Governors
This document explains how to add or update your organisation’s governance details on Get Information about Schools (GIAS).
https://www.get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/Guidance/Governance
Guidance on the roles and duties of governing boards, and advice on the skills, knowledge and behaviours they need to be effective.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/governance-handbook
An explanation of how governing boards of maintained schools and academy trusts are structured and descriptions of the roles and responsibilities of members.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/governance-structures-and-roles
Halton’s SEND Local Offer
gives children and young educational needs or disabilities, and their families, information about what support services are available to them in their local area.
The Local Offer is a user-friendly website co-produced with and for children and young people with SEN and/or disabilities (SEND), their parents, carers and professionals, providing information, resources and videos – see topic sections below.
Local Offer | Halton’s Local Offer (haltonchildrenstrust.co.uk)
Health & Wellbeing Support
Looking after your own health and wellbeing is of paramount importance. You need to be in the best shape both mentally and physically to meet the demands of your exciting new role. You are the role model for staff, parents and children. The way you manage your own health and wellbeing will be an example for others to follow.
Here are some top tips:
- Put your own life jacket on first. Then you are in a better position to help and support others. Sounds obvious but eat a healthy balanced diet, drink plenty of water, exercise, take time off from the digital screen and replace with a ritual of self-care. Invest in yourself.
- Think C I A …control, influence, accept. Focus your energies on what you can control and influence. Let go of what you cannot.
- Work on developing your own emotional intelligence. Practice observing how you feel.
- Pay attention to how you behave. Take responsibility for your feelings and behaviours. Practice responding rather than reacting. Empathise-try and understand what drives feelings and behaviours in others. If you have struggled in a specific situation, ask yourself these questions afterwards. What feelings accompanied this situation? How did you deal with them? What lessons have you learned about the relationship between you, emotions and performance as a school leader?
- Change your lens. Try a reverse lens, look at things with a different perspective or a wide lens, how can I grow from this? Finally, a long lens. How will this look in 6 months’ time? Is this situation short term, medium term, or long term?
- Learn to accept praise. Headteachers are brilliant at giving it out to children, staff parents and governors. Love yourself, it builds resilience.
- Learn to reflect. Build in some quality time for self-reflection. Stop, reflect and find solutions. Again, it builds resilience and will help you work smarter thus resulting in a more productive, healthy and motivated headteacher.
- Learn self-compassion. Be kind to yourself, cut yourself some slack and don’t sweat the small stuff. When we are compassionate towards ourselves, we experience much greater degrees of happiness and wellbeing.
- Know when to ask for help. It is a sign of strength not a weakness.
- Develop your own network of support and collaboration. Look outwards not inwards. The support of colleagues and others helps when you can share experiences.
- Check in with yourself regularly. Ask yourself these questions. Where is my mental health today? Am I looking after my wellbeing? How is my thinking today? How full is my stress container? Am I using helpful coping strategies? Are they working?
- Learn to say no! Try saying instead, not now, and then give a future time-frame. You cannot be an endless resource for everyone. It can be overwhelming as you seek to support everyone all of the time. Your time is precious.
- Review your open-door policy. You need to take control of your emotional needs and work priorities. Headteachers need structure and boundaries too.
- Share the load. Ensure your systems and structures encourages others to take responsibility and carry some of the load. It will also provide the necessary capacity to support the work of the school at all levels. Ensuring there are clear roles and responsibilities provides a clear mechanism for addressing work load.
- Governing bodies have a duty of care to headteachers and school leaders. They act as a “critical friend “to provide both challenge and support. How does your governing body safeguard your wellbeing?
- Laughter! Take time to laugh (and laugh at yourself). If you can laugh at it, you can live with it. Laughter can help us see things differently, makes us feel happy and inspires us.
Becoming a School Governor
School governors are volunteers who support schools and help them to provide the best education they can for children and young people.
Governors come from all walks of life and bring their different skills and life experiences and their different perspectives into their governing teams. There is no need to be an expert but it is important that you:
- are interested in education and in the welfare of children and young people
- are able to work as part of a team
- are comfortable asking questions
- have time to commit to the role (probably between 5 and 10 hours a month during school term time)
Would you like to become a school governor?
A number of schools in Halton are looking to appoint governors to their governing boards. School governing boards need skilled people to help them run effectively and a range of skills are needed around the table.
Whether you’ve spent 20 years as an accountant, manage a home and have caring responsibilities, or are in the early days of your career, your support for a school could be invaluable. Governing boards also need people with problem solving and negotiation skills, as much as specific expertise and experience.
If you are able to attend two or three meetings per term, are willing to provide input and commitment to the role, and are interested in helping to improve the outcomes for children in our schools, then we would like to hear from you.
To apply to be a governor, please contact mike.stapleton-chambers@halton.gov.uk