Become a school governor

What school governors do

Governors sit on the school's governing board and work with the headteacher. They're responsible for the strategic goals, while the headteacher implements them and manages the school from day to day. The governors:

• make sure that the vision, ethos and strategic direction of the school is clear
• oversee the budget and the financial performance of the school
• hold the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school

School governors are volunteers who want to make a positive contribution to children's education. They don't need to be education experts or have formal qualifications.

What you need to commit to

If you become a governor you need to:

• take part in regular governors' meetings. These usually take place every half term but can be more frequent
• get to know the school and do training where appropriate
• be prepared to take on a role that's linked to a specific focus. This is often an area of the curriculum and may be part of a committee with a similar focus

Apply to become a school governor

If you're interested in applying to become a governor and you have a specific school in mind, contact the school first. They will let you know of any current vacancies and tell you how to apply.

Find out more about being a governor by reading our newsroom article- 'Want to make a difference to children’s lives? Be a school governor'.

If you don't have a specific school in mind or have more questions, contact the Governor Services team: