Wellbeing link governor: role description

Understand what your role as a wellbeing link governor involves so you can help your board monitor and embed a wellbeing culture. Get an idea of what questions you can ask your school's wellbeing/mental health lead so you can both support and challenge decisions made.

Last reviewed on 25 May 2023
See updates
School types: All · School phases: All
Ref: 38912
Contents
  1. Your role
  2. How to monitor wellbeing
  3. Questions to ask the mental health/wellbeing lead
  4. Your school’s wellbeing responsibilities

Our thanks to our associate education experts Julia Skinner, Pete Crockett, and Dr Emma Kell, and to Cait Cooper of the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families for their help with this article.

All governors are responsible for wellbeing

As with the roles of link governor for safeguarding or special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), the responsibility for wellbeing doesn't just rest with you. 

Find out more on how the whole board can think strategically about wellbeing culture, and what wellbeing initiatives look like in practice.

Your role

Work closely with the wellbeing/mental health lead

You're not expected to be an expert on mental health and wellbeing.

But you’ll use regular check-ins with the member of staff who's leading on wellbeing/mental health to gather the insights you need to hold staff to account and drive school improvement in this area. See suggestions for questions to ask them below. 

Be the wellbeing advocate on your board

Make sure wellbeing is