Welcome!

From the 1st January 2022, Edge Hill Academy and Violet Way Academy has formed a new Local Governing Board.

The Full Local Governing Board meets formally once a term and the Curriculum and Standards Committee also meets once a term. The Local Governing Board has delegated power to monitor the role of the Academy at an operational level and on a day to day basis.

Specifically the Local Governing Board is responsible for the strategic governance of the Academy to include:

• the management and organisation of the academy in line with the Fierté Multi-Academy Trust and individual academy plans;
• the management and organisation of the academy including: 
• monitoring of teaching and learning;
• staff performance and employment;
• staffing structure;
• premises and site issues;
• Safeguarding and pupil welfare and all Trust policies.

The Local Governing Board will report to the Trust Board on a regular basis.

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Chair of Governors

Mr P. Collinson:

Contact email:  pcollinson@vwaeha.fierte.org

Fierté Multi Academy Trust is committed to promoting and prioritising diversity and inclusion.  We encourage our academy local governing boards (LGB’s) to recognise the benefits of diversity and appoint governors from a variety of backgrounds. 

A proportion of our trustees/governors are from ethnic minorities, with an approximate 50% being female.  However, the trust understands that more needs to be done to increase representation on LGB’s and we are working with them to grow the networks we engage with to further this aim. 

Getting people from diverse backgrounds onto our LGB’s is an important step.  The Trust supports LGB’s throughout the process of recruiting new governors, with strategies they can put in place to ensure all governors feel included which leads to improved retention.  This is an ongoing process which we will need to keep reflecting on as to how we achieve this. 

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Governor Meeting Attendance

Governor Profiles

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Role of the Governing Body

Volunteering as a School Governor

Governors work with the school staff and other governors to promote the best quality education possible for all the children at Edge Hill Junior School. They also work to develop strong, positive links with the local community. Being a governor means giving some of your time and the benefits of your experience whatever it may be.

Governors act collectively, as part of a team. They share the work, and no one individual

governor is responsible on their own. The governing body is made up from among the various groups which the school serves: parents, staff, the local authority, and the local community.

Non-staff members are either elected or appointed. Parent Governors are elected by the parents as a whole. Staffordshire Council appoints Local Authority Governors, and the governing body itself appoints Community Governors.

Edge Hill Junior school is committed to the safeguarding and welfare of its pupils. A DBS (CRB) check is required of all governors/volunteers prior to appointment.

Role and Responsibilities

Governors look after the interests of all pupils, not just their own children or those of their friends. They are concerned with the broad framework within which the school operates and is run. They are not involved with the detailed, day-to-day, running of the school which is the responsibility of the Headteacher. Governors approve policies, such as Health and Safety, or Safeguarding, and check to see that these policies are being correctly implemented. The phrase that is often used to describe the role of a governor is ‘critical friend’. That is, someone who is committed to the good of the school, but is prepared to be active and questioning to help to see that good practice and high standards are maintained. Governors will be required to sign Governors Code of Conduct.

Meetings

The work of governors is done through committee meetings, school visits, and other monitoring activities. The Full Governing Body meets approximately 3 times a year (once every term). There is a Curriculum and Standards Committee which also meet once a term and a Pay and Review Committee that meets once a year

They report to the Full governing Body (FGB) on Curriculum and Standards, but also make decisions on certain matters. Governors may also serve on panels to conduct interviews, hear appeals, or conduct the Headteacher’s performance management. These meet on an occasional basis as required.

Experience and Training

No experience or knowledge of being a governor is required in advance. You may already have skills and experience, through family or work, which prove useful to you as a governor. But relevant training is provided for everyone. A course of initial training is provided for all governors (by the LA), and on-line training is also available. Beyond that, a wide range of more specialised training is available to enable all governors to be confident in carrying out particular tasks or filling specific positions.

Time Commitment

The time which you spend on being a governor can vary enormously, depending on what you have available. What follows is a rough guide to what might be expected of you as a basic minimum. As a governor you will be elected or appointed for a term normally of four years. You can resign during that term, and you can be reelected or reappointed for further terms. Meetings of the full governing body are held from 6.00 pm, and normally last for about 2 hours. Governors can expect to serve on at least one sub committee.

Meetings again are normally in the evening and occasionally during the day if convenient. To participate effectively in meetings you will have to prepare in advance by reading the minutes of the previous meeting, and other papers relevant to what is to be covered in the one which you are attending. (It is useful, but not essential, if you are on e-mail, since papers and other information can be circulated electronically.)

Governors need to familiarise themselves with the main elements of the various school policies for which they are responsible. Governors may serve on panels which implement or monitor such policies. Most governors should aim to visit the school at regular intervals.

This could involve attendance at an assembly or one of the School Fairs, or it could involve a visit monitoring activities organized by Governors Achievement and Standards Committee. These visits are arranged to suit the convenience of both the school and the individual governor. They obviously vary in length, but are unlikely in most cases to be more than an hour.

Expectations of Governors:

• To sign and adhere to Governors Code of Conduct
• Attend all Full Governors meeting (1 per term)
• Attend at least 1 Sub-Committee Meeting per term
• Involvement in 1 monitoring activity per term

Interested?

Governors are not expected to be experts in education! Knowledge and skills are developed on the job. What were are looking for is people prepared to give of their time and enthusiasm to work with others to ensure that Edge Hill Junior School provides the best experience it can for its pupils, and thereby contributes as much as it can to the local community.

If you think that you might wish to be considered as a school governor, or would like further information, please contact either the Headteacher or the Chair of Governors.