Mellis Church of England Voluntary Controlled

MELLIS CHURCH OF ENGLAND VOLUNTARY CONTROLLED

PRIMARY SCHOOL

Minutes of the meeting of the Governing Body of Mellis Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School held at the school at 4.15pm on 16th January 2014.

Present: / Mr Kevin Bix
Mr Richard Cattermole
Mr Gordon Clark
Mr Ben Makowiecki / Ms Clare Moore
Ms Jo Pitt
Mr Paul Ryle
In attendance: / Mr Darrel Charles (Observer)
Mr Kevin Gladwell (Observer)
Revd Julia Lall (Observer)
Ms Sarah Partridge (Observer)
Mr Michael Doig (LA Clerk)
1 / PRAYER/APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE/CONSENT TO ABSENCE / ACTION
1.1 / After leading those present in prayer, Revd Lall said that she would be pleased to act as a resource for foundation governors and, where appropriate, other governors. Governors welcomed Revd Lall’s kind offer of support.
Apologies for absence were received from Dr Box, Mrs Browne, Ms Fielder and Mrs Medwell.
Ms Moore was expected to arrive late. As a result, the meeting was not quorate and Mr Ryle, who was dealing with other urgent school business and could not attend the whole meeting, sat in to facilitate quoracy.
1.2 / Governors consented to these absences.
Ms Moore arrived at this point and Mr Ryle left the meeting.
2 / PECUNIARY AND OTHER INTERESTS
2.1 / No declarations of pecuniary or other interests regarding items on the agenda were made.
2.2 / Governors were reminded of the requirement to update their entries in the Register of Pecuniary Interests. Mr Clark undertook to do so, having been absent at the last meeting of the governing body.
3 / CHAIRMAN’S ACTION
The Chairman confirmed that no action had been taken.
4 / GOVERNING BODY MEMBERSHIP
4.1 / Mr Makowiecki welcomed Mr Charles, Mr Gladwell and Ms Partridge as observers and prospective Foundation Governors. There were no other changes in the membership to report.
4.2 / Noting the current vacancies for two Foundation Governors and one Community Governor, it was proposed, with the agreement of those concerned, that the applications of Mr Charles and Mr Gladwell be pursued with the Diocese and that Ms Partridge’s candidature change to that of a Community Governor to be pursued with Mellis Parish Council. In this regard, it was also noted that the school’s recent advertisements for applicants from the Mellis and Yaxley communities had elicited no responses.
Revd Lall left the meeting at this point. / BM/RC
5 / MINUTES
5.1 / The minutes of the meeting held on 14th November (copy in the Minute Book), having previously been circulated, were confirmed and signed by the Chairman.
5.2 / Matters arising from the minutes
Item 4.2 – Governing Body Membership: Action taken by Mr Cattermole.
Item 7.1 – Committee Minutes or Working Party Reports:
Committee Structure Document: Action taken by Mrs Medwell.
Yaxley Pre-School: Governors were informed that Mrs Mallinson had had to decline Dr Box’s invitation to act as the link between the Pre-School and Mellis for family reasons. With Ms Partridge’s agreement, Governors proposed that she act as Link Governor, when appointed, for the Pre-School.
Item 7.2 – Governor Visits: Action taken by Mr Clark.
Item 7.3 – Admissions: See Agenda Item 8.1.
Item 8 – School Development Plan:
Mr Ryle’s Job Description: Mr Cattermole informed Governors that although a draft JD was in place it had not yet been finalised for circulation to Governors for their approval. Mr Cattermole would so before the next meeting.
Attendance/Absenteeism: See Agenda Item 6.3. / RC/MD
6 / SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT
6.1 / Information Sheet
Governors received and noted the contents of the Information Sheet (copy in Minute Book). Mr Makowiecki took Governors through the Information Sheet and the following points arose:

• School Financing Scheme: there had been debate at the LA briefing for Chairs and Heads about the complex nature of the documents. The LA had agreed to revise the guidance to make them more easily accessible to Governors;
• Equality Duties: Schools are required to revise equality policies to take account of changes in the Equality Act;
• SEN: There are to be major changes to SEN policy, training for which would roll out in the Summer 2014 term. Mrs Browne to note;
• Pupil Premium: Governors welcomed the significant increases in PPF but Mr Cattermole cautioned that Free School Meals for all in KS1 was easier for schools with higher ratios of FSM pupils than it was for schools like Mellis with low numbers of qualifying pupils. Mellis would need to be able to show OFTSED what direct impact the funding had on relevant pupils;
• Curriculum Comparison Maps: Mr Makowiecki thought these could be useful tools for the Curriculum Committee and referred action to Mr Ryle;
• Families First Quality Standards: The LA believed this could be useful tool in promoting parent engagement. Mr Cattermole agreed but noted that this was not a problem issue at Mellis where parents meetings were well attended and the school enjoyed good relationships with the vast majority of parents;
• School Governance Policy Review: Mr Makowiecki asked Mr Doig to arrange Whole Governing Body training on this issue, both to brief new Governors and as a refresher for existing Governors.

