Moore Primary School

The Governing Body meets at least once every (new) term. We also have Sub-Committees (Curriculum, Building & Finance) which meet at every half term.  Personnel and Headteachers Performance Committees meet once a year unless futher meetings are required.  The Appeals Committee meets if required.

Appeals:

1. The Complaints Appeals Committee will meet when required to consider formal appeals made under the Procedures for Handling Complaints at Moore Primary School. Notes shall be prepared, and matters reported, in general terms, to the next meeting of the Governing Body.

2. There will be at least 3 Members of the Governing Body on the Committee; neither The Chair of Governors or the Headteacher will be a member of the Committee as they may have been involved in the matter under consideration at an earlier stage. The Chair of the Committee will be elected by the Committee.

3. The quorum shall be a minimum of 3 Governors. Committee Members must be impartial and have no prior involvement with the complaint or the circumstances surrounding it.

4. Wherever possible the Governing Body would wish to see complaints resolved at an informal stage but if not then the main responsibilities of the Complaints Appeals Committee will be as follows:

• To undertake the duties of the Governing Body in the consideration of complaints made under the Procedures for Handling Complaints at Moore Primary School. It should be noted that complaints covered by statutory procedures will not be considered by this committee.

• To seek advice from Human Resource or other external services/organisations as required.

Building & Finance:

Finance

1. review an annual budget, ensuring resources are allocated in line with the school’s strategic priorities and curriculum plans
2. maintain a realistic three-year financial plan, which takes into account the school’s vision, known risks and opportunities
3. present an annual budget to the full governing body for approval
4. monitor actual income and expenditure at least once a term against the approved budget
5. benchmark income and expenditure against that of similar schools, considering comparative performance and opportunities to improve efficiency
6. ensure that sufficient funds are allocated for staff pay increments
7. report back to each meeting of the full governing body, alerting them to potential problems and significant variations to the approved budget at the earliest opportunity
8. monitor spending of pupil premium, PE and sport premium (and other relevant premiums); ensuring that funding is spent effectively and is having the intended impact on pupil outcomes
9. review and approve any adjustments to the school’s approved budget (subject to the local scheme of delegation)
10. approve expenditure and virements – unlimited
11. undertake detailed scrutiny and recommend approval of the Schools Financial Value Standard (SFVS) and undertake actions identified as part of the SFVS
12. ensure local authority financial procedures are complied with
13. receive and act upon any issues identified by a local authority audit
14. ensure that the school follows basic procurement rules and achieves best value for money when acquiring goods and services
15. assess the school’s insurance cover to ensure that it provides adequate protection against risks

Premises, health and safety

16. ensure that safeguarding policies, procedures and training is effective and complies with the law at all times, having regard to statutory guidance Keeping Children Safe in Education
17. ensure appropriate risk assessments are carried out and reviewed on a regular basis, particularly in response to changes in equipment or circumstances
18. monitor the completion of actions and recommendations arising from risk assessments
19. review the school’s accessibility plan
20. receive an annual health and safety audit report and monitor any arising actions
21. receive a regular report on accident statistics, near misses, incidents of violence or aggression
22. ensure that a process is in place to approve educational visits, ensuring that health and safety planning and risk assessments have been undertaken for them
23. ensure that inspections of the school site, buildings and equipment take place (annually and at appropriate intervals), and a report is received identifying any issues
24. monitor the health and safety training that staff and governors undertake
25. review, adopt and monitor all policies delegated by the board

Curriculum:

The curriculum committee has delegated responsibility to:

1. review the curriculum offer, ensuring that statutory requirements are met

2. ensure that the curriculum offer reflects the school’s values

3. ensure that the curriculum meets the needs of all pupils regardless of ability, age, sex or ethnicity

4. ensure that the requirements of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are met, as laid out in the Code of Practice

5. ensure that the curriculum provides opportunities for pupils to become physically confident in a way which supports their health and fitness

6. ensure that required information relating to the school’s curriculum (and careers programme where relevant) is published on the school’s website

7. monitor and evaluate the results of pupil’s learning in terms of progress and attainment and how well pupils perform in examinations and assessments

8. evaluate the impact of the curriculum in terms of pupils’ preparedness for the next stage of education and employment

9. monitor and review the progress and attainment of specific groups of pupils including those in receipt of pupil premium funding and pupils with SEND

10. monitor and evaluate the impact of continuing professional development on the quality of teaching

11. advise the [finance committee] on the funding priorities necessary to deliver the curriculum

12. consider recommendations relating to teaching and learning from external reviews of the school (for example, Ofsted or local school improvement advisers), and ensure an appropriate plan is in place to act on any recommendations 13. review and monitor any policies delegated by the full governing body.

Headteachers Performance:

The purpose of the Committee is to appraise the headteacher via assessment against objectives and standards ensuring review of evidence to make judgements of performance.   

The Committee meeting will undertake a full formal review of performance, by 31 December each year, to:

• review the headteachers’ performance for the preceding academic year, having regard to both objectives set for the previous year and standards being used in used for performance management purposes;

• determine the recommendation to be made for headteacher pay progression where the headteacher is eligible for such progression;
• establish objectives for the current academic year and confirm standards (Headteacher or Teacher Standards) to be used in performance management for the current year; [The HTPM Committee should note the guidance regarding use of Teacher Standards or Headteacher Standards]
• establish any professional development required to support the headteacher in performance of their duties and/or achievement of objectives and standards;
• provide an opportunity to discuss wider matters pertinent to performance of the headteacher role, including general wellbeing and workload.
• The Committee will normally undertake an interim review with the headteacher, without external adviser input, in both the spring and summer terms. The interim reviews will consider evidence towards objectives and standards in the preceding period and discuss updated matters in relation to the fourth and fifth bullet points above. [The HTPM Committee will need to adjust this paragraph where one interim review is undertaken.]

Personnel:

1. review the staffing structure of the school annually, ensuring that it meets the requirements the school development plan, the curriculum and is affordable
2. consider applications from staff for variation to contract (such as secondments, early retirement, leave of absence, reduced working hours and flexible working requests)
3. review staff work-life balance, working conditions and wellbeing, including monitoring staff absence rates
4. oversee the operation of the appraisal policy, including making arrangements for the headteacher’s performance management
5. review pay decision data to ensure that pay increments are awarded fairly
6. ensure that staffing procedures (including recruitment procedures) comply with equality legislation and safer recruitment practice
7. monitor the provision of staff training and CPD, ensuring sufficient budget is allocated