Governing Body

The Governing Body operates collectively in the best interests of all students, rather than as a collection of individuals with their own private agendas. The core functions of the Governing Body focus on

providing strategic leadership through clarity of vision, holding the Head Teacher to account for educational performance and leadership of staff and making sure that the school’s money is well spent.

This is a demanding task for which all Governors need to have, or develop, relevant and appropriate skills. All Governors are also subject to DBS checks. Equality of opportunity applies to all members of the school community; students, staff, governors, parents and community members, taking account of gender, ethnicity, culture, religion, language, sexual orientation, age, ability, disability and social circumstance. This sets the tone and culture for governance and shapes the schools’ strategic priorities.

Meetings

The Governing Body meets three times a term at 6.00pm. Each meeting starts with a short Finance meeting, followed by a full Governing Body meeting, which is normally completed within two hours. The school endeavours to issue all papers a week in advance of the meeting, though occasionally external constraints mean a small number of items may be tabled at the meeting. Governors are expected to attend or offer apologies for reasons of absence. The meeting schedule for the 2018 to 2019 academic year is:

Spring Term 2019

Tuesday 15^th January              Full Governors Finance & General                             6.00 – 8.00pm

Tuesday 5^th February              Governor Day (Quality of Teaching)

Thursday 28^th February         Link Governor Meetings                                              5.00 – 6.00pm

Thursday 28^th February         Full Governors Finance & General                           6.00 – 8.00pm

Tuesday 26^th March                Full Governors Finance & General                            6.00 – 8.00pm

Summer Term 2019

Tuesday 30^th April                   Full Governors Finance & General                             6.00 – 8.00pm

Thursday 6^th June                   Link Governor Meetings                                               5.00 – 6.00pm

Thursday 6^th June                   Full Governors Finance & General                             6.00 – 8.00pm

Tuesday 25^th June                   Governor Day (Behaviour & Safety)

Tuesday 9^th July                      Full Governors Finance & General                             6.00 – 8.00pm

The three Governor Days listed take place at school each term, offering an opportunity for a longer meeting when governors can focus on matters such as analysis of exam results, plans for the future and meet students and staff. These meetings last between a half and a full day.

All Governors take responsibility for focusing on a particular area of the School Development Plan, as listed in the table below. During their link meetings, responsible governors will meet with senior leaders to review the relevant section of the school development plan and progress made against goals set.

Governors are encouraged to attend school events and visit the school during the day so they may be more fully aware of how the school is addressing issues identified for development.

Contacting the Governing Body

If you would like to contact the Governing Body of The Bewdley School, you can use any of the following methods.

Email:
GoverningBody@bewdley.worcs.sch.uk

Post:
Governing Body
The Bewdley School
Stourport Road
Bewdley
DY12 1BL

Additional responsibilities

Governors may also be involved in appointments, exclusion hearings and appeals for a variety of reasons.

Skills and Training

New Governors will be assigned a mentor who is an experienced governor colleague and will have an induction programme consisting of meetings with the Head Teacher and Chair of the Governing Body. The school will arrange agreed training using Worcestershire County Council’s training programme or a range of online materials and resources.

Our Board of Governors