/ AB
PR
MD
6.2 / The Importance of Data and Using RAISE Online Effectively
Governors received and considered the report of the Director for Children and Young People Services, Spring 2014/1 – yellow (copy in Minute Book).
As the dashboard data was not yet updated, Governors agreed to defer the challenging questions until the next meeting. In the meantime, Mr Cattermole explained the data streams that were available to Governors, e.g. Raise Online, Fischer Family Trust to help them assess pupil attainment and progress, and the basis on which they were used.
Mellis’ strengths lay in reading, maths and science. Performance in writing was poorer but still good comparative to other local schools. Development of pupils’ writing results was under constant scrutiny in staff meetings. Quality of assessments was also key: Mellis was confident of the quality of its marking across the board, a point borne out in consultations within the Pyramid Marking Group. At Mellis a mix of SATs results, the Ros Williams guide and teachers assessment were used to assess progress through the school but these measures could be difficult to assimilate. Mr Cattermole’s preference was to dispense with SATs in favour of teacher assessment based in Ros Williams.
Class monitoring and teaching of writing at Mellis was of high quality, aided by the observations of an external monitor in Years 2 and 6. Book reading lists were issued to parents which would should help generate good quality writing performance. Mr Cattermole also made the point that in his view expectation of writing skills development at Year 6 today equated to Year 9 level development a generation previously. Mellis Year 6 pupils had done well in a 10-plus test, favoured by Hartismere High School.
Mr Makowiecki thanked Mr Cattermole and urged other Governors to review the report and to prepare any questions they had on it in advance of the next GB meeting.
6.3 / Attendance at School
Governors received and considered the report of the Director for Children and Young People Services, Spring 2014/2 – blue (copy in Minute Book).
Noting recent GB discussion of this issue, Mr Makowiecki told Governors that Suffolk schools had slipped to the foot of the league table of neighbouring counties’ attendance performance. The LA were committed to turning this situation around. Governors recognised that this was a difficult issue to manage given the likely resistance of some parents to what they may view as a draconian policy, and Governors involvement in it, as opposed only to the Headteacher’s. But all schools were required by DfE/SCC to put in place measures to improve attendance. Mellis was already doing so in tasking a Committee to look at absence and a policy to combat it. Governors made the following additional points:

• Mr Cattermole thought the school’s revised policy would make a difference to attendance performance;
• Attendance performance and the school’s actions to improve it would be a focus of future OFSTED inspections;
• Only absences for bereavements or major family events qualified as authorised absences;
• Mr Clark asked if any categories of pupils, e.g. travellers, were not subject to absence rules. Mr Cattermole confirmed that if travellers moved into the area the school might take them in if asked to do so but recognised that their lifestyle precluded them for inclusion under the policy;
• Governors agreed with Mr Bix that, as there needed to be a named Governor responsible for absence, this should be a member of the Absence Committee but that the policy should make clear that any decision on specific absence cases was a committee decision.

6.4 / FFT Dashboard
Governors noted that this item had been discussed earlier in the meeting.
7 / STAFFING AND BUDGET ITEMS
7.1 / Revised Model Policies for School-Based Staff
Governors received and considered the report of the Director for Children and Young People Services, Spring 2014/3 – green (copy in Minute Book).
Governors asked the challenging questions detailed at the beginning of the paper. Mr Makowiecki told Governors that Suffolk schools were required to update all their policies using the model texts on the DfE/ SCC website. Mr Cattermole said that all the required policies were in place at Mellis and would be updated using the DfE models.
As regards the issue of delegating subject leader responsibility to named Governors, Mr Bix said that this practice had been used at Mellis previously and had subsequently been discontinued. Governors agreed that this proposal was not the best use of Governors time and should not be followed. / RC
7.2 / Budget Plan 2013/14
Mr Bix informed Governors that there were no major issues or concerns to report on, with the budget position being at or around where it was expected to be at the half year point, and with no undue pressures anticipated over the next 3-6 months. Mr Cattermole reported that the pupil roll stood at 169 children with two additional children beginning at the school in March. In summary, the budget looked in good shape going forward.
Mr Gladwell withdrew from the meeting at this point.
7.3 / Budget Plan 2014/15
Governors noted the requirement, under the Local Authority’s LMS Scheme, to approve the School Budget Plan by 31st March 2014. Mr Bix informed Governors that the relevant financial data would not be available in time for the Finance Committee’s meeting on 7th February 2014. It was therefore agreed to discuss this issue at the next Governing Body meeting. Mr Doig to add to the agenda. / Fin Com/
MD
7.4 / School Fund Account
Noting that Mr Alan Spence had been re-appointed as Honorary Auditor for the 2013/14 academic year, Mr Cattermole informed Governors that he had just received the audited accounts for the school year 2012/13 and would report back to Governors on this issue at the next meeting.
Mr Gladwell returned to the meeting at this point. / RC
8 / COMMITTEES AND WORKING PARTIES
8.1 / Admissions
Noting Governors recent email exchanges on the PAN, following Mellis’ consultations with the LA, Mr Makowiecki welcomed Governors approval of the new PAN of 175, with individual class sizes of between 23-25 pupils. The Finance Committee had looked at this issue and confirmed that this would ensure the school’s viability at for the next 5-6 years. As a school known for the quality of its performance, Mellis would have little difficulty in attracting pupils from within and outside the catchment area. Mr Cattermole noted the LA’s policy of pushing schools with under 200 pupils towards partnerships or federation and that this had been in the back of his mind in discussions with the LA. Maintaining quality of teaching was key but Governors should be aware that it was likely that class sizes would inevitably increase over the next 15 years but the revised PAN provided security for the next five years.
8.2 / Changes in Committee Structure, Membership or Delegations
Governors noted that with Mrs Dobson’s departure from the Governing Body, Mr Bix had agreed to chair the Finance Committee. Governors agreed to review committee membership and individual responsibilities when the prospective new foundation and community governors had been formally appointed.
8.3 / Committee Minutes or Working Party Reports
Governors noted that a new staff performance management policy and related issues would be discussed at Item 8.6.
8.4 / Governor Visits
Governors received a report from Mr Clark on his visit to the school on 6th November 2013 which had focused on careers guidance (copy in the Minute Book).
8.5 / Pupil Absence Policy
Governors noted that this item had been discussed earlier in the meeting. Mr Makowiecki reiterated that he would circulate a revised draft by email for Governors’ approval. / BM
8.6 / Performance Management/Salary Policy
Mr Gladwell left the meeting at this point.
At Mr Makowiecki’s request, Mr Cattermole also left the meeting while Governors discussed a confidential issue which is minuted separately.
9 /

