Governors

Honilands Primary School Governors

Welcome to the Governors section of Honilands Primary School website. Here we hope that you will find the answers to your governance questions, but if you have any further questions at all, please do not hesitate to contact Nick Turner, Chair of Governors.  Email address [email protected]

The school aims:

• Foster British Values so that there are good relationships across our diverse community that are open, challenging and equal
• Enrich the lives of our community so that everyone leaves Honilands with richer experiences that enhance their opportunities in life 
• Ensure that teaching and learning provision is at the core of what we do
• Nurture strengths as well as build resilience by learning through mistakes 
• Ensure that the whole community feels and can keep themselves safe and healthy in mind and body

The aims are underpinned by our School Values:

• Being kind and helpful
• Being good listeners
• Being respectful towards each other and the environment around us
• Being honest
• Being able to work hard
• Being able to keep ourselves and others safe

Annual Governors’ Statement 2022/23

Honilands has seen significant changes over the last 12 months. We have had a fantastic Ofsted inspection which resulted in the school being given a ‘Good’ status which was a massive improvement from our last inspection. The school has raised its levels of attainment whilst maintaining its highest levels of care and progress for our SEND children.

Furthermore, we take immense pride in our leaders who are now spearheading educational initiatives in other schools across both the Enfield and other London Boroughs, specifically in the areas of SEND and Moderation.

During this period, there has been a change in leadership, with Mrs. McNeely leaving us in December and Mr. Irvine assuming the role of Headteacher. As a result of Mr. Irvine's promotion, one of our existing Assistant Headteachers, Ms. Newport, has been promoted to the position of Deputy Headteacher. We, the governors of Honilands, are extremely proud of this progression, as it exemplifies our commitment to providing a nurturing environment where teachers can thrive and advance in their careers.

While the school continues to face a host of challenges, the biggest this year has been a decline in pupil numbers which is now impacting the school financially. With ever-decreasing budgets now being pressured with a fall in pupil numbers there has been a real challenge to ensure that the school operates within its financial boundaries.

Despite these ongoing changes and challenges, Honilands remains an extraordinary environment where children feel safe and comfortable to learn. The school consistently upholds high standards of behaviour throughout all areas, including classrooms, corridors, and playgrounds. This recognition has been acknowledged not only by Ofsted but also by the governors during their recent visit.

Governors:

Honilands is fortunate to have a small yet highly effective group of governors, each with a diverse range of skills and backgrounds. This ensures a balanced representation of knowledge and capabilities on the board, encompassing education, health and safety, business/finance, and other fields of expertise.

We actively encourage governors to participate in various training courses to stay updated with the latest information essential for effective governance.

Governors holding the school to account:

Governors have a duty to hold the school to account and ensure that we are giving our pupils the safest environment to get the best possible level of education. To achieve this, the governors use a host of external validation using specialists outside of Ofsted to ensure that we deliver at the highest standard. These specialists range from local authority school improvement partners to education experts in their particular field.

How the Governing Body is made up

There are staff, parent, co-opted and local authority Governors. Further details of our governors can be found on their profile page.

The Governing Board has three core functions:

• Making sure the school has a clear vision, ethos and strategic direction; 
• Holding the Headteacher to account for the performance of the school and its pupils; and 
• Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent. 

To make sure the Governors achieve these aims they work in partnership with the Headteacher and staff, supporting activities and achievement and helping the school respond to the needs of pupils, parents and the community. Governors do not intervene in the day-to-day management of the school. 

The Chair of Governors and standards chair have a close working relationship with the Headteacher and they meet regularly. 

Governing Body Meetings

Throughout the school year, Honilands governors convene a range of meetings, both virtual and physical. We hold regular Full Governing Body meetings where all governors attend to receive the Headteacher's report and discuss outcomes from sub-committee meetings.

Subcommittee meetings allow for comprehensive investigations into school matters, focusing on standards such as attainment, finance, and resources, including general operations.

Each year there is also a Governor’s Day where governors attend school as a group to carry out workshops; class visits and general observations which have proved really effective over the past few years.

The Chair of Governors is also in regular contact with the Headteacher to ensure that general operational matters have a platform where they can be discussed.

The governing body also have delegated roles to govern throughout the school year, based on their skill set but is not limited to:

The Governing Board has two Committees that meet once a term.  The Standards and Resources committees, reporting to the Full Governing Board once a term. 

The Resources Committee discusses matters such as the school budget, premises and staffing and Health & Safety. Its Terms of Reference, which are reviewed annually, can be found on our website, in the governors section.

The Standards & Pupil Welfare Committee covers matters such as raising standards, pupil outcomes and the well-being and safeguarding of pupils.

Its Terms of Reference, reviewed annually, can be found by following the link below.  

In addition to the Committee meetings, all Governors also meet once a term at the Full Governing Board meeting. A list of the Governing Board meeting dates for this academic year can be found by following the link below.  

Appointment of Headteacher and Deputy Headteacher Panel

Panel to include the following:

Chair of Governing Body

Vice-Chair of Governing Body

3 other governors as appropriate

Appointment of Teaching and Non-teaching Staff

Delegated to Headteacher, plus one additional Governor if requested by the Headteacher

All Governors are required to read and sign the Governors Code of Conduct and the Governor Visits Guidelines which you can be found by following the link below.  

Staff Capability and Discipline

Delegated to Headteacher up to and including dismissal. Governing Body to be involved at appeal stage only: Appeal Panel – 2 or 3 Governors to be formed when necessary.

Staff Grievance

2 or 3 Governors: Initial and Appeal Panels to be drawn from the Governing Body without any overlap of membership.

Redundancy and Re-deployment of Teaching and Non-Teaching Staff

An initial Panel (2 or 3 Governors) to be drawn from the Resources Committee and Appeal Panel (2 or 3 Governors) to be established if required.

Pay and Performance Management

To be considered by the Chair, Vice Chair and School Improvement Advisor

The governing body is responsible for the discharge of governance responsibilities, and effective governing bodies think carefully about how they are organised. Click here to see Honilands Governing Body Oganisational Arrangements. 

The Governors, like the rest of us in school, adhere to a code of conduct. The Governing Body Code of Conduct can be viewed here, click here.   

A record of Governor attendance at Full Governing Body meeings and Committess can be found here.

Follow the link to see our Governors register of Business interests.

To see the dates of 2022-22 Governing Body Meetings -  click here

A record of Governor attendance at the 2022-23 Full Governing Body meeings and Committess can be found here.

See the dates and attendance of last years Governing Body Meetings - Honilands_Governor_Attendance_report_22_23_1_.pdf

Nick Turner

Chair of Governors