Governance
The school is overseen by its governing body under the authority delegated to it by the Trust. The governing body is responsible for the strategic leadership of the school, for the school’s financial and academic performance, and for holding the headteacher to account.
Governors act collectively as the governing body, exercising their powers in a primarily strategic leadership role; they should not get involved in the day-to-day running of the school.
As well as attending governing body meetings, governors are expected to be a member of at least one committee and to engage in appropriate governor and school activities. Governors also serve on various panels that decide on specific matters such as grievance, complaints and staff appointments.
The governing body normally meets four times a year and each committee once per term. All governors except the headteacher serve for a term of office of four years, but can be reappointed.
Governors are appointed in a number of different ways:
Parent governors are elected by ballot of all parents and carers of current students. A parent governor must be a parent of a student at the school at the time of their election; parent governors are elected by a secret ballot of all parents of registered student at the school.
Community governors are appointed by the governing body to reflect its community and stakeholders.
Staff governors must be employed in that capacity by the school, and will cease to be a governor if they cease to work for the school; teaching staff governors are appointed by the governing body following a secret ballot of all teaching staff; non-teaching staff governors are appointed by the governing body following a secret ballot of all non-teaching staff.
The headteacher is a governor ex-officio.
The Chair of Governors is Neal Phillips. Mr Phillips can be contacted through the clerk to the governing body Mrs Sawkins via sawkinsr@thurstable.co.uk .
Committees
Governors are required to attend full GB meetings and may be a member of at least one of the committees that help in running the school. The current committees are:
Quality of Education: This committee is responsible for the school's academic performance, the curriculum, quality of teaching and learning, PPG and SEND performance,
Student Experience & Safeguarding: This committee is responsible for monitoring student safeguarding, behaviour and attendance. It also reviews the school’s personal development programme and careers education.
Finance, Operations and Audit: This committee is responsible for the school's financial strategy, school premises and audit responsibilities
Pupil & Staff Discipline: This committee meets on an ad hoc basis to deal with matters of pupil and staff discipline.
Personnel and Pay: This committee meets annually to consider any recommended pay awards for leadership staff and teachers on the upper pay spine as well as staffing issues and employment matters
Performance Management: This committee meets to review the performance of the Headteacher
Are you interested in becoming a governor?
Being a school governor is an important and rewarding role.
Governors, as members of the governing body, set the vision, ethos and strategic direction of the school; they hold the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its students; and they oversee the financial performance of the school and make sure its money is well spent.
Governors do not need to be experts on education but they do need to be interested in children and in how schools can do the best they possibly can for their students; they do need to be able to get on with people and to be able to work as part of a team; they need to be able to ask the difficult questions when necessary – and the easy questions too, like ‘why do we do it like that?’.
Governors need to be able to make time to attend meetings – usually early evening – and come into school, sometimes during the school day.
School governance is a voluntary role – but it is not an ‘amateur’ one; as Lord Nash, the schools minister, said recently: “governance is a highly professional, highly responsible job, performing an absolutely critical role.”
The Department for Education sets out more details of the role of governor in its ’Governance Handbook’ If you want to find out more, or if you might be interested in joining us, please contact the clerk to the governing body: sawkinsr@thurstable.co.uk .
The role of a governor can be very rewarding, and volunteering within our schools will provide you with the opportunity to make a valuable contribution to your local community and the future of our young people.
Governors will sit on our Local Governing Body and work with the senior leadership team to ensure students are receiving the best education possible and that all resources are being used effectively to support this ambition. A strong governing body is made up by people who will contribute various skills and experience. This group will also commit to working together for the benefit of the school and the communities in which we work. Being a governor requires individuals to learn about schools and ways of working, and it is also about individuals bringing their skills and experience to contribute to an existing skillset. It is important that every governing body consists of people who understand their role and responsibilities. These people also need to be committed to gaining knowledge about the school, and willing to ask challenging questions to scrutinise leadership, as well as decisions made within the school.
Governors play an important part in every school and if you are interested in discussing our governor vacancies further, please complete the Expression of Interest form below and return to the email address given on the form. We will then get in touch to arrange a further conversation.