Our vision is to promote educational excellence, reflecting and delivering the key messages described in the Church of England Vision for Education; Deeply Christian, Serving the Common Good (GS 2039); July 2016.
Our aim is to secure transformational outcomes for young people by combining academic rigour with a rounded approach to personal development.
School governance is strategic and not operational. The day to day running of the school is the responsibility of the headteacher, which they fulfil through implementing a strategic plan agreed with the governing board.
The governing board is a vital part of the leadership of any school, and Ofsted as part of its inspection will focus on the quality of governance in schools.
The governing board role in developing diocesan schools as church schools is also scrutinised during the Section 48 Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools (SIAMS) process.
Hence, governors should have a detailed, strategic knowledge of their school and how its distinctive Christian vision permeates the operational functions, led by the headteacher. It follows that governors, the headteacher and staff should work together to realise the shared Christian vision for the school community.
All governors should follow the 7 principles of public life published by the Committee on Standards in Public Life and based upon the ‘Nolan’ principles.
The core functions of governing boards are.
- Ensuring 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 spent well.
In addition, governing boards have legal and compliance responsibilities, as well as wider responsibilities linked to both their core function and their legal and compliance responsibilities.
The level of responsibility/accountability and how governing boards undertake these duties will vary according to whether they are Voluntary Aided, Voluntary Controlled or an Academy within DEMAT or set up as a single academy trust.