As part of our Inclusive Governance campaign, we spoke to Sharon Warmington – an experienced academy trustee and school governor, corporate governance specialist, and diversity of race advocate and trainer. She tells us why diversity isn’t just about numbers, how it creates effective challenge and how to own the current reality of your governing board.
Statistics repetitively tell us that school governing boards are lacking in diversity. With that in mind, why is stepping into a school governor role as a Black African, Black Caribbean or Black British individual, so important?
It’s important not just because of the statistics, but to ensure you’re part of the conversation. We need a range of people and voices to reflect society today. I have this conversation with boards all the time. I ask – where are the entrepreneurs around the table? Where are the digital nomads? Where are the people who understand Generation Alpha? We can’t make 5- and 10-year strategic plans without taking into account the different thought processes that younger generations will bring to the table.
I often get the challenge ‘we’re in a rural area so diversity is really hard’. And I explain that their children already have a diverse world, because they’re global citizens. You need to reflect what they’re seeing online and ask how you can best prepare them for the world beyond the school gates. Where you’re unable, (due to location not inaction), to have diverse people to provide that level of diversity, you can bring it through the school environment.
Why do you think having different thought processes on a governing board is so crucial?
As someone who’s corporate governance trained, I understand groupthink. If you don’t have a wider range of views, you can end up with a board that just rubber stamps everything – because there’s been no challenge.
I’m currently reviewing a lot of policies for a trust board I sit on. While the suggested changes have been ‘highlighted’, my instinct is to ask when we last completely reviewed the policies against the changing landscape of education. Do they work for children in schools today and are they still fit for purpose? One colleague told me they were on a board where the uniform policy hadn’t been changed for 20 years. But in that time, the children had changed. So, what they did – as part of that overall review – was to have a conversation with the students themselves. That move allowed them to really look at things through a 21st-century lens.
New perspectives around the table create challenge. That challenge might be viewed as troublesome by some, but that’s what you’re there for as a school governor – to hold the leadership to account and interrogate policy and process.
What advice would you offer to schools and trusts on reflecting on their own diversity – or lack thereof – on governing boards?
We’ve got the usual skills audits, but I think governing boards need to have open and honest conversations based on their current reality. If your current reality is primarily white and male, with maybe a few females and token diversity in terms of race – I would advise you to write a paper, have a plan of action, and discuss it like you would any other item. Until it’s taken as seriously as that, it will always be something people kick down the road.
What inspired you to create the National Black Governors Network?
Being a school governor, or a governance professional in the education space, I quickly recognised that I was the only Black person in many rooms I entered. There was always a lot of conversation around boards doing something about diversity, but not actually doing anything about diversity. I didn’t create the network in order to help with that issue, I created the network for us to be able to find each other; I knew that I couldn’t be the only one. When I researched it, I couldn’t find anything similar that existed. So as the old saying goes, ‘if you build it, they will come’ – and that’s exactly what happened.
It was only after the events of 2020 and George Floyd’s murder, (when the whole world erupted), that my inbox exploded. I had 1000s of emails, and I couldn’t cope with the volume. After that, I started to deliver training programmes on how to recruit and retain diverse school governors. While it initially focused on race and the specific lens of Black people, it soon morphed into race and age. This happened with the help of my daughter, who had recently become a young school governor. She said to me, ‘you know, Mum, when I went into my first position, it wasn’t a case of me being Black that concerned me, it was a case of my age and whether they would listen to me.’ With the training, we wanted to change that.
What support do you offer prospective and existing Black governors who join the network?
There’s no membership fee, so the only qualification or criteria for joining is having Black African, Black Caribbean or Black British heritage/ancestry. We have separate networking sessions for both existing and prospective school governors on a termly basis, because the conversation is different. Existing school governors, who may experience challenges within their school or trust, may need specific help and support; we aim to create a safe space.
For prospective school governors, I walk them through the process of becoming a school governor so they can make an informed decision. They’re going in with the understanding that they might be the only Black person at the table. Providing information on the level of commitment needed, and managing their expectations, is really important.
What would you say to prospective school governors considering the role?
The rewards are really great but, what those rewards are depends on who I’m talking to. For teachers, if you’re aspiring to leadership in any way, shape, or form in your career, then become a school governor. Because seeing a school from the top-down will give you a different view. When you go on to apply for leadership roles, you can speak from a strategic perspective.
For younger people – you can fast-track the process of taking on a senior leadership role in any organisation by becoming a school governor, because you’ll already be a strategic thinker.
If you’re a parent, and you miss out on a role at your child’s primary school – think strategically. Apply to the secondary school down the road you want your child to be at next – and support the school before they get there.
Feeling inspired?
If you want to make an impact in your local community, you can find out more about the role of school governor or apply to volunteer as a school governor through our service.
If you’re Black African, Black Caribbean or Black British, and want to find out more about school governance, you can join Sharon at the next meeting of the National Black Governors Network.