Reflections on governance

In one role or another I have spent approaching fifty years of my life working for sixth form colleges, starting in 1975 as a history teacher at Solihull Sixth Form College, concluding my professional career as a principal in Leicester at Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth College, and then becoming Chair of Governors at Long Road SFC in Cambridge in 2013. Looking back, to be honest, for most of my career I lacked a proper understanding of governance as a concept or the role of a governing body in practice. Shameful, but there it is! It was only through my experience as Chair that I became fully aware of, on the one hand, the significance and demands of the role and, on the other, its highly rewarding nature. For me it was very much a case of learning while doing the job.  An apprenticeship in governance may be something for the new Secretary of State to consider; her predecessor would no doubt have approved.

So, what did I learn? Firstly, that governance is not a separate activity taking place in parallel to the leadership and management of a college. It is – or should be – integral to the work of the college and to the achievement of its objectives. Equally, however, particularly given that governors are part-time volunteers, the contribution of the governing body needs to be carefully defined and understood. That understanding must be shared not only by governors, individually and collectively, but also by the senior staff; ideally all staff, not to mention students and parents should have at least some grasp of the responsibilities and functions of governors. If a college is to operate to optimum effect, all of its constituent elements need to form, to quote a past Principal of Brighton & Hove SFC, “one functioning team, continually growing and learning together”.

What, then, is the particular role of the governing body? It seems to me that it focusses, in different ways, on three areas: vision & values; strategic decision making; and the effectiveness of operational management.

Unless the college is being newly established, it will almost certainly have in place a “mission statement”, “statement of values”, or some other document encapsulating the fundamental character of the institution. This is the responsibility of the governing body, whether that means acting as “custodian of the mission” (SFCA Essential Guide to Governance, 2018), ensuring that the college is being true to its stated ethos; or being proactive in periodically reviewing the mission to ensure that it is relevant to the needs and ambitions of its current and future students. It may well be the principal who initiates a review and formulates appropriate proposals; but, in this field as in others, governors should play an active role, not simply be passive recipients of the principal’s professional wisdom. Good governors bring valuable perspectives of their own, and should have the opportunity to offer them constructively as part of a consultative process designed to arrive at an agreed vision which all can endorse and work towards.

Within the context of the college vision and values, the governing body has responsibility for strategic planning and the setting of strategic objectives. This means having a determined future-focus, always thinking in terms of the long-term educational health and financial sustainability of the college. Much of the time the setting of strategic objectives will arise from challenges and opportunities identified within the college, perhaps with a time horizon of three to five years and relating to issues such as student achievement rates, staff recruitment and retention, income generation, estate modernisation and so on. The governing body needs to ensure that there is in place an agreed process for the periodic review and revision of the strategic plan; this process must be built into the annual cycle of work for the governing body.

Less frequently, one hopes, governors will have to, or choose to, undertake a more fundamental review of the college’s position in the local, or even national, educational landscape. This was brought home to me very vividly by the Area Reviews launched by the government in 2015. Through a process led by the DfE, the Corporations (governing bodies) of all sixth form and FE colleges had to determine their institutional future: to remain as independent colleges; to merge with one or more other post-16 providers; to move to academy status by either creating or joining a Multi-Academy Trust, perhaps with schools; or seek some other form of secure future. It was stressed throughout that this was a decision to be made by the governing body, which would then be held responsible for the consequences. I think it was at this point, in the years 2015-17, that I came to understand properly the responsibility of governors for college strategy and, even more fundamentally, for the institution’s long-term future. As I said, I learned on the job!

Attempts to define governance often begin by describing its role as “strategic” as opposed to the “operational” work of management. In my experience, in practice the distinction is less clear-cut than this might imply. The writing of a strategic plan and the setting of strategic objectives does not take place in a vacuum. Plans are shaped by an informed understanding of the college’s current work and performance; and if they are to be fulfilled, they have to be implemented through effective operational processes. Determining the nature and detail of those processes is a matter for the principal, college managers and staff, not directly for governors. In relation to operational matters, the role of governors is firstly to scrutinise and approve the plans put forward by managers, and secondly to hold managers to account for the outcomes and effectiveness of those plans. This should not be an adversarial relationship. It is a matter of governors and managers fulfilling their complementary roles within “one team” striving to achieve shared goals. Challenge from governors should be rigorous but constructive, designed to test assumptions and to stimulate reflection and debate in pursuit of positive outcomes.

All of the above may sound rather dry, almost mechanical. Processes are important but they will not get you very far without the right people. Recruiting and developing a talented team of governors, supported by a well-informed, highly organised and proactive clerk, is essential. This means identifying skills gaps and working hard through agencies, local contacts, personal knowledge and whatever channels are open to you to draw in applicants with the right attributes. Diversity matters, not for box-ticking purposes but because an effective governing body will bring together individuals with different personal qualities, from a variety of backgrounds and experiences, able to offer a range of perspectives when tackling any given issue. Group-think is dangerous. Equally importantly, governors do not all arrive at the boardroom table fully formed. Induction, training, review and development should not be too onerous for a voluntary role but they are valuable and, in my experience, valued by governors.

Finally, crucial to successful governance is the building of a productive relationship between governors, especially but not exclusively the chair, and the principal and their senior management team. Mutual professional understanding and respect are crucial and cannot be taken for granted; they need conscious effort. There is no scope in this short article to explore what this means in detail, but in summary, I think the relationship depends on a shared culture; frequent, regular, frank and open communication; the practice of collaborative working in both formal and informal settings; and a recognition that, whatever our roles, we are all learning together. After all, that is the business we are in!

Ian Wilson was a governor at Long Road Sixth Form College from 2013 to 2022, and chair from 2013 to 2021; he was the recipient of the SFCA 2023 Governance Award. Read more blogs from award winners on Blog 6; you can find the first in the 2023 series here.