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Our Governors

Welcome to Our Governors’ Page

The role of the Governors: 

Governors at Exhall Junior School have a strategic and supportive role, working in close partnership with the Headteacher and Senior Leadership Team (SLT) to promote continuous improvement in the schools’ performance.

As Governors we have three important core functions to perform:

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

Our governing board comprises of a team of people elected or appointed to represent stakeholders in the school – parents, staff, the wider community, and the local authority and we meet officially 11 times a year.

Why do we do this?

While at times the responsibilities of governance can be demanding, we are privileged to be in the position of helping to shape Exhall Junior School pupils as responsible citizens who contribute to society and do as well as they can academically.

What do Governors do?

Together with the Headteacher, Governors are responsible for making sure the school provides a good quality education for all children and supports their well-being, they do the following:

  • set the vision and strategic direction of the school.
  • provide challenge and support to the Headteacher, by holding the Headteacher accountable for educational performance.
  • make decisions together on matters such as performance, targets, school policies and the School Development Plan.
  • monitor the impact of policies and oversee school budget and staffing.
  • report on school achievements and respond to inspection recommendations.
  • hear appeals from pupils and staff and consider complaints.

How do we do this?

We leave the day-to-day running of the school to the school leaders, but as ‘critical friends’ it is our job to ask questions and bring suggestions about the areas we have been linked to – for example Special Educational Needs, Mathematics or the Wider Curriculum.

We make visits to school during the school day to find out for ourselves what it feels like to be a student at our school, and we receive reports from the Headteacher (and other members of staff) at each of the governing board meetings held throughout the year.

We attend training to make sure we carry out our roles effectively and we subscribe to Warwickshire Governor Services and are members of the National Governors’ Association which helps keep us up to date with what is happening in governance and education, both locally and nationally.

All Governors are expected to conduct their business in a professional manner and to always maintain and respect confidentiality.  To support this, Governors have adopted a Code of Conduct and operate within agreed terms of our Circle Model of Governance.  Governors are also aware of and accept The Nolan Seven Principles of Public Life.

Membership of our Governing Board

The Department for Education (DfE) says that ‘governors hold an important public office, and their identity should be known to their school and wider communities’.  This information is provided in the tables below. 

The Governing Board of Exhall Junior School in Accordance with the Instrument of Government is:

 

Name

 

Appointed By

 

Term of Office

From

 

Term of Office

To

 

Business Interests

Declared 2022

Governance Professional

Jane Hancox

 

 

 

Member of the Warwickshire Clerking Service

Headteacher

Robert Mann

Ex-Officio

Headteacher at Exhall Junior School

Staff Governor

Colette Inman

Elected by school staff

18th Oct 2022

17th Oct 2026

Staff member at Exhall Junior School

Local Authority Governor

Vacant

       

Co-Opted Governors

Amanda Gardiner

Chair of Governors

Elected by FGB

14th Mar 2022

13th Mar 2026

Member of the Governor Services Team at Warwickshire Local Authority

Gurby Dhesi

Vice Chair of Governors

Elected by FGB

17th July 2023

16th July 2027

Senior School Governance Officer at Warwickshire County Council

Helen Masefield 

Elected by FGB

17th July 2023

16th July 2027

Education Standards, Performance and Governance Lead

Parent Governors

Steph Fludder

Elected by FGB

17th Jul 2023

16th Jul 2027

Parent of a child at EJS

Governors who have left the Governing Board in the last 12 months.

Name

Appointed by

Term of Office

From

Date Left

Joanne Parker

Appointed by LA

26 September 2022

9 November 2023

Louise Dykes

Elected by parents

18 July 2022

5 July 2023

Louise Church

Appointed by FGB

26th Sept 2022

24 Jul 2023

Alison Glynn

Elected by school staff

3 October 2018

31 August 2022

Emma Godsell

Elected by parents

26 September 2022

31 December 2022

Jennifer Lewington

Appointed by FGB

24 October 2021

13 October 2022

Tom Gibbons

Appointed by FGB

13 January 2016

31 August 2022

 

See GIAS: the Register of Schools & Colleges in England

We are happy to hear from parents, carers, and members of the community. Should you wish to contact the Chair or other members of the Governing Board, please email Amanda Gardiner (Chair of Governors) - gardiner.a1@welearn365.com

Please note that if you have any concerns regarding your child's education or wellbeing, it is important to speak to the class teacher or Headteacher, before contacting the Chair of Governors.

