Governors
All Governors are volunteers and have a vital role to play in making sure every child gets the best possible education. For maintained schools this is reflected in the law, which states that the purpose of maintained school governing bodies is to ‘conduct the school with a view to promoting high standards of educational achievement at the school’.
The board of governors should have a strong focus on three core strategic functions:
- Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction;
- Holding the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils, and the performance management of staff; and
- Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.
These functions are reflected in regulations for maintained schools that came into force in September 2013 and in the criteria Ofsted inspectors use to judge the effectiveness of governance in both maintained schools and academies.
How well the board of governors does its job has a real impact on the success of a school and although they are made up of volunteers, governing bodies cannot afford to be amateur and must be held to account for their effectiveness.
Governors hold an important public office and their identity should be known to their school and wider communities.
Structure of the Board of Governors
The board of governors conducts all their business through full governing board meetings where all dates for the academic year are set in advance.
The school Governing Board consists of three parent governors (one vacancy), one staff governor, the headteacher, five co-opted governors and a local authority governor. To maximise our effectiveness we have three associate members who do not hold any voting rights but bring a wealth of experience to our board.
Governors visit the school throughout the year attending assemblies; sitting on interview panels; assisting with various school trips and in school projects. In addition, there is an annual Governor Day (during the summer term) when governors are invited to visit the school for a day to see first-hand how various strategies are being implemented and how these help our children with their learning. It also provides an opportunity to meet our pupils have lunch with the children and talk with them in a classroom setting.
Governance Arrangements
We are committed group of unpaid volunteers. Alongside undertaking specialist tasks as part of a working group and visiting the school, each governor also strives to attend all the governing board meetings throughout the academic year. In the interest of transparency, our governance arrangements, declarations of interest and our latest record of attendance can be found here:
2021/2022 Governance Arrangements & Declarations of Interest
The Board of Governors: Who We Are (updated April 2022)
| Karen Gordon |
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| Kirstie Buckridge | Vice-Chair (Co-opted) | |
| Angharad Paterson |
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| Tracy Clements | Co-Headteacher | |
| Diane Graham | Local Authority Governor | |
| Jenny Morgan | Co-opted Governor | |
| Julie Thiberg | Co-opted Governor | |
| Lianne Taylor | Co-opted Governor | |
| Anne-Marie Day | Staff Governor | |
| Andrew Balchin | Interim Deputy Headteacher (associate member) | |
| Abhishek Bagga | Parent Governor | |
| Julia Reffell | Co-Opted Governor | |
| Nicky Day | Associate Member | |
| Vacancy | Parent Governor |
| Alex Yates | Clerk to Governors | ||
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Please look at our FAQ and contact the School Office for further details.
Types of Governor
- Staff Governors - Selected by election from teaching and support staff paid to work at the school. Do have voting rights.
- Parent Governors - Selected by election (or appointment if insufficient people stand for election) and drawn from parents and carers of children at the school. Do have voting rights.
- Co-opted Governors- Appointed by the governing body to represent community interests. Do have voting rights.
- Local Authority Governors- Appointed by the local authority. Do have voting rights.
- Associate Members- Appointed by the Governing Board but hold no voting rights at Full Governing Board meetings. FAQ - Role of the Governor
Contacting the Governors
If you would like to speak to any of the Governors, please feel free to approach us at school events, or contact the school office. The school will ensure messages are passed on and the Governors will respond to you within 5 working days. If it is an urgent matter regarding safeguarding then the Chair of Governors can be contacted directly via email on Chairofgovernors@maryexton.herts.sch.uk
If you are interested in becoming a governor please contact the school office and our Governors will be in contact to discuss any vacancies and what set of skills you would be able to bring to the Governing Board.
For further information, please read the following document which contains frequently asked questions about the 'Role of the Governor'.