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School improvement planning: how to work with your governors

Know how to involve your governors in the process, so you get the challenge and support you need to create an effective school improvement plan (SIP).

Last reviewed on 23 June 2026
School types: All•School phases: All•Ref: 12527
Contents
  1. Keep the role of governors strategic
  2. Meet with your governors so they can identify strategic priorities
  3. Your governors will then set the high-level objectives
  4. Draft the SIP and present it to the board
  5. Your governors should then approve the SIP
  6. Update your governors about the SIP’s progress so they can monitor
  7. Take a look at these examples of SIPs with actions for governors

Keep the role of governors strategic

Your governors won’t be involved in actually writing the SIP – that's for you and your senior leaders.

Instead, focus your governors' attention on the strategic aspects of school improvement planning:

  • Identifying and setting high-level objectives
  • Approving the SIP
  • Monitoring the SIP

They should provide effective 'support and challenge' to your improvement planning, as set out in the school inspection toolkit.

Depending on your board’s structure, this can be through a delegated committee or assigning governors with the responsibility of school improvement.

Meet with your governors so they can identify strategic priorities

When?

Normally in the second half of the summer term.

Tell me more

You and your senior leadership team (SLT) should meet with your governors to review the past academic year.

Pupil