The job of a clerk to school governors is to take minutes of governor meetings, help to draft agendas, advise the board on legal and procedural issues and keep records of membership, training and attendance. In some schools clerks are known as governance professionals or governance leads.
School boards have to follow some quite complex rules on governance that are set by either the law for maintained schools or documents such as “articles of association” for academies.
The clerk needs to have a detailed knowledge of these rules so that governors carry out their role within the legal and regulatory framework.
For example, there are rules about who can vote and how the chair of governors should be elected and it is the clerk’s job to answer questions about these issues.
The role of a maintained school clerk is briefly described in school governance law. The law states that the clerk must produce minutes of meetings, keep a record of governing body membership and offer advice to governors about their responsibilities.
“The governing body must appoint a clerk with a view to ensuring their efficient functioning and must have regard to advice from the clerk as to the nature of the governing body’s functions.
“The clerk to the governing body must—
(a) attend meetings of the governing body and ensure minutes of the proceedings are produced in accordance with regulation 15(1);
(b) maintain a register of members of the governing body and of associate members and report any vacancies to the governing body; and
(c) perform such other tasks as may be determined by the governing body from time to time.”
Roles, Procedures and Allowances (England) Regulations 2013
The role of an academy clerk is described in the Academy Trust Handbook, although the Handbook refers to clerks as “governance professionals”. The Handbook confirms that clerks need to offer both administrative support and expert advice.
“The academy trust must appoint a governance professional to support the board of trustees who is someone other than a trustee, principal or chief executive of the trust.
“A governance professional can contribute to the efficient functioning of the board by providing:
— guidance to ensure the board works in compliance with the appropriate legal and regulatory framework, and understands the potential consequences of non-compliance
— independent advice on procedural matters relating to operation of the board
— administrative and organisational support.”
Academy Trust Handbook
Training For Clerks To Governors
Ask A Clerk offers training for maintained school clerks, covering procedures at meetings, voting rights, how to call meetings, electing the chair, conflicts of interest, the role of the governing body versus the role of the clerk and much more.
Job Description for a Clerk to Governors
Here is a suggested job description and person specification for a clerk to governors. Exact tasks will vary from school to school so you will need to tailor it to your setting.
I’ve also provided pdf files of the job description and person specification for a clerking role I held so you can see an “official” version.
You can also look at the clerk’s skills audit I provide. The audit lets you rate your own skill level in key areas on a scale of one to five so you can identify any weaknesses or training needs.
(Note that the clerk reports to the full governing body, via the chair of governors; they do not report to the headteacher.)
Download Job Description for Clerk to Governors (pdf)
Download Person Specification for Clerk to Governors (pdf)
Example Job Description for a Clerk To Governors
- Take minutes at full governing body and committee meetings, showing who is responsible for agreed actions (with timescales) and ensuring any confidential items are minuted separately.
- Circulate minutes to board members within agreed timescales.
- Produce draft agendas for meetings with the chair of governors and headteacher and distribute the agenda with any relevant reports and papers.
- Provide advice on school governance legislation and procedural issues to ensure the board is compliant, effective and constituted correctly.
- Provide advice on the core functions of the governing body and any changes to the responsibilities of school governors.
- Provide advice during the election of the chair and vice-chair.
- Ensure terms of reference for committees and any other delegated responsibilities are reviewed at appropriate intervals.
- Keep records of governing body membership and report any vacancies to the governing body.
- Keep records of committee membership, terms of office, link roles, attendance at meetings and completed training.
- Keep a record of school policies (both statutory and non-statutory) to show when they were last approved and ensure they are reviewed at the appropriate interval.
- Maintain a register of financial and other interests to ensure conflicts of interest are declared and managed.
- Ensure all required governance information is published online.
- Arrange induction training and ongoing training for board members.
- Support the induction of new governors by providing the documents, mentor links and training opportunities they need.
- Undertake induction training and further training as required.
- Provide support for parent and staff governor elections and advice on how other governors are appointed or removed.
- Ensure Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and section 128 checks are carried out and recorded.
- Ensure that the Get Information About Schools (GIAS) database is kept up-to-date.
- Undertake other tasks as required.
Example Person Specification for a Clerk to Governors
Key Skills: Essential
Ability to take clear and accurate minutes.
Ability to keep accurate records and organise complex information.
Literacy and IT skills.
