If you’re a school governor or interested in school governance, chat about the issues facing governors. You can get your questions answered by Stephen Adamson of the NGA if you start a new topic with "Dear Stephen" in the subject.
Dear Stephen
We are a convertor academy having converted in late 2011.
The question has now arisen as to when governors, terms of office ends under an academy. Our memorandum and articles generally states 4 years. However does this mean from when the academy started or from the original appointment date under the predecessor local authority school.
Thank you in anticipation of your or anyone elses advice.
Peter
Dear Sadolbag
Many thanks for your response. I very much have the same view - our solicitors view is different. I will represent my views to them again.
Kind regards
As I understand it, the Academy is a completely separate legal entity from its predecessor school - the previous school being effectively closed (ceased to maintain) on the day before the Academy opens. By definition the term of office should start at the point at which the Academy came into existence. I also understand that new elections for parent governors should take place as soon as possible after conversion, as the parents governors were elected as parents of the predecessor school which technically no longer exists. This would also follow if you have staff governors.
Stephen Adamson
Sadoldbag, I know nothing about Academies, but it would sound strange that an elected governor either parent or staff who has been in play for say 3 years in the non academy school is suddenly without a further election given another 4 years as governor i.e. 7 years in total.
Stephen's take on it seems more logical, but I wonder how many elected governors who vote for academisation realise that their roles will be up for renewal soon after conversion. Or is it that many are not having elections when they should do?
Which then begs the question, what right have those governors who were previously appointed governors have to carry on as most will have been appointed by the LA or GB.
When we converted last year the FGB (prior to conversion) stipulated that existing goverorships (bar the LA who could only have one appointee) would remain unchanged (date of expiry of term of office, numbers etc) until such time as the new GB decided otherwise. We felt the continuity and stability of goverance was essential after conversion given the transition (and work) that would inevitably follow. The legal advice from the Solicitors involved (who seemed pretty uptogether) was that this was perfectly acceptable.
I can see how (some) GB's might see conversion as an excuse to elbow out some governors (especially those elected by parents) and there is no doubt that smaller GB's are going to evolve over time (even at the school I am a governor at) but IMHO there is a lot to be said for sharing the workload, being open to fresh ideas and not placing too much power in the hands of a few
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