Education CommitteeWritten evidence submitted by The Haberdashers’ Company

Executive Summary

1.0 Background

The Haberdashers’ Company controls eleven schools, (six state-funded) and five independent. The schools are governed by five Boards of Governors/Federation Trusts. The Company applies the same principles of governance to all its schools/Academies. This response is therefore given in terms of governance of all schools regardless of the sector or constitution in/under which they operate.

2.0 Purpose, Role and Responsibilities

The purpose of a school governing body is to oversee the strategic direction of the school and regular monitoring of the school’s operational performance. Its role is to oversee the management of the school as a “critical friend”. Its responsibilities are to oversee medium and long term planning and the performance of the Headteacher. Finally there is a responsibility to ensure that there is a wide range of skills on the Governing Body to meet the needs of the school.

Governors need to be aware that their primary responsibility is to the school of which they are a governor as opposed to any other body that may have appointed them; this includes The Haberdashers’ Company!

3.0 Recent Policy Developments

These relate primarily to state-funded schools and Academies.

The move to Academies for many schools, both secondary and primary, has highlighted the importance of Governing Bodies in the management of schools, particularly in relation to budgetary issues. The Ofsted document Subsidiary Guidance (No 110166) offers a good summary of these responsibilities.

4.0 Recruitment and Development of Governors

The Haberdashers’ Company has well-developed recruitment, induction and wider training procedures. Chairs of Governors usually serve as Governors in other schools, either independent or state-funded, for three years before assuming the Chair role.

5.0 Remuneration

The Company relies on Governors’ goodwill and commitment. There is no remuneration apart from agreed expenses for school visits. It is doubtful that remuneration would increase the quality of Governors—though it might increase the quantity regardless of suitability!

6.0 Relations with other Partners

The Company takes great care to ensure that the workings of the school are directed towards the classroom and the students. It always endeavours to ensure that the school plays a central role in the local community and thus values working with the local stakeholders; these relationships are crucial to the success of any school.

7.0 Possible changes to Current Models of Governance

Drawing on Haberdashers’ experience of its five Boards of Governors/Federation Trusts covering eleven schools:

Rigorous selection and interviews, matching skills to the needs of the school.

Formal induction processes and ongoing training.

A recommendation that Chairs of Governors serve as Governors for at least three years before assuming the role and/or show their experience equips them for the role.

A requirement for Governing Bodies to complete a thorough self- evaluation every two years.

“One size can never fit all” in terms of models/structures of governance but guiding principles can be universal in terms of how individual models/structures should operate. This view of “one size not fitting all” has been previously expressed to the DfE on other subjects covering, inter alia, the expansion of Academies. It is exemplified by the Company’s own approach to its “family of schools”.

Risk Management; Academy finance (particularly Federations) can be complex. Governors need to be supported by the right financial structures and audit process. This is also true of schools in the Independent sector but their funding streams are arguably less complex.

1.0 Introduction

1.1 The Haberdashers’ Company (the Company) has a long and distinguished record as a provider of schools in the state and independent sector, starting with the foundation of its first school in 1594. At present there are five independent and six state-funded schools in the Haberdashers’ “family of schools” educating ages between 3 -18.

1.2 In addition to providing individual governors for the schools, the Company realizes its education strategy by acting in an enabling role, as Trustee of the schools’ foundations or as sponsors, and as a central focus for inter-school and inter-governor activity. The Company provides around 40 governors for its Schools/Federations.

1.3 Over the past five or six years the balance of students in the Company’s schools has changed from two thirds being in the independent sector to two thirds being in the state-funded sector through expansion in the provision for the latter

1.4 This submission draws on the Haberdashers’ Company Governors’ Handbook “Excellence in Governance”. The assertions in this evidence apply equally to the Company’s independent schools. The Company regards all its schools/Academies as being equal members of “one family” and applies the same principles of Governance to all of them.

2.0 The purpose, roles and responsibilities of school governing bodies within the wider context of school performance and leadership

2.1 These should be clearly expressed in the Governing Body’s Terms of Reference. Governing Bodies are a critical part of the leadership and management of the school. The Company knows that a school cannot become outstanding without outstanding governance.

