• Locations

  London

• Salary

  Voluntary Role

• Sector

  Education

• Type

  Permanent

We welcome governors from diverse professional and personal backgrounds and are inviting expressions of interest from individuals with senior-level experience from all sectors.  

 We are particularly but not exclusively looking for experts in the following areas:  

• The Further Education sector   

• Safeguarding & Prevent  

• Estates/building knowledge & management   

• Philanthropy and charitable fundraising  

• Digital skills 
   

What matters to us most is that you can bring a fresh perspective, ask the right questions and that you are committed to helping us ensure that decisions are made in the best interest of the college and our community.   

If you are interested in applying, please send your CV (2 x pages max), a covering letter 

(2 x pages max) setting out how you meet the person specification and what you can bring to the role and a completed Equal Opportunities Form  to Jo Luff, Head of Governance: jol@wmcollege.ac.uk  

The closing date for applications is 17 November 2025. 

If, before applying, you’d like to have an informal chat about the role with the Chair, please also email Jo directly.  

As a member of the Board of Governors, you will leverage your experience and expertise to provide challenge, scrutiny and support; helping to secure success, growth and achievement for the college now and for the future. 

Strategic thinking, good judgement and a willingness to learn are the main attributes we are looking for. All Governors should be able to demonstrate the following: 
 

• Strategic perspective and drive – the ability to engage with, participate and support the college in developing its long-term strategies including identifying, setting and monitoring key objectives 

• Commitment to quality and improvement – the ability, knowledge and/or understating of what continuous improvement would look like and how to raise and drive forward standards for all our learners 

• Creative thinking – an ability to understand and recognise need for change; to help identify new development/commercial opportunities to broaden the range of what the college offers and source new income 

• Integrity and a commitment to the aims of the college – to ensure the values, vision and mission of the college are maintained and reflected in your work and decision making 

• Interpersonal skills and team working – the ability to work positively with others in a constructive way; engage, understand and articulate the experiences and needs of our college and wider community.  

1. What does the role involve? 

The role of a governor is strategic, not operational. It is about offering appropriate and effective support and challenge. The operational management of the college is delegated to the Principal/CEO and Executive Leadership Team.  

The role of governor covers: 

• Purpose – helping to determine, preserve and develop the college’s educational character, vision and values – ensuring continued relevance to external priorities and mission 

• Strategy – helping to set, monitor and review progress towards achieving the college’s long-term strategy and strategic objectives 

• Quality – helping raise standards by monitoring the college’s educational performance; monitoring student recruitment, retention and achievement  

• Scrutiny – helping to ensure the college is prepared for inspection by regulatory bodies – e.g. Ofsted, the Department for Education (DfE)  

• Resources – ensuring resources are being responsibly allocated and well used; safeguarding college assets, ensuring financial health and solvency; monitoring the college’s business performance in relation to funding agencies, educational contracts and fee income 

• People & culture – determining the employment terms and conditions of the Principal and other senior post holders; setting pay and conditions of service for all other staff; reviewing and approving key organisational policies e.g. Safeguarding, H&S, EDI 

• Compliance – ensuring the college meets all its statutory obligations, supporting the development of good governance by participating in relevant training, internal and external evaluations.  

1. What will the commitment be?  

Governors are volunteers and we acknowledge and value the time that governors give to fulfil their role and responsibilities. The commitment we ask from our governors is to: 
 

• Undertake a fair share of the work of the Board of Governors and appointed to one of the 3 x committees either: Audit, Finance, Personnel and Development or Curriculum Quality and Standards 

• Attend Board and committee meetings – these are held either on a Wednesday or a Thursday evening for 2 hours with a start time of 5.30 pm. Board meetings are held in person, and some Committee meetings may be held online. 2025/26 Board meetings are scheduled at 5.30 pm on:  

• 10th December 2025, 25th March 2026 and 8th July  
  & 

• Each committee will meet 1 x term 

• Prepare for meetings – papers requiring prior reading will be available online at least 7 days before meeting dates 

• A governor’s term of office is for three years. Governors are eligible to stand for re-election for a maximum of three terms of office  

• Visit the college at least once during the academic year, either as part of their link governor role, which might focus on a particular management responsibility or curriculum area, such as HR, EDI, Maths, English, or IT, or to our key events – art exhibitions, music performances and learner awards 

• Participate in a process of self-assessment, review and development to ensure that our governance is effective and efficient, leading on and innovating best practice within the sector 

• Act as an ambassador for the College 

• Adhere to adopted codes of conduct and code of ethics including college policies and the Association of College’s Further Education Code of Good Governance 

• Conduct themselves in a way that is appropriate to the role for representation of a publicly funded body.  This includes adherence to the seven principles of public life set out in the report of the Nolan Committee on Standards in Public Life. 
   

Governors are also Trustees and Directors and so you must be:  

• Eligible to be a Trustee in line with Charity Commission requirements  

• Eligible to be a Company Director in line with Companies House requirements  

• Able to secure a clear DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) certificate  

For further information please see our website – Become a WM College Governor – WM College