The Governing Body

Introducing your Governing body

"The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. Lawley Primary School is an inclusive and cohesive community, which clearly reflects the school’s motto, ‘Discovery unites us’. The headteacher along with the governing body, provide strong and effective leadership. Leaders have successfully monitored, trained and supported staff to maintain good teaching across the school. In addition, the headteacher and the staff team plan and provide a stimulating and creative curriculum, which enlivens and interests pupils."

Lawley Primary School Ofsted 2017

“The governing body is extremely knowledgeable about all aspects of the school. Governors have benefited from effective training by the local authority and have a good level of professional expertise. They have a sharp awareness of the school’s performance data and know how it compares to that of other schools. This enables them to discuss areas of relative weakness with the headteacher and set her challenging targets for further improvement. Governors visit classrooms regularly. They know about the quality of teaching and are fully aware of their responsibilities regarding teachers’ pay and systems for setting targets for teachers. They know what is being done to reward good teaching and to tackle any underperformance. They ensure the procedures for keeping pupils safe meet requirements."

Lawley Primary School Ofsted 2013

The headteacher is responsible for the internal organisation, management and control of the school and the implementation of the strategic framework established by the governing body. Our Governors are representatives of the local community, parents, school staff and the Local Authority. They bring a range of interests, knowledge and skills to the school and they all work in a voluntary capacity and as you will see in this section of the website there are various types of Governors.

The Governing Body works in close partnership with the headteacher, staff and the Local Authority. Whilst the headteacher is responsible for the day to day running of the school, the governors are involved, for example with such things as staffing, curriculum, health and safety, safe guarding, school buildings and finance. It ensures the school functions well and maintains the proper range of academic and social objectives. The Governing Body works as a team with shared responsibilities. Governors never make decisions on their own, nor do they act as individuals.

Almost anyone over 18 years of age can become a governor. There are no particular qualifications or requirements, other than a willingness to give time to the role and a capacity for working with other people. There are typically four types of Governors: Staff Governors, Parent Governors, Co-opted Governors and Local Authority Governors and the type of governor you will become depends on your situation; however all governors have the same roles and responsibilities once part of the governing body. If you are interested in becoming a governor please contact the headteacher Carol Mcquiggin on 01952388410

As part of the governing body team, a governor is expected to

Contribute to the strategic discussions at governing body meetings which determine the vision and ethos of the school, clear and ambitious strategic priorities and targets for the school. Ensure that all children, including those with special educational needs, have access to a broad and balanced curriculum. Determine the school’s budget, including the expenditure of the pupil premium allocation, the school’s staffing structure and key staffing policies and the principles to be used by school leaders to set other school policies.
Hold the senior leaders to account by monitoring the school’s performance; this includes: agreeing the outcomes from the school’s self-evaluation and ensuring they are used to inform the priorities in the school development plan; considering all relevant data and feedback provided on request by school leaders and external sources on all aspects of school performance; asking challenging questions of school leaders; ensuring senior leaders have arranged for the required audits to be carried out and receiving the results of those audits; ensuring senior leaders have developed the required policies and procedures and the school is operating effectively according to those policies; acting as a link governor on a specific issue, making relevant enquiries of the relevant staff, and reporting to the governing body on the progress on the relevant school priority; and listening to and reporting to the school’s stakeholders : pupils, parents, staff, and the wider community, including local employers.
Ensure the school staff have the resources and support they require to do their jobs well, including the necessary expertise on business management, external advice where necessary, effective appraisal and CPD (Continuing Professional Development), and suitable premises, and that the way in which those resources are used has impact.
When required, serve on panels of governors to: appoint the headteacher and other senior leaders; appraise the headteacher; set the headteacher’s pay and agree the pay recommendations for other staff; hear the second stage of staff grievances and disciplinary matters; hear appeals about pupil exclusions.

Membership - Governors are appointed for a four year term. The Chair and Vice Chair are appointed annually.  All governors participate in a voluntary capacity and do not receive any remuneration for their work as school governors.

Individual governors also take on specific responsibilities e.g. linked to some subject areas such as special educational needs (SEN) or child protection. All governors also meet termly with a member of the Senior Leadership team to evaluate the impact of targets and actions from the strategic plan.

How can you contact a Governor? Governors at Lawley Primary School can be contacted in writing through the school office.

Lawley Primary School’s Reconstituted Governing Body