Governance information
Details of the governing board: who is on it, how it is structured, how members are appointed, their attendance and their interests.
Check this on my websiteWho it applies to
- Published on
- The school's own website
- School type
- Academies and maintained schools
- School stage
- All stages, from early years to sixth form
- Does not apply to
- No school types are excluded
When is it due?
- How often
- Every 12 months
- Resets on
- 1 September, the start of the academic year
Attendance records and registers of interests are for the last academic year; a term's grace after September.
What's needed
Publish a governors page that names every governor and their role, explains the board's structure and committees, gives who appointed each governor with their dates and term, shows last year's attendance, and includes the register of interests.
In this requirement
- 1Board members and roles3 parts
- Academy: Must
- Maintained: Should
- 2Structure, committees and delegation4 parts
- Academy: Must
- Maintained: Must
- 3Appointments and terms of office5 parts
- Academy: Must
- Maintained: Should
- 4Attendance at meetings1 part
- Academy: Must
- Maintained: Should
- 5Register of interests6 parts
- Academy: Must
- Maintained: Should
Section 1 of 5
Board members and roles
The school should publish the names of each governor or local board member and their roles/categories, such as chair or parent governor, along with the name of the governing body and any shorter terms of office for a category of governor.
- Academies: Must
- Maintained schools: Should
What it must contain
3 parts- Names every governorShould
- Says if any category of governor serves less than four yearsMust
- Names the chair of each committeeShould
What the official sources say
Set out in 2 official sources:
What maintained schools must or should publish online
Schools should publish information about the structure and remit of the governing body and any committees, including the full names of their chairs.
Should§ Governance information > What schools should publish
School Governance (Constitution) (England) Regulations 2012 (SI 2012/1034)
e where the term of office for a category of governor is to be less than four years, the length of that term of office;
Must§ SI 2012/1034 Part 5, reg 28(1)(e)
Section 2 of 5
Structure, committees and delegation
The school should explain how governance is structured: the structure and remit of the governing body and committees, the names of the chairs and, for academies, the trust's scheme of delegation and an assessment of the governance structure.
- Academies: Must
- Maintained schools: Must
What it must contain
4 parts- Says the structure and remit of the governing body and its committeesShould
- Lists the trust's scheme of delegation for governance functionsMust
- Includes an assessment of its governance structure and a review of the board in the governance statementMust
- Gives diversity data about the boardGood practice
What the official sources say
Set out in 2 official sources:
What maintained schools must or should publish online
Schools must publish information about their governing body and its committees, in line with the constitution of governing bodies of maintained schools .
Must§ Governance information > What schools must publish
DfE also encourages schools to publish easily accessible data about the diversity of: – their board – any associated committees
Good practice§ Governance information > What schools should publish
Academy Trust Handbook 2025
– the structure and remit of the trust’s members, board of trustees, committees and local committees/governing bodies (the trust’s scheme of delegation for governance functions), and the full names of the chair of each
Must§ 1.49
1.27. New trusts in their first year must , and established trusts should, include in their governance statement, an assessment of their governance structure, including a review of the board’s composition in terms of skills, effectiveness, leadership and impact.
Must§ 1.27
Show 3 more from this source
1.44. The trust must provide details of its governance arrangements in the governance statement published with its annual accounts, including what the board has delegated to committees and, in trusts with multiple academies, to local committees or governing bodies.
Must§ 1.44
2.50. The records required in GIAS (including direct contact details) for constituent academies in a trust with multiple academies are: – headteacher – chairs of local committees or governing bodies (where adopted) – local governors (where adopted)
Must§ 2.50
The trust must make available on request for public inspection: – the agenda for every meeting of the trustees, local committees/governing bodies and committees – the approved minutes of each meeting – any report, document or other paper considered at each meeting
Must§ 1.50
Section 3 of 5
Appointments and terms of office
For each governor the school should say who appointed them (the appointing body), the date they were appointed, their term dates and the date stepped down, where it applies, and publish the same for associate members and their voting rights.
- Academies: Must
- Maintained schools: Should
What it must contain
5 parts- Names who appointed each governorShould
- Gives each governor's term of officeShould
- Gives the date a governor stepped down, where this appliesShould
- Gives the date each governor was appointedShould
- Lists each associate member and whether they have voting rights on any committeeShould
What the official sources say
Set out in 2 official sources:
What maintained schools must or should publish online
Schools should publish, about each governor who has served at any time over the past 12 months: – their full names – the date they were appointed – their term of office – the date they stepped down, where this applies – who appointed them, in accordance with the governing body’s instrument of governance – their attendance record at governing body and committee meetings over the last academic year
Should§ Governance information > What schools should publish
Schools should also publish this information for associate members, and whether they have voting rights on any committee they have been appointed to.
Should§ Governance information > What schools should publish
Academy trust handbook 2026 (effective 1 October 2026)
1.52. The register must include their full names, date of appointment, who appointed them and their term of office (for trustees and local governors), date they stepped down (where applicable), and relevant business and financial interests including: – directorships, partnerships and employments with businesses – trusteeships and governorships at other educational institutions and charities – for each interest: the name and nature of the business, the nature of the interest and the date the interest began
Must§ 1.52
Section 4 of 5
Attendance at meetings
The school must publish each governor's attendance record at governing body and committee meetings over the last academic year, and a trust must also publish attendance at local governing body meetings.
