Croxton Kerrial School Governors

A warm introduction to the work of our Governing Committee.

This section gives you an overview of why the Governing Body exists, who we are and what we do.

Governors at Croxton Kerrial fulfil our responsibilities by working closely with the staff so that we can be successful in helping the children achieve their full potential in a happy, caring, loving environment. Our school vision is very important to us: " Let all that you do be done with love".

We do this in many ways including:

• Working with the staff in supporting school improvement and the Christian Distinctiveness of the school in line with the school vision.

• Monitoring the performance and progress of our children.

• Supporting the staff to help them teach and care for our children.

• Working with the school to decide how the resources of the school are best used.

• Planning ahead so that the performance of our children and our school continues to improve.

• Contributing to school life through events and visits to the school.

School governors play a vital role in the life of the school and are responsible for providing strategic leadership and accountability in the work of the school. We  make regular visits to the school to meet the children and talk with the teachers about the work of the school. 

To deliver this effectively the Governor team members are representative of all the key groups involved in our school – the Parents, the Staff, the Community, the MAT and the Church. Some are appointed and some are elected. All serve for a term of four years.

We welcome any interest in our work and if you would like to know more, have specific questions, or are interested in becoming a school governor then please do not hesitate to get in touch via the school office: office@croxton.risemat.co.uk marking the subject 'private and confidential for Helen Sykes' or you may contact me by letter via the school office, marking your envelope ‘Private and Confidential’.

We look forward to a continued successful partnership with you and welcome any views and suggestions. 

Helen Sykes

Chair of Governors

Governance at Croxton Kerrial

Our school is an Academy within Rise Multi-Academy Trust, whose Board of Trustees are ultimately responsible for the school. All local governance committees are de facto committees of the Board of Directors. The members of each local governing committee are referred to as ‘Governors’. Their key responsibilities are to:

• Ensuring there is clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction.
• Holding executive leaders to account for the educational performance of the organisation and its pupils and the performance management of staff.
• Overseeing the financial performance of the organisation and making sure its money is well spent.

Governors are not expected to be involved in the detail of the day-to-day management of the school – this is the responsibility of the Executive Headteacher and senior leadership team. The Governors work in partnership with them, acting as 'critical friends', to support and challenge the work of the school. In practice this means there is a continual cycle of  monitoring and evaluation of the work of the school against agreed targets, actions and policies.

New Governance Structure 2022-2023

From the start of the autumn term 2022, our Governing Committee officially merged with the Governing Committee of Wymondham CE Primary School (one of our close partnership schools within our Executive Headship model) to form a Cluster Governing Committee or CGC. This is something we have been trialling for several years, so we know it will work well for us, especially as we share a Head of School, School Business Manager and teaching support staff.

The Board of Trustees have determined that a CGC may be formed when there is an executive leadership arrangement in place across two or more schools. In these instances, one governing committee has delegated oversight of all schools in the cluster. This avoids duplication of governance where CGCs are in operation. We believe that we will be able to carry out our roles and responsibilities as determined by the Rise Scheme of Delegation more effectively as a two-school CGC rather than a four-school CGC.

Our other two schools, Redmile CE Primary School and Waltham-on-the-Wolds CE Primary School, have also formed a CGC together.

Who Are We?

Our governors are representative of all the groups involved in our school: staff, parents, local community and Church. They are all volunteers who give their time, energy and skills free of charge to benefit the children of our school. The number and type of Governor is determined in our Memorandum of Understanding from the Trust. The term of office is four years.

We have a Clerk to Governors who is paid to carry out administrative tasks for governor business. Should you wish to contact her please email ntyers@risemat.co.uk

What Do We Do?

The Cluster Governing Committee meets twice per term, but we manage a lot of work through our regular visits to each school. Our main work centres around:

• Safeguarding and on-line safety - every time we visit, we consult with children and staff to check that everyone feels safe and secure.  During the course of the year, we review the security measures of the school, Single Central Record, policies and procedures, including Risk Assessments and school safety logs. We review e-safety with leaders and check children understand how to stay safe o the internet.

• Finance - we review staffing, including staff well-being and recruitment when necessary; review the annual budget, sports premium, pupil premium and recovery premiums to ensure value for money. We remain vigilant of possible funding opportunities (e.g. grants) too.

• Health and Safety - where we check health and safety around the school site, and look at the learning environment for the children, maintenance and development of our buildings. We support the Executive Headteacher in securing S106 funding from local housing developments and Condition Improvement Funds.

• School Focus - we review pupil progress and attainment with staff each term; we monitor school improvement through the  School Strategic Plan, including curriculum development; and consider the church school distinctiveness of our school. 

• Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) - we meet termly with the SENDCo (Special Educational Needs Coordinator) to review provision and progress, ensuring that effective lines of communication are in place for parents of SEND children.

• Behaviour and wellbeing - we ensure that effective policies are in place and that these areas are prominent within the curriculum and other activities.

• Early Years - to review provision, practice and performance with the Reception teacher and Pre-school manager.

We have governor advocates for each of the above areas who report back to the CGC each half term or term. From time to time, we also form working groups to work on specific strategic projects as they arise, eg. Headteacher recruitment.

From time to time, we also form working groups to work on specific strategic projects as they arise, eg. Headteacher recruitment.

How do we achieve this?

School Visits and Learning Walks

Governor visits allow us to see the school at work, gain relevant knowledge and understanding to be able to perform our governing role effectively and fulfil our monitoring functions. We set out a programme of governor visits for every year, each focused on a particular area as detailed above. This might include: discussions with subject coordinators, visits to each class to see how learning takes place and meetings about specific aspects of work, e.g. safeguarding. In practice, many of our governors also frequently attend other activities going on in the school to ensure that they know the school well. They also accompany the staff and children on school visits and trips, including residential visits.

Governor Training

We have a governor responsible for training and development to support us in our role as governors, organised through Rise and within school.

Partnership Links

We work in close partnership with the CEO and central team of Rise who visit our school and offer guidance and support when required. We also work with other governing bodies around our local area which helps to inform our strategic work as well allowing us to broaden our knowledge by exchanging experiences with governors in settings similar to ours.

Dates of Meeting 2022-2023

Tuesday 20th September

Tuesday 29th November 

Tuesday 14th February 

Tuesday 2nd May 

Tuesday 20 June 

Meet our Governor Team

Dr Helen Sykes, Chair of Governors

My name is Helen Sykes and I became a governor at Croxton Kerrial school in September 2017. I had two girls at the school and wanted to support the school and community by becoming a governor. I am a research scientist with an environmental consultancy and have experience of project management and grant writing through my work. I hope I will be able to use this experience to assist the school in future grant applications.

In my spare time I play the violin and I enjoy keeping fit and cake making. I am also involved in the Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme as an accredited expedition assessor.

Miss Clare Carvell

My name is Clare Carvell and I moved to Croxton Kerrial in September 2000. Before this, I lived in Oxfordshire, where I trained to be a Primary School Teacher and subsequently taught there for eight years. I have continued to teach locally and I hope this experience will enable me to support the school in my role as governor. In my spare time I enjoy playing tennis, cycling, visiting the theatre and travelling (particularly on walking holidays).

Awaiting further content.