Governance Development Programme
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Governance Development Programme 2016/17 About the programme Our regional Governance Development Programme is running again in 2016/17 with a variety of seminars, workshops, conferences and project activity. Previous programmes have been well-received and provided a much valued opportunity for governors to develop their skills and knowledge as well as sharing wider experience with colleagues. This year’s programme includes: Saturday morning development seminars and workshops at college venues across the West Midlands Termly governor network meetings held in evening, mid-week, with presentations on a range of topics of current interest and relevance Governance development projects funded by the Education and Training Foundation which will enable chairs and governing bodies to explore and develop their practices and processes in response to the changing legal and financial frameworks within which colleges operate Participation in any activity is free for any governor at a further education college, sixth form college or independent specialist college. The regional programme complements a national programme of governance support. This includes an extensive bank of online resources, a governance helpline, monthly webinars, and annual clerk and governor conferences. A key component of the national programme is a network of National Leaders of Governance, recruited by AoC, providing direct support and advice to college and other provider boards. You can obtain further details of the national programme from AoC’s website, or by calling the Governance Development Unit on 020 7034 9900 or emailing [email protected]. Saturday morning workshops Practical workshops which include a mix of input from specialist experts and experienced college managers, and governors, with plenty of opportunity for discussion. The following workshops will be running this year: Funding and Finance | Saturday 12 November 2016 at Walsall College: The Hub • The financial context in which colleges operate • How colleges receive funding and the parameters which affect this • Monitoring and assuring financial performance and health • Financial sustainability following area-based reviews Quality and Inspection | Saturday 11 February 2017 at South and City College Birmingham: Fusion 2 Campus • The role of governors in relation to the scrutiny of teaching, learning and assessment • Ofsted’s responsibilities and how it inspects the effectiveness of governance • Using data and other evidence to monitor the quality of teaching and learning Audit, Risk and Financial Regulation | Saturday 11 March 2017 at Queen Alexandra College • The responsibilities of governors, the Audit Committee and the Audit Committee Chair • Managing risks and failure • Achieving effective assurance • Equipping the Audit Committee to meet its responsibilities 2 The Legal Framework for Governance | Saturday 29 April 2017 at Birmingham Metropolitan College: Matthew Boulton Campus • Current legislation and its impact on college governance • Governors’ legal obligations and duties • The legal implications of mergers, federations and other organisational models • The place of the Code of Good Governance for English Colleges Managing Performance | Saturday 20 May 2017 at Walsall College: The Hub • Developing an effective governing body • Setting performance outcomes • Evaluating performance through appraisal and self-assessment All workshops begin at 9am and run until 12pm. A light breakfast is available from 8:30am. Regional networking meetings We will be holding three evening networking meetings for college governors in 2016/17. These events are an opportunity to hear from speakers on current topics of direct relevance as well as an informal opportunity to meet with governors from other colleges. Topics for network meetings this year are likely to include presentations on apprenticeships and what the apprenticeship reforms mean for colleges; area review implementation and plans for the introduction of a college insolvency regime; devolution, localism and the development of the mayoral West Midlands Combined Authority. Network meeting dates and venues for 2016/17 are: • Thursday 1 December 2016 at Eversheds LLP, Birmingham City Centre • Wednesday 8 March 2017 at South Staffordshire College: Rodbaston Campus, Penkridge • Wednesday 14 June 2017 at Warwickshire College Group: Rugby College Evening networks run from 5:30pm until 8pm and include a light buffet from 5pm. The programme for each network meeting will be finalised nearer the date to take account of current ‘hot topics’. Delegate comments from our 2015/16 Governance Development Programme “As a new governor, these sessions are excellent. It is a great opportunity also to meet other college governors and compare notes in the relevant areas.” Shireen Avari, South and City College Birmingham “An excellent, informative, knowledge sharing event promoting best practice and excellence in corporation governance practice and processes.” Graham Briscoe, AoC Governors’ Council “An excellent and informative session.” “ David Johnson, Dudley College “Sessions are well organised and interactive.” Rubina Chaudary, Joseph Chamberlain Sixth Form College “Really interesting event with plenty of opportunity to discuss and share best practice.” Edwina McQueen, North Shropshire College “As someone new to further education this provided an excellent grounding to allow me to perform as an effective governor.” David Cooper, Bournville College 3 Governor Induction Induction event for those new to governance and trusteeship at further education providers A half-day conference taking place on the morning of Saturday 21 January 2017 at Solihull College and University Centre for those new to further education governance or who would like to extend their knowledge about key aspects of the further education landscape. The conference is free to attend for those in governance or trusteeship roles at any funded provider including colleges, voluntary organisations, local authority adult education services, and independent training organisations. The conference will include short inputs from a range of agencies and experts who work with colleges including the Skills Funding Agency, local enterprise partnerships, Ofsted and the Education and Training Foundation. Student Governor Induction We will be supporting the National Union of Students in running a regional induction event for student governors on Thursday 10 November 2016 from 10:30am to 1pm at Birmingham Metropolitan College, Matthew Boulton Campus. This event has proved popular in previous years and enables student representatives to develop their role as governors as well as providing a supportive network of contacts through NUS. Regional Conference Making sense of devolution and localism – a one day regional conference Government plans for devolution of funding to combined authorities and other local structures are set to continue. The West Midlands Combined Authority is now in place with funding for adult skills set to be devolved by 2018/19. The opportunities presented by devolution however have far wider significance. This one day conference, which we will be holding in February 2017, will be an opportunity to consider the impact of devolution and what this means for the future strategic direction of colleges and further education in the West Midlands. Development Projects Development support for board chairs through peer review and reflective learning Building on a pilot project we ran earlier in the year we will be running three facilitated workshops specifically for chairs of governing boards to assist them in tackling some of the major current issues in FE governance including support to improve their effectiveness as chairs. Developing best practice in board assurance and risk management Working with our colleagues in the South West region we will be working with college governing boards to support the implementation of strengthened assurance arrangements following area-based review. Details of these projects and how to get involved will be available on our website. Contact us For further information and to keep up-to-date with our governance programme please contact: Sara King, AoC West Midlands Projects Manager: [email protected] / 01902 824399 or visit our website: www.aoc.co.uk/wm AoC thanks The Foundation for its contribution to the funding of this © Association of Colleges | September 2016 programme Governance Development Programme 2016/17 Diary October 2016 12 Clerks’ Network | Halesowen College November 2016 10 Student Governor Induction | Birmingham Metropolitan College: Matthew Boulton Campus 12 Funding and Finance workshop | Walsall College: The Hub December 2016 01 Governors’ Network | Eversheds LLP, Birmingham January 2017 21 Induction event for new governors and trustees at further education providers | Solihull College & University Centre February 2017 08 Clerks’ Network | Warwickshire College Group: Royal Leamington Spa College 11 Quality and Inspection workshop | South and City College Birmingham: Fusion 2 Campus TBC Making Sense of Devolution and Localism Conference March 2017 08 Governors’ Network | South Staffordshire College: Rodbaston Campus 11 Audit, Risk and Financial Regulation workshop | Queen Alexandra College April 2017 29 The Legal Framework for Governance | Birmingham Metropolitan College: Matthew Boulton Campus May 2017 20 Managing Performance workshop | Walsall College: The Hub June 2017 07 Clerks’ Network | Walsall College: Wisemore Campus 14 Governors’ Network | Warwickshire College Group: Rugby College Please note that we are planning additional events which will form part of the regional programme. Full details of all events will be available on the Governance section of our website..