Risk is very much currently at the forefront of our minds as schools work tirelessly to manage the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. However managing risk is always one of the core tasks of school governance and over 25 years of being a school governor, and more recently an academy trustee and chair of an audit and risk committee, I have always found governors holding the school leadership to account a vexed process. It is fundamentally challenging for a group of volunteers, with limited knowledge of the operational detail, to scrutinise, and if necessary challenge, the school leadership ("executive”) about their performance. However, recent developments in academy governance promise a more systematic approach to scrutiny which have the potential to make it both more effective and less confrontational.
Read moreMarch 20th 2020 was the date UK schools closed and sadly they were to remain closed to all their pupils for some considerable time. Whilst this dark day...
Read moreFor the last nine years I have had the huge privilege of serving as Chair of the L.E.A.D Academy Trust and this article offers a few reflections on that...
Read more"Allow me to encourage you to reflect on the impact you have had at this time.”
Read moreI want to start by expressing sincere gratitude to everyone working in education at the moment, in all capacities; you are supporting our young people...
Read moreDo you know how well your school trust is positioned to achieve its goals or what elements influence its ability to implement change successfully?
Read moreThe growth of multi-academy trusts provides the opportunity for organisational added value. However it presents too, the risk of non-value-adding bureaucracy...
Read moreAt the Spring CST conference on Effective, Accountable and Ethical Governance I was asked for the one piece of advice I would give to a new trustee. My...
Read moreChairs of multi academy trusts (MATs) are spending an average of fifty days per year – or approximately one day a week – carrying out the role, recent...
Read moreGovernance in MATs is an evolving beast – rightfully so, because if it continued to function only as it did before, we’d be doing our schools a disservice....
Read moreStrong governance is vital to the success of any organisation and it is essential that those people employed to implement good governance practices in...
Read moreI won’t pretend to be a governance expert, but I’ve served on the body of an independent school, as the chair of a single Academy trust, now as a chair...
Read more"Governance” is not a word or topic that typically sets the pulse racing. However, we all know that effective governance practice is critical to the...
Read more"Can I borrow your school field please?” That question led to a life in governance locally, regionally and nationally. The trade-off for using the school...
Read moreA new school year presents us with the perfect opportunity to set out priorities and build on existing developments, to ensure every child receives an...
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