Leadership

What do we mean by governance?

Ministers have announced a review of school governance - but will it be a review of governance or of governors? It's sometimes taken for granted that 'governance' means the same thing as what a governing body does...

Ministers have announced a review of school governance - but will it be a review of governance or of governors? It seems sometimes to be taken for granted that ‘governance’ means the same thing as what a governing body does (or what it ought to do).

Teachers teach; leaders and managers lead and manage; governors govern. Or do they? The concept of governance has evolved over the last 20 years, and it is understood differently in different sectors.

In the corporate world, the usual definition is ‘the system by which an organisation is directed and controlled’. Standards of good governance for UK companies are set out in the Combined Code prepared by the Financial Reporting Council.

The most complete recent statement of the governor role in the public sector is in the Good Governance Standard for Public Services published by the Chartered Institute of
Public Finance and Accountancy and the Office for Public Management in 2005.

Although the standard does not explicitly define governance, governance is described in the foreword as “the leadership, direction and control of an organisation” and the primary functions of a governing body are said to be to:

  • Establish the organisation’s strategic direction and aims, in conjunction with the executive.
  • Ensure accountability to the public for the organisation’s performance.
  • Assure that the organisation is managed with probity and integrity.

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