Hounslow Governors

1
Hounslow Governors

• TRUST SCHOOLS
• Shirley Goodwin

2
Governments rationale for Trust schools?

• 'Trust status allows schools to build long
  lasting relationships with a range of partners
  including businesses, higher education
  institutions, charities and community groups.
  These partners bring a wealth of experience and
  skills to Trust schools, helping to enrich the
  curriculum, raise attainment and improve the life
  chances of pupils.'
• (Lord Andrew Adonis)

3
Benefits of Trust schools?

• external partners should add value to the
  school(s)
• enables existing partnerships to be put on a
  longer-term footing and more secure basis, so
  that they are sustained even if key individuals
  move on
• where groups of schools come together within one
  Trust, this should help partnership working
  across the schools eg where the trust involves
  both primary and secondary schools, it can
  support and help with preparing pupils for
  transition to secondary school, and in providing
  a sense of continuity as pupils move on.
• Ultimate outcome should be improved educational
• experiences for pupils and higher standards

4
How does a community school become a Trust school?

• It has to become a foundation school, which
• means it
• is still state-funded
• but it manages its own assets, employs its own
  staff and sets its own admissions arrangements
• It then becomes a Trust school by
• choosing which partners to work with, and
• setting up a charitable trust, through which the
  school and its chosen partners will work together
  to support and benefit the school
• Process of consultation and becoming a foundation
  and trust school can be run in parallel

5
Does becoming a Trust school affect governing
body membership?

• A Trust schools governing body will have
• Trust-appointed governors, in addition to the
• governors chosen by/from parents, school
• staff, LA, and the community
• between 9 and 20 members
• NB Governing bodies can also decide to appoint
  associate
• members who can contribute particular expertise
  but who are
• not actually members of the governing body and do
  not have
• voting rights

6
Process of appointing governors for a Trust
school?

• re-appoint some of the existing governors in
  order to maintain continuity especially if the
  Trust is to appoint the majority of governors
• identify potential governors who will be able to
  promote the ethos/approach (and will offer the
  right skills and experience)

7
Does a Trust affect the role of the governing body

• Day-to-day control remains with the
• governing body, as does responsibility for
  insurance, health and safety etc
•  
• The Trust is not liable for the actions or
  decisions of the schools governing body

8
Possible partners for a Trust that a school could
consider?

• other schools
• colleges
• universities
• businesses or business foundations
• LA
• other statutory agencies eg health
• voluntary agencies
• community groups

9
What is a Trust?

• A charitable organisation that supports one or
  more schools by holding land and assets on trust
  and appointing governors. They must be
  incorporated bodies either a charitable company
  (limited by shares of guarantee), a charitable
  incorporated organisation (as per the Charities
  Act 2006), or a body incorporated by Royal
  Charter
•  

10
Who can be Trust members?

• Individuals or organisations, including
  individual local authority members and/or
  officials

11
What is a Trust (ie its members) responsible for?

• deciding how trustees are elected or appointed
• appointing agreed number of governors
• taking decisions about the organisation of the
  Trust
• the administration of the Trust
• other legal duties, for example promoting
  equality

12
Who are Trustees?

• Trustees are the named individuals, appointed by
  the Trust to be responsible for the day-to-day
  management of the Trust
• Local authority appointed trustees may account
  for no more than 20 of the total number of
  trustees and may have no more than 20 of the
  voting rights of all trustees.

13
Who can be Trust appointed governors?

• Trust-appointed governors can be employees or
  members of the partner organisations or
  volunteers who are not linked to the partners
• Some of them will be parents if the Trust
  appoints the majority of the schools governing
  body. If it does decide to appoint the majority
  of governors, a Parent Council is mandatory, and
  the governing body must have regard to its views
  and advice
• Trustees can also serve as Trust-appointed
  governors, and on more than one school (up to
  maximum of two)

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Minority of Trust appointed governors

• Governing body must comprise
• Trust-appointed governors at least two, and up
  to 45 of the governing body
• Parent governors at least a third of the
  governing body
• Elected staff governors at least two places but
  no more than a third of the governing body. One
  place is reserved for the head teacher even if he
  or she chooses not to be a governor
• Local authority-appointed governors at least one
  but no more than one fifth
• Community governors (appointed by the rest of the
  governing body) at least one tenth of the
  governing body.

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Majority Trust appointed governors

• Governing body must comprise
• Trust-appointed governors up to a majority of
  two, but must include such number of parents of
  registered pupils as, when taken with the parent
  governors (see below), comprise at least a third
  of the governing body.
• Parent governors (elected by parents) at least
  one.
• Elected staff governors at least two places but
  no more than a third of the governing body. One
  place is reserved for the headteacher even if he
  or she chooses not to be a governor.
• Local authority-appointed governors at least one
  but no more than one fifth.
• Community governors (appointed by the rest of the
  governing body) at least one tenth of the
  governing body.

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Benefits from Trust-appointed governors? (1)

• will depend on their background and purposes for
  which the Trust set up in the first place
• should bring in additional expertise and
  experience, such as
• - leadership and management skills, to
  support the schools leadership and governance,
  and long term strategic planning and direction
• - to introduce or support change
• - vocational expertise and knowledge of
• developments and trends in subject areas

17
Benefits from Trust-appointed governors?(2)

• They can help promote pupils wider interests
  and development, and offer expertise to engage
  pupils such as
• - additional curriculum/out of school
  opportunities
• - additional opportunities for work
  experience and
• advice about options and routes for young
  people
• - coaching and mentoring for students
• - help engage with hard-to-reach parents
• - help the school with extended
  services/community
• use, including co-location of services

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Summary of relationships

• Governing Body
• (including Trust appointed governors)
• I
• Trustees/Directors
• I
• Members of the Trust
• I
• Partners
• (school(s) and individuals/organisations the
  school(s) have chosen to work with)
• can also be trust appointed governors

19
How to have schools with self governing status
and continue to promote partnership working?

• A community of schools serving the community
• have collaborative structures/strategic
  partnerships at governing body as well as
  headteacher level
• engage with appropriate external partners to work
  with schools and/or to participate at a strategic
  level
• develop a range of collaborative/federation
  arrangements across schools

20
What could partnership working look like in
Hounslow?

• Partner organisations involved at a strategic
  planning level across the LA, and/or at school
  level
• schools could select Trust Partners from these
  organisations and/or those they already have
  links with/representation from on their governing
  body
• Partner organisations on more than one Trust
• Trustees involved with more than one Trust
  school, as trustees and/or governors
• Aided schools and those that wish to remain as
  community/foundation schools could be affiliated
  to trust arrangements and/or co-opt
  representatives of partner organisations on to
  their governing bodies
• governors appointed/co-opted from partner
  organisations could come together to share
  expertise/experience

21
Stages in developing a Trust
22
Process

• Partners (individuals/organisations) the
  school(s) want to work with
• I
• Members of the Trust
• I
• Trustees/Directors
• I
• Trust appointed governors
• can also be trust appointed governors

23
Keys to success?

• involve staff early on to ensure their
  understanding and support
• be clear about the main drivers for wanting the
  Trust
• be specific about the aims and benefits you want
  to achieve through the Trust
• THEN CHOOSE WHO YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE PARTNERS ON
  THE TRUST
• be absolutely clear about the individual roles
  and contributions you expect of Trust
  Partners/Members
• take time to build understanding/trust with these
  partners, so creating mutual confidence
• ensure parental confidence in the new
  arrangements