Case study: Governing Board Recruitment | Derwentside College

Derwentside College, located in Consett, County Durham, is a forward-thinking general furthereducation college with a turnover of approximately £11 million and a dedicated workforce of170 people. The College has carved out a unique specialism in apprenticeships and boasts anexcellent track record of collaborating with employers.

Context.

In April 2022, the College undertook an external review of governance. Shortly after, in October 2022, the College was one of the first institutions to undergo an Ofsted enhanced inspection under the new framework. While the College was awarded “Good” ratings across all areas, governance was not identified as a strength. The College’s governing body, led by a Chair who had served for over 22 years, showed significant gaps in skills, and the number of governors was insufficient to support the governance structures necessary for the College’s continued growth and performance.

Recognising the importance of effective governance to its goal of becoming “Outstanding,” Derwentside College embarked on a journey to recruit new governors who could provide the leadership and strategic direction required for the institution to reach its full potential. Themain challenge was finding individuals who combined a deep passion for education with thespecialised skills needed for effective governance. Although the College had never previously used an external recruitment agency to recruit governors, after a competitive procurement process, Derwentside College appointed Peridot, an agency renowned for its expertise in governance recruitment within the education sector.

Challenges.

Derwentside College faced several challenges in its search for new governors:

1. Niche skills and experience required: The College was looking for governors with expertise in areas such as finance, education policy, strategic planning, and community engagement. Finding individuals with the right blend of these skills and the ability to contribute to a dynamic and evolving college environment was a challenging task.
2. Time constraints: With the governing body vacancies needing to be filled promptly to ensure the effective governance of the institution, there was limited time for a drawn-out search.
3. Diversity and inclusion: The College was particularly focused on improving diversity within its governing body. It sought to recruit individuals from a variety of backgrounds, ensuring that the board was reflective of the community it served.
4. Limited recruitment expertise in-house: Although Derwentside College had an established recruitment process for staff, it lacked the specialised knowledge and experience necessary to recruit governors effectively.

Process.

Peridot supported Derwentside College in addressing the challenges outlined above by running a thorough, tailored, and strategic recruitment process.

1. Initial consultation and needs assessment

Peridot began by working closely with the Principal, Chair and Head of Governance at Derwentside College to understand the specific needs of the governing body. This included:

• Board review: Peridot utilised the College’s governor skills analysis to support the College in identifying gaps in skills, experience, and diversity.
• Consultation with stakeholders: Peridot interviewed senior college staff to understand the governance challenges and the strategic priorities of the institution.
• Defining role profiles: Based on these consultations, Peridot helped Derwentside College define clear role profiles for new governors, including the essential skills, attributes, and experience required for each position.
• Microsite: Peridot developed a recruitment microsite for the College, providing the information prospective candidates needed to make an informed decision.

2. Targeted candidate search

Once the role profiles were agreed upon and the microsite was in place, Peridot launched a comprehensive and targeted search to identify potential candidates. This included:

• Regional reach: Leveraging its extensive network, Peridot reached out to high-calibre professionals across the North East, targeting individuals with specific skills, such as finance, law, and educational leadership, as well as those with a passion for education.
• Diversity focus: Peridot actively focused on sourcing candidates from diverse backgrounds to ensure the College’s board would be more inclusive and reflective of the local community.
• Advertising campaigns: In addition to their network, Peridot advertised the positions through specialist recruitment platforms and sector-specific channels to widen the pool of candidates.

3. Rigorous screening and shortlisting

Peridot’s expert recruitment consultants screened each candidate thoroughly, assessing their qualifications, experience, and alignment with the College’s needs. The shortlisting process included:

• In-depth interviews: Peridot conducted interviews with shortlisted candidates to assess their motivations, commitment, and understanding of governance in an educational context.
• Reference checks: Peridot performed thorough reference checks to ensure that the candidates had the right experience and a track record of success in similar roles.
• Candidate profiling: Each shortlisted candidate was profiled with a detailed report outlining their suitability for the role, ensuring that the College had all the information necessary to make informed decisions.

4. Facilitating the shortlisting and interview process

Once the initial shortlisting report was prepared, Peridot supported the College by facilitating the shortlisting and interview process, ensuring that it was efficient and aligned with governance best practices. This included:

• Shortlisting: Peridot provided an initial shortlisting report and discussed each candidate with the College’s Search and Governance Committee, allowing the College to shortlist candidates for interview.
• Interview panel support: Peridot helped the College design and structure the interview process to assess candidates on both their skills and ability to work within a team of governors.
• Providing insights: Peridot’s consultants provided valuable insights throughout the shortlisting and interview process, supporting the College in assessing not just the technical qualifications but also the candidates’ values and commitment to the College’s mission.

5. Successful appointment and induction

Following the interview process, Peridot supported Derwentside College in making the final appointments and ensuring the successful recruitment of new governors.

Once the recruitment process was complete, the College led the onboarding and induction process for all new governors. As part of this process, all new governors had the opportunity to observe a Board meeting before confirming their appointment. They were also subjected to a probationary period of three Board meetings to ensure they were contributing well and aligned with our governor values and behaviours. In situations where governors did not pass their probationary period, Peridot supported the College to re-recruit at no additional cost.

Outcome and impact.

Through this partnership with Peridot, Derwentside College has successfully recruited nine new governors over the course of 12 months. Key outcomes include:

1. Diversified and skilled governance: The new governors brought a diverse range of skills to the board, including financial management, strategic planning, community engagement, and education policy, helping to strengthen governance at the college.
2. Increased diversity: The College was able to significantly improve the diversity of its governing body, ensuring that it better reflected the demographics of its student body and the wider community. This diversity of thought and experience has been critical in helping the board navigate complex strategic decisions.
3. Improved governance and strategic direction: The new governors quickly became integrated into the College’s strategic discussions, providing valuable insights and supporting the College’s ongoing mission to deliver high-quality education. Their expertise has been crucial in shaping the College’s future direction.
4. Efficiency and timeliness: Thanks to Peridot’s efficient recruitment process, Derwentside College was able to fill its vacancies in a timely manner, avoiding delays in decision-making and ensuring that governance remained effective throughout the transition.

In just 12 months, Derwentside College has transformed its governance framework, assembling a team of governors with the right skills, experience, and values to support the institution’s journey towards becoming “Outstanding”.