Wilshaw advocates paying governors at struggling schools

In a speech made at an event run by the think-tank Policy Exchange, Michael Wilshaw said ongoing changes to the education system had created the need for schools to attract more professional governors.

He said governors, who currently play a voluntary role in raising school standards, are taking on important new duties as a result of an “increasingly autonomous school system – which gives governing bodies more power and responsibility than ever before”.

“Of course there will always be a place for the volunteer and those from the community who want to support their local school,” said Wilshaw. “But where there is a lack of capacity and where there are few volunteers without the necessary skills, we need to consider radical solutions.

“I have said it before and I will say it again, we should not rule out payment to governors with the necessary expertise to challenge and support schools with a long legacy of underperformance.”

Wilshaw added that too many schools lack good governance, criticising governors who spend too much time “looking at the quality of school lunches, and not enough on attainment in maths and English.”

He suggested better training should be provided to governors who were “constrained by their lack of knowledge”.

Emma Knights, chief executive of the National Governors' Association (NGA), agreed that better training should be provided. But she rejected proposals to pay governors.

“There is already provision to pay governors on interim executive boards that replace failed governing bodies, and the Department for Education supports the NGA’s view that there is no proven need or robust case for introducing payment for governors more widely,” said Knights. “Governors can do a professional business-like job without being paid.”

David Simmonds, chair of the Local Government Association’s children and young people board, defended school governors.
 
“We should not lose sight of the fact that school governors do a hugely important job and give many hours of their time to ensure that children get a good quality education in well-run schools,” said Simmonds.

“Many governors are busy parents themselves and, with the support of their local authority and other parents, help make a real difference in holding schools to account, setting objectives and focusing relentlessly on improving standards.”
 
He added that the increasing school autonomy makes it harder for councils to take action when schools are underperforming.

“In cases where the performance of governors is a cause for concern, Ofsted could improve the way this is tackled by stripping away some of the bureaucracy which means local authorities are forced to wait several weeks or months before being allowed to intervene,” said Simmonds.
 
“Councils now lack the direct powers that academy sponsors and the government have to take quick and decisive action when schools are underperforming.”

Wilshaw’s speech marked the launch of Ofsted’s school data dashboard – an online tool intended to aid governors by showing how a school is performing in terms of exam results and attendance, compared with other schools.

The chief inspector also argued that employers should encourage their staff to take up governance posts in schools.

“All large and medium-sized companies could insist that their senior and middle managers join the governing bodies of local schools,” he said. “I believe Rolls Royce strongly encourage their managers to do this.”