Certificate in Understanding the Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours to Deliver Effective Governance

Course Duration: 1 hour and 44 minutes (approx.)

All school governors should have reference to the DfE ‘Competency Framework for Governance’ which sets out the knowledge, skills and behaviours that school and academy governing boards need to be effective. The framework should be read in conjunction with the DfE ‘Governance Handbook’ as stated in the ‘Constitution of governing bodies of maintained schools’ statutory guidance.

Our Essential CPD course provides you with the core content you need to ensure you understand the 16 competencies needed to deliver effective governance. Delivered in high-quality video CPD format that has been skilfully organised for busy workloads and is accessible on any device, anytime, anywhere, our training has been designed to provide maximum learning potential in the leanest, most cost effective and most time-efficient manner.

Delivered by experienced school governor and subject matter expert, Naureen Khalid, the course has been divided into 16 easy-to-digest modules with a knowledge assessment at the end to help you evidence your learning.

Designed in line with the following policies

• DfE Competency Framework for Governance 2017

Learning Outcomes

• Understanding how the 16 competencies are underpinned by a foundation of important principles and personal attributes and form part of the six features of effective governance.
• Recognising what knowledge and skills are needed to deliver strategic leadership and holding executive leaders to account for educational and financial performance.
• Identifying the core competencies attributed to building effective relationships and connecting with staff, pupils, parents and the wider community to deliver strategic priorities.
• Understanding the competencies associated with designing the structures through which governance takes place and avoiding dysfunctional or ineffective governance arrangements.
• Recognising the organisations legal frameworks and compliance requirements and the skills needed to monitor the boards effectiveness and efficiency against these duties.

Modules

Module 1: Setting direction

In this module, you will learn the knowledge and skills required for effectiveness in setting the strategic direction of the organisation, planning and prioritising, monitoring progress and managing change.

Module 2: Culture, values and ethos

This module will help you understand the knowledge and skills required to set the culture, values and ethos of the organisation successfully; demonstrate these in the conduct and operation of the board; embed them through the whole organisation; and monitor the impact on outcomes for children and young people and on the reputation of the organisation in the wider community.

Module 3: Decision-making

This competency relates to the ability of boards to operate effectively as strategic decision-makers, providing the foundation for creativity, innovation and improvement in the organisation, and how effective decision-making is moving from free and frank discussion to specific, measurable actions.

Module 4: Collaborative working with stakeholders and partners

Through this module you will learn the skills needed to stay well-informed about, and respond to, the views and needs of key stakeholders, particularly parents and carers, in order to enable productive relationships, create a sense of trust and share ownership of the organisation’s strategy, vision and operational performance.

Module 5: Risk management

Your learning in respect of this competency relates to the ability of boards to set and manage risk appetite and tolerance. You will learn what knowledge and skills are needed to enable those on the board to identify, evaluate and prioritise organisational risks and ensure appropriate action is taken to mitigate against them.

Module 6: Educational improvement

In this module, you will understand what is needed to enable the board to know that the information that they are receiving about the educational performance of children and young people is accurate, to challenge appropriately where necessary and to hold leaders to account for improving outcomes for all young people.

Module 7: Rigorous analysis of data

Your learning in this section relates to the requirement of the board to develop specific knowledge to allow the monitoring of school performance and improvement. It will also assist you in developing the skills to hold leaders to account.

Module 8: Financial frameworks and accountability

In this module you will learn the skills, knowledge and behaviours which enable the board to ensure that the organisation is in a strong and sustainable financial position to achieve its strategic goals. It is about ensuring the sustained financial health and efficiency of the whole organisation.

Module 9: Financial management and monitoring

The content of this module will help you learn what is required to ensure the board is able to make sufficiently informed and effective decisions on the use of resources and allocation of funds to improve outcomes for children and young people, including that public money is utilised efficiently and in the best interest of the organisation.

Module 10: Staffing and performance management

The learning associated with this competency relates to the knowledge and behaviours required by the board to oversee executive leaders in their responsibility to ensure that the organisation has the right staff who are managed and incentivised to perform to the best of their abilities.

Module 11: External accountability

Your learning in this module relates to managing the organisation’s relationship with those who have a formal or informal role in holding it to account. You will learn the skills and knowledge needed to confidently and effectively be accountable for the delivery of the organisation’s strategic plan, their own decision-making and their oversight of executive leaders.

Module 12: Building an effective team

In this module you will understand the skills and behaviours necessary to ensure effective relationships and dynamics around the table to help to foster a learning culture where constructive challenge is welcomed; thinking is diverse; a variety of experiences and perspectives are welcomed; and continuous improvement is the norm.

Module 13: Roles and responsibilities

This module relates to understanding and designing the structures through which governance takes place, to avoid unclear and overlapping responsibilities that can lead to dysfunctional or ineffective governance arrangements.

Module 14: Statutory and contractual requirements

This part of the course relates to the ability of the board to ensure that all those involved in governance understand the legal frameworks and context in which the organisation operates and all of the requirements with which it must comply.

Module 15: Managing self-review and development

The content in this module will help you understand the skills and behaviours that help individuals on the board to reflect on how they personally are demonstrating the agreed values and culture of the organisation and what impact their individual contribution to making to effective governance.

Module 16: Managing and developing the board’s effectiveness

The final module relates to the board’s ability to reflect on its own effectiveness including that of its processes and structures, so that it can build relationships and improve accountability, and ensure that there is a clear distinction between strategic and operational leadership. It will also assist in setting the tone and culture of the board.