Foundation

Foundation Governors

THE LAW

School Governance (Constitution) (England) Regulations 2007 – the “Constitution Regulations”.

Appointment of Immanuel’s Foundation Governors
(extract from Instrument of Government for Immanuel College)

The Diocesan Board of Education or the Diocese of Bradford shall appoint the foundation governors.

The holder of the following office shall be a foundation governor ex officio:

  • The Archdeacon of the Archdeaconry of Bradford
  • The Principal Officiating Minister of the parish in which the College is situated.

The Archdeacon of Bradford within which the School is situated shall appoint a foundation governor to act in the place of the ex officio governor whose governorship derives from the office named in (a) above, in the event that that ex officio foundation governor is unable or unwilling to act as a foundation governor, or there is a vacancy in the office by virtue of which his/her governorship exists.

The Archdeacon of Bradford is the person entitled to request the removal of any ex-officio foundation governor and to appoint any substitute governor.

LEGAL GUIDANCE

Guidance to the Constitution Regulations can be found on :

  • Guide to the law for school governors – on CD ROM.  Provided free to all school governors.

    • GovernorNet

1.  Excerpt from Guide to the Law for school governors, chapter 2 – January 2010 edition:>

FOUNDATION AND PARTNERSHIP GOVERNORS

17. Foundation governors are appointed by the school’s founding body, church or other organisation named in the school’s instrument of government. They may hold their governorship in an ex officio capacity if they are the holder of an office specified in the instrument of government, for example a parish priest. If the school has a religious character the foundation governors must preserve and develop this. They must also ensure compliance with the trust deed, if there is one. If there is more than one body that has the right to appoint foundation governors, the instrument of government specifies the bodies concerned and the basis on which appointments are made.

2.  Excerpt from GovernorNet (Background Article)

Foundation governor (Regulations 8 & 9 and Schedule 4 of the Constitution Regs)

  • A person who is appointed by the school’s founding body, church or other organisation named in the school’s Instrument of Government or who holds the governorship ex officio, as the holder of an office specified in the Instrument of Government.
  • If the school has a religious character, they must preserve and develop this.  They must also secure compliance with the trust deed (if any).
  • If there is more than one body that has the right to appoint foundation governors, the instrument of government shall specify the bodies concerned and the basis on which appointments are made.
  • The number of Foundation governors depends on the Instrument of Government and the category of school:
    • Foundation and Voluntary Controlled schools – (or partnership governors if the school has no foundation) at least two but no more than one quarter
    • Voluntary Aided schools - Foundation governors must outnumber the other governors by two and at least a fifth must be eligible for election or appointment as parent governors
    • Community schools - none

FOUNDATION PARENT GOVERNORS

  • These are Foundation Governors who are also parents of a child eligible to attend school.  The child does not have to attend Immanuel School.
  • To comply with legislation, Immanuel should have 4 foundation parent governors:

4FPGs + 3PGs = 7 = >1/3 of 20 (total number of Immanuel governors);

4FPGs = >1/5 of 11 (total number of foundation governors)

  • However, the number of foundation parent governors is not actually recorded in the Instrument of Government for Immanuel College.

THE ROLE OF FOUNDATION GOVERNORS at IMMANUEL

  • In addition to their generic role as a school governor, foundation governors should seek to preserve and develop the Christian ethos of Immanuel College.
  • Foundation parent governors will also seek to work with the elected parent governors to represent the views of parents / guardians / carers of pupils at the college.

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