Local School Governor (Sherburn CE and Luttons Primary Academies)

Are you looking for a role which challenges, provides ample opportunities for growth and gives something back to your local community? Sherburn CE Academy and Luttons Community Primary Academy have joined Ebor Academy Trust, a multi-academy trust of 25 Yorkshire primary schools and are currently recruiting school governors!

If you are looking for an inspiring opportunity to become involved in governance at a primary school, then we would welcome your statement of interest. We are looking for governors of all ages and backgrounds to help drive our ambition for the children we serve. While being a governor is a ‘hands off, eyes on’ role, is still a real chance to make a difference - you would be offering advice, guidance and support to the school leadership and governing board, making sure school resources are used to their maximum benefit. This is especially important in primary schools, as they 

provide a basis for further education and other life opportunities such as better physical and mental health and employment.

We particularly welcome those with knowledge of education, finance, human resources, legal, marketing, public relations, property and estates management as well as organisational change. We also welcome lived experience such as having grandchildren, children, adopting or being in care as a child or with experience of SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities). As Sherburn is a CE school, we are also looking for those who are particularly interested in a Christian ethos within a school setting, or interested in the teaching of RE.

However, do not discount yourself just because you may fall out of this skill set or set of experiences. All we ask is that you have a passion for furthering the education of our school’s pupils and willingness to learn with a time commitment of around five hours a month - full training is provided.

Being a school governor is also a great opportunity to learn new skills and reinforce existing ones within a new sector you may not have thought about volunteering or working in before. On top of this, you will meet people from various backgrounds and be able to become a part of the local school community.

What will you be doing?

Ebor Academy Trust is a values-led multi-academy trust – a family of schools with a sense of responsibility for each other. 

Governors on local governing bodies have a significant role to play in providing an external perspective on the strategic direction of the school, bringing enthusiasm, and experience from other areas of life. They work as a well balanced group of people to support the headteacher and staff in driving the school forward.

 Local governing bodies within the Trust normally meet five times per year at the school, but governors are encouraged to be actively involved in their schools, wherever possible. 

Training will be provided to help you in your role, and we provide a paid membership to the NGA, a bespoke resource for school governors to help develop your skills in governance. Being a governor makes you think about how and why schools work well, and how – without being hands-on – you can use your life skills and experience to support and challenge people working in them to be as effective as possible. 

You need to be able to work as part of a team, be committed to collective responsibility and have the ability to think strategically. You will need to be passionate about children’s life chances. 

You will need to be comfortable with finding the time to read a number of papers to prepare for meetings, and confident to ask challenging questions and learn about the school. 

Ideally, you will be able to come into school during the school day for school visits, perhaps for a minimum of three times per year. You will be entitled to the right to have a reasonable time off work to complete your public duties as governor (like a magistrate or a member of a jury) and it is worth considering and asking your HR department or line manager if there are incentives or policies around employee volunteering if applicable.

Being a governor is the most important voluntary role in education and is the largest volunteer group in the country. An effective governing body can be a source of strength to the school, helping it to look for the best solutions. This position offers the chance to make serious differences at a local level.

You will gain ongoing challenges and new learning about interesting and important aspects of the work of the school. You will be valued in this role and will have access to the training you need to be most effective. You will keep up to date with changes in national and local policy affecting schools and will be well placed to see the difference this makes on the ground.

Still interested? Submit your contact details and a few sentences about why you want to be a school governor and any skills you feel would be helpful to the local governing body and we will contact you as soon as possible about this exciting role.