The role of governors in supporting CPD

I was recently at an event where I met the chair of governors of a primary school. Realising the common ground, we struck up a conversation about our respective work in education with teachers and leaders. When I explained that I was visiting a school the very next day to facilitate a collaborative session on effective teacher development, I was met with the response “CPD? In exam time? Teachers don’t have time for that, they’re too busy cracking the whip!”.

The comment, though tongue-in-cheek, reminded me how surprisingly common it is that governing boards and trusts are not always as aware of the importance of staff CPD as they should be. Given that a governing body’s number one priority for a school is a high quality of education for pupils, it must follow that their number one focus must be constantly improving the quality of teaching.