There are different types of Governors who together will make up the Full Governing Body of a school. Governors can be either a Parent; a member of Staff; an LA appointed governor; a representative of the local Community; a Sponsor; or an Associate. The different types of Governor are described in more detail on this page.
Eggar’s Full Governing Body should be constituted from
- 4 Community Governors
- 3 Governors from Local Authority
- 5 Parents
- 3 Staff
Parent Governors
These are parents, including carers, of registered pupils at the school. Parent governors are elected by other parents at the school. If insufficient parents stand for election, the governing body can appoint parent governors.
Schools must make every reasonable effort to fill parent governor vacancies through elections. Only if insufficient parents stand for election can the governing body appoint:
- a parent of a registered pupil at the school, or if that is not possible,
- a parent of a former pupil at the school, or if that is not possible,
- a parent of a child of or under compulsory school age
Staff Governors
Both teaching and support staff paid to work at the school are eligible for staff governorship. Staff governors are elected by the school staff and must be paid to work at the school; volunteers are not eligible under this category.
Head teachers is they choose to be a governor are staff governors.
At least one staff governor, in addition to the head teacher, must be a teacher, but if no teacher stands for election a member of the support staff can be elected to take that place.
LA Governors
These governors are appointed by the LA (Local Authority). LAs can appoint any eligible person as an LA governor. They appoint candidates irrespective of any political affiliation or preference.
Community Governors
These are appointed by the governing body to represent community interests. Community governors can be persons who live or work in the community served by the school, or persons who do not work or live close to the school but are committed to the good governance and success of the school. The definition of community governor is wide and people from a business or professional background can be appointed as community governors.
Sponsor Governors
Sponsor Governors are persons who give substantial assistance to the school, financially or in kind, or who provide services to the school. It is at the governing body’s discretion whether they choose to appoint sponsor governors or not.
Associate Members
Governing bodies can benefit from being able to draw on expertise and experience from outside their formal governor membership. The definition of associate member is wide and pupils, school staff and people who want to contribute specifically on issues related to their area of expertise (or instance finance) can be appointed as associate members.
Also, if you are unsure about what is expected of you as a governor, becoming an associate member is a good way of finding out what it is all about. Then, when a full governor vacancy comes up, you may wish to apply.