Elm Church of England Voluntary (Controlled) Primary School
Minutes of the Meeting of the Governors of Elm School held on Tuesday 19th January 2016
Membership:Mr N Buttress (Vice Chair)Mrs N Lloyd
Miss S BeresfordRev D Mason
Miss S BridgelandMr M McInally
Mr R Edwards (Chair)Mrs F Saul
Mrs L ExellMrs M Thompson
Mrs J Feaviour-ClarkeMrs K Tucker
Mrs N GoochMr A Whitehead
Mr A Howe (Headteacher)Mrs J Wickes
In Attendance:Mrs L Jellis (Clerk)
- Welcome and Apologies for Absence
The Chairman welcomed members to the meeting, his first as Chair. Apologies for absence had been received from Rev. Dawn Mason, Mrs S Land, Mrs Karen Tucker, Mr Andrew Whitehead and Mrs Nicola Lloyd.
- Declarations of Interest
There were no declarations of interest.
- Correspondence
The Chairman read out a letter from Mrs Siobhan Land resigning from her position as Foundation Governor due to personal circumstances. It was agreed that a letter of thanks should be sent to Mrs Land. Action: Vice Chair
The Chairman reported that he does not intend to fill any vacancies on the Governing Body at the present time.
- Minutes of the Governing Body Meetings held on:-
4.124th November 2015
The Minutes were agreed to be a true record and signed by the Chairman.
4.23rd December 2015
It was noted that Mrs Jane Feaviour-Clarke was present at the meeting, and Item 4 should read ‘The Acting Chair invited …..’. With these two amendments the Minutes were agreed to be a true record and signed by the Chairman.
- Matters Arising
A Governor asked if the Staff Well Being Questionnaire had been circulated to all staff. The two Governors responsible for this area reported that it was almost ready for circulation and would be distributed as soon as possible. Action: Mrs M Thompson/Miss S Bridgeland.
- Notification of Any Other Business
A Governor requested that the School Website is discussed under any other business.
The Chairman requested that in future items for Any Other Business are notified to the Clerk at least 5 days prior to the meeting so that any necessary information/advice etc., regarding the matter can be sought. Action: All Governors
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- School Improvement:
7.1Headteacher’s Report
The report had been circulated prior to the meeting and the Headteacher highlighted the main points contained within it.
Attendance is currently running at 94.7%, short of the school target of 96.1%. Persistent absenceis currently running at 17% (36 children), which is very high. The Headteacher also reported that 6 penalty notices had been issued in the first term following referrals to the EWO. However 54 one hundred percent attendance certificates had been awarded on the last day of term.
With regard to the Local Authority Review a Governor if any changes had been made in response to the comment regarding use of time (Item 4). The Headteacher reported that it is an ongoing process with further interventions being introduced e.g. new Maths package for tables.
The Headteacher reported that he is hopeful that improvements will be made to the pedestrian crossing outside the schooli.e. traffic calming, signage etc, however, the school will need to provide some of the funding. It was noted that the School Association may be able to provide some financial assistance and the Headteacher reported that a local resident has offered to assist. The Headteacher suggested that some form of fund raising could take place to raise the profile of the project.
7.2Local Authority Review Outcomes
The report had been circulated prior to the meeting. The Headteacher reported on some issues that have already been tackled following the review i.e. working walls, marking, and confirmed that dates have been agreed to check on developments. He also confirmed that three LA Advisors are currently working in the school.
A Governor asked if any support was in place to assist those teachers who need help. The Headteacher reported that various support is available i.e. teacher improvement course, support for specialist subjects, English and Maths, and directed support for certain teachers.
A Governor asked how often the teachers are observed, the Headteacher reported that this happens once a term and in addition learning walks take place.
A Governor asked how long the LA Advisors would be in school. The Chairman confirmed that they would not be withdrawn until the school went from red to amber. The Headteacher commented that he felt it would be some time before this happened as it would take time for the data to improve.
7.3LAIG Meeting – 4th December 2015
The Minutes had been circulated prior to the meeting. The Headteacher stressed the importance of confidentiality as staff had been named throughout the report. The Chairman reported that Governors must use their secure email for all matters concerning the Governing Body as a fine of £25,000 can be imposed for breach of confidentiality. Action: Clerk to check that all secure emails are currently working.
The Chairman stressed the need for the Governors to focus on the School Improvement Plan and what is happening in the school each term. He reported that he would attend the Curriculum Meeting schedule for 23rd February 2016 to look at the monitoring visits required and roles for Governors. He suggested that the Curriculum Committee is called the School
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Improvement Plan Committee in the future. He also requested that the next meeting is brought forward to Tuesday 2nd February 2016, and all agreed to this change. Action: Governors to note.
7.4Use and Effectiveness of Pupil Premium
It was agreed that this should be reviewed at the next meeting. Action: Headteacher
7.5School Improvement Plan
The Plan had been circulated prior to the meeting. The Chairman commented that the SIP is a ‘live’ document and will change regularly.
It was considered beneficial for a Governor to attend Attendance Meetings with the Education Welfare Officer. Action: Meeting dates to be circulated to all Governors for consideration – Headteacher/Clerk.
