Our School

• Appoint the Headteacher and other senior staff
• Help set the school’s vision, aims, plans and policies
• Offer support and advice to the school
• Act as a “critical friend”, challenging the school leadership where appropriate
• Approve and monitor the school’s budget
• Ensure the policies are appropriate and are implemented in the school
• Visit the school to confirm policies are implemented and to understand the school better
• Help to develop community links
• Review pupil discipline
• Focus on a safe and well-maintained learning environment

• Managing the day-to-day aspects of school life
• Inspecting the school and its teaching and learning
• Deciding on the way pupils are taught;
• Determining whether a pupil should be excluded

The Governing Board is made up of up to 12 members. There are 5 categories of members for a Community School: Parent; Staff; Community, Coopted and Local Authority. The Governing Board may also appoint an Associate Member.

A full list of the current Governors are as follows:

Copies of the signed minutes for Governing Board meetings are available from the School upon request.

School governors come from every walk of life and there is no requirement for you to have an educational background, indeed it is desirable to have a variety of skills and backgrounds on the Governing Board. The nature of the role is dependent on the individual school’s circumstances and legal requirements (e.g. its size, outcome of a recent Ofsted inspection etc) but will always contribute to the over-arching work of the governing body and link to the main focus of school improvement; thus ensuring the children and young people are able to achieve to the best of their ability, in a safe environment.

Samuel Lucas welcomes new Governors to join the team as this always brings a fresh perspective into the Governing Board.

• show commitment by attending meetings (full governing body and committee meetings)
• attend training when needed
• work as a member as part of a team without self-interest
• make visits to the school during the school day so you can know our school
• have the best interests of the school at heart

Yes.

A day’s ‘Governor Induction’ is run by the Hertfordshire County Council Governance Team and is recommended in the first 3 months of your new term of office. This will help you to understand more about the role of being a Governor and is usually run at the weekend. ‘Safeguarding Children for Governors’ training is also recommended in the first 6 months, as the welfare and safety of our children is paramount. This course normally takes 2-3 hours and is run regularly during the week in the evening.

When you become a Governor, the Chair of Governors or governor who oversees training will be able to help you book onto courses. Once your governor term is confirmed, you will also receive monthly emails with details of training courses on offer. At Samuel Lucas we encourage Governors to take any training that they feel they need.

If you are interested in becoming a governor and you are a parent of a child or a member of the wider community and would like to apply to join the Samuel Lucas governing body please contact the school directly regarding vacancies.

If you would like further detail or an informal discussion about becoming a Local Authority or Community governor in Hertfordshire, please (01438) 843082. Further information is also available on the Hertfordshire County Council website.