Governor Application Form

Governance and leadership training programme for aspiring school governors and school leaders.

I am delighted to introduce this governor application page, the aim of which is to help recruit and retain high-quality governors in all of our schools.

If you are interested in becoming a governor, you will find the following pages very useful in making your mind up whether this is something for you!

As our family of schools has grown, I have become ever more grateful for the quality of support and challenge provided by trustees and governors alike. Week in, week out Trustees work selflessly behind the scenes making sure that as a Trust we remain on track to meet our high-level strategic goals.  At a school / local level, governors work strategically and closely with headteachers and senior leaders to make sure that our children have the best education possible.

Together as a team, we share a sense of great responsibility to the thousands of children and adults who belong to our IFtL community. They have invested trust and faith in our ability to be the best we can be, to be at the forefront of educational excellence and above all, to prepare our children so that they can go on to live successful and fulfilling lives.

The role of trustees and governors is crucial as we continue along our journey. Bringing their own unique skills and life experience is invaluable as we ensure governance across IFtL is characterised by a diversity of perspectives and insight.

I welcome your interest in becoming a governor. Providing strategic leadership and accountability in our schools is a big job and it may not be for everyone. However, if you are reading this, then there is a very good chance that you are already thinking seriously about joining us. So, do please take the next step and speak to your local Chair of Governors or get in touch with our Head of Governance, Stephanie Boak.

Hopefully, one day we will meet at a school near you.

Sarah Bennett
CEO

How do schools achieve success for their pupils, staff and communities?
How does Governance work across IFtL?
I wish to become a governor, what are the next steps?

Are you ready to apply?

Before completing this form you will need to know:

  • Your two referee's contact details and supporting statement
  • If you have a current DBS, your DBS date (if known)

Name(Required)
DD slash MM slash YYYY
Address(Required)
Type of Governor(Required)
Please state whether you would be willing to serve on a different LGB if there are no vacancies at first preference.
Current employment: Please state your employer, role, length of time in the role and a summary of responsibilities. Include details of any relevant previous employment.
Please state the institution, qualification received and classification. Include details of any further relevant training.
Other relevant interests and experience This may include any hobbies, volunteering and charity work, personal interests or achievements that may help you become an effective school governor.
Please explain why you wish to become a school governor.

Please include any skills and experiences you have from either your professional or personal background, or any other area of expertise, which you feel are relevant and support your application.

Parent / Staff governor applicants: please note that where there are more nominations than places available, a ballot will held. In these cases, the information contained in the ‘Supporting Statement’ section of this form will be made available to the parent body / staff body as appropriate as part of the election process.

Skills Audit

Please tick to indicate how confident you are in the following areas: (1 being not confident/no experience and 5 being very confident/professional level of knowledge or expertise)
Strategic planning(Required)
Setting a vision, values and goals(Required)
Public sector or charity governance(Required)
Knowledge of the education sector(Required)
Teamwork and collaborative decision making(Required)
Communication skills(Required)
Financial management(Required)
Fundraising/ income generation(Required)
Performance management(Required)
Human resources(Required)
Data analysis(Required)
Legal skills(Required)
Health and safety(Required)
Premises management(Required)
Curriculum and assessment(Required)
Safeguarding(Required)
Special educational needs and disabilities (SEND)(Required)
Approving and monitoring the implementation of policies(Required)
Compliance(Required)
Marketing/public relations(Required)
ICT or technology skills(Required)
Procurement(Required)
Procurement(Required)
Further or higher education(Required)
Knowledge of the local community(Required)

References for Local Governing Body Application

As part of the application process, in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE), you will be required to provide contact details for two employment referees to support your application. If you do not have employment details, please provide details for 2 referees. In the first instance, they should be an individual with professional standing eg: doctor, teacher, nurse, lawyer, religious leader etc. They must be over 18 years of age and have known you for at least two years. (If you are unsure about the availability of references, please do contact us to talk this through) Referees will be contacted prior to appointment to verify that you are a suitable person to be involved in school governance.
Name of Referee 1(Required)
State how long you have known Referee 1 and in what capacity.
Name of Referee 2(Required)
State how long you have known Referee 1 and in what capacity.

Disclosure and Barring and Recruitment Checks

* IFtL is legally obligated to process an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check before making appointments to relevant posts. * The DBS check will reveal both spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings, and any other information held by local police that is considered relevant to the role. Any information that is “protected” under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 will not appear on a DBS certificate. * If you are going to be involved in regulated activity, the DBS check will include a barred list check. * Any data processed as part of the DBS check will be processed in accordance with data protection regulations and IFtL’s privacy notice.
Do you have a DBS certificate?(Required)
If you have lived or worked outside of the UK, IFtL may require additional information in order to comply with ‘safer recruitment’ requirements. If you answer ‘yes’ to the question below, we may contact you for additional information in due course.
DD slash MM slash YYYY
Have you lived or worked outside of the UK for more than 3 months since the age of 18?(Required)
* Your position as governor will be conditional on the satisfactory completion of the necessary pre-employment checks. * We will not ask for any criminal records information until we have received the results of a DBS check. * Any convictions listed on a DBS check will be considered on a case-by-case basis. * Applicants should be aware of the following circumstances which might prevent them from being appointed as a governor: - Inclusion in the list of those unsuitable to work with children - Have been sentenced to 3 months or more in prison (without the option of a fine) in the 5 years before becoming a governor or since becoming a governor - Have received a prison sentence of 2 and a half years or more in the 20 years before becoming a governor - Have received a prison sentence of 5 years or more - Have been fined for causing a nuisance or disturbance on school premises during the 5 years prior to or since appointment or election as a governor

Section 128 Check

IFtL will carry out a section 128 check. A person issued with a section 128 direction under the Education and Skills Act 2008 is prohibited or restricted from taking part in the management of a school. This includes trustees, and governors on local governing bodies who have been delegated any management responsibilities.

Data Protection Notice

Throughout this form, we ask for some personal data about you. We will only use this data in line with data protection legislation and process your data for one or more of the following reasons permitted in law: * You have given us your consent * We must process it to comply with our legal obligations
Consent(Required)
Consent(Required)
Name(Required)
DD slash MM slash YYYY