The Governing Body of Avenue Junior School is made up from representatives of parents, teaching and non-teaching staff, the community and the Local Authority.

Their role is to oversee the work of the school, to support and challenge it and to help the school to plan for the future in terms of vision, curriculum and premises needs and financial stability.

Below is the current list of the Governors:

Ms Wendy Cleary, Chair of Governors          (Local Authority Governor)

Mr Clive Turner                                                 (Local Authority Governor)

Mrs Katy Jones                                                 (Parent Governor)

Mr Ian Griffiths                                                   (Parent Governor)

Mrs Andrea Rippon                                          (Parent Governor)

Mr Nicholas Steel                                             (Parent Governor)

Mrs Deborah Dismore                                     (Head teacher Governor)

Mrs Beverley Ellis                                             (Staff Governor)

Mrs Nikki Davies                                              (Staff Governor)

Ms Lesley Matthews                                         (Staff Governor)

Mr Mike Grimble                                               (Community Governor)

Mr Jason Menezes                                           (Community Governor)

Mrs Brenda Russell                                          (Community Governor)

Rev Philip Young                                              (Community Governor)

Mrs Joe Thompson                                          (Associate Governor)

 

The Governors join one or more of four particular committees:

Finance, Staffing, Curriculum, Health, Safety and Environment.

 

These committees meet once or twice a term, with the Full Governing Body meetings taking place five times a year. A folder of approved minutes is available for inspection in the school office.

 

At the moment we have vacancies for two Parent Governors. These are elected by parents of pupils at the school and an election will be held in October.
We have two Local Authority Governor vacancies. The Governing Body works with the Local Authority to appoint suitable people to these positions.

 

Like most Governing Bodies, we are always looking to strengthen our skills - for example in Finance and HR, though many other interests and abilities are welcome. If you feel you might be able to support the school as a school governor then we would very much like to hear from you! The Chair of Governors can be contacted via the school office on office@avenuejunior.norfolk.sch.uk

Further Information about being a School Governor

Information for Prospective School Governors

 

The Governing Body is the school’s accountable body.  It is responsible for the conduct of the school and for promoting high standards.  The governing body aims to ensure that children are attending a successful school which provides them with a good education and supports their well-being.  

The most important quality in a school governor is the desire to make a difference to children’s lives through education. In addition to this, attributes that make a good school governor include:

• The ability to work as part of a team
• A desire to help the local community
• An external perspective
• A willingness to change assumptions
• The time to get involved.

 

There are different types of governors, to reflect the school community. Avenue Junior School Governing Body has 6 Parent governors, 4 Staff governors (teachers, l support staff, and Head teacher), 4 Community governors, 4 Local Authority Governors and 1 Associate Governor. The term of office is 4 years.  However, governors are entitled to resign from the post early and some choose to stay for more than one term of office.

All Avenue Junior School Governors are asked to complete a Criminal Record Body check as part of the appointment process.

 

Accepting office as a governor involves the commitment of significant amounts of time and energy. At Avenue Junior School, the full governing body normally meets 5 times per academic year on a Monday evening at school plus 1 more meeting for its self evaluation. The committees which support the governing body usually meet twice a term, so 6 times per academic year. They meet at school at times/days to suit the members - typically late afternoon/early evening. The National Governors’ Association estimates that governors spend an average of 6 to 8 hours per school month on related activities including the meetings and preparatory reading.

 

In addition, governors are expected to spend some time over the year visiting the school during the day to gain familiarity with its pupils and staff and as part of their duty to ensure accountability. They are also invited to other events, such as school concerts, assemblies, PTA events and parent information evenings. The school pays for the County Governor Services training package and governors are expected to undertake training to support their role.

Governing Bodies are established by law as corporate bodies. Responsibility for actions and decisions lies with the whole Governing Body and not with individual governors. Members of Avenue Junior School Governing Body have the well-being of the children and the reputation of the school at heart. They act as ambassadors for the school, publicly supporting its aims, values and ethos.

Many employers appreciate that governors not only contribute, but also learn new skills that are useful in their place of work. Governors have the right to reasonable time off work for their public duties - although this may be unpaid.

Governing Bodies have the power to establish schemes for paying allowances to governors to cover expenses necessarily incurred in performing governor duties. Such expenses are drawn from the school budget and, at the moment Avenue Junior does not pay such expenses.

Being a school governor is a demanding role - however, it is a shared responsibility and very rewarding for anyone with who wishes to help schools to improve the standard of education. Thank you for considering this way of supporting our school.

 

Wendy Cleary

Chair of Governors

October 2011

For further information, I can be contacted through the school office on 01603 441034 office@avenuejunior.norfolk.sch.uk