Terms of office for governors and trustees

Terms of office are usually 4 years

Governors and trustees have a 4-year term of office. This can be shortened, but must be at least 1 year (as explained in the final section of this article).

If they want to stay on longer, they can be re-appointed/re-elected if they're still eligible. See our article for more information, or check your articles of association if you're an academy.

This doesn't apply to ex-officio governors and trustees (e.g. the headteacher), whose term of office ends when the position which entitles them to be a governor or trustee ends. 

This information comes from:

• Regulation 18 of the School Governance (Constitution) (England) Regulations 2012 (for maintained schools), and
• Article 64 of the model articles of association (for academies – check your own articles in case they differ)

The start