Welcome to Blogmas 2025! We will be publishing a new blog post Monday-Thursday for the next 3 weeks leading up to the end of term (18th December 2025)

PLUS we are giving you the opportunity to be entered into our annual Blogmas Bingo giveaway – See more information here!

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Minutes are the official written record of governance business transactions at meetings, including committees. Minutes provide an opportunity for the governing board to be held to account ​and demonstrate effective governance.

Minutes should:

• record a summary of discussions
• accurately record any decisions which have been made by a majority vote of the governing board, or those which will be recommended to the governing board by a committee​
• identify and record any actions, including the person responsible for the action, and any agreed timescale​ – what, who and when
• record progress and challenge to the senior leaders for the performance of the school​

As a general rule of thumb, minutes should include sufficient detail to enable a governor not present at the meeting to understand fully what business was transacted.

Top Tips!

• Be prepared – write down key information, create a minutes template from your agenda, have a list of apologies​ etc.
• Record discussion in the order it happened but itemised as per the agenda – If the agenda is reordered make a note in your minutes “governors agreed to bring item 4 forward on the agenda”
• Use short, concise sentences and paragraphs​
• Keep the tone of minutes neutral​, avoid unexplained acronyms
• Ask for clarification when needed
• Use of initials / job titles – Chair’s preference, you may wish to identify the speaker using their initials or job title; however, “fully” attributive minutes are usually unnecessary – best to use collective phrases such as The Committee discussed…. or governors recognised….. unless deemed necessary to attribute ​
• Use past tense – explained, reported, contacted etc.​
• Use of colour coding for challenge / questions and responses ​plus to highlight any decisions and actions

Today’s symbol is:

Mark this on your Blogmas Bingo card or note down Day XYZ: Name of Symbol and so on for all 12 Blogmas posts and send to contact@threesixtygov.co.uk before 16th January 2026.

Want to receive Three Sixty Governance blog posts and updates directly to your inbox?  Subscribe here.

All our best

Ellie & the TSG Team

Welcome to Blogmas 2025! We will be publishing a new blog post Monday-Thursday for the next 3 weeks leading up to the end of term (18th December 2025)

PLUS we are giving you the opportunity to be entered into our annual Blogmas Bingo giveaway!

Simply match each Blogmas day post with a symbol on our Blogmas Bingo card (see link below) and send in your responses to contact@threesixtygov.co.uk between 18th December 2025 and 16th January 2026. All correct responses will be entered into the prize draw – with multiple winners!

Download your Blogmas Bingo card (use this to mark your response or simply send in a list of answers, for example: Day 1: name of symbol, Day 2: name of symbol etc. to contact@threesixty.co.uk before 16th January 2025 to be in with a chance of winning!

Day 1’s symbol is:

Mark this on your Blogmas Bingo card or note down Day 1: Tree and so on for all 12 Blogmas posts.

Want to receive Three Sixty Governance blog posts and updates directly to your inbox?  Subscribe here.

All our best

Ellie & the TSG Team

Welcome to day 12 of Blogmas! Here’s an overview of Blogmas 2024 and a reminder of how to enter this year’s Blogmas Bingo.

Blogmas Bingo!

Find out more about Blogmas Bingo here

Day 12’s symbol is:

Don’t forget to mark this on your Blogmas Bingo card or note down Day 12: Mug ready to send to contact@proclerking.co.uk before 10th January 2025!

Want to receive Pro Clerking blog posts and updates directly to your inbox?  Subscribe here.

All our best

Ellie & Becky

In collaboration with Governors’ Virtual Office

Welcome to day 11 of Blogmas! As we come to the end of the year I always like to take some time to reflect on both achievements and lessons learnt.  Part of our vision for Pro Clerking is to support self-employed Clerks and Governance Professionals, so in today’s post I thought I’d share some of my key business lessons from 2024.

It’s ok to lose clients

I started out the year offboarding a number of clients who no longer fitted within the Pro Clerking business plan. This was incredibly scary and took a long time to put into action for numerous reasons from loss of income to feelings of failure and letting clients down. But here’s the thing, not all clients are right for your business and your business is not right for all clients. Ultimately the process has been positive because it’s given me the confidence to say no, the room to take on new clients who do align with Pro Clerking’s vision and continue to grow the business at a manageable rate.

