Governor school visits: your how-to guide

Steps to take before the visit 

Notify the headteacher and the chair. Do this before a time is agreed, even if the headteacher will not be involved in the visit. They should be made aware just as a matter of courtesy.

Schedule an appointment with relevant members of staff. This is essential to avoid unnecessary friction between you and staff. 

During the school day staff have numerous demands on their time, be sensitive to this. Someone usually acts as the go-between when arranging visits, often the clerk or a member of administrative staff, so they should be able to help you.

Find a mutually convenient time. Generally, governor visits are more productive when conducted during a school day, although this can be difficult if you have a full-time job. Read our advice on school governors' right to time off work for more information.

Clarify the purpose of the visit in advance. Do this with your chair, the headteacher or relevant member of staff ahead of the visit.

This could be, for example, watching a specific lesson where a new approach is being developed (although you must not be involved in formal lesson observation) or seeing the range of extra-curricular activities available during the lunch break.

Send questions in advance. If you have specific questions or things you want to look at on the visit, send these to the staff member so you can both feel more prepared.

Check whether your school has a policy. If your school has a governor school visit policy or guidance pack, these should help you understand what's expected.

This is advice we got from our governance experts Bill Dennison and Jackie Beard.

Download our visit templates 

We created 2 templates to reflect the most common types of school visit that you'll go on:

• Formal monitoring visits are where you discuss the progress of the school in a particular area with the relevant staff member
• Learning walks are where you'll go around the school with the relevant staff member to get a feel for a particular area. You're likely to talk to a range of staff members and pupils 

KeyDoc: template for a governor school monitoring visit DOC, 146.5 KB Download

KeyDoc: template for a governor learning walk DOC, 147.5 KB Download

Use these to structure your visits, and as reminders of what to look for and what to ask. They'll also help you write up your findings to share with your board. We'll explain more about writing a visit report later.

Questions to ask

Use this list to help you come up with more specific questions yourself. If you're using one of our template reports above, include the questions in the report. 

It's good practice to send any questions in advance to the staff member you're visiting, so that they can prepare.

KeyDoc - questions to ask staff on a school visit DOC, 146.0 KB Download

Use the questions in this article if you're planning to speak to pupils during your visit.

If you're monitoring behaviour see this article for further questions to ask on a school visit.

For further questions to ask, see our question bank. 

Dos and don'ts during the visit

Do

• Ask open questions beginning with ‘what’, ‘how’, ‘when’, ‘how often’, ‘why’, ‘who’ and ‘where’
• Ask to see evidence, or ask what evidence they've used to make a judgement, for the information you're told by staff
• Clarify any terms or acronyms you’re not familiar with
• Stay observational; you’re not there to pass judgement on staff or inspect them
• If you're going to spend time in a classroom, all parties need to be very clear about why you're there
• Check with teachers before asking pupils questions
• Tell staff you'll pass on any concerns they raise with the relevant people. This helps build trust and demonstrates that you're there to support them
• Remember that you're representing the governors. Be friendly but professional, and dress appropriately, bearing in mind the standards of dress you set for teachers and pupils

Don't

• Pass comment on classroom practice or any specific incidents that happen. You're not there to inspect the school, and it's not your role to judge teaching methods, assess the quality of teaching, or comment on the extent of learning
• Interfere with the day-to-day running of the school. You're not school managers
• Sit at the back of the classroom with a clipboard. This'll be intimidating and make you look like an inspector. Be friendly, engaging and interactive 
• Raise concerns in the moment. If you have concerns about anything you've seen, note them down and raise them with the chair of governors or headteacher later

The above information is based on the purpose of visits set out in the Governance Handbook (page 25), and advice from our experts Nicky Odgers and Jackie Beard. 

Reporting back to the board

Check your board's expectations first before reporting back. Ask your chair: 

• What format should I report back in - in writing or in person?
• What should the report include?
• Who do I need to send the report to, and by when?
• Will the report be presented at a full governing board or committee meeting?

Use our templates above to structure your report (unless this contradicts your school's policy or preferred method).  

Tips for writing the report

To write a constructive report that remains within governors' strategic remit, our expert Nicky Odgers, gave us her advice.

Do:

• Use neutral language at all times
• Remain observational, and describe only what you see
• Focus closely on the agreed reasons for the visit, and its strategic role
• Send your report to an experienced governor for feedback, if you're new to the role
• Send reports to the relevant staff member to check for accuracy, and as a courtesy 

Don't:

• Make qualitative judgements, particularly about any incidents you see or when observing teaching and learning practice
• Name any individual teachers and pupils
• Get distracted and talk about other issues that aren't related to the focus of the visit