What do Governors do & How long do they serve?

What Do School Governors Do?

(extract courtesy of the National Governors' Association)

School governors provide strategic leadership and accountability in schools. Governors appoint the head teacher and deputy headteacher. It is governors who hold the main responsibility for finance in schools, and it is governors who work with the headteacher to make the tough decisions about balancing resources. Each individual governor is a member of a governing board, which is established in law as a corporate body. Individual governors may not act independently of the rest of the governing board; decisions are the joint responsibility of the governing board.

The role of the governing board is a strategic one, its key functions are to:

• set the aims and objectives for the school
• set the policies for achieving those aims and objectives
• set the targets for achieving those aims and objectives
• monitor and evaluate the progress the school is making towards achievement of its aims and objectives
• be a source of challenge and support to the headteacher (a critical friend).

The OGPS Board of Governors

The OGPS instrument of governance states that our Board of Governors shall consist of:

• 6 Parent Governors, who are elected by the parents of children at school
• 6 Co-opted Governors, who are appointed by the Board of Governors
• 1 Staff Governor, who is elected by the staff of the school
• 1 LA Governors, who appointed by the Local Authority

Chair of Governors & Vice Chair of Governors

The Chair of Governors (Mr Himesh Patel) leads board meetings and performs other statutory duties. The Chair is elected each year by the other Governors. The Vice Chair, Mr Hemal Davda, takes the place of the Chair if they are not available.

The Head Teacher (Mr James Simmons) is automatically a member of the OGPS Governing Board. Our Deputy Head Teacher (Mrs Zakiya Dean) and Assistant Headteachers (Mrs McAndrew & Mrs Amui) have been brought onto the Governing Board as associate members - they are non-voting members.

The Clerk to the Governors takes minutes of meetings and performs other administrative tasks, but does not vote or participate in decision-making. The Clerk is appointed by the Governing Board and his contract is reviewed and renewed annually as appropriate.

Parent Governors

Parent Governors are elected by the parents of children at school. A Parent Governor must have a child at the school at the time of their election. Each Parent Governor serves a term of four years, after which they can stand for re-election if they still have a child at the school.

Co-opted Governors

Co-opted Governors are appointed by the Governing Board. They are drawn from the local community, and often have a connection with the school (for example, they may have had children at the school in the past) although this is not a requirement. Each Co-opted Governor serves a term of four years. There is no limit to the number of terms that a Co-opted Governor can serve.

Staff Governors

A Staff Governor is elected by the staff of the school. They must be members of staff of the school. They serve a term of four years as long as they continue to work for the school.

LA Governors

LA Governors are chosen by the Board from a Local-Authority approved list.

Associate and Non-Voting Governors

Associate and non-voting Governors attend Committee and Governing Board Meetings without voting rights. Associate Governors are appointed by the board to support their work.

Terms of Office

Parent, Co-opted and Staff Governors each serve a term of four years. The Chair and Vice-Chair are elected each year by the Governing Board.

The term of office end date for each governor is listed below. You can find further details in the declaration of interest document.

Non-voting members attend meetings but are not entitled to vote. The clerk records the minutes and advises us on governor matters.

Becoming a Governor - Are you interested in becoming an OGPS Governor?

If you are the parent or carer of a child at the school, you can stand in the next parent governor election. All eligible parents and carers are invited to stand for election as parent governors when a current parent governor’s term ends. You can nominate yourself or ask someone to nominate you. If you are a member of staff, you can stand in the next staff governor election. All staff are invited to stand for election as staff governor when a current staff governor’s term ends. Co-opted governors are appointed by the Board of Governors, if you are interested in becoming a Co-opted Governor (for Oliver Goldsmith or another school) you should contact Brent Governor Support. LA Governors are appointed by Brent Local Education Authority.

If you would like a paper copy of any information found on the website, please contact the school office.