Volunteer as a governor and support your community
Governors for Schools is a leading education charity that finds, places, and supports skilled volunteers as governors on school boards.
In November 2020, Governors for Schools expanded its governor placement service into Wales. The charity aims to support schools across the country to run effectively by finding high calibre governors to bring their skills and expertise to the table. As the only service of its kind in Wales, and with over 1,000 governor vacancies across the country, there is huge scope for impact.
While schools benefit from the broad range of skills and experience that governors bring to the board, those volunteering do too. Governors have the opportunity to deepen their ties to the community and play a meaningful role in education, as well as gaining board-level experience and developing professional skills.
WHAT IS A SCHOOL GOVERNOR?
School governors have a varied and important role in helping the school run effectively.
They have three core functions:
- Planning the strategic direction of the school
- Overseeing financial performance of the school and ensuring money is well spent
- Holding the headteacher or school leadership to account
The governor role is strategic rather than operational. Governors don’t get involved with the day to day running of a school, instead supporting and challenging the school’s leadership team to drive school improvement.
Apply to become a Governor in Wales.
WHO CAN BE A SCHOOL GOVERNOR?
You don’t need to be an experienced professional – it’s about attitude as well as expertise.
School governing boards need skilled people to help them run effectively, but both hard and soft skills are needed around the table. Whether you’ve spent 20 years as an accountant or are in the earlier days of your career, schools need soft skills such as problem solving or negotiation as much as specific expertise.
WHAT TRAINING AND SUPPORT IS AVAILABLE?
Many volunteers are first-time governors – but go on to make a big impact on the schools they serve.
Governors for Schools has a range of eLearning modules that are there to help volunteers get to grips with the governor role and understand the basics of governance. The charity also holds regular webinars on a variety of topics so you can continue to learn and develop in the role. Find out more.
All governors in Wales also complete mandatory training through the local authority.
LEARN MORE ABOUT VOLUNTEERING AS A SCHOOL GOVERNOR IN WALES
Governors for Schools hosts regular free webinars for those interested in finding out more about school governance. The next webinar will take place on Thursday 24 June at 12 pm. The team will be on hand to talk more about what governance entails, how to apply, and to answer any questions from prospective volunteers. Register your place.
Alternatively, please contact loren.nadin@governorsforschools.org.uk for more info.
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