The Governors' Podcast

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; "NEW YEAR, NEW ....." What's The Difference Between a School's Mission, Ethos, Vision, Purpose, Intent/Identity and Values? (Reference: Leigh Cowan 2019's MEVPIV) and The Increasing Importance of Embedding ESG = Environmental, Social and Governance Thinking of the Lifespan Of The Child  What We Can Do,...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; What Is Your/Others’ Personality Types? How well do you know and understand yourself, first? Addressing Diversity In Its Broadest Sense How To Be Engaged In Different Meeting Setups (Cameras On vs Cameras Off) Understanding The Characteristics Around The Table In Governance (Dr Karl George MBE)  Culture Shifts With Every Little...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; What Is The True Purpose of a Vice Chair? -  Attendance and Apologies In Relation To Chairs Managing Limiting Beliefs Around Self-Nominations and The ‘Courteous’ Process for Nominating Someone Else - Is Change Needed? Do You Have The Confidence To Nominate Someone? The Relationship Between the Chair and Vice-Chair: What’s okay...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Considering The Mobility (of lack thereof) of Chairs, ie. Assumed and or Automatic Re-elections How The Chair and Vice Chair Duo Can Be Developed For Succession Planning The Characteristics and Personalities of Chairs - Is There A Specific / Desirable Profile? Chairs Lead The Board (Strategic Body) but They Are Not The Whole Go...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Understanding the Clerk’s Role and Responsibilities Clerking Is So Much More Than Minute-Taking For Meetings - But Minutes Are Still Very Important, So Please Read Them and Feedback! Developing Professional Relationships Between The Individuals In Governance Spaces Being The Nucleus - The Truth and Realities Of A Clerk’s Life ...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; The Purpose of The Skills Audit - What Is It and What Does It Include? Does The Skills Audit Truly Reflect The Skills Around The Table? How To Make Our Use of the Skills Audit More Useful - Is Training Required For It? The Limitations of the Skills Audit - Who and What Does It Exclude?  Using Case Studies To Highlight The Gaps...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Are Governor Visits Mandatory? How To Record and Report On Visits At Meetings Creating A Strategic Plan / Schedule, Involving All Governors and Why That Could Help Everyone Knowing What Governor Visits Entail and What The Expectations Are - You’re Not Ofsted, So You’re Not There To Inspect   Examples Of Positive and Negative Ap...

Send a text To kickstart Season 2 (and the academic year 2021 / 22) in today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; The Annual Mammoth Task of Coordinating and Completing Paperwork (from Declarations of Interests to Related Party Transaction Forms, DBS checks included?) What Do You Actually Declare On The Forms? Why Is It Important? Examples of Platforms That Support The Management Proce...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Understanding Your Target Audience and Choosing The Right Platform To Connect   Our Community of Listeners Out There - We Wanted To Acknowledge You and Thank You! Any Favourite Episodes Or Moments? What Have We Learned From This Season? Plans For The Future (ie. Upcoming Seasons Of The Show - What Topics Will We Discuss Next?)...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Writing, Updating and Approving Policies - Which Ones Are Statutory? (See Department for Education website) What Is The Cycle or Schedule for Review and Ratification? Who Has Designated Responsibility / Oversight? Challenge, Congratulate and Influence Change From The Top-Down: How To Approach and Discuss Policies In Meetings Ho...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; What Is Training and  Our Relationship With It? incl. Habits, Confessions, Sharing Best Practice and Strategies Styles Of Delivery Affect The Learning Process - How Engaging Is The Training? Ensure Relevance, and Measure The Impact of Training (Feedback/Feedforward Opportunities) Timescales - Training Throughout The Academic Ye...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; How Do You View And Rate “Being A School Governor”? The Visibility of School Governance - Let’s Talk About Governance More and Make It Attractive (Goal: Oversubscription) How Effective Is Your Communication, About Governance, With The Changing Generations In The School Community and Wider Society? (ie. Do You Have A Stakeholder...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; The Importance Of Planning Your Exit Before You Enter The Space Be Careful With Becoming Too Comfortable / Complacent How Long Is Too Long As A School Governor In The Same School? Succession Planning Starts With The Number of Terms of Office (or Years) A Governor Intends To Serve A School / Academy Recognising Your Value And Sh...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Meetings Are Not Social Gatherings And Governor Visits Are To Be Considered Separately Challenging The Language “When We Go Back To (Normal)…” The Realties and Practicalities Of Face-to-Face (F2F) Meetings vs. Virtual Meetings That Are Not Being Talked About Enough - Have You Consulted Your Governors or Simply Assumed How Meeti...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Zoom, Microsoft Teams or Google Meets - What Say You? Virtual Meeting Etiquette - Please Mute Your Mic and Cut Your Camera, As Appropriate! Calendar Invites - Is This A “Do” or “Don’t” ?! Which Governor Platforms Do You Use and What Features Do You Like incl. Annotations and Electronic Voting? (BoardPacks vs. BoardEffects, Gove...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Printed Papers vs. Electronic Papers Warning New Governors About The Length of Papers During The Induction Process Tips for Clerks / Governance Professionals and Contributors To The Papers Letting The Agenda Be Your Guide - Note Items For Discussion, Decision or Information Consideration, Efficiency and Communication Are Key We...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Contrast of Settings, Spectrum of Characters Keeping Governance Interesting For You You Are Choosing The School, As Much As It Is Choosing You Where Should You Be A School Governor (Next)? Widening Your Exposure and Scope We appreciate you listening to this episode. Please rate, review and subscribe to our podcast. CONNECT WITH...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Knowing The Different Categories of Governors: Maintained Schools vs. Academies Campaigning For Teachers / Support Staff Who Aspire To Leadership To Become Governors In Other Schools Being a Parent Governor Who Appoints Governors, particularly in Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs)? Vacancies and Elections / Appointment Process  DISCLA...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Patterns in Governors’ Attendance When Someone Is Present but Absent At The Same Time Accepting Apologies vs. Noting Apologies Best Practice for Apologies and Good Governance In General Is Being A Governor All About ‘Status’ For Some People? We appreciate you listening to this episode. Please rate, review and subscribe to our p...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Governor Recruitment - The Struggle Is Real The No. of Meetings and Everything Else - There’s More To It Than The Meetings Consider the Clerk’s Contributions and Coordination Too!  Focussing On The Time vs. Focussing On Your “Why” The Time of Meetings Affects Different Stakeholders Differently We appreciate you listening to thi...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; Knowing What to, When to, How to Ask Questions and To Whom How To Prepare Questions In Advance Exercising The Responsibility of Accountability and Remaining Strategic  Clarifying All/Any Abbreviations  How Questions May Vary From One Meeting To The Next (Autumn vs. Spring Term, Committee vs. Local Governing Body)   We appreciat...

Send a text For today's Single Item Agenda (episode), we discuss; What It Really Means To Be "The Only One In The Room" How To Embrace Standing Out and Take Responsibility Recognising The Makeup Of The Governing Body/Board and Knowing What Makes You 'The Only One' (ie. new vs. experienced governors, age, specialisms, race, gender, etc.) Ways To Navigate The Space As A New...