Welcome to our Governors’ section

At Westgate CP School, our Governors are proud to serve our school and community to ensure that it is the best possible place to learn for both our staff and pupils.

The Governing Body

The Governing Body is responsible for:

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

 

The headteacher is responsible for the day-to-day management and internal organisation of the school itself.

The governing body meet at least twice each term and committees and working groups meet as often as is needed.

 

Who makes up the Governing Body?

Our Governing Body is made up of:

• The headteacher
• One staff governor – this governor is elected by staff at the school and represents them, but is not their delegate
• One local authority (LA) governor – this governor is appointed by the LA (Suffolk County Council)
• Two parent governors – these governors are elected by fellow parents and are their representatives but not delegates
• Seven co-opted governors – these governors are appointed by the governing body for their skills which contribute to the effective governance and success of the school

The total number of Governors is 12.

You can contact the governors by either telephoning or emailing the school: Contact Details

 

Our current Governing Body

Our chair of governors is Gareth Russell.

Governors serve a four-year term but can re-stand for election once that period has come to an end.

To find out more about becoming a governor, please contact the School Office or visit: Govern Suffolk

 

The Governing Body Structure

The full governing body (FGB) meet twice each term. In addition to this, there are a number of governors who have additional responsibilities and take part in committees that carry out the work of the governing body. All committees report back to the FGB.

Instead of monitoring individual subjects, all governors take responsibility for specific objectives set out within the School Development Plan (SDP) which looks at the agreed priorities for the school.

Our current committees are:

Committee Name	Purpose
The Learning and Achievement Committee	Monitors the curriculum and the achievement of pupils
The Finance Committee	Oversees the budget, building, estates and staff
The Headteacher’s Performance and Review Committee	Sets and monitors targets for the headteacher and makes decisions about pay.

 

Who is a Governor at Westgate CP School?

 

Name	Role	Date of Appointment	Appointed by
Gareth Russell	Chair	23.11.22	Gov Body
Alex Davies	Co-opted Governor	15.03.22	Gov Body
Rhonda Kidd	Headteacher	01.01.23	Ex-officio by virtue of office as Headteacher
Katie Dalgoutte	Staff Governor	16.09.24	Staff
Adam Barton	Parent Governor	25.11.23	Gov Body
Mike Faulkner	Parent Governor	25.03.24	Gov Body
Sophie Knott	Co-opted Governor	25.03.24	Gov Body
Paul McGoochan	Co-opted Governor	08.07.24	Gov Body

 

As well as committees, some governors take on extra responsibilities for specific groups of pupils or areas within the school.

We have named governors for these particular areas:

• Safeguarding – this governor leads all safeguarding issues throughout the school.
• SEND and equalities – takes the lead on all aspects of school life where children require more than the school’s universal offer. Includes special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
• Pupil premium – to support, challenge, monitor, and evaluate the school’s work in raising the achievements of Pupil premium children.
• Health, safety and wellbeing – this governor oversees issues that relate to the school site, ensuring that it is compliant with health and safety legislation. This governor is also responsible for monitoring the wellbeing of staff, reviewing wellness and encouraging overall positive mental health.
• GDPR (general data protection regulation) – monitors the school’s GDPR compliance and liaises with the school’s business manager and data protection officer (DPO). Reviews and provides regular updates to the full governing body on GDPR as well as reports any breaches of regulations.