Committees and Terms of Reference
The Governing Body has three strategic core functions:
• Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction;
• Holding the leadership 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 key responsibilities managed by the Governing Body are outlined below:
Administrative
· To draw up the Instrument of Government and any amendments;
· To review the standing order for election of the Chair and Vice Chair including the length of the term of office;
· Elect (or remove) the Chair and Vice Chair;
· To appoint (or dismiss) the Clerk to the Governing Body;
· To hold (at least six) Governing Body meetings each year;
· To appoint and remove Co-opted and any associate members;
· To suspend or remove a governor;
· To decide which functions of the Governing Body will be delegated to committees;
· To appoint the statutory individual required roles of Safeguarding, SEND and Health & Safety;
· To receive reports from the individuals to whom a delegation has been made and to consider whether any further action or decision by the Governing Body is necessary;
· To review the delegation arrangements annually;
· Appoint selection panel for Headteacher/ Executive Leader;
· To ratify or reject decisions of appointed selection panel;
· To set up and publish a register of Governors’ Business Interests;
· To ensure that statutory requirements for information published on the school website, including
details of governance arrangements, are met and updated as necessary;
· To ensure the information required for the National Database is collected, uploaded and amended as necessary and accurate with the details published on the school website;
· To approve and set up a Governors’ Allowances Scheme;
· To appoint Link Governors to classes and areas who will help to monitor standards and the priori-ties of the School Development Plan;
· To arrange a suitable induction process and mentoring for newly appointed or elected governors;
· To regularly audit and evaluate the impact of governance and the Chair to inform the structure and work of the Governing Board;
· To ask the Headteacher to provide such reports as requested by the Governing Body to enable it to
undertake its role.
General
· Regularly review the vision and values of the school and ensure that these are shared with all
stakeholders;
· To support the formulation of a strategic plan for the school;
· To take an active role in School Self Evaluation identifying success and areas requiring improve-ment;
· To approve, update and review regularly the School Development Plan agreeing a monitoring schedule for the Governing Body;
· To review regularly how the school is regarded by pupils and parents;
· To ensure the school has in place all statutory policies and to keep these under regular review,
consulting with representative stakeholders as appropriate;
· To approve statutory policies, ensuring compliance, on review;
· To ensure the school has a Complaints Procedure for Parents and that parents know how to raise
concerns and make a complaint;
· To ensure that the Governing Body complies with all other legal duties placed upon it as shown and updated within the DfE Governance Handbook.
Inclusion and Equality
· To establish and approve a special educational needs (SEND) policy;
· To publish and update at least annually a SEND information report (meeting requirements set out in the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014);
· To comply with statutory duties from the SEND code of practice in respect of pupils with special needs by appointing a SEND governor;
· To ensure that the school does not discriminate against pupils, job applicants or staff on the basis of race, religion, gender, age disability or sexual orientation;
· To receive reports on bullying, homophobic, transphobic and racial incidents.
Safeguarding
· To ensure statutory compliance with Keeping Children Safe in Education and its associated policies
including adopting and reviewing the child protection/ safeguarding policy and relevant proce-dures;
· To comply with statutory duties by appointing Safeguarding and Health & Safety governors;
· To have due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism and to over-see the incorporation of the necessary procedures and practices outlined in the Prevent duty into the child
protection policy;
· To complete an annual Safeguarding Review and return to the LA.
Curriculum and Standards
· Ensure NC is taught to all pupils;
· To ensure the curriculum is broad and balanced;
· To establish a charging and remissions policy for activities;
· To ensure the British values are embedded within the curriculum, preparing pupils for life in modern Britain;
· To monitor and evaluate educational standards (attainment and progress) regularly in the school,
including those of specific groups;
· To monitor and evaluate the School Development Plan.
Finance and Budget
· To approve the first formal budget plan each year;
· To agree a 3-year budget;
· To analyse and recommend the annual budget;
· To annually review and approve the Finance Policy and recommend levels of delegation;
· To annually review and approve the Charging and Remissions policy;
· To enter into contracts following agreed financial limits;
· To make decisions in respect of service agreements following agreed delegation of financial limits and insurance;
· To ensure the school complies to the SFVS guidelines;
· To agree annual action plans and monitor how school premiums are spent, in particular PE/Sports
Premium and the Pupil Premium grants;
· To review and take account of any consultations to change the LA Finance Scheme;
· To consider value for money every year using DfE benchmarking information.
