The Governing Body
St Mary's Church of England Primary School and Nursery is a voluntary controlled, maintained school operating within an Instrument of Governance co-authorised by Southampton City Council and the Diocese of Winchester.
The Governing Body of the school conforms to standing orders and each governor is required to comply with a Code of Conduct which includes declaring relevant business and pecuniary interests. (Our Governor Terms of Reference are attached below).
All governors (with the exception of the Executive Headteacher) are appointed for a 4-year term of office which may be renewed. Parent governors are elected by parents of children currently attending the school; the local authority governor is appointed by Southampton City Council; the staff governor is elected by employed members of staff; and co-opted governors are appointed by the Governing Body to ensure a balance of skills, knowledge and experience is maintained. St Mary's also welcomes Foundation governors - typical in a Church of England school - appointed by a religious body or trust to preserve the school's specific religious ethos, character, and foundation deed.
GOVERNANCE AT ST MARY'S
St Mary's Governors are each assigned to support and monitor the work of the school. This is in conjunction with our school's Development Plan/Big Moves and the Rhythm of the Year (monitoring schedule).
Big Moves 2026-27:
The role of the Governing Body is to exercise a civic duty of accountability for the strategic operation of the school. The role of a governor is not to involve oneself with the operational (daily running) of the school or the decision-making of the Executive Headteacher.
Governor Roles & Responsibilities:
School improvement is a shared endeavour - after all the school is judged for leadership and governance. To this end, we ensure that our working relationships are closely entwined enabling governors to feel like they are an extended part of our leadership team. Governors ensure they are appraised of school improvement and measure impact first-hand through attendance at SLT meetings and briefings, regular work outside of the FGBs with middle leaders and attending school training to see how initiatives are implemented for impact.
Contacting the Governing Body:
Our Governing Body plays an important role in the strategic leadership and oversight of St Mary’s. Governors provide support and challenge to school leaders, oversee key areas including educational standards, safeguarding, finance and inclusion and help ensure that the school continues to serve its pupils, families and wider community effectively.
There may be occasions when parents, carers or members of the community wish to contact the Governing Body. This might include matters relating to governance, the strategic direction of the school, governor vacancies, attendance at governor meetings, community partnerships or correspondence specifically intended for the Chair of Governors or Governing Body.
Governors are not responsible for the day-to-day management of the school and contacting governors is not a way to bypass the school’s established procedures.
In particular, complaints should not be submitted directly to individual governors. St Mary’s has an established Complaints Policy which sets out the stages through which concerns and complaints must progress. This ensures that concerns are considered by the appropriate person, that everyone is treated fairly and that governors remain sufficiently independent should they be required to consider a complaint at a later stage of the process.
If you wish to contact the Governing Body on an appropriate governance matter, correspondence should be directed through Karen, our Clerk to Governors, who will ensure it is passed to the appropriate governor or committee.
Email: clerk@stmaryspri.org.uk
Governance Terms of Reference
Our Terms of Reference enable all governors, those on a local governing body and those working across the partnership of schools to have an established guide to the committees, working practices and expectations for supporting and challenging our schools.
Meetings 2026-27
| Full Governing Body meetings | Curriculum & Assessment Committees: |
|
|
Rhythm of the Year
