Governors of schools and colleges play a vital role in the management of health and safety and in the allocation of funds to ensure safety.

Generally, the health and safety responsibilities for school and college governors are the same and can be summarised as:

• ensuring that the school/college complies with legislation and follows best practice in the management of health and safety

• making sure that adequate health and safety resources are available to meet health and safety requirements

• ensuring that staff and students are not exposed to unacceptable risks, and that significant risks are adequately controlled

• making sure that monitoring procedures are in place for health and safety, either through direct observation or via discussions during the governors' meetings.

To meet these responsibilities, governors need training and information on the health and safety legislation that applies to schools and colleges. Training for governors is generally arranged by LAs or other organisations that provide the necessary information to assist governors in fulfilling their legal responsibilities. In addition, governors need access to the school's/college's policies and procedures, audit and inspection reports, and accident and incident information.