What the Governing Body does

What does the governing body (or ‘GB’) do?

The GB is responsible for making sure that the school performs effectively. It does not ‘run’ the school – this is clearly the job of our head-teacher – but it is responsible for making sure that it is run as best as it possibly can.

How does it do this?

It does this by working closely with the head-teacher and other key stakeholders such as the local authority (HCC), Ofsted, the parents and the community. It meets regularly and makes decisions collectively as a team. Our GB delegates much of its work to committees, who review areas in much greater detail and then make recommendations to the GB. Throughout, it makes use of relevant guidance, papers, observations and input from stakeholders, and – most importantly – on the professional guidance of the head-teacher and the school’s senior management team.

Where can I find out more?

Please talk to any of our governors – we would be delighted to explain! Our responsibilities may appear onerous and complicated (they are!), but, by approaching them in a structured and appropriate way, your GB is confident of success. In particular, we like to describe our role as being on three different levels:

• A ‘strategic level’ role (e.g. understanding the aims & values of the school, agreeing the school’s annual targets and plan)
• A ‘critical friend’ role (i.e. monitoring and evaluating the progress of the school, building a trustful relationship with the head-teacher and staff)
• An ‘accountability’ role (i.e. being prepared to account for the school’s performance, and explaining decisions / actions to anyone who has a legitimate interest.

More information is available through the HCC website here [LINK http://www.hertsdirect.org/scholearn/supporting/governors/newgovernor/roles/].

What Committees do we have in place at Our Lady?

We have three committees. These are:

• The Learning & Teaching (L&T) Committee: this has oversight in respect of educational standards, the delivery of the curriculum, discipline and behaviour
• The Resources & General Purposes (R&GP) Committee: this has oversight in respect of financial management, personnel and premises management
• The Admissions Committee: this agrees (on an annual basis) our admissions criteria, and considers / approves applications.

In addition, the GB appoints various panels in order to objectively consider any complaints which may be made to the school (Complaints Panel) or to assess the performance of the head-teacher (Performance Review Panel).

Our Terms of Reference Policy [LINK] provides more information on the work of our committees.

How are governors appointed at Our Lady?

There are 14 governors in your GB. At any point in time, the appointments should be as follow:

• Appointed by the Diocese (‘Foundation Governor’): the inclusion of Foundation Governors on the GB of a Voluntary-Aided school such as Our Lady is one of our distinguishing characteristics – it represent the historic link with the original establishment of the school and our distinctive catholic ethos. At Our Lady we have 8 Foundation Governors, 2 of whom should have children attending the school.
• Appointed by the school’s Parent community: In addition to the 2 Parent Foundation governors mentioned above, 3 governors are appointed by the Parent community at Our Lady,
• Appointed by the Local Education Authority (LEA) (1)
• Appointed by the school: Our Lady has 2 Staff Governors, one of who must be the head-teacher.

From time to time, the GB will ‘co-opt’ (or appoint) a governor because it is made aware of a particular expertise or interest which is made available.