Yes and no. School governors do not conduct formal lesson observations where teachers are given a judgement on the quality of their teaching.
However, governors should visit classrooms to increase their knowledge of the school and see whether the policies they have approved and spending decisions they have made have had an impact.
This distinction can be confusing for new governors because teachers use the phrase “lesson observation” to mean a member of the senior leadership team watching a lesson, giving it a rating and offering the teacher formal feedback on their performance. If a teacher is being observed they are being assessed.
A new governor may use the word “observe” to mean they intend to stand quietly at the back of the class and not interfere with the lesson, but to a teacher anyone who is “observing” is also assessing.
Governors do not conduct lesson observations because these observations are part of the day-to-day running of the school; they are operational, not strategic and therefore they are the headteacher’s responsibility.
Most governors are also not qualified to assess teaching and have not been trained to do so.
“It is not the governing body’s role to assess teaching and learning or to interfere in the day-to-day running of the school.”
That being said, governors should definitely visit classrooms. It can be helpful to use the term governor visits rather than observations so no-one misunderstands why governors are in school.
Governors should be getting to know the school and seeing how the policies they have approved are being implemented; they should not be passing judgements on the quality of teaching.
“Occasional visits to schools enable governors to fulfil their statutory responsibility for the conduct of the school, see whether the school is implementing their policies and improvement plans [and] see how their policies and improvement plans are working in practice.
“Focused governor monitoring visits should be in line with SIP priorities, for an identified purpose linked to the governing body’s responsibilities, such as safeguarding [and] pre-arranged with the headteacher or executive headteacher.”
OFSTED also remind governors in a blog post that they should not stray into operational tasks and that there is a difference between an informal classroom visit and a formal lesson observation.
“But I accept that in small schools, governors tend to be more hands-on. Inspectors will be sensitive to this when they consider the work of governors, but we wouldn’t expect governors to be going into lessons to formally observe teaching or scrutinise pupils’ books.”
This page lists all the free downloadable templates and letters for school governing bodies you can find on Ask A Clerk. Unless otherwise credited the files were created by me.
If you have any additional letters or documents you would be willing to share with governance colleagues to save them some valuable time please do let me know.
These are sample local authority agendas and letters for governor panels, also known as governor appeal panels, where an impartial group of governors decides whether an original decision was correct. The exclusion panel is often called the governor disciplinary committee (GDC).
Exclusion panel agenda and letters (Gloucestershire LA) (.doc) This file includes a sample governor exclusion panel agenda, plus letters to parents saying the exclusion has either been upheld or the pupil reinstated.
The DfE used to publish example exclusion letters to send to parents but withdrew them in 2012. Your LA or academy trust may be able to provide up-to-date letters, but if not I have provided the DfE letters below so you can see the style and format they used to recommend.
You must update these letters to take account of the current law and exclusions guidance. There are six letters to parents included in the file.
Fixed exclusion (five days or fewer).
Fixed exclusion (six to 15 days).
Fixed exclusion over 15 days.
Permanent exclusion.
Governor panel uphold a permanent exclusion.
Independent appeal panel decision (this panel is now called the independent review panel or IRP).
These documents let you track governor training and ensure new governors receive the documents and guidance they need. Also included is a welcome letter to send to governors who have been newly appointed.
This pack from Southampton LA contains a vacancy letter, nomination form, ballot paper, “thank you for applying” letter and an election results letter.
These are example letters and a ballot paper for staff governor elections, as provided by Hampshire LA. They include a letter to advertise the vacancy, a letter to thank volunteers for applying and a letter to inform staff of the result.
The first example letter from Bracknell Forest LA allows maintained school boards to both formally warn a governor of a possible disqualification for non-attendance and (if needed) inform them of the actual disqualification. (Academies should cite their articles rather than the law.)
The second example letter was kindly sent in by a clerk and cites articles of association. (Maintained school clerks should refer to the Constitution Regulations 2012 instead.)
