendance over a sustained period. We make sure that attendance is always an item on the agenda for the governing body to discuss. As a governing body we acknowledged that attendance was an issue, and we hold a regular monitoring working group involving a small panel of governors and the school leadership team to look at the School Improvement Plan, making sure one of the things we focus on is attendance.

This allowed us to really look at the impacts of measures we were employing. In terms of specific measures, we have used incentive schemes, as well as attendance panels which have helped to bring home to parents/carers and pupils the importance of attending school. One of the most crucial factors we have found has been to get on top of any potential attendance issues early, ensuring that all staff at the school see it as part of their role – staff have worked really hard to improve attendance.

Can you say a bit about how improved attendance has impacted on the school generally?

There is a link between improving attendance and raising attainment within the school, and getting a grip on attendance issues allows more pupils to benefit from efforts made to improve teaching and learning. Attendance is also often linked to a range of wider issues, so by engaging with children that are often absent and their parents, I think as a school we have been able to help to deal with some of these associated issues.

How have governors been involved in tackling attendance issues?

We have tried as a governing body to get really involved in improving attendance. We appointed a lead governor to focus on attendance issues and report back to the governing body on this. We also make sure that the attendance policy is reviewed regularly and that staff, pupils and parents are aware of the policy.

What advice would you give to other governors looking to improve their school’s attendance?

Just keep going! Raising attendance levels can be a slow process but it is just a case of making sure that you keep trying. Be prepared to try new things and be imaginative when tackling absence issues, making sure you evaluate well and keep doing what works. With commitment from the whole governing body and everyone else in the school, attendance levels can be raised.

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Ofsted – a governor’s experience

Angela O’Hagan, Chair of GB at Crumsall Lane Primary School

Leading up to the inspection, was the school and governing body optimistic about the outcome?

We were aware that we were due an Ofsted inspection and that governance had been an issue at the previous inspection. Therefore, we had been working for some time towards becoming more effective as a governing body and, by the time this inspection was due, we were quite confident that policies and procedures were up to date and working well. We have an excellent clerk who supports us well and the Local Authority also provided valuable support by way of documents and a presentation to governors about increasing their effectiveness.

How did you prepare?

In readiness for Ofsted, governors made sure that they were familiar with the latest version of the SEF and School Improvement Plan, both of which we monitor regularly. Once the school received ‘the phone call’, I met briefly with the headteacher and deputy to make sure that I was completely up to date with any developments since the last governing body meeting and that I had the latest pupil progress data. We also ensured that the latest sub-committee meeting minutes were on file. As I know a Chair of Governors at another school, we had a brief chat about their recent experience of Ofsted.

Did you, or any other governors, attend school during the inspection?

As Chair, I was interviewed by one of the three Ofsted inspectors. My interview lasted about half an hour, was much more relaxed than I had feared, and in fact was extremely positive. I felt that the purpose of this interview was for the inspector to allow me to demonstrate my knowledge and commitment to the school, rather than trying to ‘catch me out’  so I would say that as long as you know your school well and can back up what you say you know with evidence then there is nothing to fear from Ofsted from a governor’s point of view.

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Involving Parents Spring 2010

Abdoulie Drameh, parent governor at Cheetwood Primary School, tells us about the work being done at his school to involve parents.

What is going on at Cheetwood?

Although the school was already committed to involving parents, the past year has seen an increase in this type of work. There has been lots going on recently, including two really successful family learning weeks, which involved the whole school as well as many local partners. During both events, parents were asked what they enjoyed and what they would like to see in future.

Parents said they wanted more sports and fitness events as well as computer training, and they also enjoyed being part of their children’s learning and wanted more support to be able to help their children. This was all taken on board, resulting in a Pilates class, football training for kids and parents together, as well as opportunities for parents to work alongside their children in school time. A six-week computer course has also been offered to parents through Manchester Adult Education Service. Eighty parents attended school during events held for Manchester Parents’ Week, which was a great turnout. Parents have also been invited to join focus groups about policies such as cyber-bullying, and the school has written parent-friendly versions of policies.

What have you been involved in as a parent?

I seem to be in school all the time! I always try to attend events that the school invites parents to. I also go to the district network meetings, and recently I attended the parents’ conference at the Town Hall, which gave me a few good ideas to pass on to school.

How does the governing body get involved?

The governing body is always interested in how the school is involving parents.  The teacher with responsibility for Every Child Matters, Tina Bakin, feeds back to the headteacher, who then briefs governors about how the school is working with parents. I also feed back from any events I have attended, as well as any relevant issues I have been speaking to parents about. The school is also part of the pilot of the Leading Parent Partnership Award (LPPA), which the governing body is very interested in supporting.

How do you make contact with parents and encourage them to get involved?

I speak to other parents on an informal basis all the time, and make sure that I let them know what’s going on at school and how they can be involved. I will also support parents to get involved if possible; for example I accompanied one parent to a couple of events and also encouraged one interested parent to stand for parent governor at the next election. In addition, I listen to the concerns of parents, and guide them in the right direction to solve any problems.

What has been the impact of the work that has been carried out with parents?

The turnout at events is increasing every time, including among parents who did not attend school previously. There has also been an increase in the number of parents volunteering in school. The teachers say they have seen positive effects on the children, who say they like their parents being involved in their work.

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