Top Challenges Facing School Governors in 2024

The National Governance Association (NGA) has published the report from its 14th annual school and trust governance survey, gathering responses from over 3,000 governors, trustees and local governors from schools in England.

The NGA survey helps to identify the biggest challenges faced by schools and trusts across the country, as well as the strategic priorities that governing bodies have set for the year ahead.

What are the top challenges facing school governors that they found?

• Financial pressures

Research suggests that the governance landscape is marked by increasing financial pressures with far-reaching consequences at every level of education. 60% of governing boards now report that balancing the budget is their biggest challenge, rising from 52% last year, and 44% in the year before. This represents the highest percentage since the survey’s inception in 2012.

Only 19% of schools and trusts consider themselves financially sustainable in the medium to long term. 39% are worried about the financial strain due to falling pupil numbers, whilst half report that the condition of their school buildings has a detrimental impact on the learning environment. An alarming 59% have had to reduce teaching or cut certain subjects from the curriculum due to budget constraints.

Notably, financial strain is not evenly distributed across the sector, with 46% of maintained schools struggling to balance the budget, compared to 29% of multi-academy trusts.

• SEND support

This financial strain comes alongside a growing demand for support to pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), with needs increasing both in terms of volume and complexity. As a result, the proportion of governing boards identifying support for children with SEND as a top challenge has risen dramatically from 25% in 2023 to 37% in 2024.

When asked about the challenges regarding SEND provision, three-quarters of respondents identified access to funding as their top challenge, increasing from two-thirds the previous year. In addition, 58% identified dwindling resources and increased strain on local authorities as a major barrier, whilst 55% said that they struggle to obtain Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans.

Recruiting and retaining qualified support staff was also highlighted as a significant issue, especially for special schools, which rely more heavily on additional support staff due to the complex needs of their pupils.

• Pupil attendance

Government data suggests that school attendance rates have improved moderately since 2023. However, the number of governors identifying attendance as a top challenge has risen from 28% to 32% over the past year.

The survey asked participants about which approaches they had used to improve attendance at their settings. 81% reported that the most successful method was open communication and providing guidance to parents. 54% also said that targeted support meetings were effective in addressing attendance issues.

Other popular methods included attendance awards (43%), multi-agency support for families (42%), and breakfast clubs (33%).

What are the top strategic priorities for school governors?

With attainment, curriculum, and SEND ranking amongst their top strategic priorities, it’s clear that governors remain committed to delivering a quality learning experience for all learners, in spite of the financial and logistic challenges they face. To achieve this, many governing boards are taking a creative and collaborative approach towards governance, working together with neighbouring schools and trusts to review the curriculum, share resources, and invest in staff training.

Our upcoming training events

One Education Governor Services has developed a training programme to help you navigate all the challenges of governance, from financial management to SEND support and pupil attendance.

With the chance to hear first-hand from subject matter experts and connect with other governors, our training programme will equip you with the knowledge and expertise to achieve your strategic priorities in 2024-25.

• GOV 02: Pupil Attendance

Pupil attendance continues to be a national and local priority for schools and trusts. This session offers practical guidance on how governors can consider the context of their school to understand school data and the questions that they should ask of school leaders.

Date: 19 September 2024
Time: 6.00 – 7.00 pm

• GOV 13: Is Your School Meeting The Needs of SEND Pupils?

How can governors effectively ensure that the needs of SEND pupils are being met? What does high quality education for SEND children look like? This briefing will share practical guidance and best practice to help you to deliver effective oversight of the quality of education for vulnerable children.

Date: 10 December 2024
Time: 6.00 – 7.00 pm

• GOV 15: School Finance

One of the three core functions for a Governing Body is ensuring the sound, proper, and effective use of the school’s financial resources. This training provides an introduction to maintained school funding, formula funding, and the finance governors’ role in the budget planning process and financial management of schools.

Date: 20 January 2025
Time: 6.00 – 7.00 pm

…And many more sessions that provide greater insight into the key functions of governing boards, governors’ roles and responsibilities, and emerging topics and trends.

Training is free for all training and One Governor subscribers. One Governor is our all-in-one support package that includes access to ready-to-use resources, termly handbooks, and governor support helpline. Alternatively, you can purchase individual training sessions for a more personalised learning experience. To browse our governor training programme, download a free copy of the brochure here.

You will be able to book onto courses via the One Education website from mid-August. To reserve places on courses before this time, please contact our Events team who will register your interest and book your place, by contacting: events@oneeducation.co.uk