A COUNTY-WIDE shortage of school governors has prompted calls for more people to volunteer.

In schools across Basingstoke there are currently 136 vacancies for governors.

A mix of parent governors, local authority governors and community governors is needed.

Councillor David Kirk, Hampshire County Council's Cabinet member for education, said: "Governors do a vital job and we are always keen to encourage more people from our communities across the county to become governors at their local schools.

"Ofsted reports continue to show that Hampshire's schools are among the best in the country and it is thanks not only to the commitment and hard work of our teaching staff, but also thanks to the unique contribution school governors make."

Basingstoke MP Maria Miller has been a school governor at Cranbourne Business and Enterprise College for the past three years and is encouraging more people to sign up.

She said: "I have been a governor at four or five different schools over the last 20 years.

"I think it is a very helpful way of contributing to the community and it also helps schools improve the way that they run.

"Certainly, businesses that get involved in either sponsoring schools' activities or putting forward school governors also find that they get a great deal of benefit from the management skills offered by the role.

"Working as a school governor is something that I have benefited, and learned a great deal, from."

Cliddesden Primary School, in Basingstoke, has its full quota of governors and headteacher Mandy Harrison believes they make a valuable contribution.

She said: "They are very supportive, very hard-working, very dedicated to the wellbeing of the school and, in my experience, they have only ever been a positive benefit."

Fort Hill Community School, in Kenilworth Road, Basingstoke, has enough governors but headteacher Lesley Lawson feels that, without them, standards could slip.

She said: "We are very lucky as our governing body is very strong and committed to the school.

"I think they are vital in maintaining the high standards that every school would expect."

For more information about becoming a governor, visit www.hants.gov.uk/education/governors or ring Claire Bailey on 01962 845846.