Guidance
NGA has produced a number of guidance documents for governors in collaboration with government departments, agencies and other organisations.
What governing bodies should expect from schools leaders and what school leaders should expect from governing bodies.
The NGA have signed a national agreement with the Association of School Leaders and the National Association of Headteachers setting out how these important groups should work together. The agreement establishes ground rules for the relationship between headteachers and governing bodies. The document can be downloaded > here <.
Food Policy in Schools – A Strategic Policy Framework for School Governing Bodies
The National Governors' Association working in partnership with the Food Standards Agency have published the second edition of the Food Policy in Schools –A strategic policy framework for governing bodies.
The document provides step by step guidance to help governing bodies develop food policies for their schools and provides practical advice on how to tackle all aspects of food in school, from school lunches to vending machines.
This is a must read for school governors as they work to encourage their school to adopt a whole school approach to healthier eating.
The Food Policy Document can be downloaded here
Food Policy in Schools - A Strategic Policy Framework for School Governing Bodies, Catering and Food Procurement Supplement
Published in March 2008, in partnership with Defra, the supplement covers issues surrounding food procurement and sustainability.
The Food Policy Supplement can be downloaded here.
QCA – A Curriculum for the 21st Century
This document was originally published a supplement to NGA’s magazine ‘Governors’ News’ in September 2007. It is designed as an easy guide to the curriculum for governors and in particular focuses on the new secondary curriculum. The booklet covers:
The document can be downloaded here
Mentoring support for Chairs of governing bodies
Produced together with the National Co-ordinators of Governor Services (NCOGs) and with the support of the Department for Children, Schools and Families this framework provides a framework for local or local governor associations to develop a mentoring scheme.
The framework has been developed in two parts, guidance for those wishing to develop a scheme and a leaflet that can be used to recruit potential mentors.
- Download the complete framework here
- Download the recruitment leaflet here
- Downoad the guidance for developing a scheme here
Recruiting headteachers and senior leaders - seven steps to success
Produced by the NCSL this document provides governing bodies with step by step guidance on the issues to consider when recruiting a headteacher or member of the senior leadership team. The document can be downloaded here
School Improvement through ICT – guidance for governors
Governing bodies are responsible for overseeing the school budget, both in terms of what has been spent and whether it has been spent effectively. Investment in ICT is often the second highest cost to school budgets after staffing, but surveys have shown that few schools are using ICT effectively.
Produced in collaboration with Becta this short leaflet aims to offer governors a guide to the questions you need to ask to get the information to monitor and evaluate ICT spending in your school. It also encourages the governing body to suggest that the senior management team use Becta’s self-review framework, which enables schools to ask fundamental questions about how they are using ICT in schools.
The leaflet can be downloaded here
Good Practice in Developing an Allowances Policy
The good practice guide followed from a survey the NGA conducted for the Department for Education and Skills in 2005. The purpose of the research was to investigate current practice in the payment of governors’ allowances; to raise awareness and encourage debate amongst governors on this issue; to look at the barriers to governors claiming allowances; and to make recommendations about possible improvements to the current system and practice.
The document contains the outcomes of the research, the recommendations stemming from it, and a model allowances policy.
The document can be downloaded here
Extended Schools/Services
Two documents have been produced by the Training and Development Agency (TDA) in collaboration with NGA, NCOGs and the DCSF, Extended Services a Guide for Governors I (March 2006) and Extended Services - A Toolkit for Governors (May 2007).
- Download a copy of Extended Schools A Guide for Governors 1 here
- Download a copy of Extended Services - A Toolkit for Governors here
More information on Extended Schools/Services can be found in the remodelling section of the TDA website. Click here to go to the TDA website.
Improving School Performance – A guide for school governors
Produced by the National Audit Office in collaboration with the NGA this booklet provides advice and guidance to governing bodies on the key issues relating to school performance. The guide is split into thirteen areas and sets out:
- Key questions governors need to ask
- Facts and figures relating to the key questions
- Good practice.
The booklet can be downloaded here
NGA / VSO Guide to sabbatical opportunities for teachers
The NGA encourages governors to support their staff to make the most of the opportunities offered by Voluntary Service Overseas. For many experienced classroom teachers, VSO offers the first taste of management, and volunteers report returning with enhanced confidence; the ability to cope in difficult situations and other skills they never knew they possessed.
The NGA/VSO booklet (beware large file) can be downloaded here
For paper copies of these publications (where available) please telephone: 0121-643-5787 or email: governorhq@nga.org.uk