Creating the right team takes time

Since I started Pro Clerking back in 2019 it’s been very much me, myself and I. But as we all know there’s only so much one person can do (you can do anything, not everything!) and I had to make the decision whether to stick to my own capacity or to create a team in order to grow the business. Much like the first point above, this was hugely scary and it took me a long time to take action but in 2023 I started working with a project manager to help hone my systems. This year has seen another shift in my central team with much more of a focus on fitting people to specific roles. We’re still not quite there yet but it’s good to feel more confident about what the business needs and start building our central team with more focus.

Stepping into a more strategic role 

Moving on from both points above, a bit shift this year has been for me to start moving away from all the day-to-day clerking and administration responsibilities and stepping up into a much more strategic role overseeing a team, managing larger projects and forward thinking for the business. I would say I’ve managed about 25% of this with the aim of getting to 75% by summer 2025.

The importance of investing in your business – in time!

When I first started Pro Clerking I aimed to do as much as possible for free or as cheaply as possible to limit overheads as a new business – and this is what I would always recommend to anyone starting a business. And whilst I still use a lot of free systems, this year I made the decision to start investing in certain areas such as project management tools and sales platforms that will ultimately make processes more cost effective.

You don’t always need to change your offer 

As someone who naturally likes to push things forward and create new offers I often get “shiny object syndrome” which distracts from what I call the “bread and butter” functions of the business. This year I have really focused on streamlining current processes and offers with the aim to do less better rather than more badly! We have our core offers in place – our clerking and governance support service, members club, clerking with confidence workshops and planners with some ad hoc training and clerking opportunities and I’d like to continue to ensure these remain strong whilst also developing new offers in 2025 (Project X!)

Blogmas Bingo!

Find out more about Blogmas Bingo here

Day 11’s symbol is:

Don’t forget to mark this on your Blogmas Bingo card or note down Day 11: Santa Hat ready to send to contact@proclerking.co.uk before 10th January 2025!

Want to receive Pro Clerking blog posts and updates directly to your inbox?  Subscribe here.

All our best

Ellie & Becky

In collaboration with Governors’ Virtual Office

Welcome to day 10 of Blogmas! In today’s post we’re discussing governor recruitment and diversity.

One of NGA’s 8 elements of effective governance is having the “right people around the table”. From evaluating your current board to succession planning and governor recruitment, ensuring you have an effective governing board of volunteers, including recruiting from underrepresented groups, is not always an easy task!

The NGA’s updated Right People Around the Table guidance provides practical advice on governor recruitment, including prioritising diversity. The NGA’s Skills Audit has also been renamed the Skills and Diversity Audit.

Here are some top tips to help you create a robust governor recruitment process:

Be transparent

Ensure vacancies are transparent around what governance looks like both more generally and in your specific setting. Ensure you include information about the role, eligibility and responsibility of governors in addition to expectations in terms of time, travel and availability. Also remember to make it clear how to apply or ask for more information.

Use a wide range of channels

By opening up your recruitment process to a wide range of channels you are actively encouraging diversity. From local media to Linkedin and twitter – think outside the box!

Actively encourage diversity

“A diverse Board brings greater awareness of the different challenges experienced by the communities we serve. It reduces blind spots and leads to better decision-making”

Kam Kothia, Chair of Trustees at Star Academies

Set a culture for equality and diversity as a fundamental believe and guiding principle for the evolution of your Board to ensure it best serves the commities it supports. Create an inclusion culture by inviting and welcoming both challenge and support.

Consider peer on peer review

Peer on peer review of your recruitment process can offer key insights into where you could improve inclusivity and diversity.

Be visible

As well as being transparent around governance, help potential applicants to understand the role of governance in your setting by being actively visible in your role and encourage meaningful engagement with stakeholders.

Have a high quality induction process

Ensure a high-quality induction process for all governors is in place. On the flip side, encourage fresh perspectives with meaningful succession planning.

Blogmas Bingo!

Find out more about Blogmas Bingo here

Day 10’s symbol is:

Don’t forget to mark this on your Blogmas Bingo card or note down Day 10: Sack ready to send to contact@proclerking.co.uk before 10th January 2025!

