Governance Group

The Governance Group, which includes the Cabinet Member and supporting officers from the Local Authority (LA), recommends and confirms the nominations of Local Authority Governors and agrees any changes of name to Instruments of Government.  It is also responsible for the Local Authority Governor Removal Process as set out in the Governance Group Terms of Reference.

Instruments of Government

Governance Group Terms of Reference (Download).

Nomination of Local Authority (LA) Governors

Local Authority Governors are nominated by the Local Authority but appointed by the governing board.  The LA can nominate any eligible person as a Local Authority governor, but it is for each governing board to decide whether to appoint the LA nominee.  It is important that the governing board considers whether the LA’s nominee has the skills to contribute to the effective governance and success of the school and meets any eligibility criteria it has set.  However, in practice the governing boards often put forward suggested nominees to the LA for its nomination prior to appointment by the governing board.

All nominations are submitted to the next meeting of the Governance Group for confirmation. Once the Group has met, decisions taken are published on the Governor Zone to ensure openness and transparency. Governor appointments will be confirmed to the Clerk to the Governing Board.

Local Authority Governors, once appointed, fulfil their duties as any other governor would do. Just as a parent governor does not represent the views of all parents at a school, but is a representative parent, so the Local Authority Governor does not represent the views of the LA, but is a representative of the wider community. The LA does not mandate its appointees with the role of promoting the LA’s views.

There is no limit to the number of governing boards a person can join, but it should be borne in mind that to be an effective governor there is a time commitment in terms of duties. Governing boards hold at least 3 full governing board meetings a year, with many having 6 a year. In addition, there are likely to be committee meetings to attend, as well as other functions to support the school.

Procedures for the appointment, reappointment and removal of Local Authority Governors

Guidance for governing boards and clerks of maintained schools

In May 2014 the DfE announced that all maintained governing boards must reconstitute under the School Governance (Constitution) (England) Regulations 2012 by September 2015. These regulations state that governing boards must only have one LA governor. Local authority (LA) governors are not delegates from the local authority, so cannot be instructed how to vote at meetings. As with other governors, LA governors vote after hearing all the views, according to what is in the best interests of the pupils in the school. Once a collective decision has been made, all governors must accept it as being the majority view and be loyal to it outside the school.

Criteria for the selection of an LA governor

Any person applying to be an LA governor should:

• be eligible to be a governor (not disqualified by regulations, see Qualifications and Disqualifications);
• not be an employee of the school;
• as with all governors, promote the well-being and safeguarding of children and have an interest in their education
• understand that being a governor requires commitment of time for meetings, reading, sharing the workload and visiting the school in school hours;
• understand that a governing board is a corporate body seeking to raise standards in the school;
• seek to support the school to which they are appointed and abide by any Code of Conduct that the governing board has agreed, including respecting the confidentiality of board discussions;
• have a commitment to undertake training to develop their skills and knowledge of school governance;
• be aware of and accept 'The 7 principles of public life', which apply to anyone who is elected or appointed as a public office-holder. The principles are selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.

Process for the appointment of an LA governor where there is a vacancy

Where there is a vacancy for an LA governor, the board should review their skills audit to see where the gaps are and try to find a suitable candidate to fill the role: Bucks link . Once a candidate has been identified, the board should complete the Governor Nomination Template. Please click on this link to download the form.

Once completed, the governing board sends the nomination form to the Governance Team - School Governance Mailbox schoolgovernance@buckinghamshire.gov.uk

Monthly Submission to Senior Leaders

At the end of each month, all nominations forms received are emailed for approval to the governance group for approval.  Senior leaders (typically the Cabinet Member or his/her assistant) will review and approve the nominations.

The Chair of Governors and the Clerk are notified of this appointment.

The board can then appoint the nominee by majority vote at the next Full Governing Board meeting. The term of office for the new LA governor will start from the date of the FGB meeting.

Serving LA governors wishing to reapply for another term of office should make their wishes known to the board the school term before their term of office expires. The LA governor should be asked to provide a personal statement to be presented at a full governing board meeting to show how their contribution has had an impact on the strategic direction and work of the school over their last term of office. This should include work they have done that has made a difference, as well as how they have kept their knowledge of governance up to date (eg training courses attended). Governors can then make an informed decision when considering the person for re-appointment. The statement should be added to the Governor nomination form and forwarded to Governor Services At the end of each month, all nominations forms received are emailed for approval to the governance group for approval.  Senior leaders (typically the Cabinet Member or his/her assistant) will review and approve the nominations.

