The role of the School Governor
Statutory Framework
The governing bodies of all maintained schools are required under the Children and Young Persons Act 2008 to appoint a Designated Teacher to promote the educational achievement of children looked after who are on the school roll.
Key Responsibilities of the School Governor
The school governors at the educational placement have a duty and responsibility to ensure that their school keeps the education of children looked after as a high priority and that an experienced teacher is appointed as a designated teacher for children looked after within their school.
- The governing body must ensure that the designated teacher undertakes appropriate training
- As a minimum governors must receive an annual report from the designated teacher
- The governing body and school leadership team have a duty to act on any issues raised with the report.
- Resources are allocated to match priorities for Children in Care
- How Children in Care are performing compared with their peers
- The numbers of children in the school who are in care
- The school has considered including raising the attainment of Children in Care in the school improvement plan?
The governing body should ensure that:
Admissions
Children in Care are at the top of the over-subscription criteria
Pupil progress
- The school has an overview of the educational needs and progress of Children in Care
- School policies have been reviewed from the point of view of Children in Care
Support Professional Development
- The designated teacher for Children in Care has the opportunity to attend training offered by the local authority for designated teachers
- There is a clear policy on professional development for all staff in contact with Children in Care and other vulnerable children
Continuous Monitoring
The information you should know or your school should be able to give you quickly:
- The name of the designated teacher for Children in Care
- What safeguards the school has in place for sharing sensitive information about individual children looked after with relevant staff members
- What the procedure is for liaising with carers, residential children’s homes and social services to ensure that the school has relevant information about a child’s care history
- How the child’s achievements are effectively communicated to the carer
Personal Educational Plans (PEPs)
The governing body should ensure that: Procedures are in place to ensure all children in care have up-to-date PEPs.
Things to consider
- The number of children looked after with up to date PEPs
- Who reviews and keeps the child’s PEP up to date
- Who keeps the school records up to date
- Procedure of preparing information to transfer in a CiC leaves the school
- Does the designated teacher have the relevant and up to date training?
To find out more information, or for information on upcoming training opportunities specifically for School Governors, please contact patrick.ward@lewisham.gov.uk, Virtual School Headteacher.
Useful Links
| Roles and Responsibilities of the Designated Teacher for children looked after Statutory guidance for school governing bodies. |
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