Governance meetings: attendance and absence

Who can attend meetings

Governors and trustees can't vote if they don't attend

Governors an trustees can’t send someone to a meeting in their place, or submit votes in advance. They can, however, vote if they are attending the meeting virtually.

Use GovernorHub to track attendance

Governors and trustees are expected to have good attendance.

You can record attendance electronically and download the board's attendance register using GovernorHub. Find out how to do this with our help article.

Setting out your attendance information clearly will help you when the information comes to be published (if you're the governance professional, you might be responsible for updating information on the school's website). Find out exactly what information must be published.

Alternatively, download our attendance register

You can also print off our attendance register to help you keep track:

What to expect when people are absent from a meeting

The chair should read the governor or trustee’s reason for not attending aloud, and ask all those present whether to consent to the absence or not.

The board should consider this on a case-by-case basis depending on:

• The reasons given 
• Their previous attendance record
• Their commitment to the governing board

It’s not necessarily a problem if the governor/trustee doesn’t give a reason, but if it becomes a habit, the chair should talk to them about the reasons for their absence.

Note that the board can consent to an absence with or without an apology from the governor. An apology is a courtesy, but the regulations just refer to the board's consent, not the acceptance of an apology, when talking about the consequences of non-attendance (more on that below). See schedule 4, section 9 of The School Governance (Constitution) (England) Regulations 2012.

Recording reasons for absences

It’s not compulsory to record the reason for an absence, but it can:

• Provide context for governors/trustee's attendance records
• Ensure transparency in governing board procedures
• Help you track absences and address any concerns that may arise over a particular individual's pattern of attendance
• Highlight difficulties that could be addressed
• For example people could attend virtually if transport is an issue, or the time of the meeting could be changed if they're struggling with work commitments

Record reasons for non-attendance in the minutes for the board’s reference, but don’t publish them on the school website.

If an individual is not comfortable with the reason being recorded, they should discuss it privately with the chair, who can make a personal note of the absence and the reason for it.

Recording consent for absences

Check whether your local authority expects you to record in the minutes whether the board has accepted an apology/consented to an absence. For example, Essex Clerks’ Association has a guide to writing governing board minutes, which includes recording governors' acceptance of apologies. 

If you’re an academy, check your own documentation for any expectations here.

Even if there's no expectation, recording this can help the board track absences and address concerns early, as consistent absence can result in disqualification (as explained in the final section of this article).

Valid basis for an absence

The governing board might accept absence once or twice for the following reasons: 

• Work commitments
• No childcare available
• Train/bus being late
• Illness

But, if these reasons are used repeatedly, or if it’s suspected that the reason isn’t supported by sufficient evidence, the board may not consent to the absence. If so, this should be made clear to the governor/trustee.

Apologies in advance aren’t normally accepted

It’s not normally appropriate to accept apologies weeks or months in advance for absences such as an extended holiday or work placement. However, the governing board might give consent, considering the individual’s long-standing commitment and value to the governing board.

Withdrawing consent to an absence before the next meeting

The board can retrospectively withdraw consent to an absence before the next meeting if it turns out that the governor/trustee’s reasons for absence were false or invalid.

Add a note to the draft minutes such as: "The minutes are only approved with the following amendment..." – then make sure the minutes explain that the absence wasn't accepted.

These changes must then be approved by the board, and the governor/trustee should be informed that their absence wasn't consented to.

What happens when people are regularly absent 

The chair should meet with the governor or trustee and ask why they’ve failed to attend meetings.

If they are struggling to rearrange work commitments or find childcare, the chair and governance professional could support them by:

• Considering altering the timing of meetings
• Arranging payment of childcare expenses, or making arrangements for governors' children to be looked after during meetings
• Asking the school/trust to speak to the governor/trustee's employer about giving them time off work to attend meetings

The chair should give the individual a warning and set a time period in which to improve attendance. 

Absences over a period of time

It’s up to the board whether to allow a governor/trustee to absent themselves from meetings for a period of time, for example, due to personal reasons.

The board should consider:

• The number of meetings they have missed
• Whether they have been able to contribute in ways other than attending meetings during the period of absence
• Whether the person is new or long-standing
• The extent to which they have kept up to date with the board's proceedings and events at the school

If the absence is continuing after 6 months, the chair should meet with the governor and discuss whether they can still fulfil their duties. This is a way of offering them a chance to resign from the governing board.

Governors and trustees are disqualified for consistent absence

Only full governing board meetings count 

Even if a governor/trustee attends committee meetings, they can still be disqualified if they've been absent from full board meetings without consent/permission for 6 months. A representative from the DfE told us this. 

Find out more about removing a governor or trustee.