The Chair of Governors and the Clerk are notified of this appointment.

The board can then appoint the nominee by majority vote at the next Full Governing Board meeting. The term of office for the new LA governor will start from the date of the FGB meeting.

Legislation and statutory

From the Constitution of governing bodies of maintained schools Local authority governors (regulation 8)

Local authority governors are nominated by the local authority but appointed by the governing body. The local authority can nominate any person who is eligible to be a local authority governor, but it is for the governing body to decide whether their nominee has the skills required to contribute to the effective governance and success of the school and meets any other eligibility criteria they have set. Local authorities should therefore make every effort to understand the governing body’s requirements and identify and nominate suitable candidates. An individual eligible to be a staff governor at the school may not be appointed as a local authority governor.

From the Maintained schools governance guide 5. Governance structures –

GOV.UK: 5.3.6 Local authority governors A local authority governor is a governor that has been nominated by the local authority (though does not need to be connected to a local authority) and appointed by the governing body. The governing body should make clear its eligibility criteria for local authority governors and a local authority needs to make every effort to understand the governing body’s requirements to identify and nominate suitable candidates. The governing body decides whether the local authority nominee meets the eligibility criteria. If it chooses to reject the candidate, it will need to explain this decision to the local authority. A local authority governor, like any other governor, must govern in the interests of the school and not advocate the interests of the local authority.

Members’ Role in the Appointment Process for Authority Governors

The School Governance team monitors Local Authority Governor vacancies and in the absence of a governing board suggestion for the nomination writes to local members for the area served by the school to seek nominations by the governing board.

• Local member(s) have one month to nominate a governor, or to state reasons why the appointment should be deferred, before nominations from any other members are considered.
• If no response is received from the local member(s) within one month from the date of notification, it is open to other members to make nominations.
• There is a general presumption that nominees of local member(s) (if any) shall take precedence over nominees from other members, unless, in any particular instance, a strong case is made to the contrary.

The Local Member should also discuss any Authority Governors nominations with the Chairman of the Governing board concerned prior to confirmation of that nomination.  

There is a nomination form to be completed for any such nominees and this should be returned to School Governance, who will take this forward with the chair of the governing board.  Nominees should be people who have the skills and experience to be an effective governor or the capacity and willingness to develop them. The form asks nominees to declare any interests they have that could conflict with taking on the role of Local Authority Governor.

Selection Criteria

Buckinghamshire’s Governor Recruitment Strategy is underpinned by a commitment to ensure that prospective governors have the skills to contribute to effective governance and the success of the school as well as to promote community cohesion and equality. Furthermore it aims to ensure that school governors reflect the diversity of Buckinghamshire’s communities and are sensitive to the needs of the various communities their school may serve. 

Pre-appointment Checks

Prospective governors are required to complete a disclosure form declaring they are not subject to any disqualifications as set out in the School Governance Regulations 2012. Once appointed, governors will need to undergo an Enhanced DBS check and the school will advise on this process.   

Governors of LA Maintained Schools, acting solely in that capacity, require an Enhanced DBS check but this does NOT include a Children’s Barred List check. A governor may need to have an Enhanced DBS check that includes a Barred List check if they have other non-governor responsibilities at a school.

N.B. A person is disqualified from being appointed as a Local Authority Governor if they are eligible to be a Staff Governor of that school.

The School Governance Consultative Board

The Governor Consultative Board is a group of representative governors, headteachers and officers from the Local Authority and Diocesan officers which meets to develop a shared strategic view of the key challenges facing school governance and to support the development of policies and initiatives which meet the needs of governors in Buckinghamshire. 

Children’s and Education Select Committee

The Children’s and Education Select Committee holds decision-makers to account for improving outcomes and services for Buckinghamshire. The Select Committee covers the portfolio areas of; Education and Skills, Youth Provision, and Children’s Services.

There is provision for three school governors to participate on the Children’s and Education Select Committee; one to represent each of the Primary, Secondary and Special School sectors. More information about the Children’s and Education Select Committee is available here:

Committee details - Children’s & Education Select Committee - Modern Council (moderngov.co.uk)