This week the Secretary of State for Education, Nicky Morgan, replied to our letter in which we objected to compulsory academisation for all schools and the removal of reserved places for elected parents in academy governance.
I don鈥檛 believe I鈥檝e ever met a trustee of a MAT who isn鈥檛 business minded.听That is right and proper because we want governing boards to be business-like and by that we mean: 鈥渉aving an efficient, practical, competent, systematic and professional approach鈥.听听Schools have much to learn from other sectors and I am sometimes frustrated by the reluctance of school leaders to look outside Education for inspiration. The work 海角社区 has done to introduce听basic strategic planning听into schools often resonates more with those governing schools (as they use similar approaches in their professional lives) than it does with school leaders; many of whom are used to very long development plans (action plans for staff), and are not familiar with formulating a meaningful vision with strategic priorities.
The bit that has stuck in my head is the response to our argument that the election of two parents is useful to avoid 鈥済overnance by clique鈥. The Secretary of State鈥檚 solution is to introduce: 鈥渂usiness minded people onto MAT [Multi academy trust] boards to provide fresh and independent outlooks鈥. Our contention is that those very people may听become听the clique and develop 鈥済roupthink鈥.
听
I don鈥檛 think money drives teachers鈥 careers in the same way or to the same extent as it might in the private sector.
But that is only one facet of governance. We also need those governing to understand what they are governing, and to set a culture and ethos conducive to a place of learning, with children鈥檚 welfare at its heart. Every organisation in every sector needs a healthy culture听by which to thrive. What constitutes healthy culture won鈥檛 be the same everywhere. Values are the bedrock of culture and there can be very different values in different organisations, in different sectors. This isn鈥檛 a theoretical issue; values and ethos drive behaviour. Nurture and caring are at the heart of what schools do in a way they are not for most profit-making businesses.
{Groupthink : A pattern of thought characterised by self-deception, forced manufacture of consent, and conformity to听group听values and ethics.}
There have been a couple of times recently when I have felt uncomfortable about certain values and ethos talked about by people whose previous experience is primarily of the business sector and who are now working in Education. One such example is the completely different take on pay.
Education tends to attract people with a strong service ethic to work in it,听people who want to make a difference. For example, when deciding to become a teacher, people are often choosing to sacrifice a higher salary and risk-taking culture听for mission and stability. We all want to be paid fairly, and what constitutes听fair听pay is a similar debate to what constitutes听fair听school funding, but I don鈥檛 think money drives teachers鈥 careers in the same way or to the same extent as it might in the private sector. We have to reflect carefully and pick and choose what is appropriate to transfer to the Education sector. On a pragmatic note, most school budgets couldn鈥檛 stretch to higher salaries right now but this issue demonstrates how different values can produce counter-productive ways of doing听things when transplanted from another sector. 听
we do want trustees from business, but we don鈥檛 want all trustees to be people from business
Of course, this unease may just be my problem as I am a creature of the third sector. It is much easier to critique the culture of another sector of society than it is one鈥檚 own听and behaviour condemned听in one context听is听not always recognised closer to home.听Let鈥檚 take the so-called Trojan horse investigation, where a small group of governors took undue power and influence in a few East Birmingham schools and instilled a malign culture. One of the 15 recommendations made by Peter Clarke, the Secretary of State鈥檚 Commissioner鈥 in his July 2014 report was:
Unless there are genuinely exceptional circumstances, there should be a presumption that an individual will only be a governor at a maximum of two schools at any one time. All local authorities and multi-academy trusts should review their current governor arrangements, and where they identify an individual holding multiple positions they should consider the appropriate steps to ensure that a wider range of people are able to hold governor positions and that no single individual has undue influence over a number of schools.
The Secretary of State formally accepted all of Clarke鈥檚 recommendations, but this one is conspicuous by the absence of any subsequent significant action by the Department for Education (DfE).听In fact, I would go so far as to say that the spirit of it has been undermined by its inclusion as 鈥榤yth鈥 in the Department鈥檚听myths and facts document, that a person is not allowed to govern at more than two schools. There was a听very good reason why Peter Clarke made this recommendation:听to reduce the likelihood that power over a number of schools could be captured by a small group of like-minded individuals.听The DfE doesn鈥檛 seem to think the same danger can apply to 鈥榩eople like us鈥.
So yes, we do want trustees from business, but we don鈥檛 want all trustees to be people from business as some MAT boards may be aiming for. That is one of the reasons why 海角社区 will continue to make noise about the importance of those two reserved places for elected parents and we encourage those of you who feel the same way to contact your MP to defend reserved parent places.听
If you do make contact this weekend, you can also encourage your MP to attend next Tuesday鈥檚 meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Education Governance and Leadership, chaired by Neil Carmichael MP, which is meeting in the House of Commons, Committee Room 5 from 17:30-19:00 to consider the implications of the proposed听Education for All听bill for school governance and leadership.
Former Chief Executive
After 14 years with 海角社区, Emma has departed from her role as Chief Executive. During her tenure, Emma was a strong advocate for the school governance community, engaging with legislators, policymakers, education sector organisations, and the media on a national level.