Staffing
· To make Headteacher appointments (ratify or reject) following recommendations from the selec-tion panel;
· To agree staffing policies which provide for governor involvement in the interests of preserving the school’s religious character;
· To annually determine the staff complement;
· To annually agree a Pay Policy;
· To annually review the impact of and implementation of the Pay Policy;
· To establish and review procedures for addressing staff discipline, conduct and grievance;
· To establish a governor panel to hear staff appeals against dismissal, redundancy or grievances.
Performance Management
· To establish and review and approve annually the Performance Management Policy;
· To determine the timing of the Headteacher appraisal review cycle;
· To appoint the Headteacher’s Performance Management Group consisting of 2 skilled or trained
governors;
· To appoint the external advisor;
· To take into account the Headteacher Standards for Excellence;
· To agree total pay award following recommendation from Pay Committee (Chairs);
· To agree any pay award for the Headteacher following recommendation from the Headteacher
performance management panel.
Discipline and Exclusions
· To establish a statement of behaviour principles on which the school can produce a behaviour pol-icy;
· To review the use of exclusion and confirm all permanent exclusions and fixed term exclusions.
(This may be delegated to the Chair/Vice Chair in cases of urgency);
· To direct the reinstatement of excluded pupils.
Premises
· To ensure buildings are maintained and there is a properly funded maintenance plan;
· To seek advice from the LA or diocese where appropriate to ensure adequate levels of buildings
insurance and personal liability;
· To receive an annual buildings / site report.
Health and Safety
· To establish a Health & Safety policy;
· To ensure that Health & Safety regulations are followed and appropriately prioritized;
· To receive an annual Health & Safety Inspection Report and agree any actions;
· To appoint a Health and Safety governor.
Admissions
• The VA Governing Body is the Admissions Authority;
· To follow The School Admissions Code statutory guidance when carrying out duties relating to school admissions;
· To consult annually before setting an Admissions policy, notify the LA and Diocese and publish the
arrangements on the School website;
· Set a clear published admission number (PAN), which states the number of applicants they will admit where enough applications are received;
· To establish an Admissions policy;
· Admissions appeals: To set up independent panels in line with the School Admission Appeals Code or delegate this to the LA.
Church Distinctiveness
· To ensure that the school provides teaching of religious education for all pupils in accordance with the agreed syllabus or has informed parents of their right to withdraw their child;
· To ensure the school provides an act of broadly Christian daily collective worship;
· To uphold the Christian Distinctiveness of school and ensure this makes difference (See SIAMS
Framework).
Many of the above functions are delegated to the following Committees, each of which report as necessary to the FGB.
There are three committees that mirror the three core function of governance (see above):
1. Strategic Planning and Policy Committee.
2. Curriculum, Standards and Distinctiveness Committee.
3. Finance and Environment Committee.
1. Strategic Planning and Policy Committee
Composition:
The committee will consist of the Chair of Governors, the Vice-Chair of Governors, the Chair of each
committee, the Headteacher and other governors appointed by the FGB.
Any governor may attend meetings to contribute to the discussions and deliberations of the commit-tee as long as they contact the clerk beforehand.
The committee will be chaired by the Chair of Governors.
To be quorate, the committee must include not less than 3 Governors, who shall not be members of the teaching staff, with the exception of the Headteacher as an ex-officio governor.
The committee shall not meet without the Headteacher being present.
Method of working:
Meet at least once a term at a convenient time in the school day. (It will need to meet more fre-quently at the start off the new school year to deal with policies that have to be reviewed annually.)
Agenda to be distributed to all committee members at least 1 week before the meeting.
Minutes to be taken & circulated to members of the committee & tabled at the next Full Governing Body meeting.
Terms of Reference:
• Maintain a strategic overview of all matters relating to the development and improvement of the school.
· Regularly review the vision and values of the school.
• Maintain a record of school policies and when they need to be reviewed.
• Review and update policies in line with above timetable. Present relevant policies (those requir-ing
statutory agreement by FGB) to FGB.
• Review School Development Plan and SEF and consider any further issues or opportunities of a
strategic nature for the development and improvement of the school and make appropriate
recommendations.
• Monitor and review school self-evaluation process and procedures.
• Review annual parent, staff and pupil questionnaires if and when distributed.
• Consider strategic implications of ‘Number on Roll’ (NOR) for future years and any possible changes to Admissions Policy.
2. The Curriculum, Standards & Distinctiveness Committee
Composition:
The committee shall consist of the Chair of Governors, the Vice-Chair of Governors, the Chair of each
committee, the Headteacher and other governors appointed by the FGB.
