We hope you will enjoy reading our latest Q&A from the chair at Ysgol Bro Ogwr. Life as a chair is very busy, not least dealing with new school builds, ensuring teamwork is high on the agenda and not compromising on areas of work that make a difference, as Nik explains. Thank you Nik for your realistic account of all the work behind the scenes, as chair.
Nik Dart is Chair of Governors at Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Ogwr in Bridgend. The school was recently praised by Estyn for ensuring access to educational experiences for families who experience the effects of poverty. We spoke to Nik about her role and the strong role governors have played in the success of the school.
How did you become a governor, and how did you come to be in your current role?
I’ve been a governor for around 15 years, starting as a staff governor in a different school, then a parent governor at Bro Ogwr. After 18 months at Bro Ogwr, the current Chair of Governors was succession planning and I was asked to consider becoming Chair when they stepped down, and I agreed. Our longstanding headteacher retired, so I threw myself into leading the Governing Body in appointing a headteacher. We had an Estyn inspection within the first six months of becoming Chair and then we had a pandemic. I promised myself I would stay to ensure that the new headteacher had settled in, then stay for Estyn and then stay until the new school was built. That was supposed to open two years ago, but they haven’t even broken ground yet, so I’m still here!
What is it like being a Chair of Governors?
It’s a lot of work and many people don’t realise that. Governance has given me more experience and skills than any paid career has – I’m suddenly needing to be an expert in estates, employment law and all these other things that no-one ever trains you for. While I say to people that governors play a strategic role in ensuring the school provides the best possible education, at times we seem to do everything but. Our new build was supposed to open two years ago, but they haven’t started yet because of slow worms. I never realised I would become so knowledgeable about slow worms!
Being a headteacher is a lonely and difficult job and they need a strong chair. The head’s wellbeing is part of our role and our head knows they can call me any time of the day or night. It’s a safe space.
In its report, Estyn said the governors were “strong advocates” for the school. What’s your approach to governance, and how have you achieved that?
I was determined we weren’t going to be one of those governing bodies where the Chair spoke and everyone else smiled. We have 18 governors and it’s a team effort – every governor has a role. I set very high expectations of all governors and as a governing body we are both challenging and supportive, and we know our responsibilities well. We also make sure we get expert advice and support. We are supported very well by Governors Cymru Services, who do an excellent job. We also use School Governance Solutions, which provides a brilliant clerking service, and we have an SLA with Capital Law for the occasions when we need legal support and Judicium Education for data protection.
Tell us about the Emotional and Family Well-being Team. When was it set up and how does it work?
People have this perception that Welsh medium schools are middle class, but our pupil population is very diverse and complicated. A number of children live in poverty, while others are on the poverty line. Parents are struggling. Our pupil needs have always been varied, but since Covid the nature and scope of their needs has grown. So, a few years ago, we asked the headteacher to advertise for a Family Engagement Officer to help provide support to families. That grew into our Emotional and Family Well-being Team, which includes an ELSA wellbeing officer and a dedicated interventions team.
We hold weekly family drop-in sessions for parents, carers, grandparents. If they want to talk about anything, the team is available. We also arrange drop-in sessions from Citizens Advice and other supporting organisations. These are in addition to other initiatives to help pupils, including our complimentary breakfast club, healthy snack cupboard and pre-loved school uniform offer. We also supplement school trips so all pupils have the same access to experiences and opportunities.
What’s been the governing body’s role in this?
We made sure there was space in the budget for this work. It’s now a permanent post in the school and something we have safeguarded in the budget. Despite the current climate of tight school budgets and cuts, this was something we were not compromising on and our efforts are paying off – our attendance was recently the highest in the local authority. As a governing body we are always checking on the impact of any new initiative to ensure it adds value to the work of the school and supports the teaching and learning environment, as well as making that all-important difference to our pupils and parents.
To help prepare you for your governor work following the xmas break, here are some ongoing tasks, as well as some specifics for the Spring term. There will of course, be other areas of governor work based on the needs of your school:
TERMLY MATTERS
– Identify and organise training for governors and clerks
– Review progress on the headteacher’s objectives
– Arrange governors’ visits to the school
– Governing body meeting/s
– Committee meetings
– Receive reports from committees
– Receive headteacher’s termly report (before governing body meeting)
– Link governor reports (where applicable)
– Action planning following inspection (where applicable)
– Monitor the budget
– Monitor the School Development Plan and School Self-evaluation Report
SPRING TERM
– Consider progress against performance objectives
– Consider resource implications
– Conduct annual pay review of all qualified teachers
– Agree curriculum plans for the year
– Consider and agree Service Level Agreements
– Agree budget and staffing structure
– Agree school prospectus
– Publish proposals and school’s admission arrangements for the following autumn if required
– Receive School Improvement Partner’s note of visit (if not received in autumn term)
Do you have new governors that are about to join your governing body for their first meeting? We have a range of information that you can share with them such as, a welcome letter, general information about their responsibilities and an eLearning module – an introduction to school governance. All really useful to assist them with this key role.
Click here for more information
We are quite active on our social media channels and would love to gain more followers and friends. As well as getting members of the governing body to follow us, why not get the school to as well?
Our social media accounts are below.
We also have a LinkedIn page so head over there for updates too!
