BURSARS
- IN CONVERSATION WITH -
MARK TAYLOR BURSAR, KING’S SCHOOL, CANTERBURY AND CHAIR, AGBIS & VICE-CHAIR, ISC Mark Taylor talks to Independent School Management Plus about the critical relationship between governors, heads and bursars and their oint role in securing t e financial stability of their school in turbulent times.
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sixth-generation soldier – his forebears fought at Waterloo and participated in the Charge of the Light Brigade – it was the rewarding experience of working with the Junior Leaders’ Regiment for young recruits, towards the end of his time in the military, which drew Mark Taylor towards a career in education. He was appointed Deputy Bursar and CCF Commander at Cranbrook School in Kent in 1993. In the nigh-on 30 years since, Mark has held many i nificant role wit in t e in epen ent e cation sector, including chairing the ISBA and sitting on the boards of the ISC and the BSA. He is currently the Chair of AGBIS and Vice-Chair of the ISC, in addition to his day job as the Bursar at King’s School, Canterbury. As is the case with 80% of bursars wor in wit in t e ector, ar al o fill t e role of Clerk to the Governors. A former pupil at Junior King’s, Mark describes taking the role at King’s Canterbury as ‘coming home’ and pays tribute to the informal and caring environment which the school provides for its students.
Optimum relationship
During his time as Chair of the ISBA, Mark led a working group of representatives from several of t e a ociation w ic evelope an co ifie best practice guidance on the optimum relationship between governors, heads and bursars. Designed to promote proper communication, ‘avoid surprises’ – as Mark puts it – and provide a framework for effective cross-working, the recommended modus operandi which emerged from the consultation has been adopted by schools across the sector. Effective ‘clerking’, Mark believes, should promote transparency and ensure that everyone involved in the governance of a school is ‘kept in the loop’; this is achieved through the implementation of robust processes and aided by the overview which the dual role of Bursar and Clerk, where it exists, provides. Mark sees an effective working relationship between the triumvirate of the head, the chair of governors and the bursar/clerk as critical to the smooth running of any school. He recognises that some heads can feel threatened by the bilateral dialogue between the bursar and the chair that such an arrangement invites, but believes that open communication can mitigate this.
Focus on the big picture
Mark characterises the role of governors as ‘eyes on and hands off ’ when it comes to the day-to-day running of a school but points to their central 14 | schoolmanagementplus.com | Summer 2022
