Governance guidance. 1 Introduction. Please read this user guide fully before attempting to update Get information about schools.

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1 Governance guidance Client Name: Department for Education Issue Date: 31/5/2017 Version: 1.0 Status: Draft Security Level: Public Contents 1 Introduction Access to update your governance information Keeping your record up to date and system reminders Local authority maintained schools Academies including free schools, UTCs, CTCs and studio schools Multi academy trusts (MATs) Information required Add, edit or delete governance information via the Governance tab Add new records via the Governance tab Update records via the Governance tab Replace a fixed role via the Governance tab Remove a record via the Governance tab Delete a record via the Governance tab Create shared chairs of local governing body / shared local governors and delegated authority text box (multi academy trusts only) Add or update governance information via bulk update Historic data... 7 Please read this user guide fully before attempting to update Get information about schools. 1 Introduction

2 This document explains how to add or update your organisation s governance details on Get information about schools. For more information about the national database of governors, the reasons for establishing it and the requirement to keep it up-to-date please see 2 Access to update your governance information Governance information can only be updated by Secure Access account holders in schools, academies and multi academy trusts. Secure Access accounts are managed locally by an approver within your organisation. We can t provide access for local authorities and clerking services to update governance details. 3 Keeping your record up to date and system reminders Secure Access may send you periodic reminders asking you to check your governance details. This may be because someone in a fixed role has stepped down or because your account has not been updated or confirmed as correct for 90 days. If you see a reminder message when you sign in to Secure Access, please go to your record and update your governance information. If your information is up-to-date please click Edit Governance, then I confirm the governance records are up-to-date to remove the reminders. 4 Local authority maintained schools Sign in and navigate to your school record by using its name or URN. To edit the governance details select the Governance tab, then Edit Governance and follow the steps in sections 7 and 8. 5 Academies including free schools, UTCs, CTCs and studio schools. Sign in and navigate to your academy record by using its name or URN. To edit the governance details select the Governance tab, then Edit Governance and follow the steps in sections 8 and 9. For academies that are part of a multi academy trust, governance information and your academy record can also be updated directly by the MAT (see below). For academies that are part of a multi academy trust there is no requirement to add governor details to your establishment record if you do not have local governors. If you do not have local governors please update the Establishment governance flag on your establishment record to This academy is part of a multi academy trust and does not have local governors.

3 6 Multi academy trusts (MATs) Sign in and navigate to your My trust page by using its name or reference number. This page gives details of your MAT and the schools within your MAT. You can edit both. From this page you can edit the governance details for your MAT by selecting the Governance tab, then Edit Governance and follow the steps in section 8 and 9 of this guide. You can also enter details of any shared governance (see section 8.6). Trustee details should only be added to the MAT record, there is no requirement to add them to the individual academy records. To edit the governance details for the academies in your MAT: click on the tab Academies go to the individual establishment select the Governance tab select Edit Governance follow the steps in section 7 and 8 of this guide. If any of the academies in your MAT do not have local governors then you will need to update the Establishment governance flag on the academy record to This academy is part of a multi academy trust and does not have local governors. You can now also suggest changes to details for your academies including headteacher details, address, telephone number, website and address. Select Edit details, edit the required field and click Save. Most changes to academy records are sent to the Education Funding Agency for checking, please make sure any changes reflect your current funding agreement. Shared governors functionality is currently disabled pending development work. At present, you can change the governance mode and view any existing shared governors, but you cannot add, modify or delete any shared governors. 7 Information required We need the information detailed in the table below on the people serving in these roles in your school/academy. You should include all officials currently serving and any officials who have stepped down within the last 12 months. Some of these roles may be described differently within your organisation. If you can t find a suitable match, please contact us. Only certain information will be publicly available; data that is not publicly available will be encrypted within the system. We need this information for our due diligence work and access is restricted to a small number of users within the department.

4 Field Chair of governors / chair of local governors Chair of trustees Governors, trustees, local governors Members Accounting / chief financial officer Title Required Required Required Required Required Yes First name 1 Required* Required* Required* Required* Required* Yes First name 2 Required Required Required Required Required Yes Last name Required* Required* Required* Required* Required* Yes Governor ID number (GID) Required Required Required Required Required No Appointing Required* Required* Required* Required* Yes body Date of Required* Required* Required* Required* Required* Yes appointment Date term of Required* Required*1 Required*1 Required*2 Required*3 Yes office ends 1 Home Required Required Required Required No postcode Required* Required* Required* No address Date of birth Required Required Required Required No Previous title Required Required Required Required No Previous first Required Required Required Required No name 1 Previous first Required Required Required Required No name 2 Previous last Required Required Required Required No name Nationality Required Required Required Required No Telephone number Required* No Visible to the public? 1. Date term of office ends is not required for ex-officio appointments (appointments made by virtue of office such as headteacher/principal). 2. We are in the process of removing the requirement to provide a term of office end date for members. In the interim academies and multi academy trusts should enter a date of 01/01/2025 to enable the record to be saved. 3. This is not editable. The date is populated on replacement with the day before the date of appointment of the replacement chief financial officer / accounting officer. * This information is required before the record can be saved. Associate Governors information is not required for Associate Governors. Corporate members if you have a corporate member please provide information about the person who acts on behalf of the corporate member.

