Record

StorageSiteUCL Institute of Education
LevelSeries
Reference Number GDS/11
TitleCentral Governance of Schools
Date1920-2000
DescriptionVarious papers and regulations regarding the centralised administration of governing bodies of the schools within the Trust, including records regarding early administration of Governing Bodies, 1920-1957, 1971; papers of the Governing Bodies of Centralised Schools and predecessors, 1947-1987; papers regarding Papers regarding locally governed and independent governing bodies after 1960, 1973-2000.
Extent3 boxes.
AdminHistoryInitially the schools were governed by the Council and the local head mistress. Some schools also formed local committees who were responsible for the management of the school, though the Council maintained overall control. In 1898 the Department of Science and Art recognised the Council as a Committee of Managers for the schools who did not already have a local committee of management for grant purposes. From 1902 representatives from the Local Education Authorities (LEA) were appointed to the committees to help schools be legible for grants. By 1910, Ipswich, the schools in Liverpool, Newcastle, Portsmouth, and Tunbridge Wells had committees of management. In 1914, to receive a full grant from the LEA, the administration of Croydon High School was completely transferred to a governing body and remained independent of the Council. Ipswich High School followed in the 1920s.

The 1918 Education Act gave official status to committees of management and required local authority representation for grant purposes. In 1921-1922 Governing Bodies with LEA representation were established. Each 'provincial' school and Croydon had an independent governing body; the Governing Body of London Schools governed the five schools within the London County Council area and two bodies governing the schools in Surrey (except Croydon) and Kent.From 1930, Notting Hill High School was administered by a separate Middlesex governing body. Each body had its own regulations though the London, Surrey, Kent and Middlesex governing bodies met together and largely acted as one body called Governing Bodies for Centralised Schools (GBCS). All LEA representatives on the GBCS were also members of the Trust's Education Committee. In 1946, to comply with Direct Grant regulations the Council limited the number of members in each governing body to 15, of which one third had to be appointed by the LEA.

In the 1970s, the Trust began to reorganise the governance of schools to become independent from the LEAs after the withdrawal of the direct grant. In 1976 a Chairman's Working Party was established to discuss how the regulations of all the governing bodies could be revised, using Notting Hill & Ealing High School as a pilot. The new regulations came in force in 1979. From 1982 The GBCS was phased out as each London area school created its own governing body with no formal representation from the LEAs. The London Schools Committee was created to administer the schools until they were able to become fully independent. It was later renamed the Governing Body of London Schools, and was disbanded in 1987. From this date all Trust schools were administered by local governing Bodies who adhered to centralised regulations.
AccessStatusRestricted access
AccessConditionsAll unpublished administrative material is closed for 30 years. Papers containing personal data are subject to closure under the Data Protection Act.
Related MaterialFinancial records of the governing bodies from 1922-1944 can be found in GDS/8/4.
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