Charlestown Community Primary SchoolGoverning Body and finance
Governing body
Welcome to the page about Charlestown's Governing Body.
We actively recruit to ensure that our Governing board is diverse in both gender, religion and ethnicity to ensure strategic decisions are made by people who bring a wide variety of experience and perspective and fairly respresent our changing community.
Who are Governors?
The Governing Body is a team of volunteers that work to help to ensure that the school is continuing to develop and improve to provide the best for the children and whole school community.
Governors act as ‘critical friends’ of the school, supporting the Head teacher and staff. Governors monitor and evaluate the school to ensure that the best practice is always followed and a safe learning environment is created.
They are a key part of the overall system for school accountability. They are people from various aspects of the school and its wider community and they have a vital role to play in driving up school and pupil performance and ensuring that resources are used well to give every child the best education possible.
Decisions are made by the Board as a whole. Individual governors have no ‘power’ as such and cannot act or speak on behalf of the Governing Body. The term of office for a Governor is four years.
Staff Governor:
There is one Staff Governor position on the board. This person is elected by members of staff in school. The Head teacher automatically becomes a Governor by virtue of their appointment as Head teacher. They can decide not to be a Governor if they prefer but their place on the board cannot be taken by anyone else. Our Deputy Heads / Interim Heads of School are associate governors.
Parent Governor:
There are two Parent Governor positions on the board. The Parent Governors are nominated and elected by the parents of registered pupils at the school.
Co-opted Governor:
There are five Co-opted Governor positions on the board. These Governors are appointed by the Governing Body as people who have the necessary skills and expertise to ensure that the Governing Body is effective.
Local Authority Governor:
There is one Local Authority Governor position on the board. This Governor is nominated by the Local Authority and is appointed by the Governing Body.
What does the work of a Governor involve?
The Full Governing Body meets around four times per year. There are documents that need to be read in preparation for the meetings.
There are four or five committee meetings each year (currently five for Staffing and Finance and four for Standards and Curriculum).
What qualifications are needed?
No formal qualifications are required, just a desire to put experience and life skills to good use to benefit the children at the school.
What about training?
New Governors are given a full induction pack about being a Governor at Charlestown Community Primary School and induction training is available from the Local Authority.
It seems an awful lot of work – why do it?
Most people find it very rewarding to be part of the school team, working in partnership with staff and community to secure the best possible education for the children at Charlestown Community Primary School.
All Governors are welcomed and each plays a vital role in ensuring the Governing Body is aware of the views of parents and the local community.
Committees
Committees meet once a term, so 3 times a year although there are more finance meetings and sub committees such as the teachers pay committee.
The staffing and finance committee: Oversee the budget and staffing structures. This includes HR and staff wellbeing.
For comparisons on how Charlestown is performing financially against other schools, please use the link below:
https://schools-financial-benchmarking.service.gov.uk/school?urn=105405
The standards and curriculum committee: Governors on this committee look at the curriculum and standards and ensure the highest possible standards are achieved.
Governors tend to choose committee but all attend the Full Governing Board meetings.