School governors and trustees are volunteers and can resign at any time for any reason, with no advance notice needed.
Governors should send written notice of their resignation (via email is fine) to the clerk. It would be courteous to address the resignation to the clerk but copy in your chair of governors as well.
It would be extra specially courteous to give the chair advance warning of your resignation if that is possible, especially if your school struggles to recruit governors.
There is no procedure beyond this that you need to follow to quit. Once the letter has been sent the resignation takes effect either immediately or from whatever future date you have specified in your letter.
Associate members, local governors and academy committee members who are not trustees can all resign in the same way, by giving written notice to the clerk.
“A governor may at any time resign from the office of governor by giving written notice to the clerk to the governing body.”
Constitution (England) Regulations 2012
“A trustee may resign their office by notice to the academy trust (but only if at least three trustees will remain in office when the notice of resignation is to take effect).
“Either the trustee resigning, or those removing the trustee shall give written notice thereof to the governance professional.”
Model Articles of Association (June 2021)
Staff governors in maintained schools who are resigning from their job do not need to resign separately from their role on the board, as their staff governor role ends automatically when they leave the school.
“Upon ceasing to work at the school, a staff governor of a school is disqualified from continuing to hold office as such a governor.”
Constitution (England) Regulations 2012
Note though that maintained school employees who are co-opted, parent or foundation governors can continue in their governor role if they wish even after leaving their job.
Academies will need to check the wording in your articles of association or terms of reference to see whether staff trustees or staff local governors automatically lose their governing role when they resign from their job at your trust.
Do resignations need to be approved by the board?
No, there is no need to hold a vote to approve a resignation. The governing body cannot refuse a resignation and force someone to continue governing against their will!
Usually the resignation does not need to be discussed at all and the clerk should simply record it in the minutes.
The only exception to that would be if the reasons behind the resignation are issues that the board could improve. For example, if a governor says they resigned because they were not confident in the role the board may wish to examine the induction training they provide.
Can a governor be asked to resign?
They can, but the governor could simply refuse to resign.
However, if a governor is causing problems or not pulling their weight then either the board itself or another body such as a local diocese has the power to remove the governor from the board.
Can governors who resign join the board again in future?
Yes. There are no regulations that say a governor who resigns is disqualified from being appointed or elected to that same governing body in future, or that they have to wait for a minimum period of time to elapse before applying.
Depending on how recently the person resigned there may be a reluctance to appoint or elect them, but this will depend on the reasons behind the resignation and the skills they have to offer.
What should the clerk do after a governor resigns?
In all schools the clerk should:
- let the chair know about the resignation
- update the list of governors or trustees on your website (but do not just delete the name because your website must list anyone who has served in the past 12 months)
- update Get Information About Schools (GIAS)
- ask the governor to return any school ID cards/lanyards
- remove their access to digital services such as a school email address, Google Drive, GovernorHub and The Key.
In all schools you also need to tell anyone who is responsible for appointing a new governor if it is not the school itself. For example, in a Church of England school the diocese needs to know if a foundation governor resigns.
Maintained schools can check their instrument of government to see who is responsible for appointing the governors who are not elected by parents/staff or appointed by your board.
Academies can check their articles of association for trustee appointments or local governing body terms of reference for local governor appointments.
In maintained schools you will also need to inform the local authority governor services section.
In academies you will need to inform Companies House if the person was a trustee on the main trust board, because academies are also companies and trustees serve as the company directors. (Academies are charities too but there is no need to inform the Charity Commission.)
You do not need to tell Companies House if the person who has resigned was a local governor in a multi-academy trust, but local governors are recorded in Get Information About Schools.
What happens if an academy member resigns?
Academy members are not registered at Companies House. They are included in Get Information About Schools (GIAS) so you will need to update that record to notify the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) of the change.
You also need to change your own records, eg: the register of members (part of the statutory books of the trust) and your website.
Members may also appear in your confirmation statement (formerly the annual return) because they may be “persons of significant control”, people who hold more than 25% of the voting rights.
Replacement members are appointed by the remaining members. Your articles of association will state how many members the trust has. The model articles (June 2021) say trusts must have at least three members, but at least five is preferable.
Model articles explain that existing members pass a special resolution, with 75% of members voting in favour, to appoint new members. Note that any special resolution that is passed must be filed with Companies House.
Template Letter To Thank Departing Governors
My templates and letters page includes a letter you can send to governors who have resigned to thank them for their service.
