Governance

Governors’ Statutory Responsibilities and Functions

The core functions of the governing body are but are not limited to ensuring:

that the vision, ethos and strategic direction of the school are clearly defined
that the headteacher performs their responsibilities for the educational performance of the school
the sound, proper and effective use of the school’s financial resources

A governing body and its governors must, as required by The School Governance (Roles, Procedures and Allowances) (England) Regulations 2013, regulation 6(2):

act with integrity, objectivity and honesty and in the best interests of the school
be open about the decisions they make and the actions they take and shall be prepared to explain their decisions and actions to interested parties

The governing body also has legislative responsibility and strategic oversight for the school’s safeguarding arrangements.

Governance Guide

Please refer to the Governance Guide published by the Department for Education. The latest versions are available online: Maintained schools governance guide

Review of committees and delegation

The governing board must review the committee structure, terms of reference for each committee and the membership of each committee on an annual basis.

Terms of Reference

The following committees established by the governing board comply with The School Governance (Role, Procedures and Allowances) (England) Regulations 2013.

The head teacher/principal can attend all meetings of any committee established by the governing board but in some instances, this may only be in an advisory capacity. When an issue is being discussed which directly affects the head teacher/principal they must, as with any other governor in a similar position, declare an interest and physically withdraw from the meeting.

In maintained schools the quorum for a meeting of the full governing board and for any vote on any matter at such meeting, is one half (rounded up to a whole number) of the membership of the governing board at the time of the meeting not including any vacant positions. In the event of equal votes, the chair has the casting vote.

Virtual meeting arrangements

The Governing Board has approved the use of “virtual attendance” at meetings (approved at FGB meeting on 30^th September 2026). For full details, please refer to the Virtual Governance Policy.

Collaborative Agreement

The governing board has approved the use of a collaborative agreement between Sandwell LA approved at the FGB meeting on 30^th September 2026, in line with the School Governance (Collaboration) Regulations and the School Governance (Roles, Procedures and Allowances) (England) Regulations 2013, and The School Staffing (England) regulations 2009.

Committees

The legal minimum quorum for committee meetings is three voting governors. The quorum for committees will not include associate members - despite any voting rights they may have been given - as they aren’t considered to be members of the governing board.

The appointed governance professional will undertake the clerking of the committees.

The committee minutes shall be included as an agenda item for consideration/information at the next meeting of the full governing board where appropriate.

All decisions made by committees with delegated powers should be reported to the next full meeting of the governing board. If the minutes are not finalised a brief statement of the conclusions reached should be given.

The chair of the committee will be appointed at the first full governing board/committee meeting of the academic year. Governors who are employed by the school are not eligible to be appointed as chair.

Committees will have delegated powers to approve policies as relevant to that committee.

The governing board cannot delegate any functions relating to:

The constitution of the governing board (unless otherwise provided by the constitution regulations),
The appointment or removal of the chair and vice chair/clerk,
The appointment or removal of governors,
The suspension of governors,
The delegation of functions and establishment of committees,
Change of school name or status,
Salary range for the head teacher/principal & deputy/vice principal.

Associate Members

In maintained schools the governing board can appoint associate members to serve on one or more committees of the board. Associate members can attend full board meetings but may be excluded from any part of a meeting where the business being considered concerns a member of school staff or an individual pupil. They can be appointed for a period of between one and four years and can be re-appointed at the end of their term. Associate members are not governors, and they are not recorded in the instrument of government (Extracted from the Maintained Schools Governance Guide, Governance Structures, types of governors 5.3.5).

NB: Associate members are not governors and therefore do not have a vote in full governing board decisions but may be given a vote on decisions made by committees to which they are appointed.