Any governor may attend meetings to contribute to the discussions and deliberations of the commit-tee as long as they contact the clerk beforehand.
The committee will choose its chair.
To be quorate, the committee must include not less than 3 Governors, who shall not be members of the teaching staff, with the exception of the Headteacher as an ex-officio governor.
The committee will not meet without the Headteacher being present.
Method of working:
Meet at least once a half term at a convenient time in the school day.
Agenda to be distributed to all committee members at least 1 week before the meeting.
Minutes to be taken & circulated to members of the committee & tabled at the next Full Governing Body meeting along with a report on standards prepared by chair.
Terms of Reference:
• To monitor and evaluate the development of the church distinctiveness of the school using the new
SIAMS Framework (2018) and its contribution to standards.
• To monitor and evaluate the policy and provision for Religious Education and Collective Worship,
ensuring that it conforms to Diocesan guidelines, and where necessary make recommendations to the
governing body.
• To review progress against the SIAMS and Ofsted action points.
• To monitor and evaluate the School Development Plan.
• To monitor pupil progress and attainment regularly using school, LA and national data. Make specific
reference to particular groups as and when necessary according to cohort size e.g. boys/girls,
pupil premium, SEND.
• To ensure that the statutory requirements of children with Special Educational Needs are met and other needs, so far as is reasonably practicable.
• To ensure that the requirements of children in receipt of Pupil Premium are met so far as is reason-ably practicable and identify and record progress.
• To ensure Subject link and Class governors meet regularly with subject leaders and class teachers, receive their reports and monitor impact of their work on standards.
• To monitor learning behaviours across the school including attendance and engagement.
• To receive an annual report on Performance Management.
• To contribute to the School Improvement Plan and the SEF as required.
• To advise on ways in which governors can be involved in monitoring standard in the schools.
3. Finance and Environment Committee
Composition:
The committee will consist of the Chair of Governors, the Headteacher and other governors appointed by the FGB.
Any governor may attend meetings to contribute to the discussions and deliberations of the commit-tee as long as they contact the clerk beforehand.
The committee will choose its chair.
To be quorate, the committee must include not less than 3 Governors, which should include the Headteacher as an ex-officio governor.
The committee will not meet without the Headteacher being present.
Method of working:
Meet at least once a term at a convenient time in the school day.
Agenda to be distributed to all committee members at least 1 week before the meeting.
Minutes to be taken & circulated to members of the committee & tabled at the next Full Governing Body meeting.
Terms of Reference:
Finance
• Where appropriate, provide guidance to the Governing Body on financial matters.
• Prepare, approve and monitor statements of financial policy including the school’s Financial Proce-dures Policy.
• Prepare, for the approval of the Governing Body, the annual school budget.
• If required, prepare for the approval by the Governing Body any redundancy proposals.
• As required, prepare for the approval by the Governing Body all employment proposals
• Discuss an annual benchmarking report and ensure Best Value Principles apply.
• Monitor the budget at every meeting using information provided by the Headteacher and Finance
Officer.
• Ensure that spending remains within prescribed limits and Identify and approve appropriate correc-tive measures.
• Approve virement between budget headings.
• Approve appropriate level of financial delegation to the Headteacher.
• Monitor and approve income and expenditure of all public funds.
• Audit and approve all non-public funds.
• Audit and approve the school equipment inventory.
• Respond appropriately to audit report recommendations.
• Provide a Report on Finances to the Governing Body each term.
• Prepare and approve any other financial document as may be required from time to time by the
Authority or other statutory body.
Environment
• Where appropriate, provide guidance to the Governing Body on environmental matters.
• Prepare, approve and monitor building related polices.
• Ensure the school complies with health and safety, litter and other regulations.
• Prepare, approve and monitor security and health and safety related policies.
• Prepare, approve and monitor arrangements for risk management.
• Inspect the premises at least annually.
• Undertake an annual fire risk assessment.
• Prepare for approval by the Governing Body all major capital expenditure proposals.
• Prioritise maintenance and development within the agreed budget.
• Approve the maintenance, repair and redecoration within the agreed budget.
• Oversee the preparation and implementation of capital and service contracts.
• Prepare, approve and monitor the lettings and charges policy.
• Ensure that inspection/audit recommendations are implemented appropriately.
• Ensure premises insurance arrangements are adequate.
• Provide an Environmental Report to the Governing Body each term.
Footnote: Please note on occasion restricted minutes will be required to be made, which are not for full circulation e.g. confidential staffing matters.