This article outlines the 3 link governor roles that every school should have. Beyond that, it's up to you to decide whether to appoint link governors for other areas.

Remember: the number and type of link governors you have on your board should ultimately depend on your school's priorities and school improvement plan (SIP). These might be different from what other schools are doing and might change each year.

Link governor roles you should have

Statutory guidance (see below) says your board should have:

• A senior board-level lead to take leadership responsibility for your school's/trust's safeguarding arrangements
• An individual (or a committee) with specific oversight of your school's arrangements for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)
• (Secondary schools) An individual who takes a strategic interest in careers education and guidance, and encourages employer engagement with the school

The statutory attendance guidance also suggests that boards consider having a governor who focuses on attendance.

The information in this section is outlined in the following statutory guidance published by the Department for Education (DfE):

• Keeping Children Safe in Education (page 25)
• The SEND Code of Practice (page 92, section 6.3)
• Careers guidance and access for education and training providers (page 14)
• Maintained schools governance guide (section 2.3)
• Academy trust governance guide (section 4.3)

Who's eligible? 

All governors are eligible to be link governors, except the headteacher.

However:

• Staff governors shouldn't take on a link governor role where there's overlap between their role as school staff and their link governor role. For example, if the designated safeguarding lead (DSL) is a staff governor, they shouldn't be the safeguarding link governor
• Associate members shouldn't be link governors – they shouldn't make school visits since they're not governors and aren't required to undergo DBS checks in maintained schools  

How to allocate roles

The board, working with the headteacher, should allocate link governor roles. 

Align roles with the school improvement plan (SIP)

Make sure your link governors align with your school's strategic priorities.

Allow governors to volunteer

Give governors the chance to put themselves forward for a link role they want, rather than just assigning roles.

You can then decide whether the governor is suitable for the role.

What if no one volunteers?

The chair should consider whether governors are:

• Unclear about what the role entails
• Concerned that it may be too much work
• Concerned about their lack of knowledge in the area
• Uninterested in the subject

The chair should also remind governors that they don't need to have prior experience to become a link governor in a particular subject or area. Instead, they should have an interest and be willing to learn more. Use our board effectiveness tool to help governors identify strengths and areas of interest.