Governors

What do Governors do?

School Governors are the strategic leaders of a school and have a vital role to play in making sure that every child gets the best possible education. The law states that the purpose of the Governing Body is to “conduct the school with a view to promoting high standards of educational achievement at the school“.

Governors have three key responsibilities:

  • Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent
  • Holding the Head Teacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils
  • Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction

The role of governors focuses on the strategic direction of the school, rather than on the operational aspects of how it is run day-to-day, which is the responsibility of the Head Teacher. Governors also help to ensure that the school remains distinctive as a Church of England school, and Foundation Governors have a particular requirement to promote and care for the school’s Christian character.

We meet together as a full Governing Body once a term, and also meet in smaller groups and committees. The two core committees are:

  • The Curriculum, Achievement and Safeguarding Committee (Chair: Mrs Linda Pope) – considers matters relating to the delivery of the national curriculum and wider curriculum, pupil attainment and progress, and child protection and safeguarding processes
  • The Finance, Staffing and Premises Committee (Chair: Mr Glenn Smith) – considers matters relating to the effective management of finances, staffing arrangements, and the development and maintenance of the premises, including health and safety considerations

At Governors meetings we discuss all aspects of school life, supporting Mrs Millsop and her team in their leadership of the school. Minutes of meetings of the Governing Body can be requested from the Clerk to the Governors, Heather Large, at hlarge@stfrancis.swindon.sch.uk.

  • The governors of Saint Francis Church of England Voluntary Aided School believe it is important that boards reflect the diversity of the school communities they serve. Diverse boards promote inclusive school environments and provide diverse role models for staff and young people. The governors are currently collecting data on the diversity of the board, including data on age, gender and ethnicity. They will use that data to inform their recruitment and training needs and ensure there is always a diverse range of perspectives around the table to support robust decision making. Due to our relatively small governing body we do not publish this diversity data online as individual governors could be identified and we have a legal obligation to protect their personal data.

To contact the Chairs of Governors, Glenn Smith and Beth Read, please email:  gov@stfrancis.swindon.sch.uk

 

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List of Governors as at March 2024

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Governor code of conduct policy

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Governors Attendance 2022-23

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Scheme of Delegation

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Governor Latest News

At our Governing Board meeting on 21 March, we had a report from Mr Gage, our Safeguarding Governor. We discussed the safeguarding practices in place within the school and the ways in which we monitor and oversee these. We also signed off our annual review of the...