Governors’ Declaration of Interest
One relevant business and pecuniary interest including governance roles in other educational institutions have been declared by Governors for the academic year 2020-21.
Name and address of the Chair of Governors
Ms. H. McCallum – Chair of Governors
c/o Alfriston School
Penn Road
Knotty Green
Beaconsfield
Buckinghamshire
HP9 2TS
According to the Articles of Association, the Governing Board shall consist of:
- Up to six community governors appointed by the Members
- Two staff governors appointed via staff election
- A minimum of two parent governors elected by parents of registered pupils of the Academy
- Up to three co-opted governors appointed by the governors that have not themselves been co-opted.
- The Headteacher is an ex officio governor
The Governing Board meets four times per year and the Members hold an AGM where the Governor’s Annual Report and Financial Statements are received.
The Governing Board has two committees: Resources (Personnel, Finance, H&S and Premises) and Teaching and Learning that report into the Governing Board on a termly basis. The remit of the committees is outlined in the Committee Terms of Reference.
The Resources Committee Chair is Mr Sam Cowan
The Teaching and Learning Committee Chair is Dr Jan Wyatt
For each Governor or trustee who has served at any point in the last 12 months – Their full names, date of appointment, date they stepped down (where applicable), and relevant business and pecuniary interests including governance roles in other educational institutions.
Members
- Mr Keith C Jones
- Ms Heather McCallum
- Mrs Susan Ware
- Mr William Wilsnagh
- Mrs Milena Kurgo
Trustees / Governors
- Mrs Jinna Male (Headteacher and Accounting Officer)
- Ms Heather McCallum Community Governor (appointed 05.12.2018) and elected Chair of Governors
- Dr Jan Wyatt Community Governor (appointed 28-03.2018) and Vice Chair of Governors
- Mr George Harrington Community Governor – appointed 04.12.2019
- Mrs Linda Johnston Co Opted Governor – appointed 7.01.2021
- Mr Malcolm Lewis Co Opted Governor – appointed 26.01.2021
- Mr Sam Cowan Parent Governor – elected 04.09.2019
- Mr Paul Donald Parent Governor – re-elected 04.01.2021
- Mrs Sharon Potts Staff Governor – elected 01.07.2019
- Mrs Penny Thatcher Staff Governor – elected 24.03.2021
- Mr Jeevan Jayanthan – Community Governor – appointed 24.03.2021
- Mr Kalpesh Brahmbhatt – Community Governor – appointed 24.03.2021
The Governing Board currently has the following structure:
- 5 Community Governors
- 2 Parent Governors
- 2 Staff Governors
- Headteacher (ex officio)
The term of office for any Trustee shall be 4 years except:
- The Headteacher
- Staff Governors if they cease to be employed by the Academy
In general Trustees are replaced as and when they reach the end of the term of their office. Subject to remaining eligible to be a particular type of governor, any governor may be re-appointed or re-elected.
Governance
The information on governance included here supplements that described in the Trustees’ Report and in the Statement of Trustees’ Responsibilities. The board of trustees has met 4 times during the year.
| Trustee | Meetings Attended | Out of a Possible |
| Mrs Amanda J Blackburn-Levitt | 5 | 5 |
| Mr Paul Donald | 2 | 5 |
| Mr Keith C Jones | 4 | 5 |
| Mrs Jinna Male | 5 | 5 |
| Mrs Heather McCallum | 5 | 5 |
| Mrs Sharon Potts | 5 | 5 |
| Mr Stuart Price | 1 | 1 |
| Mr Sam Cowan | 3 | 5 |
| Dr Jan Wyatt | 5 | 5 |
| Mr George Harrington | 4 | 4 |
| Mrs Rachel Chapman (Observer) | 5 | 5 |
Ms Heather McCallum was elected as Chair of Governors and Dr Jan Wyatt as Vice Chair of Governors at the Full Governing Board meeting on the 9th September, 2020.
There have been a number of changes in the composition of the board of trustees during the year as set out in more detail on page 1 above. When appointing new trustees, the board has regard to the skills of existing trustees and where possible seeks to fill any gaps in such expertise. Much of the work of the board takes place in two committees which report back to the board. Those committees are (1) resources and (2) teaching & learning For the year 2019/20 the resources committee incorporated the work formerly carried out by the personnel committee.
Resources Committee
The resources committee oversees all aspects of financial and resource provision, signing off on the budget and longer term financial plans. It ensures that the school has appropriate financial procedures in place and oversees risk management across the school. This committee also reviews the condition and maintenance of the school buildings, makes recommendations for upkeep and development works, and has oversight of Health & Safety within the school. In relation to personnel matters, the role of the resources committee is to support the school in recruiting, retaining and developing the best teachers and staff. Its role also involves oversight of staff appointments, salary reviews and performance management
Teaching and Learning Committee
The teaching and learning committee oversees the strategic direction of both the pastoral system and the curriculum including monitoring the progress made by pupils and examination results. It seeks to ensure that the curriculum is broad and balanced and the pastoral system meets the needs of each girl.
The Headteacher and relevant members of the SMT attend committee meetings to provide reports and updates so that trustees can monitor performance and update relevant policies.
In addition, some of the trustees have individual responsibilities to report on how the school fulfils its statutory duties in specific areas including Safeguarding and Health & Safety. The trustees also get involved with the school and engage with parents, teachers and pupils to get feedback and better understand the girls’ experience.
In January 2017 the Department for Education issued new guidance about the competencies it wants governing bodies to have. The board evaluated its performance and trustees completed a skills audit. The trustees believe that the board has sound processes and is working well in fulfilling its statutory duties. At each board meeting the trustees consider what the impact is on the girls of the matters discussed and the decisions taken, to ensure that the best interests of the girls are considered and prioritised.
The Resources Committee is a sub-committee of the main board of trustees. Its primary responsibility is to consider and recommend acceptance/non-acceptance of the Academy’s budget at the start of each financial year. It then monitors performance against the annual budget and three year forecast approved by the main board of trustees and recommends corrective action where necessary. To ensure the validity of the monitoring reports presented to it, the Resources Committee has responsibility to agree appropriate procedures and controls covering all aspects of the Academy’s finances.
Attendance at resources committee meetings in the year was as follows:
| Trustee | Meetings Attended | Out of a Possible |
| Mr Keith C Jones | 2 | 2 |
| Mrs Jinna Male | 2 | 2 |
| Ms Heather McCallum | 2 | 2 |
| Dr Jan Wyatt | 2 | 2 |
| Mr Paul Donald | 2 | 2 |
| Mr Sam Cowan | 0 | 2 |