Welcome to the Governors' section!
Why have a Governing Board and a Headteacher?
The Headteacher is responsible for management and leadership of the school,to ensure all pupils succeed. This is done by ensuring plans are implemented, the curriculum is delivered effectively and that the policies of the school are acted upon. He or she makes the ‘chalk-face’ decisions to ensure that children are cared for, socially, emotionally and academically on a day-to-day basis, in line with the school’s policies.
The Governing Board provides the strategic management and long-term direction for the school; it acts as a ‘critical friend’ to ensure that standards are high and maintained. Governors act, not as individuals, but as a group to support the work of the Headteacher, staff and pupils. School Governing Boards are the largest voluntary group in the United Kingdom. They are unpaid and give up their time freely.
What is the composition of our Governing Board?
The Governing Board of Newhall Community Junior School is led by Mark Long (Chair), elected by the Governing Board from within its membership. Staff members, including the Headteacher, cannot be elected to this office.
Governing Boards are made up of key stakeholders:
Parents - Parent Governors are elected by other parents at the school.
Staff - including the Headteacher - Staff Governors are elected by the school staff.
Co-opted - the Governing Body appoints Co-opted Governors i.e. members of the local community.
The Local Authority (LA) - appoints a Local Authority Governor.
Our Governors are:
Parent Governors (elected by Parents) –
Bernard Rose (Vice-Chair of Governors, Chair of Resource Management Committee, Member of Performance Management Committee) - elected 19th March 2019 for a 4 year term.
Meeting Attendance 2022/23 7/7 (100%)
Adam Harper (Member of Resource Management Committee) - elected 13th December 2022 for a 4 year term.
Meeting Attendance 2022/23 4/5 (80%)
1 vacant post
Staff Governor (elected by Staff) –
James Briggs (Member of Standards Committee) - elected 15th March 2022 for a 4 year term.
Meeting Attendance 2022/23 7/7 (100%)
Headteacher -
Clare Weaver - Governor by virtue of post held in school.
Co-opted Governors (appointed by the governing body) –
Mark Long (Chair of Governors, Designated Safeguarding Governor, Anti-bullying Governor, Member of Resource Management Committee, Member of Standards Committee) - appointed 25th January 2021 for a 4 year term.
Meeting Attendance 2022/23 10/10 (100%)
John Travers (Curriculum Governor, Member of Standards Committee) - appointed 4th May 2021 for a 4 year term.
Meeting Attendance 2022/23 4/7 (57%)
Hannah-Rose Saul (SEND Governor, Pupil Premium Governor, Member of Resource Management Committee) - appointed 26th April 2022 for a 4 year term.
Meeting Attendance 2022/23 5/7 (71%)
2 vacant posts
LA Governor (appointed by the Local Authority) –
1 vacant post
Governors who have resigned during the last 12 months:
Caroline Summers (Co-opted) - appointed 28th January 2020 for a 4 year term. Resigned 19th January 2024. Meeting attendance 2022/23 5/7 (71%)
Rachel Youngman (Co-opted) - appointed 26th January 2021 for a 4 year term. Resigned 11th March 2024. Meeting attendance 2022/23 5/7 (71%)
Register of Business Interests
All School Governors are required to declare any interests they may have, which may result in a conflict of interests when decisions are being made by the governing board. This includes: ownership of a company or organisation which may supply goods or services to the school, a close relationship with someone who may provide goods or services to the school, a close relationship with someone who is employed by the school, or being a Governor or staff member at another school.
The following interests have been declared by our Governors:
Mr Mark Long - Spouse is employed as a Learning Support Assistant at the school.
Ms Hannah-Rose Saul - Employed as a teacher at Bemrose School.
Expenses paid to Governors
The school has a Governors' Expenses Policy. This policy identifies circumstances where Governors may claim expenses from the school for costs incurred in the course of carrying out their official duties. The policy requires that all expenses paid to Governors are declared on the school website.
During the 2022/23 financial year, no expenses were paid to Governors.
What do governors do and how did they attain this role?
Great emphasis is given to recruiting Governors who can bring professional skills to their work on the various committees, so that we are qualified to conduct the School in line with our statutory duties. These include promoting high standards of educational achievement, acting in a strategic manner to help the development of the School through effective management of resources and working closely with the School Senior Leadership Team to create and promote the School's values.
How do we do this?
We have considerable flexibility in how we achieve this but most of our time is taken up with:
Governors have responsibility for raising school standards through their three key roles of setting strategic direction, ensuring accountability and monitoring & evaluating school performance.
The Governing Board uses a committee structure to undertake its monitoring and evaluation roles.
Membership and terms of reference of committees are determined annually.
Governing Board key responsibilities include:
- Setting strategic direction, objectives, targets and policies
- Reviewing progress against the budget, plans and targets
- Approving the school budget
- Acting as a “critical friend” to the Headteacher by providing support and challenge
- Appointing the Headteacher.
Our Chair of Governors, Mark Long, may be contacted through the School Office.