Finance & Personnel Committee

The committee has responsibility delegated by the governing board to:
Finance: Review/approve all policies relevant to finance and roles of the committee. Approve the annual budget and present it to the full governing board for ratification. Review the actual expenditure and monitoring statements at least once a term. Receive & review financial projections. Review Pupil Premium/ PE& Sports Premium and ensure impact statements are published on the school’s website. Approve expenditure and virements of sums over £20,000, sums below that amount are delegated to the Head Teacher/Principal. Conform to the Schools Financial Value Standards in Schools Assess the financial progress towards achieving the objectives in the school improvement plan. Review of leases and contracts – including traded services. Ensure Best Value principles apply. Review the financial implications on the budget of the pay and conditions document. Receive the annual accounts and certificate of audit of the school fund account and other voluntary funds held within school. Assess the school’s insurance cover to ensure that it provides adequate protection against risks. Review and approve internal financial procedures and controls. Ensure LA/academy financial procedures are complied with. This is to include: A Cost Centre Group Report or Account Summary Report (or equivalent ) A Virement Report, A copy of the latest Suspense File ( non-cheque book and EPA schools only) A system report showing cumulative expenditure of £10,000 or more with an individual supplier. Note: This must not be restricted to an individual financial year and may cross a number of financial years Ensure tenders are sought when expenditure is expected to exceed the Public Contract Regulations limit for tendering. Information on tendering limits can be found under route 5 at Buying for schools: how to buy what you need - Find the right route to buy - Guidance - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) Obtain quotations with a view to placing contracts/orders, once the relevant committee has drawn up a specification. Staffing: Review/approve all policies relevant to staffing and roles of the committee. Consider applications from staff for variation to contract (secondments, early retirements, leave of absence, reduced working hours etc). Refer to local policy guidance. Ensure all personnel records are held securely. Review the staffing structure of the school annually ensuring that it meets the requirements of the curriculum and is in line with the school improvement plan. Review staff work/life balance, working conditions and well-being, including the monitoring of absence. Implement the appraisal policy and monitor teacher appraisal process. Equal Opportunities. Establish and maintain rolling programme for Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) Checks. Staff training and CPD. *Any item referred by the full governing board*
Membership
Steven Hadley Peter Higgins Siobhan Francis Felicity Somervell *Minimum of three members required*
Chair of Committee	Steven Hadley
Clerk	Joanne Morgan

Staffing Committee: Grievance/Disciplinary/Dismissal/Redundancy and Redeployment/Capability/Management of Absence/Dignity at Work

The committee has responsibility delegated by the governing board for hearing:
The committee will consider any issues pertaining to staffing and personnel, in line with HR policies and procedures. This includes but is not limited to; Staff grievance and discipline (in line with school policies) Staff dismissal, redundancy and redeployment Staff capability Management of absence Dignity at work
Membership
To be made up of members who have no awareness of the original incident and are not known personally to the member of staff *Minimum of three members required*
Chair of Committee	To be elected at each meeting
Clerk

Pupil Discipline Committee

The committee has responsibility delegated by the governing board to:
Consider and decide on the reinstatement of a suspended or permanently excluded pupil within 15 school days of receiving notice of a suspension or permanent exclusion from the headteacher if: it is a permanent exclusion; it is a suspension which would bring the pupil's total number of school days out of school to more than 15 in a term; or it would result in the pupil missing a public examination or national curriculum test Receive and consider any representations lodged by parents of pupils who have been suspended or permanently excluded. Comply with exclusion procedures in accordance with the LA & DfE guidance *Any item referred by the full governing board*
Membership
To be made up of members who have no awareness of the original incident and are not known personally to the appellant parents or pupils *Minimum of three members required*
Chair of Committee	To be elected at each meeting
Clerk

Complaints Committee

The committee has responsibility delegated by the governing board to:
At the relevant stage hear any complaint made under the school complaints procedures *Any item referred by the full governing board*
Membership
To be made up of members who have no awareness of the original incident and are not known personally to the complainant *Minimum of three members required*
Chair of Committee	To be elected at each meeting
Clerk

Appeals Committee

The committee has responsibility delegated by the governing board for hearing appeals with regard to:
Pay Redundancy Staff grievance Leave of absence – if appropriate Staff dismissal Dignity at Work Any Item referred by the full governing board *When dealing with an appeal the committee should be equal to or greater than the original committee that made the decision*
Membership
To be made up of members who have no awareness of the original hearing and are not known personally to the appellant *Minimum of three members required*
Chair of Committee	To be elected at each meeting
Clerk

Pay Committee

The committee has responsibility delegated by the governing board to:
Undertake functions in relation to appraisal and pay progression as determined in the pay policy. *Committee to meet once per year in the autumn term*
Membership
Minimum of three members required. Cannot be HT or governor employed by the school Any representations made by staff following the initial decision of the Pay Committee must be heard in the first instance by the same members of the committee. Stephanie Cross Siobhan Francis Claire Mahmood
Chair of Committee	To be elected at the initial meeting
Clerk

Head Teacher Appraisal

The committee has responsibility delegated by the governing board to:
Meet the external advisor to discuss the Head Teacher’s performance targets Decide whether targets have been met and set new targets annually Recommend pay progression to the relevant committee and in accordance with the pay policy Undertake mid-year monitoring of the Head Teacher’s performance against targets
Membership
Angela Dunnett Steven Hadley Felicity Somervell *Minimum of two members required*
Chair of Committee	To be elected at the initial meeting
Clerk

Governance

Membership