The Governing Body

Governance plays a vital role in enabling us to function successfully as an organisation and as an employer, and our governing body provide challenge and support.

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 focuses on ensuring the trust delivers an excellent education while maintaining effective financial management. It 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 student welfare and for keeping 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 provision for up to six parent governors: where a vacancy exists, nominations will be sought from the parents of students at the school. Each governor sits on one of two committees; Finance & Risk, and Curriculum & Staffing.

There is now guidance indicating that, when appointing governors, the membership should focus on skills above all. The primary consideration in appointment decisions is 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.

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