2.2 The purpose of a Governing Body is to oversee the strategic direction of the school as well as regular monitoring of the school’s operational performance.

2.3 Leadership of any school demands a tripartite relationship between the Governing Body (especially the Chair), the Headteacher/Principal and Bursar/Finance Manager.

2.4 Governors are non-executives and thus the role of the Governing Body is to act as critical friends of the management of the school. It is the Governors’ role to oversee but not to perform the management of the school. In carrying out this role, Governors must have regard to the best interests of the school and students as well as the interests of other stakeholders. Governors, particularly parent Governors, may be a channel for communications between the school and parents but cannot speak for the school without prior approval.

2.5 Individual governors must recognize that their primary responsibility is to the school as opposed to any other body that may have appointed them; this is analogous to the responsibility of non-executive directors appointed by outside stakeholders of a company.

2.6 The principal responsibilities of the Governing Body are:

The development of medium term (three to five years) and long term (five to 15 years) strategic plans including significant capital expenditure.

Oversight of the Headteacher’s/Principal’s leadership of the school.

Monitoring of operational performance; determining Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)—up to ten and both “lead” & “lag” indicators (examples can be provided)

Honesty and discretion in all matters discussed.

Ensuring that the Governing Body has the required spread of expertise to oversee school performance effectively, where typically budgets of £10 million plus may be involved. For Haberdashers’ schools, expertise in business, financial, property knowledge, educational skills and external links are at the core of effective Governing Bodies.

3.0 The implications of recent policy developments for governing bodies and their roles

3.1 With the recent policy shift to further encouragement of schools to become Academies (currently over 2,400 in England) and the consequent loss of local authority guidance, the governance of schools is ever more important. Governing Bodies in the state-funded sector draw good practice from a variety of sources such as the DfE Handbook for School Governors. In their self-evaluation, where it takes place on a regular basis, it pays due regard to the Ofsted guidance, as set out in the Framework for Inspection and the complementary Subsidiary Guidance. The latter sets out in detail how Inspectors should view the effectiveness of the Governing Body. The practice of the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISS) usually follows Ofsted guidance and this is welcomed.

3.2 Ofsted Guidance

The Ofsted Subsidiary Guidance mentions governance in the section on the quality of leadership and management of the school. It highlights the following:

There are different models of governance, such as Federations (as exemplified by the two Haberdashers’ Federations in SE London & Shropshire—though very different models/structures), free schools, Academy chains and LEA funded schools.

Governors’ challenge and support for the school, and holding senior staff to account.

The Governors’ responsibility for strategic decisions concerning the development of the school.

Do Governors perform poorly and contribute to weaknesses and management?

3.3 The Guidance further considers the following detailed questions in addition to the usual statutory requirements and issues of vision and ethos. Do Governors:

Understand the strength and weaknesses of the school, including quality of teaching.

Understand student data.

The impact of teaching and learning in different age groups.

Understand how schools make decisions about staff pay progression.

Performance manage and challenge the Headteacher/Principal rigorously.

Ensure that the school’s finances are properly managed.

Ensure that safeguarding measures are fully implemented

These questions highlight the need for a wide range of expertise to be available on a Governing Body. It also highlights the need for full commitment from Governors. Haberdasher Governors are required to make such a commitment to school governorship (see next section).

4.0 Recruiting and developing governors, including the quality of current training provision, and any challenges facing recruitment.

4.1 The Haberdashers’ Company has a clear and rigorous attitude to the recruitment of Governors to its schools. In addition, Chairs of Governors will have had at least three years’ experience as a Governor in another school within the “family”. They agree to become Chair a year before taking up office and are then able to take up further training as appropriate.

4.2 All Haberdasher Livery Company members are encouraged to become school Governors. Nevertheless the selection process is thorough and the Company is careful to match new Governors’ skills to the needs of the Board/Federation. Newly-recruited Governors receive an induction pack and undergo an induction process, including a tour of the school with the Headteacher and Bursar, a discussion with the Bursar and a discussion with the Clerk and Chair. They are also interviewed by the Governing Body’s “Safer Recruitment” Governor.