Want to receive Pro Clerking blog posts and updates directly to your inbox?  Subscribe here.

All our best

Ellie & Becky

In collaboration with Governors’ Virtual Office

Welcome to day 9 of Blogmas! In today’s post I’m sharing my ambition to create a values based business through Pro Clerking.

For me, the importance of creating a business focused on principles aligned to my own mission and values is paramount. This not only ensures everything we do is viewed through the lens of what is important to us but also makes running a business more personal and enjoyable!

What is a values based business?

A values based business operates on a set of core principles that guide every decision, action, and strategy. These values are deeply embedded in the company culture and influence how colleagues interact with each other, customers, and the broader community.

Our values

1. Trust: Integrity and transparency are the bedrock of creating a Trust-worthy business. We aim to build strong relationships with open communication and honesty.
2. Grace: We operate with an overriding value of grace. We understand everyone has different time pressures and is doing their best and therefore ensure an aspect of grace is extended to our clients, colleagues and ourselves.
3. Clarity: We believe in keeping things clear, straightforward, and easy to understand and aim to build resources and training packages that are clear, user friendly and, most importantly, useful.

Find out more about joining the Pro Clerking community or team.

Blogmas Bingo!

Find out more about Blogmas Bingo here

Day 9’s symbol is:

Don’t forget to mark this on your Blogmas Bingo card or note down Day 9: Bow ready to send to contact@proclerking.co.uk before 10th January 2025!

Want to receive Pro Clerking blog posts and updates directly to your inbox?  Subscribe here.

All our best

Ellie & Becky

In collaboration with Governors’ Virtual Office

Welcome to day 8 of Blogmas! In today’s post we’ll be looking at the benefits of and some of the ways in which you could consider taking governance in your setting either partly or fully paper-free.

As we all know, the pandemic, stepped up our use of technology for everything from online meetings to cloud-based filing and even virtual visits!  Chances are you’re already using some kind of online platform to share information and connect with governors/trustees, but just how far are you willing to take this endeavour into the online world?

Using less paper is obviously good for the environment plus less travel with virtual meetings has huge benefits to our carbon footprint.  But did you also know that reducing the amount of paper clutter in your workspace (and home) can have huge mental health benefits and reduce stress?  Now I love a good paper and pen to-do list as much as the next Clerk but let’s look at some practical ways you can reduce the paper clutter in your workspace: 

1. Invoices and contracts 

If you are a freelance Clerk you can use an online platform (such as QuickBooks) to process and store your payments and invoices.  From scanning and electronically filing receipts to completing your tax return online there really isn’t any need to print out a single page.  HMRC notifications can also be sent via email so all your tax statements and reminders remain online.  Client contracts can also be sent via email and signed electronically using sites such as Docusign.   

2. Electronic diary and planning 

Chances are you are already using Outlook (or equivalent) to plan and invite attendees to online meetings; however, have you considered using your electronic diary to plan out your entire day?  Or to add deadlines for minutes or sending papers out or reminders for actions to which governors can be invited to?  Or what about policy management?  There are also some really great (and mostly free) online project management tools (such as Trello, Asana or Microsoft Planner) which can be used to plan tasks, workloads or even repetitive checklists such as a pre and post meeting planner.   

3. File storage and notes 

You may already use online file storage spaces such as OneDrive and/or SharePoint but have you ever considered taking and filing notes online?  From typing directly into an online Word document to taking quick notes in your IOS Notes app there are loads of great options for taking notes online.  Or if you love a bit of tech and have an Apple Pencil (or equivalent) you can use an app such as Noteshelf to physically handwrite notes which can then be converted and stored as PDF documents or some apps even allow you to transfer your handwritten notes to text!  Then of course there’s the more “traditional” scan and save approach for any loose paperwork lying around. Not to mention the ever growing AI world……

4. Travel and parking expenses  

If there is a need for you to travel and you get reimbursed for either mileage or parking you can use a mileage tracker app and most car parks now enable you to pay via an app which then produces an electronic receipt for you to submit with your expenses claim – no more worrying about lost pay and display tickets! 

