Chair Recruitment Service - Testimonials

The perfect match

As a Single Academy Trust, our school struggled to recruit governors and it became critical as personal workloads increased that we recruited a new Chair who could offer time and expertise.

I contacted Governors for Schools and used the new paid for head hunting service, after a very detailed briefing session we appointed a candidate within a very short space of time – he matched our criteria perfectly.

Had we not used this service I believe we would still be searching.

Cramlington Village School

An easy process

After many unsuccessful months of trying to find a new Chair to take over from me I was very relieved to hear that Governors for Schools had recently launched a Chair finding service.  I sent an email, agreed to the terms etc. and within a couple of weeks I received an email with a name.  The Headteacher and myself met with the candidate, showed her around the school and answered any questions she had. Luckily, we hadn’t frightened her off and she emailed to say she would like to join our Governing Body and take on the role of Chair. At our next meeting she was voted on to the Board and as Chair. Governors for Schools offers new Chairs continued support and training which I’m sure they will find invaluable.  The whole process was so easy and a huge weight taken off of me.  I believe without Governors for Schools assistance we would still be looking for my replacement. Thank you.

Previous Chair of Governors, Albermarle Primary School

The cost effective option

Governors for Schools has successfully supported us with recruiting members for our Local Academy Councils (LACs), so when we needed to recruit a new LAC Chair, their Chair Recruitment Service seemed a great (and cost effective) option. The support we received was excellent.  In the initial conversation, they really took time to understand our trust, the school and what we were looking for in a local Chair, which meant that they could focus their search.  The Recruitment Managers were helpful and responsive, not only to me but also to the prospective candidate once we were in touch with them.  And we are delighted to have successfully recruited a new Local Academy Chair within 4 months of making initial contact with Governors for Schools! A really comprehensive service, and it’s also good to know that our new Chair receives continued support from Governors for Schools as she takes on her new role.

Emma Arnott, Director of Governance and Development, Forward Education Trust

Strengthening your current team

I have to say, the whole process has been really efficient and helpful and the team who I worked with really listened to my feedback in terms of what we needed as a school. As a result, Governors for Schools has managed to find us a really excellent person who was keen to take on the chair role and support us as a school going forward.

Sometimes finding good people to join your governing body can be a real challenge, and this can take a lot of time and effort, but Governors for Schools made this as straight forward as possible and found us someone who I know is really going to strengthen and enhance our current team.

I would really recommend this service to any school who may find themselves in a similar position to us – they have been fantastic!

Mr Rob Adams, Headteacher, South Gosforth First School

Time saved

We were recommended by CST to approach Governors for Schools to help with our recruitment process for new Chairs. Following a conversation, we then commissioned Governors for Schools to recruit to 5 Chair roles across Nottingham and Derby. I have been really impressed by the level of prompt communication in terms of keeping us up-to-date with potential candidates; as well as the calibre of candidates that has been sent to us.

For each school we have received two potential new Chairs and we have so far appointed 4 new Chairs with our final school hoping to make a decision shortly. We were informed that we should expect the process for recruiting 5 Chairs to take at least a year, but happily this has only taken just over 2 terms! The time this has saved us from having to do our own recruitment has been invaluable and I would definitely recommend this service to any school or Trust that is looking to recruit new Chairs. Thank you to the team at Governors for Schools.

Jill Wilkinson, Chief Operating Officer, Transform Trust

Whole-board recruitment

In mid-2024, the need arose to recruit the majority of a new Governing Board including a new chair, for a secondary that had been re-brokered.

The need was urgent – bearing in mind how long it can take to find quality, committed new governors and particularly chairs who can hit the ground running. I used the Governors for Schools service and within 5 months had been able to recruit a full, balanced governing board of quality, committed people bringing the necessary range and depth of experience to support and add value to the school. The process was slick and easy to work with. Thank you Governors for Schools.

Phil Harris- Bridge, Heath Lane Academy (part of United Learning Trust)