On behalf of all the governors, I should like to welcome you to the Danbury Park Community Primary School website. The pupils, staff and governors are very proud of the school and we all work hard to ensure the best possible educational environment. We are also proud of our results, both the academic ones shown in the league tables and the less tangible ones that can be seen in the way that the children conduct and express themselves.

 

You may like to know a little about the governing body. As with all schools, the governors are volunteers from different sections of the school and the wider community: some are parents of children at the school, some are appointed by the Local Authority and some represent the village. The governing body also includes the head (Carol Gooding), and representatives of teaching and support staff. You can read who they are in the Governance section of the site.

 

The governing body shapes and sets the strategic direction of the school through the setting of aims and objectives. Obviously we also set targets for these aims and objectives and monitor performance. We are not involved in the day to day running of the school; however, the head teacher and the professional staff are accountable to the governing body for the school’s performance. It can seem like a lot of responsibility but it is also challenging and rewarding.

 

Being a governor is open to anyone (though a police check is required). Parents of children at the school may wish to stand for election when a vacancy is announced in the school newsletter. Other people with an interest can contact the governing body via the school to see if any vacancies exist for a Local Authority governor or co-opted governors. Though we have been fortunate in recent years to have a reasonable number of applicants, this might easily change and we are always interested in hearing from new people who feel they have the skills needed, e.g., experience in business, finance, education or care of children. A good variety of skills ensures the governing body has the necessary breadth of experience to carry out its role.

 

If you wish to contact me or the governing body you can do so via the school office but, do please remember, that for most school related matters your first point of contact should be the head teacher or the relevant member of the professional staff. Do also note that it is the governing body as a whole that make decisions, not individual governors, so it is not always possible to give an instant response.

 

Thank you for taking the time to read this brief introduction to the role of the governing body in school life and do enjoy our website.

 

Paul Sutton

Chair of Governors