Governor Conference 2018 – Feedback

The Trust’s annual Governance Conference took place on 24 November. There were 85 attendees – a record for the Trust! Governors of all types were represented (e.g. staff, ex-officio, LA, parent, partner), though the majority were Co-op Sponsor governors (38%) or Co-opted governors (24%). Five members of the Trust Board and 17 members of the Central Trust Team and Co-op group also took part in the conference.

Feedback from the conference was:

All respondents indicated their total enjoyment of the day
85% felt that they had learned a lot and 80% felt empowered to share their learning with their governing body
All felt the day was very well organised
60% felt that they benefited from attending the afternoon workshop.

The input about ‘The Role of the Co-operative Coordinator’ was a strong favorite amongst governors followed by the opportunity to have table discussions about governance topics.

Some examples of feedback from the conference included:

“As a new member of the Trust, it was really comforting to once again see your values permeating everything that you do. In a time where some MATs have been reported to behave in a rather different way, it makes me very happy to see our school in safe hands where the children will always come first.”
“I really enjoyed meeting others and it reinforced the feeling that you are part of something bigger than your own school.”
“It was a good day, lots of useful sessions and information that was shared.”
“Fantastic facilities, food/drinks. Well motivated colleagues. I feel our school is in safe hands.”

Some ideas for future conferences included:

“Be more insistent on attendance without being aggressive or rude.”
“Some areas could have done with a little more time – particularly table discussions.”
It would be useful to have “Information / presentation about all the Coop academy schools”
“it would be good to share information on any key educational topics that may impact us in the future and details of our financial performance.”
“Please consider a workshop for parent governors and coco’s to work together. Please consider using more examples and less corporate language.”