School Governor

**Applications are invited for Co-Opted Governor at The City of Leicester College**

**The City of Leicester College**:
The City of Leicester College is a large vibrant and popular 11-19 College with a commitment to the highest level of pastoral care and academic achievement. We are a truly comprehensive multi-cultural College offering unique opportunities for all students. Our ‘motto,’ ‘Ambition for All’ reflects our aim to challenge every member of our community to be the best they can be, in every aspect.

We have an extremely diverse community, and respect, civility and honesty are at the heart of what makes The City of Leicester College such a wonderful place to work and to learn. Students and staff from all backgrounds can come and have their differences respected and their contributions valued.

**The role and functions of the governing board**:
The Governing Board (or body) meets to oversee the work of the school’s Headteacher and wider leadership. The Governance handbook identifies three key responsibilities:

- Working with the school leadership to plan the school’s strategic direction.
- Overseeing the school’s financial performance, ensuring money is well-spent.
- Holding the headteacher or school leadership to account

**The expectations of new governors or trustees**:

- The role of Governor is an important public role and therefore Governors are expected to maintain the highest standards of personal and professional conduct. Governors will be expected to follow the seven principles of public life to ensure trust in the institution of College and it’s Governing Board.
- There are five full governor meetings a year and Governors are expected to attend all meetings.
- Governors are also expected to be a part of one of two sub committees we have 6 meetings a year and members of the committee are expected to attend all meetings.
- Papers are provided a week in advance of meetings and governors are expected to have read the material before the meetings.
- All governors are expected to be involved in one visit per year. This would happen during school hours.

We are looking for governors with the skills qualities and potential to eventually lead a governing board.

**We are looking for governors with particular skills namely**:

- The ability to understand the educational context “the classroom” and be able to evaluate the school’s educational performance. People with experience of the education sector would be ideal.
- The ability to hold the college to financial and regulatory account.

You may possess these skills from the role you do in your job however being a governor is a rewarding process and if you have the potential, we will enable you to develop skills and experience that could be useful to you in the future.

**Why be a Governor**:
The Governing Board of a school is a chance to make a real difference to the life chances of students and the community they belong to. We believe in the transformational ability of education in allowing social mobility and raising the standard of living for all. By providing the oversight and necessary challenge to the school leadership you will be helping to ensure all aspects of the school’s work is of the highest quality.

There are of course personal benefits to being a Governor and will help you develop:

- The ability to think and plan strategically.
- Experience of working on an executive board.
- Holding leaders to account.
- Finance, and maintaining oversight of a multi-million pound budget.
- Human resources and performance management.
- Project management.
- Marketing.
- Communication and teamwork.
- Evidence based decision making.

We believe that well trained governors are essential and so invest in training. As a governor you will be expected to partake in training much of which can be done on-line.

**Common concerns**:
Becoming a good Governor requires energy and resilience, as well as commitment, and sometimes people think that there are barriers they would not be able to overcome. However, in our experience it is an extremely rewarding role and we wanted to address some of the common concerns our existing Governors raised before taking up their position:
**Being a governor will take up all of my time**: Governance usually requires between six and eight hours per month during term time.

**Only parents can be school governors**: This is not the case anyone who is eligible can be co-opted.

**I could be pressured by parents to bring up certain issues**: Obviously, the governing board wants to hear concerns from parents, but governors aren't delegates and don't speak 'on behalf' of the parent body.

**I’m not experienced enough**: Governors are often surprised that they do have skills and experience to offer. There is always plenty of help and guidance to help you in the role as long as you are committed to the role.

**There are probably better people to perform the role**: The best person for the role is someone who