How to carry out a governance professional's appraisal

The quality of your governance support and clerking is key to the performance of your board(s). Learn how to carry out an annual performance review so you can drive high standards and support professional development for your clerk/governance professional.

Last reviewed on 4 July 2024
School types: AllSchool phases: AllRef: 5275
Contents
  1. Annual appraisals are a good idea
  2. Get prepared
  3. The appraisal meeting

The Department for Education (DfE) withdrew the clerking competency framework in 2024. Much of the information is now covered in the governance guides for maintained schools and academies. We've chosen to continue to refer to the framework in this article. Even though it has been withdrawn, it still offers a useful structure for the competencies required.

Annual appraisals are a good idea

Maintained schools: "Appraisal of the governance professional for their governance support at the school is important and we recommend this is undertaken by the chair." (section 4.8.1) Academies: "It is the board’s responsibility to ensure the governance professional receives appropriate remuneration for their governance role, reflective of the skills, experience and advice they bring to the board." (section 4.5.1) Although appraisals aren't specifically mentioned here, they can be a good way to evidence the skills your governance professional has If you're in a multi-academy trust (MAT) you may have a governance lead