Historically we see that most governors are middle aged, middle class, white men. I’m not suggesting that they all need to be replaced, but they certainly need to be joined by individuals who more closely represent the diversity present in classrooms and bring a mixture of skills and strategic insight that is necessary to drive constant improvement.

This isn’t just about age, race or upbringing. Many governing bodies simply lack the range of skills that are now necessary to support the senior leadership team in our schools.

In a fast changing sector, financial understanding, operational skills, marketing experience and even an understanding of the pressures of being 16 years old and in the middle of the modern examination system, are all invaluable to governing bodies.

It is one of the reasons I have joined the board of trustees of SGOSS, I think it is important that the organisation – a registered charity – drives deeper into the consciousness of the private sector.

Education is an issue that everyone tends to have an opinion on but how many people are prepared to give up time to help shape the future of a local school that is desperate for an injection of skills into its governing body if they DON’T have a child at that school?

Fortunately more people are considering this. Since SGOSS was formed 10 years ago, the organisation has helped to place 12,000 governors, including 2,000 last year.

With the constant changes schools are facing, there has never been a better time to review the skills gaps in their governing bodies and to seek the support of an organisation like SGOSS to match them with skilled volunteers.