The Governing Body
The governing body is responsible for:
- Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction of the school.
- Holding the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils and the performance management of staff.
- Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.
The headteacher is responsible for the day to day management and internal organisation of the school itself. The governing body meet at least twice each term and committees and working groups meet as often as is needed.
Who Makes Up the Governing Body?
Our governing body is made up of:
- The headteacher
- One staff governor – this governor is elected by staff at the school and represents them, but is not their delegate
- One local education authority (LEA) governor – this governor is appointed by the LEA (Suffolk County Council)
- Two foundation governors – these governors are appointed by and represent the diocese/church, their role is to help make sure the school’s Christian ethos is maintained
- Three parent governors – these governors are elected by fellow parents and are their representatives but not delegates
- Seven co-opted governors – these governors are appointed by the governing body for their skills which contribute to the effective governance and success of the school
You can contact the governors at: governors@allsaintsprimary.org
Our Current Governing Body
Our chair of governors is Katie Haselhurst. Governors serve a four year term but can re-stand for election once that period has come to an end.
Here is our current governing body:
The Governing Body Structure
The full governing body (FGB) meet twice each term. In addition to this, there are a number of governors who have additional responsibilities and take part in committees that carry out the work of the governing body. All committees report back to the FGB.
Instead of monitoring individual subjects, all governors take responsibility for specific objectives set out within the School Development Plan (SDP) which looks at the agreed priorities for the school.
Our current committees are:
| Committee name | Purpose |
|---|---|
| The Steering Committee | Sets the strategic agenda for the whole governing body and the school. It is made up of the chairs of the other committees. |
| The Learning & Achievement Committee | Monitors the curriculum and achievement of pupils. |
| The Resources Committee | Oversees the budget, building, estates and staff. |
| The Headteacher's Performance & review Committee | Sets and monitors targets for the headteacher and makes decisions about pay. |
Named Governors
As well as committees, some governors take on extra responsibilities for specific groups of pupils or areas within the school.
We have named governors for these particular areas:
- Children in care – acts as a champion for children in care and children who have been adopted from care.
- Safeguarding – this governor leads all safeguarding issues throughout the school.
- SEND and equalities – takes the leads on all aspects of school life where children require more than the school’s universal offer. Includes special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
- Pupil premium – to support, challenge, monitor, and evaluate the school’s work in raising the achievements of Pupil premium children.
- Performance management – this governor focuses on staff performance and how this is linked to school priorities and to their pay
- Health, safety and wellbeing – this governor oversees issues that relate to the school site, ensuring that it is compliant with health and safety legislation. This governor is also responsible for monitoring the wellbeing of staff, reviewing wellness and encouraging overall positive mental health.
- School sports and extra curricular activities – monitors and reviews PE, sports and after school clubs provided by the school, and makes recommendations where required. Discusses any need for additional funding with the Resources committee. Reviews sports funding and ensures that it is being used effectively in conjunction with the headtacher.
- GDPR (general data protection regulation) – monitors the school’s GDPR compliance and liasies with the school’s business manager and data protection officier (DPO). Reviews and provides regular updates to the full governing body on GDPR as well as reports any breaches of regulations.
Governor Interests & Responsibilities
Governors need to declare any personal interests – for more information about these and to find out more about each governors term in office, responsibilities and roles, download this table: Governor information autumn 2023