GOVERNORS Tweets of the week cial relationship
at Bradley Stoke, there is a structure in place which lays out a clear responsibility on who does what. That’s quite atypical of many of the schools I go into – but it is really supportive in terms of challenge.” That view is echoed by Ms Emery: “For me an
effective working relationship with the head has to come down to a shared vision for the school,” she said. “The partnership has got to be quite strong to be able to handle the very major challenges that academy conversion presents.”
SecEd
• Nick Bannister is an education writer and communications consultant.
Further information
More information about training and support for governors is available at
www.education.gov.uk/ nationalcollege/index/roles/
governors-role.htm
Relationships with governors
How can heads and governors work more effectively together? Agreement in some fundamental areas is the basis for a good working relationship, according to Claire Emery, chair of directors at the Olympus Academy Trust in Gloucestershire. She advises: 1. Commit to a common purpose and shared values.
2. Show each other mutual respect. 3. Agree an aspirational and motivational vision for your school and get behind it.
4. Commit to honest, regular and speedy communication. Get regular meetings in your calendars and be available in between via phone and email if urgent business needs to be dealt with.
5. Strike the right balance between challenging and supporting each other
6. Be focused – stay strategic and relevant in all your dealings.
Ofsted has backed away from plans for no-notice inspections, but from September will only give schools an afternoon’s notice. Inspectors will also scrutinise links between pay and performance.
“Think I prefer the no-notice idea, at least you’d sleep. What good is an afternoon if
only to get stressed?” @sumi1998
“I was a bit disappointed with the afternoon’s notice. It might
be the worst of both worlds.” @68ron
“Notice or not, Ofsted is stressful for schools. I would like it to be an educational improvement partner rather
than a judge.” @ePaceonline
“This relentless onslaught on dedicated and committed
teachers must stop.” @NUTonline
“It’s not an Ofsted inspector’s job to determine how a head
and governors pay staff.” @alatalite
www.twitter.com/SecEd_Education
the more structured and focused that contact is the better, according to headteacher Dave Baker. Mr Baker is executive head at Bradley Stoke
Community School, a Gloucestershire academy which is part of the Olympus Academy Trust. Claire Emery is chair of directors at the trust and a National Leader of Governance. Mr Baker explained: “We have regular fortnightly
meetings on Friday mornings which are structured and have an agenda. Then there is the email and phone contact, and informal catch-ups when Claire is in the school. “I’ve worked with Claire since 2006 and it’s fair
to say that she brings a professionalism that is not necessarily typical of all chairs of governors. “This is partly down to her professional background
in learning and organisational development, and her expectations of how things should work. “She is challenging but in a very positive way.
We have a very good working relationship which is based on pushing boundaries and wanting to see things improve.” For Mr Baker it is important that there is a clear
separation of responsibilities. Head and the chair of governors should trust each other as leaders in their respective areas. “I found it interesting talking to other heads
about how many want to control the relationship,” he said. “Whereas for me the relationship is about the governance being directed by Claire and everything that is to do with teaching and learning is directed by me. We have a clear delineation of responsibilities and we share the strategic planning stuff.” As well as running Bradley Stoke, Mr Baker has
also started work leading the nearby Abbeywood Community School out of special measures. Abbeywood is to become part of the trust later this year. It is a time of great change. So what approach do
Mr Baker and Ms Emery take to tackle challenges like this? He explained: “Claire is pushing me about staffing structures and financial planning to make sure we are robust in terms of financial planning in a way that does not create risk. “My tendency might be to over-staff in order to
see rapid improvement. We have been talking about how we might do that with existing staff structures, refining roles, getting more clarity of focus around
SecEd • June 14 2012
particular aspects and saying no to other things. “I think that’s where the challenge comes
in. I am in a leadership role and she provides the accountability with the governors. It’s very interesting how she can narrow my focus in how I spend time and what I might achieve without these checks and balances. She forces me to delegate and drop things and she is right.”
‘ She is challenging
but in a very positive way. We have a
very good working relationship which is based on pushing
boundaries and wanting to see things improve
Mr Baker said that one of the ongoing issues was
whether he should teach or not. He continued: “I teach a year 7 class for an hour twice a week. She has mentioned to me that it will get to a point where I won’t be able to do that and will have to let go of that. She has also been very good at monitoring my work/life balance which I am not always good at. It’s now part of my performance management review objectives.” Mr Baker warns heads that they need to make
sure their relationship with their chair of governors is on a solid footing – especially if a period of major transformation, such as a conversion to academy status, is coming up. “If relationships are not right with your chair of governors you need to look at that because they will have additional responsibilities and accountability,” he added. “This can put too much weight on you if the governance is not right. If you look at governance
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