The use of technology to enable school governors to participate remotely in meetings: A solution to skilled governor shortages in schools?

Governor recruitment is increasingly difficult, with schools in remote locations struggling to recruit skilled governors. This paper evaluates Lloyds Banking Group’s (LBG) ‘e-governor’ concept – volunteer LBG employees who attend governing board meetings remotely. Interview data collected from five e-governors as well as key school stakeholders is analysed and showed that schools often value e-governor contributions more than the e-governors did themselves. This was due to the difficulties of building relationships with their schools with technology and outdated governing body practices exacerbating this problem. We conclude by recommending a model of ‘flexi-governance’ as a potential solution to skilled governor recruitment shortages.