Governors
Annual Governance Statement for the Governing Body for Layton Primary School
April 2017
In accordance with the Government’s requirement for all governing bodies, the 3 core strategic functions of the Layton Primary School Governing Body are
- Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction;
- Holding the Head Teacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils;
- Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.
Governance arrangements
The Governing Body of Layton Primary School has recently reconstituted to fourteen members.
The full Governing Body meets once each term, and we also have a number of committees to consider different aspects of the school in detail. This includes a Curriculum & Standards committee, a Pay and Performance committee and a Finance & Resources committee. We also have committees that meet if required to consider pupil discipline and staffing matters.
| Title | Info |
|---|---|
| Attendance record of governors | Governors have excellent attendance at meetings. |
| We work that we have done on our committees and in the governing body | The Governing Body has had a particularly busy year, focusing on developing the vision of the school, and ensuring we move forward to continually improve the quality of provision for our pupils, including maintaining our excellent Year 6 results. The full Governing Body have agreed the priorities for improvement set out in the school development plan for 2016/17. These include: - Continuing to improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment Ensure outcomes for pupils continue to be excellent Improve the Quality of Assessment for Learning Improve behaviour of pupils in and around school Developing leaders at all levels within the school The Curriculum & Standards Committee has spent time considering the key data giving the results of pupil achievement and progress, so that we can be sure that the school is on track to fulfil its ambitious targets for all pupils. Part of the remit of this committee is ensuring quality provision for all groups of pupils, including the spending of pupil premium funding. In addition, the Curriculum & Standards Committee has overseen the planning, preparation and development of our school Curriculum, particularly Literacy, Numeracy and ICT The Finance and Resources Committee looks at the maintenance and development of the school premises, and makes decisions about how the school should use the budget. The school budget is currently healthy and governors approve budgets in line with school priorities. One of the roles for the governors is reviewing and agreeing school policies, and this year we have considered a number of key policies, including teaching and learning, focusing on h |
| Transparency | Minutes of Governing Body and Committee meetings are public documents. You can ask at the school office if you would like to see any of the minutes of our meetings. Some items remain confidential |
| Future plans for the governors | The governors are especially eager to secure vision and outcomes, and maintain and improve on our successes. We will be working with the head teacher to ensure the school development plan reflects that ambition. We are going to be working closely with the school to examine modes of ensuring sustainability around our recent academic success. As part of the improvements needed to be an outstanding school we are also going to be working hard to ensure that you as parents and carers are aware of all the opportunities available for your children at Layton Primary school by developing new ways of communication. The rolling programme of school refurbishment will continue as will the updating of the IT hardware in order to equip our children with the Technology for the new Computing Curriculum. The Governors have been especially keen to develop opportunities for children to access ICT both at school and home, resulting in the provision of ipads on a 1:1 basis for all children in KS2. |
| How you can contact the governing body | We always welcome suggestions, feedback and ideas from parents – contact details for Governors are available from the school office. |
Register of Business Interests
All governing boards must set up and maintain a register of business interests, which must be published on the school/academy website:
- Regulation 26 and Schedule 5 (15) of The School Finance (England) Regulations 2012 require that all Local Authority Schemes for financing schools include details about the setting up of a register of any business interests of the governors and the headteacher.
- Academies must have regard to the academies financial handbook which requires that all members, trustees, local Governors (within a MAT) and senior employees complete a declaration of their business interests.
A regular review of entries should take place to ensure the register is kept up to date; this can either be completed as part of an annual review or at each meeting; dated nil returns and any notification of changes from governors, as appropriate, should be provided. However, governors are reminded that they should declare any changes as and when they occur.
Delegation
The governing board may delegate responsibility for the establishment and maintenance of the register of business interests to the clerk.
However, it is the responsibility of each individual governor or staff member present at any meeting to declare their interest; the register is not a substitute for declaring an interest at meetings.
Declaration of Interests
Governors and staff must act and be seen to act impartially, and have a responsibility to avoid any conflict between their business and personal interests and affairs and those of the school. As such, anyone present at a meeting should declare an interest likely to lead to questions of bias when considering any item of business at a meeting.
