Governance doesn't fail because people lack knowledge or skill. It fails when the conditions for honest conversation don't exist. We've built an industry around governance training. Workshops on strategic oversight. Manuals on role boundaries. Thousands of templates for better questioning techniques. All valuable, certainly. But also insufficient. Because here's what I've seen happen repeatedly: A board armed with the best frameworks and clearest role descriptions still strug

In all your leadership training - your NPQH, your courses, your professional development, all of it - how much time was spent on this question: "How do I build and maintain a healthy, productive relationship with my governing board?" If the answer is "not much" you're not alone. Most headteachers I work with tell me exactly the same thing. And isn't that extraordinary? When you think about it? Whether you are a headteacher or CEO, this single relationship - the one between yo

There's a moment many headteachers recognise instantly. You leave a board meeting feeling vaguely unsettled. Nothing overtly "wrong" was said. Everyone was polite. The minutes will probably reflect a calm, professional discussion. And yet, something doesn't sit right. A question seemed 'too operational'. A suggestion felt more like an instruction. A comment seemed charged with something unspoken. Individually, each incident feels too small to make a fuss about. Collectively,