Today, the National Governance Association (NGA) have released their annual governance report. With nearly 6,000 respondents, the report published in association with the Times Educational Supplement (TES), found areas that provide food for thought for governor recruitment.
The report provides evidence of the continued need for the government to invest in governor recruitment pathways , with boards needing to recruit another 18,000 new governors and trustees in order to sustain the current level of board sizes. Whilst the report reveals that most appointments continue to be made through personal networks and word-of-mouth, more recruiters are choosing to successfully use innovative solutions like the Inspiring Governance recruitment service in order to find new volunteers.
Diversity on governing boards continues to be an issue with only 2.6% of respondents identifying as LGBTQ+ and 5.4% of respondents coming from a black, Asian or minority ethnic backgrounds. However, there are encouraging signs, with 9.7% of new governors in the last year coming from a minority ethnic background , showing an upward trend but we should not underestimate the work still to be done.. This is why we will continue to re-double our efforts to diversify boards in partnership with the NGA through the Everyone on Board campaign.
The report also suggests that nearly 4 out of 5 school governors are over the age of 40 bringing much needed experience to the role. However, these demographics raise the need for continuing to encourage young governors into the role to develop into the long-term governors of the future. We will continue to promote the NGA’s Young Governors’ Network to encourage those under 40 to volunteer as a School Governor or Trustee, by creating a support network for younger volunteers to share their ideas and experience.