5. Online governance platform 

Of course, an absolutely ideal way to manage all your governance needs is to invest in an online platform specifically designed for governance.  The Governors Virtual Office (GVO) provides a secure location to keep your governors’ information available online at all times, to help governors become more engaged with the school and its governance. Enabling governors to arrive at meetings fully informed and creating time to spend on focused debate of strategic issues means that GVO can be a great aid to the effectiveness and efficiency of governance. 

Blogmas Bingo!

Find out more about Blogmas Bingo here

Day 8’s symbol is:

Don’t forget to mark this on your Blogmas Bingo card or note down Day 8: Bell ready to send to contact@proclerking.co.uk before 10th January 2025!

Want to receive Pro Clerking blog posts and updates directly to your inbox?  Subscribe here.

All our best

Ellie & Becky

In collaboration with Governors’ Virtual Office

Welcome to day 7 of Blogmas! Today we taking a look at Associate Members and how they differ from Governors.

The regulations below are mainly for Associate Members in maintained schools – academies should check their Articles of Association or Scheme of Delegation to check the specific wording around the appointment of Associate Members (which shouldn’t be confused with “Members” which sit “above” Trustees in terms of Governance for a Charitable Trust).

What are Associate Members?

Associate Members are not Governors but can be invited to sit on the Governing Body. They are usually appointed by the Governing Body to serve on one or more Governing Body Committee but may also be invited to attend full Governing Body meetings at the Board’s discretion.

What Benefit can they Bring to a Governing Body?

Associate members should be appointed because of the specific expertise and experience they can contribute to the effective governance and success of the school. This can help to address specific gaps identified in the skills of the Governing Body , and/or help respond to particular challenges that they may be facing.

Do Associate Members have Voting Rights?

Associate Members are not Governors and therefore do not have voting rights in full Governing Body meeting decisions; however, they may be given a vote on decisions made by committees to which they are appointed at the discretion of the Board. This also means that Associate Members do not count towards quorum unless voting rights are given.

How is their Term of Office Set?

Associate members are appointed for a period of between one and four years, as determined by the Governing body and may be reappointed.

How and Where are Associate Members Recorded?

Associate Members should be included in your Register of Governors, Register of Interests and Single Central Record. They must also be published on your school’s Governance webpage, making it clear of their position and whether they have voting rights on any of the committees to which they have been appointed. Associate Members do not need to be published on GIAS (as per all other full Governors) or Companies House (for Academy Trusts).

Blogmas Bingo!

Find out more about Blogmas Bingo here

Day 7’s symbol is:

Don’t forget to mark this on your Blogmas Bingo card or note down Day 7: Snowman ready to send to contact@proclerking.co.uk before 10th January 2025!

Want to receive Pro Clerking blog posts and updates directly to your inbox?  Subscribe here.

All our best

Ellie & Becky

In collaboration with Governors’ Virtual Office

Welcome to day 6 of Blogmas! Today we are looking at ways you can truly Clerk with Confidence.

If you’ve been around Pro Clerking for a while you will already be familiar with one of our our main taglines – “Clerking with Confidence” – because at the heart of it, that’s what Pro Clerking is really about – equipping, enabling and empowering YOU as Clerks (or Governance Professionals) to undertake your role with the confidence that you have statutory obligations covered, the ability to support and advise on governance in your school and have a community of like-minded peers to fall back on for advice, resources and support.

With that in mind, I wanted to share some hints and tips about how YOU can truly “Clerk with Confidence”:

1. Three steps to compliance

If you don’t know where to start or you’re not sure if you have all your statutory bases covered – the best thing I find is to go back to basics and check your main compliance areas. A simple way to do this is to use Pro Clerking’s 3 steps to compliance:

• Safeguarding – DBS, SCR, training, KCSIE, policies, eligibility, confidentiality
• Online – website, GIAS, Companies House (Academy Trusts only)
• Governance Books – see item 2 below….

2. Get your ducks (aka governance books) in a row

To help you get started with your governance books – here’s a link to Pro Clerking’s Compliance Checklist – Governance Records. This will also help you prepare for Ofsted!

3. Create systems that work

Having a simple and effective filing system is paramount not only to saving time but also to help give you the confidence you have everything you need in place. Here are some top tips:

• If you work on documents saved on your harddrive – remember to save / upload documents to your online governance platform (Office 365, GVO or GovernorHub etc.) If you are saving everything to your desktop or My Documents and your computer goes caput then bye bye hours of hard work.