How does the chair of governors resign?
Chairs and vice-chairs can resign by giving written notice to the clerk. If you resign as chair or vice-chair you can continue to serve as a governor.
“The chair or vice-chair may at any time resign their office by giving notice in writing to the clerk to the governing body.”
Roles, Procedures and Allowances (England) Regulations 2013
“The chair or vice-chair may at any time resign their office by giving notice in writing to the governance professional.”
Model Articles of Association (June 2021)
Can the chair resign with immediate effect?
Yes. Chairing is a voluntary role and there is no obligation to give any notice at all. However, it is very helpful if you can give the school advance warning so they can think about succession planning.
What happens after the chair resigns?
When the chair resigns (or reaches the end of their term of office) schools need to elect a new chair at their next meeting; the procedure is described in a separate article.
While there is a vacancy for chair the vice-chair should chair meetings. In maintained schools the vice-chair must also act as chair for “all purposes”, so for example they also gain the ability to use chair’s action.
In academies you will need to check your articles to see if a similar power to chair’s action exists and whether the vice-chair can use it too.
What happens if the headteacher resigns as a governor?
In a maintained school the head would no longer be a member of the governing body, but their place on the board is always available so they can rejoin by giving written notice to the clerk.
“The headteacher’s resignation may be withdrawn at any time by the headteacher giving written notice to the clerk to the governing body.”
Constitution (England) Regulations 2012
The head is still legally entitled to attend all governor meetings and receive the agenda, minutes and papers, but cannot vote.
“The following persons are entitled to attend any meeting of the governing body — (a) a governor; (b) the headteacher of the school, whether or not that person is a governor.”
Roles, Procedures and Allowances (England) Regulations 2013
In an academy the headteacher is a trustee if the members have appointed him as such and he has agreed to this. If he does not agree then he does not become a trustee. If he becomes a trustee and then wishes to resign he can do so in the same way as all other trustees.
“Providing that the [chief executive officer]/[principal] agrees so to act, the members may by ordinary resolution appoint the [chief executive officer]/[principal] as a trustee.”
Model Articles of Association (June 2021)
The model articles do not give a headteacher who has resigned a specific right to attend academy meetings, but if a governing body is trying to ban a headteacher from their meetings something has gone very wrong indeed…
Can governors resign but stay on until a replacement is found?
They can let the board know they plan to resign in the near future and remain as a governor, only officially resigning when their replacement has been recruited. This is a good way to work because it allows the board time to recruit and consider succession planning.
However, if the governor has resigned officially (in writing to the clerk) then they cease to be a governor on the date they specified in their written notice.
In that case they can continue to attend meetings if the board allows them to but they are no longer a governor and cannot vote or take on duties such as link governor roles.
Trustees Cannot Resign If Only Two Would Be Left
Model articles (June 2021) contain a rule that a trustee is unable to resign if it would only leave two trustees left in office. In practice of course they would continue to be a trustee on paper but could not be forced to participate in governance.
“A trustee may resign their office by notice to the academy trust (but only if at least three trustees will remain in office when the notice of resignation is to take effect).”
Model Articles of Association (June 2021)
Governor Resignation Letter Template
Below you can find an example of a governor or trustee resignation letter that you are welcome to use.
The letter should state when your resignation becomes effective, give a reason for your departure (as detailed or as vague as you would prefer) and be clear about whether you will still take part in upcoming school events or volunteer roles you might have in school.
10 Acacia Avenue
Newcastle
NE2 8NW
Dear Stephen,
I regret to inform you that I am resigning as a governor of Malory Towers School with effect from 20 October 2020/with immediate effect. The last meeting I will attend will be on 10 May. I have copied this letter to the chair of governors.
Unfortunately I am unable to continue serving as a governor. This is because [Delete all but one of the following-]
my personal circumstances have changed.
I am no longer able to devote as much time as I would like to the role due to work/family commitments.
I am moving away and would not be able to attend the meetings.
I feel that the governing body is moving in the wrong direction due to X, Y and Z and feel it is right to resign.
I am very proud of the work of the governing body over the last X years and I hope the school goes from strength to strength. On a personal note I would like to thank my governor colleagues, chair of governors [name], headteacher [name] and all school staff for their support and hard work.
I am still able to attend the autumn fair on 1 October if my presence would be useful. I am also happy to help welcome a new replacement governor and help with their induction if one is found before I leave.
Yours sincerely,
Alicia Johns