Some of you may have already looked at the useful reflection resource which includes a variety of case studies and commentaries. The Reflection Resource was developed as a simple tool which allows governors to reflect on real challenges they have faced. The real-life case studies allow governors to learn from each other, learning from peer-experiences rather than just being bombarded by information! The resource allows governors to share best practice and lessons learned with other governors and governing bodies in an engaging and easy to use format. Take a look at our video explaining how the resource can be used.
Here are two extracts from recent inspection reports from our subscribers:
Willowtown Primary, Blaenau Gwent
Governors are an integral part of the school community and offer effective support. They and leaders have developed effective self-evaluation processes which lead to improvements in the school’s curriculum, provision and pupil progress.
St John the Baptist VA school, Flintshire
Leaders, including governors, work collaboratively to set a suitable strategic direction for many aspects of the school’s work. They promote attendance and punctuality effectively, and as a result pupils’ attendance is strong. There is an effective culture of safeguarding at the school. Governors play an active role in the life and work of the school. They know the school’s strengths and have a suitable understanding of the school’s current priorities and progress towards addressing them.
Sharing information to safeguard children and young people in the education sector in the UK
This short guidance is for people and organisations in the UK who work in the education sector with children and young people under 18. It should help you feel confident to share personal information for safeguarding purposes. It complements A 10 step guide to sharing information to safeguard children. You should use both pieces together. It explains the data protection aspects of sharing information to safeguard children and young people; it’s not a guide to safeguarding practice.
Click here for the guidance.
With the support of Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA), Governors for Schools is working on an inclusive and strategic framework to boost community engagement with school governance. Running from April 2025 to October 2026, the project aims to increase the number of volunteer school governors. This will meet increasing demand and promote skills-based volunteering across organisations and communities in Wales.
You can find out more about the project here and support them by completing this survey.
Welsh Government has published the updated School Improvement Guidance, which strengthens the way support improvement is supported across Wales. The guidance reflects the outcomes of the recent review of roles and responsibilities and sets out a clear, shared ambition: that every learner is supported to achieve their full potential within an equitable and collaborative education system.
The guidance is underpinned by five core principles:
– Collective responsibility for raising standards for every learner.
– Purposeful collaboration that brings in external perspectives and fosters professional dialogue.
– A focus on activity that improves learning.
– Building capacity within the school system, so expertise is shared and strengthened.
– Clarity and coherence across partners, connecting local needs with national priorities.
Click here to read the guidance.
The Welsh Youth Parliament’s Crime and Safety Committee is raising the alarm on pupil safety and calling for urgent changes in schools. The report, based on the voices of nearly 2,000 young people who were consulted across Wales, collected extensive evidence of the realities faced by pupils every day. It finds that 40% of young people reported witnessing violent or abusive behaviour at their school or college, yet only 19% considered it a problem, and a majority said they felt safe where they receive their education.
Read the full report here
Revised professional standards for assisting teaching, teaching and leadership
Welsh Government are consulting on the revised professional standards for assisting teaching, teaching and leadership. The revised standards aim to ensure that all involved with assisting teaching, teaching and leadership in Wales are empowered to inspire learners, lead innovation, and contribute meaningfully to a vibrant, inclusive education system that meets the needs of all learners.
Submit your comments by 30 January 2026
Annual updates to the Curriculum for Wales Framework guidance
This consultation welcomes your views on proposed updates to the Curriculum for Wales Framework guidance on Hwb:
– Made for Wales Science GCSEs
– National 14 to 16 Qualifications Offer
Submit your comments by 2 February 2026
Provision of INSET (in-service education and training) days in Wales
This consultation seeks views on proposals to revise the number and use of in-service training (INSET) days in Wales. We are exploring how to better support career-long professional learning for all school practitioners, including teachers, teaching assistants, supply staff, and leaders by:
– Maintaining the additional INSET day provided for the 2025 to 2026 school year for all future school years, by adding an INSET day to the 5 INSET days already provided by the School Teachers Pay and Conditions (Wales) Document, to provide a total of six INSET days per academic year.
– Amending the Education (School Day and School Year) (Wales) Regulations 2003 to determine the use and structure of INSET days.
Submit your comments by 4 February 2026
The new violence against women, domestic abuse and sexual violence (VAWDASV) education toolkit
This toolkit is a revised and refreshed version, recognising the previous information had become outdated and the format was unhelpful for professionals across education to access. Our hope is that by bringing all of this information together in one place it will support you in accessing the need-to-know information surrounding VAWDASV and safeguarding in education settings.
Using social media safely in schools
Social media can be a fantastic way to share news, celebrate achievements and connect with the wider school community. However, it’s important to make sure that everyone’s privacy and safety is protected.
To help schools navigate this, the Practices and principles for schools’ use of social media guidance has been developed in partnership with the UK Safer Internet Centre. This guidance is especially useful for senior leaders and staff responsible for managing internal and external communication channels.
Even if you are already up and running with social media, it is recommended that you:
– review your policies and practice regularly
– keep up with platform updates
– ensure the platform has appropriate settings for the school’s intended use.
Collection – Monitoring and evaluation of curriculum and assessment reform.
How well curriculum and assessment reforms are working and helping learners.
Framework on embedding a whole-school approach to emotional and mental wellbeing
Guidance to support the delivery and evaluation of the framework. It includes action plan development using case studies and examples of good practice.
Published: 29/01/2026
01443 844532 / 029 2075 3685
[email protected]
Sam MacNamara – 07943 887275 / Jane Morris – 07957 969708