- Academies: Must
- Maintained schools: Should
What it must contain
1 part- Gives each local governor's attendance record at meetings over the last academic yearMust
What the official sources say
Set out in 2 official sources:
What maintained schools must or should publish online
– their attendance record at governing body and committee meetings over the last academic year
Should§ Governance information > What schools should publish
Academy Trust Handbook 2025
1.49. The trust must also publish on its website up-to-date details of its governance arrangements in a readily accessible format, including: – the structure and remit of the trust’s members, board of trustees, committees and local committees/governing bodies (the trust’s scheme of delegation for governance functions), and the full names of the chair of each – the register of business and financial interests for members, trustees, local governors and the accounting officer, including a nil return where appropriate – trusts have discretion over the publication of interests of other individuals – for each trustee, their attendance records at board and committee meetings over the last academic year – for each local governor, their attendance records at local governing body meetings over the last academic year
Must§ 1.49
Section 5 of 5
Register of interests
The school must publish a register of interests for members, trustees, local governors and senior employees: names, appointment dates and term of office, directorships, partnerships and employments, governance roles in other educational institutions, the nature of each interest and close family relationships.
- Academies: Must
- Maintained schools: Should
What it must contain
6 parts- Lists the business and financial interests of every member, trustee, local governor and senior employeeMust
- Gives each person's full name, appointment date, who appointed them and their term of officeMust
- Says each person's directorships, partnerships and employments with businessesMust
- Says each person's governance roles in other educational institutionsShould
- Gives the name and nature of each business interest and the date it beganMust
- Says interests arising from close family relationshipsMust
What the official sources say
Set out in 2 official sources:
What maintained schools must or should publish online
Schools should publish governors’ relevant business, financial and pecuniary interests, including: – governance roles in other educational institutions – any material interests arising from relationships between governors or relationships between governors and school staff, including spouses, partners and close relatives
Should§ Governance information > What schools should publish
Academy Trust Handbook 2025
1.45. The trust must keep a register of any relevant business and financial interests, for (as a minimum) members, trustees, local governors and senior employees, serving at any point over the past 12 months.
Must§ 1.45
1.46. The register must include their full names, date of appointment, who appointed them and their term of office (for trustees and local governors), date they stepped down (where applicable), and relevant business and financial interests including: – directorships, partnerships and employments with businesses – trusteeships and governorships at other educational institutions and charities – for each interest: the name and nature of the business, the nature of the interest and the date the interest began
Must§ 1.46
Show 2 more from this source
1.47. The register must identify relevant interests from close family relationships between the academy trust’s members, trustees or local governors. It must also identify relevant interests arising from close family relationships between those individuals and employees.
Must§ 1.47
Trusts should consider whether other interests should be registered, and if in doubt should do so. Boards of trustees must keep their register of interests up-to-date at all times.
Must§ 1.48
Questions schools ask
Does every school have to publish the governance information?
Board members and roles: Maintained schools should publish it. Academies must publish it. Structure, committees and delegation: Academies and maintained schools must publish it. Appointments and terms of office: Maintained schools should publish it. Academies must publish it. Attendance at meetings: Maintained schools should publish it. Academies must publish it. Register of interests: Maintained schools should publish it. Academies must publish it.
When does the governance information need to be published?
How often: Every 12 months. Resets on: 1 September, the start of the academic year. Attendance records and registers of interests are for the last academic year; a term's grace after September.
What must the governance information include?
Names every governor; Says if any category of governor serves less than four years; Names the chair of each committee; Says the structure and remit of the governing body and its committees; Lists the trust's scheme of delegation for governance functions; Includes an assessment of its governance structure and a review of the board in the governance statement; and 13 more parts listed above.
Where does the requirement for the governance information come from?
It is set out in What maintained schools must or should publish online, School Governance (Constitution) (England) Regulations 2012 (SI 2012/1034), Academy Trust Handbook 2025 and Academy trust handbook 2026 (effective 1 October 2026).
Changes to the official sources
Dated change notes published by the Department for Education on the sources above.
24 October 2024 · What maintained schools must or should publish online
We have updated the ‘test, exam and assessment results’ section. Some of the information which schools must publish has changed in that section. We have added detail on what schools should publish about governors in the ‘governance information’ section. We have also made changes to the ‘pupil premium’, ‘PE and sport premium’ and ‘complaints policy’ sections.
We last checked these sources on 21 September 2026.
Is this on your school's website?
We check your site the way an inspector or a parent would find it: page by page, against the official wording of each requirement. If it's there, you get the page and the words we found. If it isn't, you get every place we looked.
Check this one requirement free, or scan your whole site against every requirement.
Official wording that does not apply to schools (2)
FE colleges should publish the following: – their governing body’s structure and responsibilities – details of any committees – the names of the chair and governors – information on governor recruitment, such as selection procedures and the work of any search committee
2.4. The board cannot delegate overall responsibility for the academy trust’s funds. However, it must approve a written scheme of delegation of financial powers that maintains robust internal controls.
Official sources last checked 21 September 2026 · register version 1.0.4