School governors are not automatically disqualified just because they miss a certain number of meetings.
However, the law for maintained schools states that almost all governors and associate members who miss six months of meetings can be disqualified if they do not have the consent of the governing body to be absent.
Model articles of association for academies (June 2021) state the same rule for trustees and local governors or committee members.
The only governors to whom this rule does not apply are maintained school governors who are “ex officio”, which means that their role comes with their job. For example, the headteacher in a maintained school is an ex officio governor. (“Ex officio” means “by virtue of their office”).
In a maintained school where disqualification is being considered you must count from the date of the first full governing body meeting they have missed (ignore committee meetings).
In an academy you look at whether a trustee has missed all meetings in a six-month period.
How To Disqualify A Governor For Non-Attendance
A board gives consent to a governor’s absence through the use of apologies, so if someone is missing meetings the clerk needs to carefully record whether they sent apologies and whether those apologies were accepted. If apologies are accepted the governor has permission to be absent.
In a maintained school where apologies are not accepted the clock starts counting on the six-month period starting from the first full board meeting missed. (If apologies were not sent at all the board can still decide to give consent to the absence if they wish to.)
If the governor fails to attend any full governing body meetings within six months and the board does not accept any apologies from that person they are disqualified at the end of that period.
Although ex officio foundation governors cannot be disqualified for six months of non-attendance they can be replaced with a substitute governor if they are not turning up to meetings.
In an academy the model articles for academies (June 2021) do not specify when the six-month period must start so trustees could decide to count from any time, including periods such as the summer holiday when no meetings are held at all.
What happens if an associate member is not attending meetings?
In a maintained school exactly the same rule applies to associate members as to governors – they are disqualified if they miss six months of meetings without the permission of the board.
However, boards may wish to be far more lenient with associate members because they may only be expected to attend committee meetings.
In an academy there may be people called associate members on committees but the rules for their attendance will be set by each academy trust.
When should we disqualify a governor?
In practice most people will need to miss the occasional meeting and this should be accepted.
If someone is absent for six months or more, however, governors need to decide whether they accept the reasons for absence or not; the clerk should be keeping an eye on the attendance rate and alert the chair of governors if this situation arises.
If the absence is due to illness or another reasonable issue than governors may decide to give their consent to the absence. However, if the governor is simply not turning up to meetings and not pulling their weight the governing body may take a stricter view.
“A governor who, without the consent of the governing body, has failed to attend their meetings for a continuous period of six months beginning with the date of the first such meeting the governor fails to attend, is, on the expiry of that period, disqualified from continuing to hold office as a governor of that school.
“This paragraph applies to every governor, other than governors who are governors by virtue of the office that they hold.
“Any person who is disqualified from holding office as a governor of a school under this schedule is likewise disqualified from holding or continuing to hold office as an associate member of the governing body unless the disqualification is under paragraphs 1 or 2 [which say a governor must be 18 or over and not a registered pupil].”
Constitution (England) Regulations 2012
“A trustee shall cease to hold office if they are absent without the permission of the trustees from all their meetings held within a period of six months and the trustees resolve that the trustee’s office be vacated.”
Model Articles of Association (June 2021)
Example Disqualification Letters
I have provided some sample disqualification letters in my templates and letters section. A letter can be sent to a governor who has been disqualified for non-attendance or who is at risk of being disqualified.
I would always contact the governor informally before sending a letter in case they are ill or dealing with another issue.
One-Year Ban For Some Disqualified Governors
Before disqualifying a governor for non-attendance in a maintained school bear in mind that it will ban some types of governor from serving on the board in your school for a full year.
This ban applies to foundation governors, local authority governors, co-opted governors and partnership governors. It would not ban them from serving on the board at a different school, however.
It may seem unlikely that a board would want to reappoint a governor who has missed so many meetings, but it does show that the reason for the long absence should always be considered carefully. If the governor has a very good reason for their absence but the board disqualifies them anyway and later regrets it, the governor cannot rejoin the board for a full year.
