Governing board action plans: template and guidance

An action plan can demonstrate effective governance, but they're not an Ofsted requirement. Use our template and guidance to help you develop and monitor yours, and see examples from other governing boards.

Last reviewed on 25 October 2022
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Contents
  1. Develop an action plan
  2. Monitor the plan
  3. See examples from other boards

We worked with Phil Preston, our associate governance expert, to write this article.

Develop an action plan

Action plans help governing boards drive their own improvement, in the same way that schools develop their own action plans to improve areas that need it (like specific subjects).

What makes a good action plan?

An effective governor action plan:

  • Is developed collaboratively with the school's senior leadership
  • Links to the school improvement plan (SIP) or trust improvement plan
  • Clearly outlines its aims and objectives
  • Details the actions to be taken to meet those objectives
  • Identifies who's responsible for completing each action
  • Sets out clear milestones with which to measure progress

It can be a standalone document or it can be integrated into the SIP document itself. 

Your board can create a general action plan, for example, simply to track its goals and objectives over the space of a term