EDUCATIONAL VISITS

Mr Cattermole returned to the meeting at this point.
Mr Cattermole informed Governors that there were no educational visits to approve.
10 /

GOVERNOR TRAINING

10.1 / Governors agreed to defer discussion of this item to the next meeting to take account of the training needs of the prospective new Governors. Mr Makowiecki urged any Governors who identified any training needs before then to contact Mr Doig or the LA with the relevant details. / All Govs
10.2 / Mr Makowiecki reported that the termly report on uptake of training had been received (copy in Minute Book).
11 / SUFFOLK GOVERNORS FORUM
Governors discussed the possibility of nominating a governor to sit on the Forum.Noting the deadline of 13th June 2014, Mr Makowiecki asked Governors to review the SGF papers in their meetings packs and consider whether they wished to nominate themselves for Forum membership. / All Govs
12 / ANY OTHER BUSINESS
Mrs Moore asked if there was anything that could be done to reduce traffic speed and improve road safety outside the school. Mr Cattermole said that he had had several discussions with the County Highways Department (CWD) on this issue over the years. The volume and speed of traffic had been monitored and various measures had been proposed. CWD did not now have the budget to undertake a major project, e.g. road or path widening, but could, as part of a resurfacing project (planned for summer 2014), include a white line calming measure that would reduce the road to a single lane. Tests proved that this was an effective way to reduce traffic speeds in similar situations. Mr Cattermole undertook to remain in contact with the CWD on this issue and to update Governors as necessary.
13 / DATES OF FUTURE MEETINGS
Governors confirmed that the next meeting would be held at 4.15pm on Thursday 6th March 2014 andthey agreed dates for the forthcoming year as follows:
Thursday 1st May 2014 at 4.15pm
Thursday 5th June 2014 at 4.15pm

The meeting closed at 7.15pm.

Signed
Date

Record of Committee Membership and Delegation to Individuals

School Name –Mellis Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary

Date Revised –14th November 2013

Name of Governor / G/AM* / Hearings / Appeals / Pupil Discipline / Pre-School / OFSTED / Finance / Buildings HS / Personnel / Curriculum / Head's Perf Mgmt Review / Individual Responsibility
Mr Kevin Bix (LEA) / G / XC / X / XC / XC
Dr Ben Box (COM) / G / XC / XC / Safeguarding
Mrs Angela Browne (STN) / G / X / SEN
Mr Richard Cattermole (HEA) / G / X / X / X / X / LAC
Mr Gordon Clark (PAR) / G / XC / XC / X
Ms Katie Fielder (PAR) / G / X / X / X / XC
Mr Ben Makowiecki(PAR) / G / XC
Mrs Nicola Medwell(PAR) / G / X / X / X / X
Ms Clare Moore (PAR) / G / X / X / X
Ms Jo Pitt (FOU) / G / X / X / X / X
Mr Paul Ryle (STT) / G / XC
Vacant (COM) / G / X / X / X / X
Vacant (FOU) / G / X / X / X
Vacant (FOU) / G
*Governor or Associate Member

X = member of Committee

C = Chair of Committee

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Spring 14