“A foundation governor, authority governor, co-opted governor or partnership governor who has been disqualified as a governor of a school under sub-paragraph 2 [failure to attend meetings] is not qualified for election, nomination or appointment as a governor of any category at that school for twelve months starting on the date on which they are so disqualified.”
Constitution (England) Regulations 2012
What if a governor does not attend committee meetings?
In maintained schools committee meetings should be ignored when deciding whether to disqualify someone as these meetings do not count towards the six-month period.
Therefore, if a governor or associate member continues to attend committee meetings but fails to attend full governing body meetings for six months they can still be disqualified as a governor or associate.
If the situation is reversed, so they fail to attend committee meetings but do attend meetings of the full governing body, they cannot be disqualified from the board. However, governors could vote to remove them from that particular committee, suspend them from the board or remove them completely from the governing body.
In academies the model articles (June 2021) say that a trustee can be disqualified if they are “absent without the permission of the trustees from all their meetings held within a period of six months”.
This suggests that if someone was attending full meetings of the trustees but missing committee meetings (or vice versa) they would not be eligible for disqualification, as they can only be disqualified if they have missed all meetings they should be attending.
However, model articles do make it clear that committee members who are not trustees, including local governors, can be disqualified if they do not attend the committee of which they are a member. The six-month disqualification rule is contained in article number 70.
“[Article 70:] A trustee shall cease to hold office if they are absent without the permission of the trustees from all their meetings held within a period of six months and the trustees resolve that the trustee’s office be vacated.”
Model Articles of Association (June 2021)
This is followed by another paragraph which states that article 70 also applies to any committee member who is not a trustee. A local governor, for example, would not be expected to attend meetings of the board of trustees but they can still be disqualified if they fail to attend meetings of the local governing body they belong to.
“Articles 68 to 74 also apply to any member of any committee or delegate of the trustees, including a local governing body, who is not a trustee.”
Model Articles of Association (June 2021)
Even if they do not use the disqualification rule, academy trustees have the power to remove any committee member (including local governors) at any time.
What happens if a governor arrives late?
The clerk should record this in the minutes by writing “Alicia Johns entered the meeting at this point” (or similar) so it is clear what agenda items the governor heard and could vote on.
If the lateness becomes a regular occurrence the chair may wish to have a word with the governor about punctuality. If the lateness is very severe and ongoing the board could consider removing that governor.
Can a governor take a leave of absence?
Yes, as long as they have permission if the leave is for longer than six months. Even for shorter periods it is courteous to let the school know you need to take some time off so work can be redistributed and the clerk can make sure meetings will be quorate.
In maintained schools the full board need to give their permission for a period of absence longer than six months.
In academies it is either the local governing body or board of trustees who need to give permission for some leave. This depends on whether it is a local governor or trustee who wants the sabbatical and who has the power in your terms of reference/articles to give consent to absences.
In theory there is no limit on the length of leave or sabbatical someone could have if they want to take a break, as long as permission has been granted.
Because the governor is not officially resigning or being disqualified/removed, remember that they will still take up a place in your constitution for as long as they are absent. There is no way to “pause” a governor position, so they are still in post even if they are on leave.
In practice, boards will need to bear in mind that an absent governor is not contributing to the work that needs to be done and is making it harder for them to assemble the quorum they need to make decisions. They should balance this factor against the reason for the sabbatical.
For example, if a governor has asked for maternity leave it would be unfair not to allow it unless an unusually long leave period has been requested or the governing body has a high number of vacancies and is struggling to get the work done.
What happens if the chair cannot attend a meeting?
In both maintained schools and academies the vice-chair can act as chair for any meeting which the chair of governors/trustees has failed to attend.
“Where the chair is absent from any meeting or there is at the time a vacancy in the office of the chair, the vice-chair is to act as chair for all purposes.”
Roles, Procedures and Allowances (England) 2013
“Where the chair is absent from any meeting or there is at the time a vacancy in the office of the chair, the vice-chair shall act as the chair for the purposes of the meeting.”