4.3 All Haberdasher Governors are expected to undergo periodic training by the Company and professional bodies, such as the National Governors Association (NGA) or the Association of Governing Bodies of Independent Schools (AGBIS). The regular, arguably annual, self-evaluation can identify gaps in training. In addition, the Company’s Education Adviser is available to organize training and to advise Governing Bodies on related matters.

4.4 The Haberdasher Governing Bodies are all accountable to the Company as well as to the parents and students on the schools. The Company Education Committee meets regularly and reviews its family of schools’ performance as well as their strategic direction. All Company Chair of Governors sit on this Education Committee. The Clerk to the Company is the Executive Officer in this process and is responsible to the Company Master and its Court. There is also an Assistant Clerk with specific responsibility for schools. The Chair of the Education Committee is usually a Past Master having several years of experience as a governor; he/she holds office for about six years. This accountability framework is particularly important as major capital works demand probity and skill. It must also be remembered that the Company is involved with education for the “long term”—it already has over 400 years’ of commitment and experience!

4.5 Governors are responsible for all students and staff in the schools they serve, as well as overseeing the use of large budgets. The process outlined above helps to ensure commitment, a keen understanding of the challenge and support needed and knowledge that the Governor’s contribution is making a difference to the school students’ lives. It also addresses the key issue of balance between representation and skills. The Company recognizes that Governor capacity can be an issue, particularly since the Company appoints members of its Livery to be the majority of Governing Bodies/Federations in all its schools/Academies. To date, this has worked well and can offer pointers to more traditional LEA appointed Governors, particularly in relation to involvement, commitment and accountability to the school/Academy as opposed to the LEA itself.

4.6 Especially, but not exclusively, many people are fearful of becoming Governors. There may be two primary reasons:

Concern about the time commitment (up to 10 days per annum); but this can be managed with clear advanced schedules of meetings—often in the evening/weekends.

Concern about legal liabilities; but these can be managed by an efficient Clerk who regularly brings policies to the Board for discussion/approval.

5.0 The Remuneration of Governors

5.1 Haberdasher Governors give freely of their time and skills. The Company will pay travelling and accommodation expenses for visits to its schools around the country. An effective Chair of Governors will contribute the equivalent of a day a fortnight to the school and possibly more if the Governing Body is a Federation. There may thus be a case for the payment of an honorarium for the Chair of Governors to be compensated for this time; this case is, however, not founded upon much evidence; indeed it is very questionable whether it would lead to better Chairs. Commitment is not necessarily directly linked to financial reward. It is probably better to consider Chair/governor service like jury service, where employers also contribute by paying their employees whilst acting as Governors—part of an employers’ CSR.

6.0 The relationships between governing bodies and other partners, including local authorities, academy sponsors and trusts, school leaders and trade unions

6.1 Haberdasher Governing Bodies view their schools, whether state-funded or independent, as key elements in the local community. As such, clear and transparent dealings with the local authority are essential. In the case of the Academies, these have been founded with the full cooperation of the relevant local authority.

6.2 Academy Local Governing Bodies are formally subcommittees of the Governing Bodies of the Academy Federation trusts. It is however vital that they have clear delegated powers to ensure that the local Governors’ work is valued and felt to be worthwhile. These delegated powers will be outlined in the terms of reference.

6.3 The Sponsor of the Academies is the Haberdashers’ Company whose Governing Body, the Court of Assistants, discharges this responsibility by delegating to the Education Committee.

6.4 The best Governing Body would be ineffective if its relationship with the Headteacher and the senior team were to be dysfunctional. The Headteacher, as the Chief Executive of the enterprise, is the critical person in the success of the school and its students. Headteachers are not usually expected to be Governors in Haberdasher schools.

6.5 Haberdasher Governing Bodies would normally leave discussions with trade unions to the Headteacher.

7.0 Possible changes to current models of governance

7.1 The Haberdashers model of governance, as detailed above, has worked well. The following aspects may contribute to any changes:

Rigorous selection and interviews.

Skills match of expertise to match the school’s needs such as business and marketing, finance, ICT, property management, or education.

Accountability to a trust.

Chairmen to serve as a Governors for at least three years before appointment.

Required training.

Required self-evaluation at least every three years.

Ofsted inspection to look at the above.

7.2 “Models” are not as important as “principles” of governance.

January 2013