Our Governors

Governing Body Members and Responsibilities

Who are School Governors? They are unpaid & work as a team (the Governing Body) to improve the school. Their main roles are to help Hextable Primary School to provide the best education for its pupils by:

• Setting the school’s vision and strategic aims, agreeing plans and policies, and making creative use of resources
• Monitoring and evaluating performance, acting as a critical friend to the Head Teacher to support and challenge her in managing the school
• Ensuring that the school is accountable to the children and parents it serves, to its local community, to those who fund and maintain it, as well as to the staff it employs.

The day-to-day management of the school and implementation of plans and policies of the governing body is the responsibility of the Head Teacher and other senior managers of the school.

Being a School Governor

School governors want to make a positive contribution to children’s education.

Governors are one of the largest volunteer forces in the country and have an important part to play in raising school standards.

The role of the governing body is central to the effectiveness of a school.

What do Governors do?

School governors provide strategic leadership and accountability in schools.

Governors appoint the head teacher and deputy headteacher.

It is governors who hold the main responsibility for finance in schools, and it is governors who work with the head teacher to make the  decisions about balancing resources.

Decisions are the joint responsibility of the governing body  – members work as a team.

The role of the governing  body is to:

• agree the aims and objectives for the school.
• agree the policies for achieving those aims and objectives
• agree the targets for achieving those aims and objectives
• monitor and evaluate the progress the school is making towards achievement of its aims and objectives
• be a source of challenge and support to the headteacher and senior managers.

Your Governors

We are members of one of the largest group of volunteers in the country who give freely of their time for a very worthwhile and rewarding job.

There are various categories of governor that can form a governing body:

Elected parent Governors

These governors must have a child at the school at the time they are elected.  When vacancies arise all parents are invited to express an interest in standing and if there are more parents interested than there are vacancies, an election is held in which all parents of pupils in the school have a vote.

Local Authority Governors

These are appointed by the local Authority and tend to be persons who have expressed an interest in joining a Governing body and have a skills set that would help in its function.

Co-opted Governors

Co-opted governors are appointed by the governing body. They are people who in the opinion of the governing body have the skills required to contribute to the effective governance and success of the school.

Associate members

Associate members are appointed by the governing body to serve on one or more governing body committee. They may also attend full governing body meetings. They are not governors and therefore do not have a vote in governing body decisions, but may be given a vote on decision made by committees to which they are appointed.

Staff Governors

One staff governor post is taken by the head teacher.  The other staff governor is elected by the staff.

With the exception of the head teacher, every governor’s term of office is for 4 years – although staff governors cannot continue if they leave the school.

The Educational Standards Committee and the Business Committee.

There are two committees where most of our work is done;

• These meet at least once a term and within these committees important decisions are made concerning children’s education, care and enjoyment.
• The full governing body meets four times a year. An overview regarding the work of the school for each term is discussed, along with the work of the committees.
• All governors attend training provided by Kent, other LEAs, or use online training, to ensure we have the right skills and knowledge to carry out our role.
• We attend school events such as assemblies, school productions and other celebratory occasions.
• Governors support parents’ fund-raising efforts and attend events where possible.
• Visiting the school gives a valuable insight into the day-to-day life and activities of the pupils and staff, we see the effects of the decisions that we make which enables a more informed decision to be taken at the various committee meetings regarding the children and their education.