Our Governors

First, a little introduction about why we have governors and what they do...

The Role of the Governing Board

Welcome to our Governors’ section.


Here you will find lots of information about our Governing Body and their roles in school. 


The Role of the Governing Board


The governing board provides strategic leadership and accountability for the school and its community.

 

Governors have three main functions:

  • Oversee the financial performance of the school and make sure its money is well spent
  • Hold the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils
  • Ensure clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction is maintained

 

Governors work with the headteacher to set aims and objectives for the year alongside development of policies and procedures to enable achievement. They monitor and evaluate the progress the school is making and act as a source of challenge or 'critical friend' with which to support the headteacher.

 

Governors are expected to:

  • Make decisions about how money is spent and budgets are managed 
  • Support the performance management of the staff and senior leaders
  • Engage with the school community by attending events and arranging time to visit the school
  • Address a range of education issues within the school including disadvantaged pupils, pupils with special needs, staff workload and teacher recruitment
  • Ask challenging questions about data, pupil premium, SEN and other pupil groups
  • Sit on panels and make decisions when required such as staff discipline/complaints
  • Attend relevant training to keep up to date with education changes and statutory compliance


The Governing Board has two committees:

  • Standards Committee - Governors focus on the welfare of pupils, data-progress and attainment, educational development, safeguarding.
  • Assets Committee - Governors focus on the financial performance of the school analysing reports and making sure money is well spent

Our Governing Body

Angela Whitney

Chair of Governors

CHAIR OF GOVERNORS
HT PERFORMANCE LEAD
YEAR 3 LINK
RE AND RSHE GOVERNOR
WHOLE SCHOOL LINK

ATTENDANCE LINK GOVERNOR 






Mary Kearsley

Foundation Governor

CHAIR FOR STANDARDS COMMITTEE, ASSETS, SAFEGUARDING GOVERNOR

SEN GOVERNOR

CLA & PUPIL PREMIUM

HT PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT RECEPTION, YEAR 4 LINK GOVERNOR/SUBJECT LINK GOVERNOR FOR GEOGRAPHY, RSHE, EARLY YEARS

Stephen Grayson

Vice Chair

CHAIR OF FINANCE COMMITTEE

YEAR 5 LINK GOVERNOR

SUBJECT LINK GOVERNOR FOR COMPUTING, PE, DESIGN 








Chris Higgins

Foundation Governor

STANDARDS
CLASS LINK GOVERNOR FOR YEAR 1

SUBJECT LINK GOVERNOR FOR ART, MUSIC, HISTORY








Vicky Hitchen

Staff Governor

Jennifer Armstrong

Parent Governor

STANDARDS

YEAR 2 and YEAR 6 LINK GOVERNOR

SUBJECT LINK GOVERNOR FOR ENGLISH, MATHS, MFL







Chris Ready

LA Governor

SSETS

CLASS SUBJECT LINK GOVERNOR FOR GEOG, ECO









Louise Vose

Headteacher

Marie Collier

Clerk to Governors

  • Angela Whitney

    I am Divisional Director of a Dutch distribution company heading the Food business in the UK. I am the Chair of Governors. All my three children have attended our school and I initially became a parent governor to give something back to the school. Having experience of working in a business environment I felt that I could help those aspects of school life that require a discipline and skill in finance, recruitment and management. Whilst this is the case, it is the time spent in school understanding what impact our decisions as Governors make to each child, that is most rewarding. Working with the staff and the children themselves to make a better learning environment and ensure that each child achieves to the best of their ability defines the role.

  • Stephen Grayson

    I am a partner at a large accountancy practice in Manchester city centre.


    I am delighted to have been appointed as a Foundation Governor for the school.


    I have 2 children already at the school and another child who will eventually follow in their footsteps. Therefore I am keen to ensure that the school continues to create the right culture for learning and development of all the children.

  • Jennifer Armstrong

    I am a parent Governor. I have two children who attend school at St Mary and St John primary school. I have been a parent governor at this school since 2018. Previously, have also been a staff governor at the school where I work.


    I am a primary school teacher and have worked in a variety of school settings for over fifteen years. I am passionate about education and believe primary education is vitally important to a child. I also feel children should feel safe and supported in a nurturing environment where they can thrive. This supports the ethos that the school already upholds. I feel all my experience will support my role as a governor to the school.

  • Vicky Hitchen

     I am the deputy head teacher at St Mary and John catholic Primary School.  I have worked in education for the past 22 years and have spent the last 18 years working at St Mary and John Catholic Primary School. During this time I have worked in many different class and experienced a wide age range of children from Y1 to Y6 inclusive.  I really  enjoy all aspects of my work and  find it extremely rewarding to see the children's journey across each academic year.  I am the maths coordinator at school and have a love of maths, I work extremely hard to ensure that my enthusiasm and enjoyment of this subject is shared with the children.


    In recent years my governor role has provided the opportunity for further personal development and I am proud to be one of the school Governors.

