Governors

What do the governors do?

The governing body's main aim is to help raise standards of achievement and make sure the school provides a good quality education.

The day-to-day management of the school is the responsibility of the Headteacher and staff. Governors are there to help shape the school's future direction and focus.

Governors work as a team and are at the heart of how our school operates. It's important they get things right. How they do their job affects the interests of our children and staff, and how the school is seen by parents and others in the community. To make best use of the skills on the board, we operate two committees.  The Resources committee meet three times per year to examine the school finances and issues relating to staffing and management of the buildings and premises.  The Performance committee meet three times per year to consider the progress and performance of our pupils.  Both committees feed back to the Full Governing Body which meets a minimum of three times per year.

The governing body is responsible for how the school is performing. They have to be prepared to support and challenge their Headteacher by gathering views, asking questions and deciding what's best for the children.

See below for a full list of our Governors, their roles and review of their attendance at Governors meetings.

Please click here for the Governor update January 2022.

Governor update January 2022

Dear Parents, Guardians and Carers

We hope you had a good Christmas and New Year despite Covid restrictions. We are proud and grateful to you, your children and the school staff for coping so well with all the changes the pandemic has made to your children’s learning. Thank you!

COVID-19 has had a dramatic effect on all our lives, but there have also been many positives. For the governors, one of the most striking has been the way in which our School has responded to this national crisis. As you will know Mrs Matthews and all of the team at St Paul’s have worked tirelessly over this period, with the wellbeing of our pupils being at the heart of every decision made. Every family has been impacted differently and whilst many have been able to access the on line resources and attend school, for some this has not been so easy. The school passionately believes that no child will be disadvantaged in any way and so as the year progresses, every effort will continue to be made to ensure all children catch up where necessary and that the school year can continue to run as smooth as can be.

The Governing Board would like to express their sincere thanks to all the staff and to you as parents, carers and guardians. There has been a real sense of teamwork and community spirit during this ongoing pandemic and we hope we can take forward some learning on what has worked well.

Putting aside COVID-19, the Governing Board are planning a busy year. Most of our meetings have been held online and we have been unable to get fully involved with class and school work and events in the ways we would normally expect to do but we are hoping these opportunities will be more available as the school year progresses.

We have been refreshing the Governing team following the departure of Reverend Ruth from our team. She is sadly missed but we wish her well in new endeavours.

We thought we’d let you know a bit about ourselves. You can see us on the photo board in reception and read about each of us on the school website under ‘Our School - Governors. I am writing to you as newly appointed Chair of Governors and my contact details are at the bottom of this letter. Mrs Abby Dearden is Vice Chair of the team. We are a group of unpaid volunteers who hold head teachers to account and ensure that schools are meeting their strategic objectives.

Governors do not manage the operational day-to-day functions of a school, but are required to oversee its long-term development.

For schools like ours there are five types of governor:

• Parent governors: are governors with children at the school. They are elected onto the governing body by other parents.
• • Staff governors: the head teacher and deputy head teacher attend governing body meetings. Also there is a representative from the teaching staff.
  • Local authority governors: are nominated by the local authority but appointed by the governing body.
  • Co-opted governors: are appointed onto the governing body by the other members because they possess a particular skill which can contribute to the effective governance and success of the school.
  • Foundation governors: are appointed by the diocese and have responsibility to ensure that the Christian ethos of the school is maintained and developed.

  What do we do?

  We work as a team. We are responsible for making sure the school provides a good quality education for all our children. We do this by working closely with the head teacher and the school staff.

  Why do we do it?

  We all care deeply about St Paul’s C of E Primary School and want the best for the whole school family – children, parents, staff and the wider community. We are a governing board that is passionate, committed and cares about the school’. BUT it’s really important that we, and you as parents, understand what our role is as governors – you never know, you may like to join us on the board as a parent governor when there’s a vacancy!! We work on the strategic direction of the school. We are ‘Eyes on, Hands off’! The head teacher and staff work on the day-to-day operational running of the school.

  We hope this letter has given you some information that gives you a clearer understanding of our role as governors.

  Thank you!

  Chair of Governors

  chair@st-pauls.gloucs.sch.uk

  Margaret Ash

   

Governing Body of St Paul’s C of E Primary School 2021-22

 Committees: P = Performance, R = Resources, HTPM = Headteacher's Performance Management

 Last updated: 07/07/2022

Governors who have left in the past 12 months:

 About our Governors:

Jayne Stafford

I have been involved with St. Paul’s school since my eldest son started school in 1996. I became a parent governor in 2011 and have been a co-opted governor ever since. I work part time at Coral bookmakers and help to look after my granddaughter. I am passionate about the welfare of your children. St. Paul’s has always felt like one big happy family and I am proud to be involved with the school.

Margaret Ash

I have been a governor at St Paul’s since 2016 when both my children attended the school. As they have now both left I have been nominated as a local authority governor. I work, full time as an Occupational Health Manager for EDF Energy and I am passionate about health and safety and enjoy transferring my knowledge to our visionary and inclusive school.

Owen Thomas

When my daughter started at St Paul's in 2016, I felt the urge to become more involved in how she and others at the school are educated and supported. Having also attended the school myself (many years ago) it felt natural to offer my support as a parent governor. I am a big believer in the power of education and I am passionate about empowering individuals to realise their life dreams. I am a chartered Architect and have worked in the education sector for many years.

Rachel Bolton

I have a five year association with St Paul’s which began when I used to come from The Crypt School to teach Spanish across KS2. After two years of this I left a long secondary teaching career to work fully at St Paul’s initially as a classroom Teaching Partner and then doing individual speech and language support. I also greatly enjoyed expanding the school library and running both a drama as well as a book club.  I have a long career in education as a teacher, a teaching partner (and a parent!) and have been a governor in two Gloucestershire Primary schools many years ago. I’m passionate about the importance of language – oracy and reading – as something fundamentally necessary in children’s lives and therefore value the opportunity to serve on the governing body to help develop this further at St Paul’s

Peter Millward

I am a minister at Gloucester Elim Church in Park End Road. I am married with four children (17, 15, 14, 12). As a member of Gloucester Elim Church I am passionate about seeing the lives of those in the vicinity of our church being blessed and improved and I support anyone trying to support the community in any way.  

Sabina Ali

Hello, my name is Sabina and I currently have two children who attend St. Pauls Church of England Primary School. I believe that alongside the staff, no one is more concerned with the quality of the teaching and learning provision of the school than a parent which is why I feel privileged to be part of this school and the community. I have been working as a secondary school teacher since 2017. I am hoping that my skills, knowledge and experience as a teacher and as a parent will help to ensure clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction for St. Pauls.

Patricia Gifford