Introduction to Governor Mark The National Quality Mark for School Governance Trainer name / LA Logo

Section 1: What is Governor Mark?

Background From September 2005 clear, unambiguous criteria to make judgements about the quality of governance disappeared from the Ofsted Framework. Into this context Governor Mark was developed – to create a reliable and comprehensive framework against which governing bodies could evaluate the quality of their work. This Quality Mark takes, as part of its core, the work and expectations of Ofsted towards governing bodies, within the framework for school inspection, with a strong focus on governing body engagement with school improvement and its impact on the quality of education provided by the school. This Quality Mark is linked to the Ofsted prescribed school self- evaluation process, and to the descriptors for governance in the 2009 Ofsted Framework

What is Governor Mark? is designed to recognise the quality of the contribution to school leadership and management governing bodies make is a non prescriptive model which measures the working practices of the governing body and their impact on school performance recognises that there are many approaches to achieving sustainable excellence in school governance within the leadership and management structure of the school is a mechanism to achieve accreditation against an agreed quality standard if desired

How was it developed? GLM – Oxfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Warwickshire County Councils working in partnership Consultation with interested bodies – eg Department for Children, Schools and Families Process linked to Ofsted inspection and LA statutory duties Parity with other quality marks – eg Charter Mark

Structure of the Standard Governor Mark has 3 strands: The ethos and working practices which underpin the work of your governing body The statutory framework within which the governing body works (i.e. its roles and responsibilities) The impact of governance, influencing achievement in the school A Governor Mark assessment focuses on the statutory framework and the impact statements

Structure of the Standard Ethos and working practiceThe statutory framework 1. Organisation and Teamwork 5. Strategic Leadership 2. Recruitment and Retention 6. Statutory Responsibilities 3. Self-review and Change 7. Strengths And Weaknesses 4. Principles of Good Governance 8. Support and Challenge Impact School Improvement Every Child Matters The Life of the School The Community 50% of Judgement 50% of Judgement Not graded in first instance

Assessment Process School completes and returns application Assessor(s) assigned, agree date for visit Pre-assessment Desktop assessment and further evidence sought Site visit Judgement made, and feedback to GLM Governor Mark awarded Standard not yet met GLM decision

What are we looking for? Assessors will be seeking to ascertain that the governing body is actively engaged and not a passive beneficiary of very good leadership. A warning sign is an application entirely driven by the headteacher or deputy head The 2009 Ofsted framework evaluates: ohow well governors and supervisory boards fulfil their statutory responsibilities; ohow effectively governors help to shape the direction of the school; ohow rigorously governors and supervisory boards challenge and support leaders and managers, holding them to account for tackling weaknesses and further improving outcomes for all pupils.

Pre-assessment Most schools will qualify for Routeway 1, so long as they can show that pupils are making progress: The last Ofsted (if it is not more than two years ago) The school CVA data (Contextual Value Added). This information may be found in the RAISEonline report (or equivalent) School tracking data, supported by the SIP (or equivalent) Other schools would benefit from following Routeway 2, which involves a second assessment visit. This may be particularly useful for governing bodies of schools causing concern or in an Ofsted category.

What Governing Bodies need to provide Governors should provide the following information: Application, including evidence grid, impact statements and contact details The school Self Evaluation Form or equivalent RAISEonline or other external data Ofsted report (or date of it) All material needs to be provided electronically An assessor will be deployed, who will arrange the date of the assessment visit, and is likely to ask for additional evidence.

Chartermark Scoring System Best Practice - all aspects of the element are met, and the applicant can demonstrate that they have gone beyond the requirements Full Compliance - all aspects of the element are met Partial Compliance - some but not all aspects of the element are met and remedial action to meet the remainder could be put in place within a short period of time (maximum of three months) Major non-compliance - none of the requirements of the element are met, or the assessor concludes that remedial action to address those elements that are not met would require a time scale in excess of three months

Areas of Impact How has the Governing Body influenced school in the following areas? 1.School improvement 2.Every Child Matters 3.The life of the school 4.The community A statement for each (max 1000 words), accounting for 50% of the assessment

The Role of the Assessor To go through the application, both criteria and impact statements, in sufficient detail to make a confident recommendation to the panel about the applicant To decide whether the applicant has met the requirements of the Standard To identify good ideas and practices that could be shared with others

Task: Using Impact Statements What questions would you want to ask the school whose impact statement is provided?

Section 2: The story so far….

By June 2009…. 14 assessments 13 successful Governor Mark awards 6 more assessments currently underway 3 secondary, 1 special and 9 primary schools have Governor Mark 70 assessors in place

Lessons Learned There needs to be a very strong focus on governor impact on school improvement Only evidence from section 5-8 are needed Governors need to steer the application process, not the head It takes some months put the evidence together The assessment process itself is developmental – this is why Routeway Two is available

Common Mistakes Trying to appear to be fully compliant at everything Excessive focus on governing body processes (‘…so we set up a working group….’ or ‘…we have link governors…’) Overstating how successful the school is Impact statements that are too long (and often too descriptive of processes) Thinking that assessors are looking for the all- singing, all-dancing, perfect governing body,

What do we need to send? Application (contact details) Evidence grid Impact statements RAISEonline report SEF Ofsted report or date of last inspection Once the assessor is allocated, they will make contact, arrange the date and ask for the rest of the evidence that can be forwarded electronically. These documents need to be forwarded electronically to

What does it cost? Routeway 1 £645 Routeway 2£985 For applications received on or after 1 September 2009:

Who do we talk to? Your local authority Governor Services

We look forward to receiving your Governor Mark application