What do your Governors do?

There are six Full Governing Board meetings a year. The board is made up as follows:

Co-opted Governors x 3
Foundation Governors x 2
Local Authority Governor x 1
Parent Governors x 2
Staff (Head Teacher Ex-officio Governor) x 1
Staff Governor x 1

Committees & Their Members

Resources & General Purposes (including Health & Safety)
This committee meets at least 3 times a year. This committee has delegated powers to scrutinise and make decisions on behalf of the FGB. This committee is minuted by the clerk.
William Lovett (Neil) Chair, Birgit Smith, Headteacher, Karen Smith (Business Manager), Alison Mason

Ethos
This committee meets at least 3 times a year.
Emma Robinson (Headteacher), Kirsty Milne (Religious Education Leader), Rev. Ben Sear (Chair)

Pay & Personnel
This committee meets every October and then will have subsequent meetings if required.
Headteacher, Birgit Smith (Chair)

Responsibilities and Functioning of the Governing Body

Legal Duty

The Governing Body has general responsibility for the conduct of the School with a view to promoting:
• high standards of educational achievement
• the well-being of pupils at the school
• community cohesion

Key roles

The key roles of the Governing Body are:
• Thinking and working strategically to help raise standards.
• Monitoring and evaluating progress towards the school’s priorities and targets.
• Accounting to all stakeholders for the school’s overall performance and for decisions made by governors.
• Supporting the head and staff as well as challenging their expectations

Governors have a number of statutory responsibilities, most of which fall into the above. In particular to:

• Promote high standards of education
• Shape the school’s future direction through the School Improvement Plan and other mechanisms
• Ensure the school’s vision, values and ethos is reflected in what the school does.
• Set and monitor the school’s policies.

• Set and monitor the targets for pupil achievement.
• Share in the compilation and monitoring of the School Evaluation Form (SEF) and School Improvement Plan.
• Appoint the Head teacher and Deputy Head teacher(s)
• Ensure proper financial management of the school
• Communicate openly with parents, pupils, staff, the local community, the Local Authority and other interested parties.
• Support the school within the local community
• Ensure the SEF accurately reflects the school’s provision and impact.

Governors govern; the head teacher manages. Governors give direction and focus by performing a vital strategic role. The governing body works at all times in close collaboration with the head teacher, who is herself a governor of the school. She has a duty to advise and assist the governing body to carry out its functions and is responsible, and accountable, to the governing body for the day-to-day management of the school and all operational matters. She obtains approval from the governing body for matters of school policy. It is important to remember that an individual governor has no power or responsibility except where the governing body has delegated a specific power to that individual. It is only the full governing body which has legal duties and powers and all governors share in that corporate responsibility.

Whilst parent and staff governors should keep in touch with the groups who elected them, they should make up their own minds about how to vote on specific issues.

What are the rewards of being a Governor?
• Investing in the next generation;
• Using your personal qualities and expertise to help the school, its students and staff;
• Developing new skills;
• Acquiring new knowledge;
• Making new friends;
• Developing a sense of partnership and involvement in the community.
• Sharing decisions about things that really matter

Governors do not need to be education experts. The most effective governors:
• Listen
• Think
• Ask Questions
• Take an interest in the life and work of their school