THE chairman of governors at a West Oxfordshire primary school has become the first in the county to be picked for a national governor role.

Shane Rae, the chairman of Brize Norton Primary School’s governors, was one of only 100 governors in the UK to be appointed to the role of National Leader of Governance (NLG) by the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL), which is part of the Department for Education (DfE).

The aim is to support other governor chairmen to improve governance and school performance.

Mr Rae said: “Governors in many ways form the backbone of education in the UK. It is fantastic to be recognised nationally for the work that has been done here locally in Oxfordshire.

“In my work I hope to have the opportunity to show other local authorities how successful partnerships, like the Burford Partnership, can be replicated in their area.”

Mr Rae is also an elected member of the Oxfordshire Schools forum and a Primary Education Strategist at Oxford University Press.

Charlie Taylor, chief executive of the National College for Teaching and Leadership, said: “High quality governance is vital for improving school performance and it is great that chairs of governors like Shane are willing to step up and look beyond their own school in order to help others who will benefit from their support.”