Ability to work without supervision, meet deadlines, use own initiative and work as part of a team.
Knowledge and Experience: Essential
Experience of administrative work at NVQ level 3 or similar.
Knowledge and Experience: Desirable
Knowledge of governing board procedures and relevant legislation.
Experience of taking minutes, drafting agendas and servicing meetings.
Knowledge of data protection legislation.
Clerking accredition qualification.
Personal Qualities
Ability to maintain impartiality and keep sensitive items confidential.
Willingness to work during evenings at times convenient to the board.
Willingness to undertake ongoing professional development opportunities.
Ability to develop professional relationships with the chair of governors, headteacher and governing body.
What is the salary for a clerk to governors?
This varies across the country and depending on the type of school you work for, but to give you an idea of pay rates I’ve included below two recently advertised salaries from local authorities.
Because academies have more freedom to set their own salaries pay rates at academies may be higher that at maintained schools. Secondary schools may offer higher pay than primaries. Higher rates are also available for clerks in more senior roles, for example a Governance Lead in a multi-academy trust who supervises a number of clerks to local governing bodies.
Hampshire County Council
Salary £21,403 to £24,055 (pro rata), plus an allowance for your home office. Equivalent to £11.12 to £12.50 hourly rate (based on 37 hour working week). The council offer a minimum of 66 hours work per year.
North Yorkshire County Council
Salary £19,945 – £22,021 (pro rata). Equivalent to £10.34 – £11.41 per hour. They also offer expenses for travel to school at 42p per mile.
You can also read the report Putting A Price On Effective Clerking which was produced by the National Governance Association in 2020 and lists average salaries for clerks working in different areas of the country and different types of school.
Salaries in the report are from a few years ago but are useful as a benchmark. The NGA looked at advertised salaries in 2019 and found that a clerk in the West Midlands could earn an average of £10.58 per hour, a clerk in Yorkshire might earn £12.60 per hour and a London clerk could be on £17.77 per hour. The average wage across the country (excluding London) was £11.50 an hour.
How many hours does a clerk work per week?
Clerking is usually a part-time job and can be a very part-time job if you only work for one school. A single school may only need to employ a clerk for around 10-14 hours per month, equivalent to around three or four hours hours work per week.
Because of this many clerks work for multiple schools, either through the local authority clerking service for maintained schools, through individual contracts with each school or through a multi-academy trust.
There will also be single schools that offer more work than this, depending on their needs. A secondary school may offer more hours than a primary, for example.
Is the work term-time only?
Almost all meetings should be held in term-time and most of the work can be completed in term-time too, although there may be rare occasions when a meeting is held very near to the end of term (or half-term) and minutes will need completing in a school holiday. Agendas may also need drafting just before the start of term or in a half-term holiday.
A clerk may be expected to reply to some emails and calls during school holidays but because the main body of work results from meetings this should not be onerous.
What time are meetings held?
Meetings are commonly held in the later afternoons or early evenings, perhaps from 5-7pm or 6-8pm. Some schools hold meetings during the school day or in the early morning.
Full governing body meetings tend to last for about two hours. Committee meetings tend to last for about an hour. The longest meeting I have ever clerked was about three hours; the shortest about 45 minutes.
Do clerks work at the school site?
The most common arrangement is for clerks to visit the school site to attend meetings but to type up minutes and complete their additional work from home.
Some clerks are based at the school site though, particularly if they combine their clerk to governors role with another job such as PA or if their role is more senior or complex such as governance lead for a multi-academy trust.
What qualifications are needed?
There are no specific qualifications needed to become a clerk to governors. Some schools ask for applicants who have completed accredited training (or say that completion of this training is required if you get the job) but many accept applications from those with no clerking accreditations.
The NGA studied clerk job adverts for their report Putting A Price On Effective Clerking and found that almost half of adverts do not ask for any qualifications. They did not find any adverts that asked for a degree but a minority requested GCSEs.
How are clerks employed?
Some clerks are employed directly by the school or local authority under a contract for a set number of hours per year. Others are employed through a local authority clerking service or a privately-owned agency. Some clerks are self-employed and freelance.
How can I find vacancies?
Have a look at my article on recruiting a clerk to governors to see where vacancies are advertised.
What questions will I be asked at interview?
A separate article provides a list of possible interview questions and answers for a clerk to governors.