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Clerk to Governing Body

Poverest Primary School, Orpington, Kent, BR5 2JD

24 days remaining to apply

• Start date details

  To be agreed

• Closing date

  4 October 2024 at 11:59pm

• Date listed

  5 September 2024

Job details

• Job role:
  • Administration, HR, data and finance
• Visa sponsorship: Visas cannot be sponsored
• Working pattern: Part time: Hours Negotiable.
• Contract type: Permanent
• Hourly rate: 15.23 to 16.43

What skills and experience we're looking for

KNOWLEDGE

• A good knowledge of Business Administration and several years’ practical experience of administrative processes
• Knowledge of the law and procedural requirements pertaining to school governance
• English and Maths to GCSE Grade C or equivalent
• Business Administration qualification to NVQ level 3 or equivalent
• Evidence of providing comprehensive administrative and clerical service
• Able to advise and update on regulatory framework for school governance (relevant acts and regulations, legislation etc)
• To demonstrate a good level of numeracy and literacy
• To provide the business knowledge and theoretical context for school administration
• Willing to undertake further training as required for the role.

MENTAL SKILLS

• Evidence of using own judgement and interpretation skills to interpret information
• Ability to provide advice to Governors on matters of law and procedure

INTERPERSONAL & COMMUNICATION SKILLS

• Ability to communicate information and ideas effectively to a range of audiences, through excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Evidence of being able to effectively liaise with strategic boards and provide them with advice
• To produce clear, accurate and concise minutes of meetings
• Evidence of holding effective (agenda) planning meetings with senior leaders (Headteacher and Chair of Governors)
• Evidence of being able to develop and maintain effective working relationships with stakeholders of the school.

PHYSICAL SKILLS

• Excellent ICT skills
• Ability to use Microsoft Office programmes effectively, effective use of email and cloud-based systems.
• Confident with being able to use Microsoft Teams / Zoom or Google meets as required and to organise meetings.
• Ability to update School and DfE Systems such as GIAS as required.

INITIATIVE & INDEPENDENCE

• Ability to work on own initiative & to plan & organise own workload
• Ability to work independently, mainly from home to carry out the role. Attend meetings in school as required and to use effective communication with governors between meetings to ensure that actions are followed up.
• Liaise with other organisations (Governor services) regularly and attend training and (governance professional) forums as required.
• Evidence of effective yearly planning - Produce annual calendar of meetings, coordinate with others electronically as needed.
• Evidence of good time management – (Distribution of documents within a timely manner to the governing board.)
• Evidence of keeping effective statutory records

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

• Ability to work in a constrained position for regular periods of time
• Evidence of being able to take minutes of meetings, either by hand or electronically and to be able to attend both in person and virtual meetings.

MENTAL DEMANDS

• Ability to concentrate for lengthy periods of time
• Evidence and ability to ensure that effective minutes are taken, and governors remain strategic in their meetings. To be confident enough to interject when governors are not following legislation or procedure.

RESPONSIBILITY FOR PEOPLE

• Understanding of key safeguarding issues and procedures
• To ensure correct reporting and monitoring of any safeguarding issues arising across the school.
• Be willing to attend Safeguarding training as required.
• To maintain appropriate levels of confidentiality and data security in respect of personal / child / colleague information

RESPONSIBILITY FOR PHYSICAL RESOURCES

• Evidence of being responsible for maintaining and updating records: e.g. Governor details, school statutory information. The majority of information is now stored in cloud-based systems. Ability to ensure these remain secure.
• Understanding of GDPR.

WORKING CONDITIONS

• Ability to work from home, with internet access and access to own computer / laptop
• To work from home the majority of the time and attend school for meetings as required.

CORE BEHAVIOURS

• To follow the Nolan Principles of Public Life in a position of transparency and trust supporting the governing board.
• Confidentiality and professionalism are always require as well as an understanding of Safeguarding and GDPR procedures within the school.
• To be reliable, punctual and trustworthy, as well as being self-motivated, with a positive and professional attitude

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

• Home based role, access to IT, ability to attend meetings in school and virtually through Microsoft Teams / zoom as required.
• You will be required to follow the Clerking Competency Framework as part of your Governance Professional Role

What the school offers its staff

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Further details about the role

The Clerk will:

ADVICE AND GUIDANCE

Provide independent and expert procedural guidance to the governing board on its duties and functions, contributing to the efficient conduct of the board by:

• providing guidance to the board on its core functions and Department for Education (DfE) governance advice, including the Governance Handbook and Competency Framework for Governance
• updating the governing board on relevant legislation and procedural matters where necessary before, during and after meetings knowing where to access appropriate legal advice, support and guidance, and where necessary seeking guidance from third parties on behalf of the governing board
• informing the governing board of any changes to its responsibilities as a result of a change in school status or changes in the relevant legislation
• updating and informing the board on the regulatory framework for governance (relevant acts and regulations, instruments of government)
• offering ideas on governance best practice, including on committee structures and self-evaluation
• ensuring that statutory policies are in place, and highlight when staff need to review them
• producing the annual calendar of governing board meetings and tasks
• producing a timetable of policy schedules which need to be reviewed by Governing Body
• supporting with the election of Parent Governors
• facilitating new governor induction and ensuring they have access to appropriate documents, including any agreed code of conduct
• working with the Chair of Governors to ensure new governors have a governor induction
• supporting the Chair of Governors with the advert, interviewing Governors
• anticipating issues which may arise, and drawing these matters to the chair’s attention, proposing recommendations
• ensuring discussions remain strategic and not operational.
• manage complaints and appeals process once it gets to governor stage