5 8 Add, edit or delete governance information via the Governance tab. There are two methods to add or update governance data, either by directly entering information on the Governance tab or using the bulk update method. 8.1 Add new records via the Governance tab. 1. Select Edit governance from the Governance tab. 2. Select the role of the person you want to add, then click the Add button. There can only be one chair of governors, chair of local governors, chair of trustees, accounting officer and chief financial officer. There can be multiple governors, local governors, members and trustees. 3. Complete all of the fields required to save the record then select Add. 8.2 Update records via the Governance tab 1. Select the Governance tab and then Edit governance. 2. Select Edit below the role you want to edit, the record opens in edit mode. 3. Make the required changes. Complete all of the fields required to save the record then select Add. For accounting officer and chief financial officer the Date term of office ends/ended is not editable. The date is populated on replacement with the day before the date of appointment of the replacement chief financial officer / accounting officer. If the term of office is extended, please add this as a new appointment and do not change the end date for the historic record. 8.3 Replace a fixed role via the Governance tab Chair of governors, chair of trustees, accounting officer and chief financial officer are fixed roles and should be replaced when a term of office ends. To replace a fixed role: 1. Select the Governance tab and select Edit. 2. Select Replace opposite the role you want to replace. A new record opens in edit mode. For a chair of governors only, you can replace them with either a new person or a shared chair of governors.

6 3. Complete all of the fields required to save the record then select Add. The original record for this role will be automatically archived when the add button is clicked. For accounting officer and chief financial officer only the Date term of office ends/ended is not editable. The date is populated on replacement with the day before the date of appointment of the replacement chief financial officer / accounting officer. 8.4 Remove a record via the Governance tab You can remove a record if a multi-role official (trustee, governor or member) changes their role. To remove a record: 1. Select the Remove person field on the record to be removed. 2. Provide the date that the term ends. 3. Click Remove to accept the warning message and remove the record. A person will also be removed from the record if they complete their term. You can also remove any record created in error using the above process. You can t remove a record for a fixed role appointment (chair of governors, chair of trustees, accounting officer and chief financial officer). You can only replace them. 8.5 Delete a record via the Governance tab You should only delete records if an error has been made (for example, a duplicate record). Records should not be deleted when a term of office ends as records are automatically archived once that date is reached. To delete a record: 1. Select Delete opposite the record to be deleted. 2. Click OK to accept the warning message and delete the record. There is no option to undo any deletions. A person will also be removed from the record if they complete their term. 8.6 Create shared chairs of local governing body / shared local governors and delegated authority text box (multi academy trusts only) Shared governors functionality is currently disabled pending development work. At present, you can change the governance mode and view any existing shared governors, but you cannot add, modify or delete any shared governors. Some multi academy trusts operate a shared governance model where a single body governs 2 or more academies within the trust.

7 In the governance tab, you can edit details of the delegated authority of the local governing body (LGB). Select Edit and use the text box to provide details of the level of delegated authority that an LGB has, including a shared LGB if applicable. Include in headline terms the role and remit of any LGBs and any governance functions delegated to them. Where an academy is governed by more than one LGB, add a brief description of how their roles fit together. 9 Add or update governance information via bulk update Governance bulk update allows you to download your existing data (if any) and upload new records or amend existing records. If you re an establishment user, you can only upload governance data for your own establishment. If you re a MAT user, you can upload governance data for your own MAT plus any academies linked to your MAT. It is not possible to upload or update details of shared governors using bulk update. Here s a step-by-step guide to the process: 1. Select Tools from the menu at the top of the page. 2. In the Update section, select Bulk update governance. 3. Download the template (XLSX) using the link provided. If you have already provided some governance information the template will be pre-populated with your data. 4. You can edit the existing data by updating the required field within the spreadsheet. Please do not edit the column titled GID. 5. Use blank rows to add new records. You should provide either the URN for the school or academy or the UID (provided on the trust record) for the multi academy trust and complete all of the required fields (see section 6). For new records including the initial import of records please leave the column titled GID blank. 6. To replace a fixed role (chair of governors, chair of trustees, accounting officer, chief financial officer) please add these details to a blank row. The original record for this role will be automatically archived when the template is uploaded. 7. Once you have completed all of the required information save your template, then upload it for validation. 8. If your file is successfully validated you can then complete the upload of your governance data. 9. If your file is not successfully validated please download the results. The fields that failed validation will be highlighted in red. Please correct these entries and return to step 7 above. 10 Historic data Governance information for officials whose term of office has ended within the last 12 months will be automatically archived to the section Historic (left within past 12 months).

8 Governance information for officials whose term of office ended more than 12 months ago will be automatically archived to the section Historic (more than 12 months ago) and removed from public view.