Model Articles of Association (June 2021)
What happens if both the chair and vice-chair cannot attend a meeting?
If both the chair and the vice-chair have failed to attend then there are no rules set in law or model articles about what to do.
However, old law from 1999 said that maintained schools should elect one of their number to act as chair (but not someone who works for the school or is a registered pupil) so that is a reasonable solution, even though that law has now been revoked.
“Where [the chairman is absent from any meeting and] the vice-chairman is absent from the meeting or there is at the time a vacancy in the office of vice-chairman, the governing body shall elect one of their number to act as a chairman for the purposes of that meeting, provided that the governor elected shall not be a person who is employed to work at the school, or a registered pupil thereat.”
Education School Government (England) Regulations 1999
Academies may have procedures set in their own articles of association or in terms of reference for committees.
What happens if the headteacher cannot attend a meeting?
In most cases it should be possible to carry on without the head and there’s no legal or procedural reason why the meeting needs to be cancelled. Deputy heads often attend meetings as a matter of course and can answer questions and take part in discussions on the headteacher’s behalf.
The only situation where you might wish to consider postponing the meeting (or one agenda item at least) is if there is a major decision to be made or an important discussion that needs the headteacher’s input. For example, if there is a proposal to spend a very large amount of money or to make significant changes to a key policy.
Can a governor send a representative if they cannot attend a meeting?
No. Staff governors in particular will sometimes ask if they can send another staff member in their place, but a governor cannot nominate a substitute or proxy to govern on their behalf.
It’s also important to remember that the staff governor is not on the board to lobby for the staff, just as parent governors do not lobby for parents. All types of governor have the same role. If the staff governor does not attend a meeting it does not mean that school employees are disadvantaged or have lost their “voice”.
The board or committee can invite anyone to attend a meeting, including school employees, but these guests can never vote or take on governor duties. It is up to the board which guests they invite, not an individual governor.
The only time a substitute governor can carry out governance duties is when a substitute foundation governor has been appointed because an ex officio foundation governor (someone who became a governor due to their office, eg: being the parish priest) is unable or unwilling to take up the role.
What if we have ongoing vacancies?
The governing boards of both maintained schools and academies can still function if they have vacancies.
A separate article on vacancies explains that for maintained schools there is no minimum number of governors you must have in post. It also explains that academy trustees may have limited decision-making powers if there are many vacancies and describes why too many vacancies can cause problems.
What happens if the clerk cannot attend a meeting?
If the clerk knows in advance that they cannot attend a meeting you can contact local schools or the local authority governor services to borrow a clerk temporarily.
If the clerk of a maintained school is absent at short notice then the law says that any member of the governing body apart from the headteacher can take the minutes for that meeting. That governor can still vote, form part of the quorum and take part in discussions in the normal way.
“The governing body may, if the clerk fails to attend a meeting of the school, appoint any one of their number (who is not the headteacher) to act as clerk for the purposes of that meeting.”
Roles, Procedures and Allowances (England) Regulations 2013
This applies to both meetings of the whole board and committee meetings. This is because the regulations use the phrase “a meeting of the school” and the same law defines this exact phrase as “a meeting of the governing body or of a committee”.
If the clerk of an academy is absent then the model articles say that any trustee or indeed any other person can act as the clerk for that meeting. This means that you could ask a member of the academy’s office staff, for example, as long as there are no confidential or sensitive items on the agenda that would be inappropriate for them to hear.
Notice that the model articles do not ban the academy’s headteacher from acting as clerk, although this should be avoided. The head needs to take an active part in each meeting and part of the board’s role is to hold the headteacher to account, so minutes should be taken by someone who is either a neutral observer or a member of the board who is not the headteacher.
“The trustees may, where the governance professional fails to attend a meeting of theirs, appoint any one of their number or any other person to act as governance professional for the purposes of that meeting.”
Model Articles of Association (June 2021)