The Governing Body

Governance at Heckmondwike Grammar School is a vital role in our functioning as an organisation and an employer.

The purpose of our governors is to provide:

  • strategic leadership
  • accountability and assurance
  • strategic engagement

The board has collective accountability and strategic responsibility for the trust. It has a focus on ensuring the trust delivers an excellent education to pupils while maintaining effective financial management and must ensure compliance with:

  • the trust’s charitable objects
  • regulatory, contractual and statutory requirements
  • their funding agreement

The board also has:

  • strategic and statutory responsibility for safeguarding and special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) arrangements within (and across) the academy trust ensuring the promotion of pupil welfare and for keeping their estates safe and well-maintained
  • a role in making sure that it delivers its commitment to other schools and academies, however it is done

As an academy, our governors are also directors of the company and trustees for the purposes of charity legislation. They serve for a term of four years. The members of the trust may appoint up to ten governors, the Local Authority may appoint one and there is also one staff governor. There is also provision for up to six parent governors: where a vacancy exists, nominations will be sought from the parents of students at the school.

There is now guidance indicating that, when appointing governors, the membership should focus on skills above all- the primary consideration in appointment decisions being to acquire the particular skills and experience the board needs to be effective. Therefore the Full Governing Board uses a skills-based set of recruitment criteria in decision-making about appointments; and also to inform elections and ongoing self-evaluation and training. The guidance suggests that all available channels should be used to identify suitable people.

As a result, if you are interested in potentially putting yourself forward as a governor and would like to know more please Contact us with a short summary of your experience and background and we will contact you to let you know if there are any appropriate vacancies.

Each governor also sits on one of two committees; Finance & Risk and Curriculum & Staffing.