School Management
Management grant-aided schools have a board of governors to manage the school. They are unpaid but generally have some connection with the school or community. Boards of governors have a lot of responsibilities in relation to curriculum, discipline, and admissions, as well as the publication of information.
In controlled and maintained schools, they are responsible for the school’s budget. Through the local management of schools, there is a single formula for the calculation of the school budget. There is a common funding scheme for all grant-aided schools.
The department has a duty to prepare them for this common funding scheme after consultation with the education and library boards, the council for catholic maintained schools, and other bodies as it sees fit. The funding scheme must cover details of the common funding formula, which calculates the budget allocation to each school. School budget allocations are to be revised every year, and a common funding scheme applies to new schools.
ELBs have the power to set separate delegation conditions to the common funding scheme. The department issues guidance. The common funding scheme details arrangements in schools having the management of the budget allocation delegated to the board of governors by the ELB. Members are not to incur personal liability.
There is a duty on ELBs to secure best value in the execution of their service. There are provisions in relation to school contracting. The former provisions in relation to competitive tendering and non-commercial considerations in tendering have been modified.
The arrangements of board of governors differ from the arrangements in Great Britain under the Education Act, 1988. Elected members of councils have always played a lesser role in Northern Ireland. The elected education and library boards have a political representative, but the political representatives do not predominate.
In both controlled and voluntary schools, most appointments to the board are made by nominees of the original transferors or trustees. In the controlled sector, the biggest representatives are the transferor or church’s representatives. In voluntary schools, the trustees of the church’s assets predominate in governance.
Grant-maintained integrated schools were created by the 1989 order, and church representatives are not the largest body. These foundation governors are normally the parents of pupils who originally worked to establish the school. In controlled integrated schools, there are representatives of both of the principal churches.
The evolution of management to the local level from the local ELBs was the effect of the 1989 order, delegating a greater amount of decision-making and financial control to the board of governors. In fact, the ability of the board of governors to undertake the functions is very varied. In some cases, the school principal takes a more active role, and access to functions has been delegated as a chief executive with the board of directors.
The board of governors consists of the principal and at least one elected associated teacher and parent. The majority, the balancing of church representatives, depends on the extent of state funding. Maintained schools with a 100 percent capital funding agreement have higher representation, and those with 85 percent contribution.
Appointments to controlled schools are managed by the ELB. Appointments to maintained schools are administered by the department’s criteria.
There are four methods by which a person may be appointed to a board.
- Election by parent or associate teachers.
- Co-option.
- Nomination by the ELB or department.
- Base nomination.
Base nominations are made by the nominees of the transferors or trustees. In voluntary schools, the trustees of the school’s assets are generally the local clergy of the churches. In grant-maintained integrated schools, the base appointments are determined by the foundation governors who established the school.
The procedure for the nomination of governors varies with the type of school.
The procedures for nomination vary between primary and secondary schools or between controlled schools, controlled integrated schools, maintained schools, voluntary grammar schools, and grant-maintained integrated schools.
Elected parents and teachers are elected by secret ballot. The board of governors makes the arrangements for the election. The election arrangements are subject to improvement by the department.
The elected parent representative must be a pupil’s child attending the school. He or she is elected by the parents of pupils attending the school. A parent includes a guardian and any person with actual custody of the child.
In certain schools, the voting members of the board may co-opt extra members. The co-optees may represent local interest or may have particular expertise in financial or legal matters.
Appointments are generally for four years, and persons may be reappointed. Persons may resign.
All schemes must have a scheme of management. This sets out the method by which the school is managed. The preparation of the scheme of management varies from school to school.
ELBs prepare the scheme of management for controlled and maintained schools other than Catholic-maintained schools. The CCMS prepares a scheme of management for Catholic maintained schools in consultation with the trustees or managers.
The scheme of management must take into account guidance provided by the department. It must provide for membership and procedure of the board. The board must be required to prepare an annual report, disciplinary policy, holding an annual parents meeting, and preparing a school development plan.
The scheme must be approved by the department. The scheme of management provides for a procedure at meetings, including frequency, order of business, chairman, declarations of interest, decisions, and minutes.
There are provisions in relation to conflicts of interest and declaration of interest. They are voting and non-voting members. The principal and co-opted persons do not vote. Where boards of governors hold assets, elected members are not entitled to vote in relation to matters affecting the disposal of assets.
The board must produce an annual report, including financial statements, information about the school’s performance, and other matters. They must hold the parent’s meeting once a year open to all parents of all the pupils. Procedures are set out in the scheme of management.
The election of parent governors may be undertaken at the annual meeting. The meeting discusses the annual report and any other matters as required.
The school development plan must be prepared and revised from time to time. The board must consult with the principal, and regard must be given to guidance by the department, ELB, CCMS.
Each ELB must prepare a scheme for financing grant-aided schools. It should include each school’s share of these general budget or provision for delegating budget shares to the board of governors.
The local management of schools provides for a system, such a policy provides for a budget to cover the running cost. The philosophy is to allow individual schools to deal with that in response to their particular needs.
Boards of governors are a body corporate. Their style is the board of governors. The board may have responsibility for more than one school.
The board has an official seal, which is authenticated by the chairman and one other member. It may sue and be sued in its own name.
Irish medium schools. There are about 20 Irish medium primary schools and three secondary schools together with a number of pre-school groups. Education is provided in Irish in mainstream schools.
New Irish medium schools are eligible for full capital and recurrent funding while they meet criteria. They mustn’t operate as independent schools until they achieve a quite minimum enrollment and admission.
Independent schools are not grant-aided and are not required to comply with the education order except in relation to human rights legislation, along with the department’s maintenance of minimum requirements for premises, accommodation, efficient, and suitable instruction.