• Keep it simple! There is nothing worse that knowing you have created something then not being able to find it!

• Try to keep one copy of a document – rather than having versions 1 to 100000000 (!) Try to keep one copy of a working or final document – even if you have an archive folder to store the rest in case you need to reference an older version. Did you know you use hyperlinks within Office 365 to add documents that are already on the system to ensure the same piece of work gets updated? This is also a huge plus point in GVO!

4. Setting expectations and boundaries

Something as simple as setting an automatic email reply stating you are part-time or your usual availability can help not only set expectations for those trying to get in contact with you but also help you set boundaries of when you are (and aren’t!) willing to work.

Think about the boundaries and expectations you want (and need) to have a positive working relationship with your peers – and always remember my two motos – “I can do anything, not everything” and “under promise, over deliver”.

5. Regular check-ins

Do you have a regular check-in with your Chair and / or senior leader? A termly catch-up can do wonders for everyone feeling informed and organised. Also consider having a check-in with yourself – How are things going? What could be improved? What could be simplified? What areas do you need / want support with?

6. Seeking support

Who is in your support network? Could you buddy up with another Clerk? Have you joined the Pro Clerking online community? Can you find time for our termly Clerking with Confidence Workshops to connect with your peers? What support do YOU need in place?

As always – please don’t hesitate to get in touch if there is anything we can help or support you with – get in touch at contact@proclerking.co.uk or for GVO specific queries email support@thegvoffice.com.

Blogmas Bingo!

Find out more about Blogmas Bingo here

Day 6’s symbol is:

Don’t forget to mark this on your Blogmas Bingo card or note down Day 6: Present ready to send to contact@proclerking.co.uk before 10th January 2025!

Want to receive Pro Clerking blog posts and updates directly to your inbox?  Subscribe here.

All our best

Ellie & Becky

In collaboration with Governors’ Virtual Office

Welcome to day 5 of Blogmas! Today we are looking at Annual Appraisals.

As one of the National Governance Association’s 8 Elements of Effective Governance, having a high quality Governance Professional or Clerk is imperative to the performance of your Board. 

Although there is no requirement to conduct a Governance Professional or Clerk annual appraisal the process does help to set expectations, highlight any areas for improvement, provide support for development, set objectives and provide an opportunity for the Clerk to give feedback.  Appraisals should be positive and encouraging rather than a response to poor performance which should be managed through the school’s performance management policy.

Guidance

Governance Professional Competency Framework

Maintained School Governance Guide

Academy Trust Governance Guide

Things to consider to prepare for the appraisal process

• Who will carry out the appraisal process – Chair or Vice Chair, a panel, line manager (if employed through a LA or agency)
• Self-evaluation – self-reflection on performance
• 360 feedback – input from the Board

Things to consider during the appraisal process

• Working relationships
• Discuss performance against the GP Competency Framework as a guide and current job description – areas for improvement
• Review job description for any potential amendments
• Pay and renumeration – consider role requirements and whether they have significantly changed and the number of hours spent on the role – use the NGA’s career pathway for governance professionals for guidance on indicative salary ranges
• Review previous and set new objectives
• Working arrangements
• Personal development and training

Example question prompts

• What accomplishments are you proud of this year?
• What goals did you not meet and what were the barriers to achieving these?
• What will you focus on to help you grow and develop further?

Setting objectives

Ideally 3-4 objectives should be set every year.  Ensure these are relevant and aligned to the priorities of the school. 

For example:

• Develop an appointment and induction process for new Governors
• Develop a policy review and management system
• Stay up to date with governance legislation and report regularly to the Board
• Complete New Clerk Training

Blogmas Bingo!

Find out more about Blogmas Bingo here

Day 5’s symbol is:

Don’t forget to mark this on your Blogmas Bingo card or note down Day 5: Hat ready to send to contact@proclerking.co.uk before 10th January 2025!

Want to receive Pro Clerking blog posts and updates directly to your inbox?  Subscribe here.

All our best

Ellie & Becky

In collaboration with Governors’ Virtual Office