Findings from NGA’s annual governance survey reveal an education system under growing strain. Supporting pupils with SEND has seen the steepest rise as the top challenge for governing boards across England (cited by 63% of respondents) and is accompanied by sharp increases in SEND-related pressures such as difficulties accessing funding and securing education, health and … Continue reading NGA publishes policy paper on SEND
Tag: NGA
Keeping children safe in education 2025
Keeping children safe in education is the government's key guidance for Safeguarding and is updated each year. This year's update - which comes into force in September - is now available: you can find a link to it on our Key Documents page here, where there is also am link to a useful summary of … Continue reading Keeping children safe in education 2025
Teacher 2025 pay award
The DfE announced a 4% pay award on 22 may, but the catch is that schools will have to find 1% of this from their own resources. You can read the statement from the DfE on their website, here. The NGA's response both welcomes the early annoucement and level of award, but criticises the fact … Continue reading Teacher 2025 pay award
MPs told SEND system is in crisis
The f40 campaigning group, which represents the 40 or so worst educationally funded councils in England, recently held a meeting with more than 75 MPs and their representatives at a parliamentary briefing in Westminster. Also involved were the Local Government Association (LGA), and the County Councils Network (CCN). MPs were told that the number of … Continue reading MPs told SEND system is in crisis
The mature MAT model
The NGA has published a new report, The mature MAT model success, innovation and challenges in the trust system. This report follows two previous NGA studies, in 2019 and 2021, charting the trust system’s evolution with a particular focus on governance. Download the report here to explore the following themes: The mature academy trustThe resources … Continue reading The mature MAT model
NGA: A guide to Ofsted inspection
NGA has updated it's guide to Ofsted inspection, and covers recent changes: the removal of single headline grades (schools will still receive grades for the four existing key judgement areas) – Ofsted is developing report cards to replace this in 2025 the removal of ‘deep dives’ from ungraded inspections a revised process for pausing and … Continue reading NGA: A guide to Ofsted inspection
The King’s Speech 2024: What does it mean for education?
The new Labour government have announced a series of new bills and initiatives - this post on the DfE website summarises what's there for education, which includes: Children’s Wellbeing Bill: Making sure there are free breakfast clubs in every primary school; Limiting the number of branded uniform items that a school can require, to bring … Continue reading The King’s Speech 2024: What does it mean for education?
NGA’s Governance Professional Survey 2024
To take part in NGA's survey for governance professionals serving schools and academy trusts: visit this link.
NGA School and Trust Annual Governance Survey 2024
The NGA has just published its latest (14th) School and Trust Annual Governance Survey. Highlight findings include: Funding Financial sustainability under threat Budget pressures intensify Falling pupil numbers Curriculum breadth at risk SEND funding crisis deepens Pupil, family and community needs SEND support demands surge Attendance is high priority Expanding school services Safeguarding issues growing … Continue reading NGA School and Trust Annual Governance Survey 2024
The State of Governance in England’s Schools and Trusts
A new report from the NGA focuses on the State of Governance in England's Schools and Trusts. It draws upon the analysis of external reviews of governance (ERG) reports from the National Leaders of Governance (NLG) programme and NGA's wider sector intelligence. The report identifies eight common governance challenges and provides practical insights and resources … Continue reading The State of Governance in England’s Schools and Trusts
New Governor’s guide on Pupil Mental Health and Wellbeing
The NGA and Place2Be have published a new guide for Governors: Pupil mental health and wellbeing A guide for governing boards. It identifies eight principles for a whole school approach, and in eaqch case outlines what good governance should look like: Leadership and management Ethos and environment Curriculum Pupil voice Staff development, health and wellbeing … Continue reading New Governor’s guide on Pupil Mental Health and Wellbeing
NGA Manifesto for Schools and Trusts
The NGA has published its new manifesto, "From Classrooms to Communities: A Manifesto for Schools and Trusts." This comprehensive document outlines key challenges faced by schools and academy trusts in the UK and presents a set of proposals aimed at addressing these issues.Included in the manifesto are the following topics: Staff Wellbeing and Recruitment Estates … Continue reading NGA Manifesto for Schools and Trusts
NGA Annual Governance Survey 2023
The latest annual survey from the NGA is available using the link below. The report highlights several issues that governors have raised, including: The challenge of recruiting and retaining governors and trustees has reached an all time high. The percentage of respondents sharing the view that the governance role should be paid is steadily increasing … Continue reading NGA Annual Governance Survey 2023
Governance workload
The NGA is looking at the challenges faced by Governors, who after all are all volunteers. There are often discrepancies between the time required to govern effectively and the amount of time that governors and trustees can dedicate to the task. The NGA's governance workload project is driven by a recognition that the sustainability of … Continue reading Governance workload
New NGA report on governance challanges
The National Governance Association (NGA) released a report today on the top 10 school and trust governance challenges. These were revealed through their analysis of 200 government-funded external reviews of governance (ERGs). The top challenges include: Board composition; Identifying skills gaps; Recruiting people with diverse experiences and knowledge; Being the right size to suit the … Continue reading New NGA report on governance challanges