Disclosures of interests should include not only interests of individual governors and staff, but also interests of their relatives, personal associates or any other person known to the governor or member of staff who may exert influence. The following interests should be declared:
- Employment, Office, Trade, Profession or Vocation
Individuals should list every employment that must be declared for income tax purposes, including the nature of job and employer
- Contracts
A description of all contracts, which are not fully discharged: for example, contracts for the supply of goods, services or works to the school
- Interests in Companies and Securities
All companies or other bodies that (to the persons knowledge) are active in the school’s area and in which they have a substantial interest (ie holds more than 20% of the share capital or is entitled to exercise more than 20% of the voting power at any general meeting at that company).
An individual has a substantial interest if they own (or have a beneficial interest in) shares or other securities in the company with a nominal value of £25,000 or more than one hundredth of the companies issued shares or securities.
A company or body is active in the school’s area if it has land or business in that area.
- Any other interest that in the view of any reasonable person may influence decisions made by a governor or member of staff on behalf of the school.
If you are unsure it is usually better to declare, at the very least seek the advice of the clerk. Further information is also available for members of Academy Boards within the latest version of the Academies Financial Handbook.
It is good practice for governors to declare any interest relating to items on the agenda at the start of each meeting. Failure to declare an interest is a serious matter. It might be an oversight, but a deliberate failure would be cause to suspend the governor.
Where a governor or member of staff or related person has any interest, either pecuniary or non-pecuniary, in a matter to be discussed at a governors’ meeting the governor or member of staff must declare their interest and withdraw from that part of the meeting.
Withdrawal from Meetings (Having an Interest)
| Title | Info |
|---|---|
(a) withdraw from a meeting during the consideration or discussion of the meeting; (b) not vote on any question with respect to that matter. |
(a) s/he, or any nominee of hers/his, is a member of a company or other body with which a contract is under consideration or has been made; (b) s/he is a partner in business or in the employment, of a person with whom the contract is made or under consideration.
|
Register of Business Interests
| Name | Name of Business | Nature of Business | Nature of Interest | Date of Appointment of Acquisition | Date of Cessation of Interest | Date of Entry/Review |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mr J Clucas | National Association of Headteachers | Union | Member | 10.12.18 | ||
| Mr R Fisher | Nothing to declare | 16.11.16 | ||||
| Mr M Goldstone | Aspire Academy KJC Games Layton Bee Project | Education | Governorship at Aspire Owner/Director of KJC | 15.11.17 for Aspire | 27.11.18 | |
| Mr S Shaw | Blackpool Council Illuminations
5h Blackpool Scout Group Assistant Group Scout Leader | Employment at Illuminations and Charity Trustee of Scout Group | 29.11.18 | |||
| Cllr M Smith | Blackpool Council Blackpool Operating Company Growth Lancashire Global Renewable Capricorn Accountancy Limited BMA Accountants Ltd Blackpool Management Accountants Ltd Yes Hotels Limited Citizen’s Advice Credit Union | Local Government | Councillor | 15.11.17 | ||
| Mr C Westhead | Nothing to declare | 14.11.18 | ||||
| Mr A Scollay | Chubb Fire & Security | Fire & Security Service | Current employment (company provides services to school) | 01.10.18 | 17.12.18 | |
| Cllr Mitchell | Blackpool Council | Local Government | Councillor | 18.11.18 | ||
| Lisa Sheldon | Nothing to declare |
Senior Employee/Spouse/Immediate Family Member with a Business Interest
| Name | Name of Business | Nature of Business | Nature of Interest | Date of Appointment of Acquisition | Date of Cessation of Interest | Date of Entry/Review |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mrs L Sheldon | Nothing to declare | 16.11.16 |
STATUTORY COMMITTEES
Grievance and Complaints against Staff, Staff Discipline/ Appeals Committees
These committees to be dealt with by the first three available untainted Governors not employed at the school, using the terms of reference set out in the relevant policy document.
Governor’s Meeting Schedule and Attendance 2014-2017 is available from drop down menu
Governors:
- J Clucas (voting Headteacher)
- R Fisher (co-opted)
- M Goldstone (Parent Governor)
- A Scollay (Parent Governor)
- M Mitchell (Local Authority Governor)
- O Domics (Staff Governor)
- S Shaw (Parent Governor)
- L Sheldon (observer)
- Cllr M Smith (co-opted)
- C Westhead (co-opted)
- VACANCY
- VACANCY
- VACANCY
- VACANCY
- VACANCY
