Governors

Governors of Lostock Gralam Church of England Primary School
Governing Board Core Functions
Governing Boards are equal partners in leadership with the Head teacher and the Senior Leadership Team. They help schools to provide the best possible education for their pupils.

The 3 core functions of every Governing Board are:

1. Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction
2. Holding the Head teacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils, and the performance management of staff; and
3. Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.

‘Governing boards are the strategic decision makers and vision setters in every school … They play a vital role in ensuring the best possible education for every child by creating robust accountability for school leaders. Crucially, that means using and being familiar with objective data on the performance of pupils, teachers and finances to ask the right questions and ensure resources are allocated to school priorities. It also means ensuring that schools prepare pupils for life and the workplace by building their character and resilience…’ John Nash, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Schools, The Governance Handbook, November 2015.

Structure and Remit of the Governing Body Committees 2018 - 2019

Governors are part of a team of professional educators whose core value is to ‘Cherish Every Child’and whose vision is to be a school in which:

• every child is safe and feels happy
• everyone is valued and respected
• all efforts and achievements are celebrated
• everyone is encouraged to make healthy life choices
• everyone is encouraged to make a positive contribution

Meetings with a Leadership & Strategic Management focus will consider the following

Area of Responsibility – The Budget and Staffing

To provide guidance and assistance to the Headteacher and the Governing Body in all matters relating to budgeting and finance.

• To consider and recommend the annual budget to the Governing Body, which is targeted at delivering the School Development Plan.
• To consider the impact of pupil number forecasts on the school’s future funding.
• To monitor the income and expenditure of all official funds (i.e. fully delegated and earmarked funds) and report the financial situation to the Governing Body each term.
• To ensure compliance with the CWAC council’s financial regulations and financial procedures.
• To consider recommendations from other committees, which have financial implications and to provide advice to the Governing Body accordingly.
• To evaluate the effectiveness of financial decisions.
• To ensure the adequacy of the internal financial control framework within the school and to appraise any proposed changes to financial systems, procedures and limits of delegated authority on behalf of the Governing Body.
• To ensure that the same high standards of stewardship afforded to the official funds are applied in relation to the school’s unofficial funds.
• To receive and appraise, on behalf of the Governing Body, the termly financial reports on transactions and balances within the Unofficial Fund and the end of year accounts and Auditor’s certificate.
• To review annually the school’s charging policy and the adequacy of the school’s insurance and make recommendations to the Governing Body accordingly.
• To monitor all financial information provided by the Local Education Authority and to report, as appropriate, to the Governing Body.
• To consider all spending plans and to advise the Governing Body.
• To agree the level of delegation to the Headteacher of day to day financial management of the school.
• To ensure that the requirement for non-public funds to be audited is carried out annually.
• To draft a whole school pay policy for the approval of the Governing Body and apply the approved policy.
• To determine the use of the school premises outside school sessions, including advice to the Governing Body on the charging policy (setting charge cannot be delegated to a Committee by law).
• To formulate the SFVS, write an action plan on any findings and monitor the action plan.
•  To ensure SFVS compliance the committee will address the following issues on a termly basis.

Meetings with a  Learning, Teaching, Curriculum and Standards focus will consider the following,

The monitoring of standards throughout school

Looking at RAISE on line

Ensuring the National Curriculum is taught throughout School

Responsibility for Curriculum policies and  SRE and PHSE

Meeting with a Church & Community focus will consider the following,

Health & Safety, First Aid, The Administration of Medicines.

Premises – building

Attendance

Safeguarding

Community Links

Church Links

Publication of Governor’s Details and the Register of Interests, Attendance.

Full Name, Date of appointment, Term of Office, who appointed them, attendance.(see below)

• Joanna Powell 01/09/17, Head Teacher
• Jon Barker (Chair of Governors) 17/09/2018 - 16/ 09 2021 Co-opted, Solicitor.
• Janet Holman 16/10/18 – 15/10/21, Parent, Teacher( not at this school).
• Margaret Sheen 15/11/18 – 15/11/22, Foundation, retired Health Professional.
• Ian Cliff 21/03/17 – 20/03/21, Foundation, Business Executive
• David Nield 17/11/18 – 16/11/21, Co-opted, Business Manager of a local High School.
• Richard Russell 27/9/16 – 27/9/19, Co-opted, PE teacher at a local high school.
• Ross Knight 10/10/16 – 10/10/19, Parent, Management Consultant.
• Sheila Plant 3/9/17 -2/9/20, Co-opted, Deputy Head Teacher.
• Alethea Tideswell 16/11/17 – 15/11/2020, Co-opted, Paralegal (training)
• Donna North 17/09/2018 - 16/09/2021, Co-opted, Teacher (not at this school)
• Ex-officio Foundation Governor: Vacant
• Staff Governor: Vacant
• Local Authority Governor: Vacant
• Parent Governor: vacant

• Rev Brian Harris 9/5/12 - retired October 2018 ex-officio, Foundation, incumbent of associated Church.
• Yvonne Elliot 10/11/15 – 10/11/18, Co-opted, retired Head Teacher, resigned 31/08/2018
• Alan Dean 3/9/17 – 2/9/20, Co-opted, retired Businessman, resigned 31/08/2018
• John Whieldon 4/9/14 – 3/9/18, Co-opted, Manager of Local Business, resigned September 2016
• Emma Beasant 17/5/12 – 16/5/16, Parent, Nurse, term of office ended May 16
• Julie Tinsley 10/10/14 – 10/10/17, Local Authority, Health & Safety Professional. resigned May 2016.
• Dawn Nancollas-Doyle 3/9/14 – 2/9/17, Co-opted, employee of local housing association, term of office ended September 2017
• Joyce Kenrick 10/10/13 – 9/10/17, Foundation, retired Health Worker
• Angela Ahern, Staff Governor - resigned Jan 2019

Governor Attendance at meetings 2017 – 2018 Academic Year

Governors met together three times each term to ensure that they are all conversant with all aspects of school leadership. Meetings have a focus (based on the previous committee structure) of either Church and Community, Leadership and Strategic Management or Learning, Teaching, Curriculum and Standards.

There were nine Full Governing Board meetings and one Extra-ordinary Governors meeting during the 2017-18 academic year.

There are no associate Governors.

There are no Governors who have Governorships at other schools.

There are no material interests arising from relationships between Governors or relationships between governors and School Staff, including spouses, partners and close relatives.