The governors at Whitestone play a significant role and are responsible for the strategic direction of the school together with the head teacher and senior leadership team.  They manage the school, but we oversee the development with the primary focus to consistently provide an extremely high standard of education to pupils of all abilities.  As the accountable body for the school, the governing body has three main roles:

• provide a strategic view of where the school is heading. This is done by reviewing and agreeing policies, targets, priorities, and monitoring and reviewing aims and objectives.
• act as a critical friend to the school. The governing body works with the head teacher to create a clear understanding of the challenges faced in managing the school. The governing body should feel able to question and challenge and this is achieved through trust and mutual respect.
• hold the school to account for the educational standards it achieves and the quality of education it provides. The governing body uses its collective skills to benefit the children, by gathering views and asking questions to determine what is best for the school.

Our governors have a variety of skills and backgrounds that provide the school with a wide range of skills to support and give a fresh perspective. We are unified in our strong commitment to the school’s vision and ethos of "hand in hand we learn".   Governors include parents, school staff, community co-opted and local authority representatives.  Parent governors are elected by parents of the school and serve, as do other governors, for four years.  We have set meetings throughout the academic year to discuss the work and performance of the school and how we can make improvements.

Governors visit school during the year and focus on their chosen subject link i.e. Special Educational Needs, Finance, ICT, Safeguarding etc and meet with teachers and responsible staff.  This is an important opportunity to see the school in action and governors really enjoy the chance to meet staff and children to learn about what makes our school special.

As chair of governors, I know that Whitestone School is achieving the highest standards for all of our children. All governors, staff and children feel immensely proud to be part of our school and this can be seen in everything they do.

If you are interested in becoming a governor, the head teacher will be pleased to provide further details. 

Kind regards

Mark Hartopp