Governors play a key role in the life of Laurel Avenue Community Primary School.

Our Governing Body has three core functions which are:

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

meet our governors

The work of Laurel Avenue’s governors is carried out through meetings of the full governing body and its two committees:

Finance and Premises Committee. Responsible for setting and monitoring the budget for the school, and overseeing the financial management of the school., Premises and Personnel; and Curriculum Committee, which deals with pupil matters, curriculum and attainment.

Curriculum and Standards Committee. Responsible for reviewing the curriculum related policies of the school, and ensuring that the school’s Self Evaluation is conducted appropriately and development plans implemented as well as monitoring safeguarding, health and safety and nutritional standards. This committee also monitors all SMSC across school, including anti-bullying and effective pupil groups such as the School Council.

Governors do not manage the school – that is the role of the Headteacher.  The Governors aim to support her in doing this but do not shy away from being a ‘critical friend’ and asking searching questions.

 

Role of the Governors

Governors are responsible for the strategic vision of the school and for supporting the Headteacher and her staff in achieving that vision.  Governors have responsibility for appointing the Headteacher, managing the school’s budget, setting annual targets and monitoring performance against those targets, all in the interest of raising standards of achievement.  In addition to these statutory responsibilities, governors monitor the impact of policies and do a wide variety of other things, either through formal committee activity or through personal involvement with the day-to-day life of the school.

The governing body may also be called upon to consider complaints from parents.

Whilst the role is a voluntary one, the Governing Body expects all governors and prospective governors to be aware of the time commitment required to be an effective governor. Primarily, that commitment arises from:

• Attending meetings of the Governing Body (minimum of one per term)
• Membership of either the Finance and Premises Committee (1 per term) or Curriculum and Standards Committee (1 per term)
• Undertaking training courses relevant to the role of a governor
• Having a link to a particular class and undertaking class visits to see the School Development Plan in action
• Having a particular area of responsibility such as finance, safeguarding or an area of the curriculum

 

Policies

The governors are responsible for setting and monitoring many of the school's policies.

Policies

Who are the Governors?

Laurel Avenue’s Governing Body comprises  of 9 members, as follows: Three Parent Governors, one Authority Governor appointed by the Local Authority, one Staff Governor appointed by a ballot of staff, one Headteacher Governor, three Co-opted Governors appointed by the Governing Body themselves.

The members come from all sections of the community and each brings different experience and skills to the governing body.  The governors have a common interest in education and want to make a positive contribution to education of pupils at Laurel Avenue.

Our Governing Body meetings are usually held after school. Governors attend training sessions to help them to keep up to date with changes in schools and education and to help them to do their job effectively.

 

 

F.   Full Governing Body Meeting (3 per year)

Learning, Teaching and Achievement Committee (3 per year)           Chair: Helen Blakey

Finance and Premises Committee (3 per year)                                     Chair: Katie Corrigan

Community and SMSC (Social, Moral, Spiritual and Cultural) (3 per year) Chair: Claire Linfoot

/ : not a member of that committee

A: Apologies sent

Read more about our Governing Body's role in school by clicking this link.

F.   Full Governing Body Meeting (3 per year)

(O): Observer/: not a member of that committee

1. Learning, Teaching and Achievement Committee (3 per year)

2. Finance and Premises Committee (3 per year)

3. Community and SMSC (Social, Moral, Spiritual and Cultural) (3 per year)

 

1. Curriculum and Standards Committee

Terms of Reference 

 

2. Finance and Premises Committee

Terms of Reference 

 

Interested in becoming a Governor?

The personal qualities that our Governing Body looks for in selecting governors include strategic awareness, individual responsibility, sound judgement, effective communication skills, confidentiality and the ability to work as part of a team.  If you are interested in becoming a governor now or in the future, please speak to Gaynor Davison (Headteacher) or Claire Linfoot (Chair of Governors).

When vacancies arise for Co-opted Governors, the Governing Body is responsible for the identification and selection of its members. We will identify and select prospective governors by, firstly, identifying any skills gaps among the current membership.

Parent and Staff Governors are advertised in the school community and if there are more nominations than vacancies a ballot will be held.   If no parent governor nominations are forthcoming, the governing body has a duty to appoint a parent governor.

 

Useful Links:

Durham County’s Governors’ website:

www.durham.gov.uk

 

National Governors’ Association:

www.nga.org.uk