ORGANISATION AND ADMINISTRATION

Prepares for and administrates meetings, allowing the board to make effective use of their time and focus on strategic matters. Supports the smooth and effective running of meetings by:

• working with the chair and headteacher to prepare a focused agenda for governing board meetings and committee meetings, including AfCAT which the school is part of
• liaising with those preparing papers to make sure they are available on time, and distribute the agenda and papers as required by legislation (7 calendar days prior to the meeting date)
• ensuring meetings are quorate, inclusive and well structured
• recording the attendance of governors at meetings (including any apologies, minuting whether they have been accepted or not), and take appropriate action in relation to absences
• drafting minutes of meetings, indicating who is responsible for any agreed actions with timescales, and circulate as agreed with the governing board
• circulating the reviewed minutes to all governors/members of the committee, the headteacher and other relevant bodies within the timescale agreed with the governing board
• following-up on any agreed action points with those responsible and informing the chair of progress
• ensuring a policy schedule is in place and remains up to date

GOVERNING BOARD MEMBERSHIP

Effective boards need members with the right skills, experience, qualities and capacity. To support the board’s proper constitution, it is the responsibility of the Clerk to:

• advise governors and appointing bodies in advance of the expiry of a governor’s term of office and the impact of this on the board’s capacity, diversity and skills mix
• establish, in discussion with the board, open and transparent vacancy filling processes and efficient procedures for election and appointment
• give procedural guidance concerning conduct of governor elections and assist with election procedures
• collate, maintain and ensure correct publication of information about governors such as any pecuniary interests
• ensure Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and other relevant checks are carried out on any members of the board
• maintain a record of training undertaken by members of the governing board
• maintain governor meeting attendance records and advise the chair of potential disqualification through lack of attendance
• advise the governing board on succession planning for all governing board roles
• update GIAS within 15 days of any changes taking place.
• Working with the Chair of Governors in placing adverts for governors and ensuring that leads are followed up

MANAGING INFORMATION

Supports the board in maintaining records of policies and procedural documents and ensures these are accessible. This includes:

• maintain up to date records of the names, addresses and category of governing board members and their term of office, and inform the governing board and any relevant authorities of any changes to its membership
• maintain copies of current terms of reference and membership of any committees, working parties and any governors with specific oversight of an area e.g. SEND
• maintain a record of signed minutes of meetings and ensure copies are sent to relevant bodies on request and are published as agreed at meetings
• maintain records of governing board correspondence and that of AfCAT
• ensure copies of statutory policies and other school documents approved by the governing board are kept in the school and published as agreed, for example, on the website
• storage of minutes of relevant meetings on the school site

RELATIONSHIPS AND DEVELOPMENT

Ensuring there are good relationships between the Clerk and members of the board for open communication. Clerks also have a role to play in supporting and advising the governing board on their self-review and development. The Clerk should fulfil these responsibilities, whilst maintaining independence, by:

• developing and maintaining professional working relationships with the chair, the board and school leaders
• contributing to the coordination of learning and development opportunities for those involved in governance, including induction and continuing professional development
• The clerking competency framework supports individuals in assessing their own practice, skills and knowledge and identifying their development needs. Continuing professional development in the role of clerk should include:
• undertaking appropriate and regular training to maintain knowledge and improve practice
• keeping up to date with current educational developments and legislation affecting school governance
• participating in regular performance management, led by the chair

OTHER DUTIES

The post holder may be expected to carry out duties other than those given in the job description where the level of responsibility is similar, and he/she has appropriate qualifications or receives appropriate training to carry out these duties.

Commitment to safeguarding

The school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare and safety of children and young people and expect all staff to share this commitment. Enhanced DBS and social media checks are required for this post.

Applications and appointments will be dealt with in accordance with KCSIE 2023 guidance.

Applying for the job

Please complete the online application.

CVs are not accepted.

Visas cannot be sponsored.

If you're interested in teaching or training to teach in England as an international citizen, we can help you understand your next steps.

Upload additional documents

If you need these documents in an accessible format, please contact the school.

Clerk to Governors JD & PS - September 2024.pdf - 319 KB (opens in new tab)

About Poverest Primary School

• School type: Local authority maintained school, ages 4 to 11
• Education phase: Primary
• School size: 435 pupils enrolled
• Age range: 4 to 11
• Ofsted report: View Ofsted report (opens in new tab)
• School website: Poverest Primary School website (opens in new tab)
• Email address: stysall@poverest.co.uk
• Phone number: 01689816060
• See more jobs: teaching-vacancies.service.gov.uk/organisations/poverest-primary-school (opens in new tab)

Poverest Primary School is a forward thinking school that recognises and develops children’s personal strengths and talents. Our children are well behaved, enthusiastic learners and our staff is welcoming, hard working and supportive. We are striving towards outstanding so please join us on our journey.

We have an excellent ASD Provision and inclusion is widespread so if you are interested in special educational needs this is the school for you!

Arranging a visit to Poverest Primary School

To arrange a visit and increase the chance of a successful application email stysall@poverest.co.uk.

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