Governors
Welcome from the Governing Board
We are delighted to welcome you to the Governing Board. We are very proud of our school which has been serving our local community for over 70 years. We are committed to excellence and passionately believe in providing our children with the very best opportunities to thrive emotionally, socially, physically and academically. Our school motto, ‘Growing good people” succinctly encapsulates our ambitions and aspirations for every child.
We believe every child has an entitlement to an ambitious and rich curriculum which provides essential skills and knowledge to enable them to thrive and succeed.
Our children perform very well academically and the school’s results historically outperform national results in all end of Key Stage Assessments.
Our school has a strong sporting tradition and plays an active part in a number of local fixtures for football, tag rugby and cricket. We very much value the Arts at The Hill and all our children have a chance to participate in performance whilst at The Hill.
Each year our Year 6 children spend a week at an outdoor bounds centre in Osmington Bay participating in a variety of team week activities and challenges.
We are very fortunate to have such beautiful and extensive grounds. Children make the most of our outdoor learning spaces and facilities and take part in outdoor learning on a regular basis. We remain committed to enhancing and upgrading our facilities, work is undertaken to improve some aspects of our site. Our most recent project involved the installation of a new library and development of the playground equipment as well as a new canopy in the Nature Area.
We are proud to be Chair of Governors at The Hill Primary School and are delighted to work with a group of very dedicated people, who are committed to supporting the school and working with the staff to offer the best education possible for all children.
Pamela Jacobs & Bethan Burge
Co -Chair of Governors
Role of Governors
The Governing Board at The Hill Primary School is responsible for ensuring the school provides the best possible education for its pupils. As the school is a Local Authority maintained school, the Governing Board is directly accountable to Reading Borough Council.
As you will see from the governance section of the school’s website, we are a diverse group of people, who bring a wide range of skills, experience and knowledge to the role. We are completely committed to the school and are very ambitious for the children and the community which we serve.
Our core functions are:
· To determine the school’s ethos and values,
· To devise a vision and plan for the long-term future of the school,
· To hold school leaders to account for educational performance of the school and its pupils’, and the performance management of staff, and
· To oversee the financial performance of the school making sure its money is well spent.
The Governing Board is also responsible for appointing the Headteacher and deputy Headteacher.
The Governing Board provides strategic leadership whilst the Headteacher is responsible for the operational management of the school and for implementing the strategic framework established by the Governing Board.
Board Membership
The Governing Board consists of ten governors The Headteacher is a permanent member of the board by virtue of her position. Members of staff elect a single staff governor. Two governors are elected by the parents of the school and one governor is appointed by the Local Authority. Five Co-opted governors are appointed by the Board. All appointments are based on the skills and experience required in order for the Board to discharge its duties and responsibilities. Governors are appointed for a 4-year term of office. From time to time, non-voting associate members may also be appointed for their particular skills. Our current Instrument of Government (14 Oct 2021) can be found on the school’s website.
Governing Board structure
The Governing Board meets regularly throughout the year as does its two sub committees, Curriculum and Standards and Resources. We also have a Headteacher’s performance management panel. Our governance terms of reference can be found on the school’s website.
School Improvement
A key component of our work is to drive and secure educational improvement by holding school leaders to account for school performance. We work with senior leaders to devise an annual School Improvement Plan (SIP) which sets out the key improvement priorities and actions for the academic year. Governors regularly monitor the school’s performance against priorities in the SIP.
Governors work with the Headteacher to devise an annual self-evaluation report for the school. We evaluate the school’s performance against Ofsted’s Education Inspection Framework and the results of this assessment informs and drives our school improvement planning.
From time to time, we seek external verification of the school’s work. Our Local Authority School Improvement Advisor (SIA) and other experts provide independent assessments which helps to drive and shape school improvement activities.
Budgets and target setting
The Governing Board sets an annual budget. We carefully review and monitor budget spend to ensure that resources are being appropriately with a keen eye on obtaining value for money.
We set challenging and aspirational targets for all pupils and staff, and regularly monitor how the school performs against these targets.
The Governing Board is also responsible for providing performance management for the Headteacher. The Headteacher in turn is responsible for setting performance management targets for all staff and for providing pay award recommendations, based on performance, to the Governing Board for review and approval.
Statutory duties
In order to discharge our statutory duties, we conduct annual audits to ensure compliance with various legal and educational regulations.
We also set the strategic framework in which the school operates by determining policy. Policies are reviewed regularly to ensure compliance and to check that they are implemented properly and appropriately.
Accountability
The Governing Board acts as a “critical friend” to school leaders by providing a blend of support and challenge. This means we routinely ask searching questions, engage in healthy discussion and debate whilst working together to create credible and sustainable solutions. We offer encouragement and support whilst acting as a “sounding board”. We provide accountability for the school by ensuring there is a check and balance mechanism at play.
Transparency
In line with government expectations, we monitor individual governor attendance at meetings during the year and publish details of governor’s annual attendance on the school’s website.
We also maintain a register of governor’s business interests and for each academic year which is regularly updated and published on the school’s website. Governors are also expected to declare any business interests which may present a conflict of interest at the start of each meeting.
Individual governors’ details are published on a national database maintained by the Department for Education called “Get information on schools”.
Development and training
As a Governing Board, we are relentless in our drive and determination to improve the school and to continually build on our successes.
We also take our own professional development seriously. Governors are expected to grow and develop professionally by attending regular on-going training and by keeping up to date with educational developments. To this end, we have access to a wide range of specialist resources, advisors and training providers.
Each year we complete a skills audit to identify areas of expertise and knowledge and to also highlight any skills gaps. The results are used to inform all new appointments and training requirements. The Governing Board is expected to conduct an annual self-evaluation of its performance to inform areas for development.
Clerking
The Governing Board is supported by a Clerk to Governors who provides administrative services and legal
Declaration of Business Interests May 2023
Terms of Reference