A Governor asked if some teaching staff are having to spend time dealing with behaviour issues rather than teaching in the class. The Headteacher reported that where staff are concerned about the behaviour of a child they are able to discuss this with a specialist. Also if a child is disruptive to the class they are sent out so as not to disrupt the learning environment. The card system was discussed and some Governors felt that it had a negative response from the younger children. The Headteacher reported that behaviour is not a problem in the early years but there are more issues in KS2.
It was noted that the specialist Governor for Maths is no longer on the Curriculum Committee and therefore another Governor needs to be appointed to this area. Action: Curriculum (S.I.P.) Committee Meeting on 2nd February 2016 – Chairman/Clerk.
A Governor asked if it was acceptable for Governors to attend staff meetings relative to their specialist areas. The Headteacher confirmed that Governors are most welcome to attend staff meetings at any time.
The Headteacher reported that a monitoring visit on Collective Worship needed to carried out and the Foundation Governor agreed to book a date for this to take place. Action:
J Feaviour-Clarke to contact the Headteacher as soon as possible.
It was noted that the figures on the Teaching Profile on Page 31 of the document require amendment. Action: Headteacher
7.6Governor Monitoring Visits
Reports from recent Governor Monitoring Visits had been circulated prior to the meeting.
The Chairman advised Governors to look at the Cambridgeshire County Council website for Governor Visits and Guidance Note 31. Governors commented that they had found the visits very valuable but needed guidance on what to look for and how to implement improvements. The Headteacher confirmed that visits need to be more focused and drive the SIP. Action: To be discussed at Curriculum (SIP) Committee Meeting on 2nd February 2016.
A Governor reported that he and another Governor had visited to look at how the new resources that had been purchased are being used in the classrooms. They felt that some staff needed more training in the use of the new screens. Lexia on the other hand had been very well received and all enjoyed using it. Action: Headteacher to report back on progress made at the next Governors Meeting.
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- Minutes of the Resources Committee Meeting held on 8th December 2015
The Minutes had been circulated prior to the meeting. The Headteacher reported that he felt more IT support was needed in the school. The Headteacher confirmed that the Nursery Manager had now returned to work.
A Governor reported that the list of Governors on the school’s website needs updating and also the Percuniary Interest Forms need to included. The Headteacher confirmed that the website is still ‘work in progress’.
A Governor asked for a copy of the paper relating to expenditure of Pupil Premium Grant monies discussed at the Resources Committee on 8th December 2015. Action: Clerk to provide copy.
- Safeguarding – Review on 15th January; Policy Amendments
The Safeguarding Policy had been circulated prior to the meeting the Headteacher confirmed that amendments discussed at the Governing Body Meeting in September had been incorporated into the document. The Governors agreed to adopt the policy.
The Headteacher reported that Paul Walker, from Cambridgeshire County Council, carried out a Safeguarding Review on 15th January 2016, but the formal written report has not yet been received. Feedback on the day indicated that with safeguarding procedures currently in place the school would pass an Ofsted Inspection. Some work however needs to be done on the Single Central Record e.g. headings out of date, or need to be changed etc. and it needs to be checked every month to ensure it is kept up to date, and also monitored by Governors.
Action: Headteacher
- Academy Status
The Chairman confirmed that an Extraordinary Meeting of the Governing Body had been called for Tuesday 26th January 2016 at 6.30pm when Andrew Read of DEMAT will give a presentation on Academy Status. Governors who wish to find out more prior to the meeting should go onto the DEMAT website.
A Governor asked why DEMAT had been approached. The Chairman reported that the Headteacher and Vice Chairman has attended a meeting in December 2015 regarding Academy Status. If the school’s results are not good next Autumn the school will have had 3 years of poor results, this will automatically trigger an Ofsted Inspection by 2017. Academy Status.
The Chairman stated that all Governors need to give careful and thorough consideration to this proposal as there is not going back one the decision has been made. Action: Governors to prepare questions for Andrew Read.
The Headteacher commented that by going to Academy Status by choice, and not forced to do so by Ofsted, it would give the school time for improvement as an Inspection could not take place for 36 months after changing to Academy Status.
A Governor asked if there would be any choice as to who the school went to for Academy Status. The Headteacher confirmed that as a Church of England School there would be no option but to go with DEMAT.
The Vice Chair reported that other Church of England Schools in the area i.e. St Peter’s and
Wisbech St Mary are with DEMAT. The Headteacher commented that this would provide the
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opportunity to work with other schools and it has been shown that working with another school brings about the greatest improvement.
- Governor Training
A report on Webinar Training attended by two Governors on 24th November 2015 had been circulated prior to the meeting.
The Chair and Vice Chair had attended a meeting at Shauldham Primary School re Monitoring in January 2016 and this had been led by Carol Peel of Governor Services.
The Vice Chair gave details of forthcoming training events and asked Governors to contact him if they wished to be booked on any. He highlighted the Governors Conference to be held on Saturday 5th March 2016 at Swavesey Village College.
- Any Other Business
12.1Website
It was agreed that this had been discussed earlier in the Agenda.
There being no further business the meeting closed at 8.30pm.
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R Edwards, Chairman.