Governors Roles & Responsibilities

Governor

Roles & Responsibilities

Amanda Gardiner

Chair of Governors

Headteacher Performance Management

Safeguarding

Prevent

Whistleblowing

Panel Hearings

Health and Safety

Stephanie Fludder

Safeguarding

Skye Lloyd

SEND

Gurby Dhesi

Finance

Helen Masefield

Finance

Colette Inman

Whole School Wellbeing

 

Governing Board Planned Meetings 2024-25

 

School Term

 

 

Day and Date

Autumn Term 2024

Autumn 1

Monday 16th Sept

Autumn 1

Monday 21st October

Autumn 2

Monday 25th November

Spring Term 2025

Spring 1

Thursday 16th January

Spring 1

Monday 3rd March

Spring 2

Tuesday 8th April

Summer Term 2023

Summer 1

Monday 19th May

Summer 2

Monday 7th July

 

If you would like a copy of the Minutes and Papers considered at a meeting of the Full Governing Board, please contact our Governance Professional (via the School Office). Please note that any documents or papers marked as ‘confidential’ will not be shared.
Members of the public can ask to attend a Full Governing Board meeting as an observer, by sending a request to the Governance Professional giving a notice period of four weeks.  Observers will be given a copy of Open Meeting Protocol to follow prior to attending.

Governors Attendance at Meetings

Governor attendance records at meetings and school events are recorded on GovernorHub and a report can be viewed if requested.

Governors are usually appointed or elected for a four-year term of office and if reappointed or re-elected can serve a further four-year term. As in all occupations, sometimes a governor must leave for personal reasons before the four years has ended and the process will be followed to recruit a new governor. 

Governor’s Business and Financial Interests

As governors hold an important public office, they are asked each year to sign a declaration about any business or personal interest they have which might conflict with being a governor. The table below shows our updated register of interests.

Governing Board – Register of Interests as Declared September 2022

Governor

Name of Organisation

Nature of Interest

Date Declared

Amanda Gardiner

Warwickshire County Council

School Governance Support Officer

24/9/22

Joanne Parker

Nothing to declare

 

17/10/22

Louise Dykes

Exhall Junior School

Parent of children at Exhall Junior School

 

Louise Church

Nothing to declare

 

17/10/22

Colette Inman

Exhall Junior School

Member of staff

 

Jane Hancox

Warwickshire County Council

School Governance Professional

8/3/23

Robert Mann

Exhall Junior School

Headteacher

 

Voting rights

Exhall Junior School operates using the Circle Model of Governance therefore doesn’t have any committee meetings.  All members of the governing board have equal voting rights, but the Chair has a casting vote if there is a tie. 

Governing Board Documents

Governors have created, approved, and adopted several resources to support them in their role. These are some of the resources available to governors:

  • Exhall Junior School Instrument of Government
  • Circle Model of Governance – A Whole Governing Board Approach
  • Circle Model Governor Visits Policy & Procedures
  • Governing Board Code of Conduct
  • Governing Board Scheme of Delegation
  • Governing Board Open Meeting Protocol

If you would like a copy of a document, please contact our Governance Professional (via the School Office).

Parent Governor Vacancy

We currently have a vacancy on our Governing Board for a parent or carer which is a great opportunity for anyone with an interest in supporting the children in our community. It is a chance to be involved in the strategic direction of our school and we would love to talk through what is involved in the role with anyone that has an interest. 

If you would like to arrange an informal conversation to discuss this further, please contact Amanda Gardiner (Chair of Governors) via email on gardiner.a1@welearn365.com

Find out what school governors and trustees do and the key role they play in helping schools to succeed. This short film produced by the National Governors Association (NGA) gives you all the essential information about this rewarding voluntary role.

Most people over 18 years old are eligible to govern so, if you’re interested in education and making a difference, watch this video to find out more about the role.