Restructuring your staff: your board's role

Major restructures are strategic and part of your remit as a governor or trustee. Learn to challenge the need for a restructure and how to scrutinise plans. Also find questions to ask and get tips on supporting your headteacher or senior leader through the process.

Last reviewed on 16 August 2024
School types: AllSchool phases: AllRef: 5114
Contents
  1. How to use this article
  2. When your board should be involved
  3. Make sure you challenge the idea
  4. Ask operational leaders to create a draft plan
  5. Scrutinise the proposed new structure
  6. Questions to ask
  7. Approve the decision 
  8. Support your senior leaders

How to use this article

This article outlines a common way that restructures are decided and planned. If the process differs in your school, trust or local authority's restructuring/redundancy policy, make sure you follow that instead.

This article is aimed at governors in maintained schools and trustees as they're more likely to have strategic oversight here. It's unlikely that local governing bodies (LGBs) will have a role in restructures, but check your trust's scheme of delegation to make sure.

Several of our experts helped us write this. You can find out more about them at the end of the article.

When your board should be involved

The headteacher in a maintained school or single academy trust (SAT) The CEO, another central role or school headteachers in