As the Governing Board of Greswell Primary School, we are proud of the school and its welcoming, inclusive ethos and strong family atmosphere.

In accordance with the Government’s requirement for all governing boards, the three core strategic functions of the Governing Board at Greswell Primary School are:

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

Governance Structure

The Governing Board is made up of 14 Governors as follows:

• 4 Parent Governors appointed by ballot of the parents at the school
• 1 Local Authority Governor appointed by the Local Authority
• 1 Staff Governor appointed by ballot of the staff
• 1 Headteacher
• 7 Co-opted Governors appointed by the Governing Board based on a skills audit
• During this last year 2 new Co-opted governors were appointed to replace governors who have resigned. There is currently a vacancy for a Parent governor.

The Governing Board appoints a Clerk through a SLA with the Local Authority. The Clerk is responsible for arranging meetings, taking minutes and following up on all actions. The Clerk also advises on procedural matters and plays a role in the work of the Governing Board.

Governors are volunteers who apply for and are appointed to their roles (except for the Headteacher), are independent and have equal status to each other. Co-chairs and one Vice Chair have been elected annually by the Governing Board and work closely together with the Headteacher and the Clerk.

The Full Governing Board meets twice each term. The Finance and Personnel Committee meets twice per term. The Governing Board also has a Pay and a Pay Appeals Committee which meets annually and a Safeguarding Committee which meets termly. A termly Health and Safety Walk around school also takes place.

The overall attendance record of Governors has been very good, and every meeting has been quorate during the school year. Details of the attendance of school Governors are published on the school website under Information, Governors Attendance Record. Governor attendance is monitored at Full Governing Boards each term.

The Headteacher’s Appraisal Committee is supported by an external advisor. Additionally, there is a facility to bring together small panel/committees as and when needed. The Governing Board and the committees all have terms of reference which are reviewed annually and all Governors are required to abide by a Code of Conduct. The Code of Conduct is reviewed annually and Governors sign a copy to confirm their acceptance to abide by it. Governors declare any Pecuniary or Business Interests at the first autumn term of the year and any PIs are recorded on the school website. Governors’ declarations of interest are checked at the start of each Full Governing Board and or Committee meeting.

The Trust Governor (TTG) management system was successfully implemented in September 2019. TTG is a web based secure system which assists Governing Boards to become paperless before, during and after meetings with e-mail communication and a document management system. TTG holds Governor’s profiles, skills audit and training records. All documents are easily accessed and shared. All documents are stored in the cloud and our policy renewal dates are clearly tracked and easy to action.

Governing Board Skills & Knowledge Development

The Governing Board recognises that to effectively fulfill its role, it must ensure that all of its Governors have the required skills and knowledge to support the achievement of the school’s priority objectives. Recognising the importance of training and development, the Governing Board has a Training Link Governor to ensure there is a committed and consistent focus on the areas where the Governing Board needs to develop. Skills audits are undertaken to identify and address any skills gaps.

Governor Focus in Academic Year 2022-23

At the beginning of the school year, the Governing Board agreed with the Headteacher and the School Leadership Team a School Improvement Plan. This annual planning document is used to identify the key areas on which the school and the Governing Board wish to focus during the academic year. It includes scheduled milestones and measures to assist with on-going monitoring as well as impact indicators so that the Governing Board can assure itself that the actions taken within the plan will improve teaching and learning outcomes for all children. In addition to school monitoring visits, the Governing Board uses other school data including, SATS results, Local Authority data, government data (Analyse School Performance), Phonics Screening Check, Baseline Assessment, the Ofsted Data Dashboard and regular internal school assessment data. Pupil progress and attainment is scrutinised through data analysis. Vulnerable groups including pupil premium and SEN children are closely monitored.

Assessment of Impact

Governors provide a high level of challenge to the Headteacher and the school. They consider a range of documents and data provided by the school in order to judge the impact of strategies within the school. Governors visit school to meet with staff to gain a greater understanding of the school and the on-going requirement to raise standards. The Governors were delighted school continued to be judged as ‘Good’ by Ofsted in March 2018.

Governors monitor finance stringently to ensure the school’s budget is spent to achieve the best possible outcomes for students. The school provides good value for money.

Governor focus areas for 2022.23

The Governing Board will continue to provide support and challenge in all areas with the target areas being:

• To externally audit the quality of teaching in maths and the use of Numicon to ensure all children are making progress across school
• Curriculum – To ensure all subjects are meeting the needs of all children and to ensure it is a knowledge-based curriculum
• To ensure the more able children are making at least expected progress throughout the school
• To update the text used within KS2 guided reading sessions to ensure they are purposeful and meet the needs of our children
• To improve the quality of rewards used to motivate children
• To reduce the number of children classed as Persistent absent over the academic year
• To reduce the number of suspensions during this academic year

The main priorities for the Governing board are:

To have a plan for September 2023 with a permanent Chair of Governors in post
To improve the links between Governor with roles and responsibilities and the relevant staff
Contact details

The Governing Board welcomes suggestions, feedback and ideas from parents/carers. Please contact in writing the Chair of Governors c/o the School.

Attendance record 2023-2024 click Governor Attendance 23-24 to download

• Heidi Mohammed was elected on 01/10/24
• Rachel Marsland was appointed 19/09/24
• Heather Prince was re-elected 28/11/24 - Resigned July 2024
• Sarah Rosser-Smiley was appointed 28/11/23
• Tynan Carroll - reappointed 13/05/23
• Susan Watmough was appointed 17/04/23
• Nesta Willis was appointed 25/06/22 and resigned 11/09/23
• Claire Davies – Newly appointed governor 30/11/21 – resigned 17/09/23
• Susan Mbabazi – Newly appointed governor 30/11/21 – resigned 4/01/24
• Kevin Rigby – Newly appointed governor 7/12/20
• Owen Rees – Newly appointed governor 11/11/20 – resigned 24/01/24
• Gemma Bullock – Newly appointed governor 2018/2019 – reappointed 19/10/22
• End of term of office:
• Elisabeth Rodgers – resigned 3/11/22 - Reappointed 30/01/24
• Hannah Driver – resigned 09/12/22

Attendance record 2022-2023 click Governor Attendance 22-23 to download

The following declaration of pecuniary/personal interest are noted:

Mr Carroll’s wife is employed at Greswell Primary school

Mr Cooper’s brother is a sales representative at Ultimate Marketing Co. who school is considering ordering supplies from.  At the time of the meeting, no transactions have taken place. School is looking into ordering supplies as they offer good value for money. Mr Cooper’s partner and sister in law are employed at Greswell Primary School.

Mr Rigby’s daughter is a teacher at Yew Tree Primary school, Dukinfield.