SCHOOL governors unable to change the fortunes of failing schools, may be booted off the governing body under new Government proposals.

The Department for Education and Employment has recently issued a consultation paper to local education authorities (LEAs) putting forward a series of ideas on school governing bodies.

The paper suggests that in exceptional circumstances LEAs and the Secretary of State for Education, David Blunkett, should be able to remove whole governing bodies and replace them with a small interim governing body.

The DfEE envisages that the powers could be triggered in respect of schools on special measures which are only making limited progress, or where the governing body has been identified as weak.

Bill Bridger, chairman of the governors at St Mary and All Saints CE Combined School, in Beaconsfield, which was described as underachieving in certain areas in a recent Ofsted report, backed the suggestion.

He explained: "I can't see any objection in principle to a governing body being removed if the school is totally failing.

"If the situation is very dire, and I can't see that happening in Bucks, there should be a sanction but personally I don't think the local authority is best able to judge the performance of governing bodies.

"The school I am a governor of is a Church of England school and therefore I would expect the Diocese of Oxford to have a significant part to play in any decision."

The DfEE also suggests freeing governors of some of their executive duties, such as recruiting and disciplining staff, so they can focus more on their strategic role.

Buckinghamshire LEA will discuss the proposals with headteachers and chairmen of governors at the early term briefings.