Teachernet, Governors

The role of governors relating to community cohesion

The school governing body is legally responsible for ensuring that the school meets the duty to promote community cohesion, with the head teacher taking responsibility for operational management of the duty. Governors have a key role in supporting the school as it improves its effectiveness in promoting community cohesion. Forging partnerships across the local community is a central part of community cohesion work and governors can contribute to extending the school's network of local partners.

The Education and Inspections Act 2006 requires schools in England to promote community cohesion, whilst taking into account the local area's Children and Young People's plan. Governors should make sure that the school's strategic plans are informed by the local area plans. Every Child Matters (ECM) should already be embedded in school planning and community cohesion work closely links with the ECM outcomes.

What do schools need to do to promote community cohesion?
In simple terms, the aim of the duty to promote community cohesion, as highlighted in the Children's Plan, is to achieve a situation whereby children:

understand others, value diversity, apply and defend human rights and are skilled in participation and responsible action
fulfil their potential and succeed at the highest level possible, with no barriers to access and participation in learning and to wider activities, and no variation between outcomes for different groups
have real and positive relationships with people from different backgrounds, and feel part of a community, at a local, national and international level.

How can governors help?
With their experience of the wider community and, in some cases, formal links with local agencies and community groups, governors can be particularly helpful in advising the school on how it can develop its role in the community and become more effective as a force for cohesion across the local area. Governors may also play a useful role in guiding the school as it improves the way it educates young people to become responsible citizens, fully equipped to combat prejudice and create a more cohesive community in the future.

How will the new responsibilities work?
The duty to promote community cohesion falls on the governing body of the school who are legally responsible. As Governors you must ensure that the school complies with all relevant legislation. The head teacher must ensure that duties are implemented within the school. As in other areas, the head can advise the governors about the school's approach to promoting community cohesion, what is in place and what is planned, the kinds of evidence currently available for the school's Self-Evaluation Form (SEF), the school's readiness for Ofsted inspection in this area and whether, in the head's opinion, a policy, action plan or working group is appropriate to take this work forward.

Suggestions for discussion
Governing bodies may wish to discuss the following:

how they wish to ensure that the school is currently complying with the legal duty to promote community cohesion
what information they would like to receive regarding the present situation and any plans to improve the schools compliance to this legal duty
whether it is appropriate for the school to conduct an audit to gather relevant information on the schools' promotion of community cohesion
whether it is appropriate to develop a policy and an action plan specifically for community cohesion
whether work on community cohesion should be linked to other school policies or plans, such as equalities policies, extended services, citizenship, teaching and learning, creativity or school specialism
whether the governing body would like further information or training to clarify the significance of the duty to promote community cohesion
when progress should be reviewed at a future governors meeting.

Related pages and downloads

Last updated: 01 October 2008