Meeting Arrangements 2019 - 2020
Curriculum Resources Full Governing Body Additional Meetings
8th October 2019 6.00 pm 14th October 2019 6.00pm 19th November 2019 6.00pm
28th January 2020 6.00pm 25th February 2020 6.00pm 10th March 2020 6.00pm
28th April 2020 6.00pm 19th May 2020 6.00pm 30th June 2020 6.00pm
Our Governing Body
What is it?
All schools in England have a Governing Body which is responsible for overseeing many of the strategic decisions of the school. A key role is to act as a ‘critical friend’: to support, to challenge, to ask questions, ultimately to represent the school community.
The Governing Body works in close partnership with the headteacher, staff, Diocese and the local authority. Whilst the headteacher is, of course, responsible for the day to day running of the school, the governors are involved with such things as staffing, curriculum, school buildings and finance. It ensures the school functions well and maintains the proper range of academic and social objectives.
Who are we?
In September 2013 the governing body elected to reconstitute under the 2012 School Governance Regulations. We took this decision as it allowed us to change the numbers and types of governors we have and to appoint more people on the basis of the skills they could bring.
The governing body now consists of:
- The headteacher
- One elected staff governor
- One appointed local authority governor
- Two elected parent governors
- Eight Foundation Governors appointed by the Diocese
The standard term of office for a governor is four years. The chair and vice-chair are elected annually at the first meeting of the academic year.
The chair of governors is Mrs Bernadette Matterson, who can be contacted via the school office.
Much of the work of the governing body is done by committees. At Sacred Heart, we have the following committees:
- Resources
- Curriculum
- Data Analysis
Current Governing Body at Sacred Heart
Chairperson – Bernadette Matterson Chair
Vice-Chair – Andrew Riley (Foundation)
Head teacher – John Robertshaw
Deputy Head teacher – Lisa Stinchon
Local Authority – David Swarbrick
Elected Staff Governor – Charlotte Carlile
Elected Parent Governors – Jackie Dickinson
Foundation Governors – Father Peter Wilkinson
Andrew Riley
Bernadette Matterson
Andrew Webb
Phillip Matterson
Brian Coates
Michael Maud
Josephine Sweeney
Janet Pears
Message from the Chair of Governors...
“On behalf of the Board of Governors, I welcome this opportunity to briefly introduce you to the work the Governing Body undertakes to ensure that your child(ren) will receive an excellent primary school education.
The Governing Body has a range of powers and duties laid down by various Education Acts. In the main, these responsibilities relate to:
- Setting targets and promoting high standards of educational achievement
- Setting the strategic framework within which the school operates
- Management of the school’s delegated budget
- Ensuring that the curriculum for the school is balanced and broadly based
Governors discharge the above responsibilities, together with many others, through a Governing Body meeting each term. These formal meetings are supplemented by a series of informal sub-committee meetings dealing with more specific issues. A number of governors also have responsibilities for specific issues within the school such as literacy, maths and inclusion.
Governors adopt, review and monitor a range of policies that govern the operation of the school including Health and Safety, Behaviour, Curriculum and Performance Management.
Sacred Heart draws a unique strength from its success in fostering a close knit family atmosphere where staff, pupils, parents and governors work together in a community of faith to ensure that all our pupils have the opportunity to develop to their full potential.
The Governing Body is, therefore, rightly proud of the achievements of the school, not only in terms of the improving academic success, but also in the solid foundations it provides in preparing all our pupils for the remainder of their formative education.”