'Just five per cent of school governors from ethnic minority backgrounds'

ONLY FIVE per cent of state school governors in England are from ethnic minority backgrounds, says a new report, adding that the figure has remained unchanged for the last 20 years.

Statistics from the National Governance Association (NGA) showed that only three per cent of school governors are Asian. An overwhelming majority (93 per cent) of school governors are white, while just one per cent are black. 

The figures, obtained by The Guardian, are almost identical to when data was initially collected in 2015.

NGA chief executive, Emma Knights, called the data “shocking”.

“I don’t think there’s any other way to describe it,” she said. “I’m trying to be heartened by the fact that boards are making much more of an effort to look at this than previously. But it’s absolutely horrendous.”

Research by the NGA and focus groups found closed recruitment practices, lack of visibility of governance and the low priority given to the issue of under-representation were among several factors holding back improved diversity in schools.

“Boards need to reflect and understand the communities they serve and wider society,” said the NGA. “It is the responsibility of everyone in and working with governance to move this forward.

“There are plenty of talented potential volunteers out there from underrepresented groups; boards need to take a responsibility and change their recruitment practices to find them.”

The most recent data shows 33.9 per cent of primary school pupils, 32.3 per cent of secondary school pupils and 30.2 per cent of special school pupils in England come from ethnic minority background yet some schools serving diverse communities have all-white governing bodies.

Highlighting the lack of diversity among governors, the report says that there is a disconnect between the demographic of the people governing schools and the pupil population they serve “which means that groups of people who make up a sizeable part of the population remain largely excluded from decision-making in schools and trusts”.

Keith Deane is currently the only person of colour on the 10-strong governing body at Sir William Ramsay school, a secondary school in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, where 30 per cent of pupils come from ethnic minorities and communications with parents are translated into four different languages including Urdu, Punjabi and Romanian. 

He said he thought it was important for people of colour to be in positions of responsibility in a school, in part to provide positive role models for students, and also to be able to provide a different perspective and input into decision-making.