  • Mary Kearsley

    I was appointed as a Foundation Governor in September 2018. I retired as Headteacher of the school in 2013 and feel so privileged to be actively working alongside the staff and pupils again. My four grandchildren have all attended the school. The elder two are now in further education with the younger two still pupils at the school. Since retiring I have worked on a part time basis with the headteachers of a number of the Catholic Schools within the Salford Diocese. I am active within the parish, leading both the Sacramental Programme team and the Children’s Liturgy group. This gives me the opportunity to meet and get to know the children and their parents outside of school. I strive to support the school to sustain its excellence and maintain the very positive ethos that provides such a safe and caring learning environment in which the children can thrive.

  • Chris Higgins

    I am a Foundation Governor. I am a parishioner at St John’s Church and I am heavily involved with the community there where I administer the website and Facebook pages amongst other duties. I am passionate about Catholic Education (having worked as a teacher in catholic schools for nearly 30 years). I am delighted to be part of the governing body, supporting the school in its mission of educating children to become committed, resilient, considerate and happy members of our community – learning to shine and be the best that they can be!

  • Zoe Charnock

    My name is Zoe Charnock, I am a parent Governor and currently have a child at the school and another who attended the school and has recently moved onto secondary school.  I currently work in HR  & OD services within Wigan Council.  I have over 20 years’ experience of supporting schools within the Borough with all their HR related matters, providing advice, support and customer-focused solutions.  I hope that my knowledge and skills will have a positive contribution to the school community in order to provide the best outcomes for our pupils, raising aspirations and ensuring that our children reach their full potential in a safe, supportive and stimulating environment.

The constitution is twelve. 

 

The Governors remit is to:


a) Ensure clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction;

b) Hold the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils and the performance management of staff;

c) Oversee the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.

Governor Diversity Statement

Governing Body Diversity Statement Dec 2023 The Governors of St Mary and St John Catholic Primary School believe it is important that the Governing Board reflects the diversity of our school community. Diverse Boards promote inclusive school environments and provide diverse role models for our children and young people.


Data is currently collected on the diversity of the Board, which is used to inform our recruitment and training needs to ensure that there is always a diverse range of perspectives around the table to support robust decision making. However, due to our relatively small Board we do not publish this data online as individual Governors could be identified and we have a legal obligation to protect their personal data.

Key Documentation

Governor Details Registration of Interests Governor Attendance Records 23-24 Governor Attendance Records 22-23
  • Angela Whitney

    I am Divisional Director of a Dutch distribution company heading the Food business in the UK. I am the Chair of Governors. All my three children have attended our school and I initially became a parent governor to give something back to the school. Having experience of working in a business environment I felt that I could help those aspects of school life that require a discipline and skill in finance, recruitment and management. Whilst this is the case, it is the time spent in school understanding what impact our decisions as Governors make to each child, that is most rewarding. Working with the staff and the children themselves to make a better learning environment and ensure that each child achieves to the best of their ability defines the role.

  • Stephen Grayson

    I am a partner at a large accountancy practice in Manchester city centre.


    I am delighted to have been appointed as a Foundation Governor for the school.


    I have 2 children already at the school and another child who will eventually follow in their footsteps. Therefore I am keen to ensure that the school continues to create the right culture for learning and development of all the children.

  • Jennifer Armstrong

    I am a parent Governor. I have two children who attend school at St Mary and St John primary school. I have been a parent governor at this school since 2018. Previously, have also been a staff governor at the school where I work.


    I am a primary school teacher and have worked in a variety of school settings for over fifteen years. I am passionate about education and believe primary education is vitally important to a child. I also feel children should feel safe and supported in a nurturing environment where they can thrive. This supports the ethos that the school already upholds. I feel all my experience will support my role as a governor to the school.

  • Vicky Hitchen

     I am the deputy head teacher at St Mary and John catholic Primary School.  I have worked in education for the past 22 years and have spent the last 18 years working at St Mary and John Catholic Primary School. During this time I have worked in many different class and experienced a wide age range of children from Y1 to Y6 inclusive.  I really  enjoy all aspects of my work and  find it extremely rewarding to see the children's journey across each academic year.  I am the maths coordinator at school and have a love of maths, I work extremely hard to ensure that my enthusiasm and enjoyment of this subject is shared with the children.


    In recent years my governor role has provided the opportunity for further personal development and I am proud to be one of the school Governors.

  • Mary Kearsley

    I was appointed as a Foundation Governor in September 2018. I retired as Headteacher of the school in 2013 and feel so privileged to be actively working alongside the staff and pupils again. My four grandchildren have all attended the school. The elder two are now in further education with the younger two still pupils at the school. Since retiring I have worked on a part time basis with the headteachers of a number of the Catholic Schools within the Salford Diocese. I am active within the parish, leading both the Sacramental Programme team and the Children’s Liturgy group. This gives me the opportunity to meet and get to know the children and their parents outside of school. I strive to support the school to sustain its excellence and maintain the very positive ethos that provides such a safe and caring learning environment in which the children can thrive.

  • Chris Higgins

    I am a Foundation Governor. I am a parishioner at St John’s Church and I am heavily involved with the community there where I administer the website and Facebook pages amongst other duties. I am passionate about Catholic Education (having worked as a teacher in catholic schools for nearly 30 years). I am delighted to be part of the governing body, supporting the school in its mission of educating children to become committed, resilient, considerate and happy members of our community – learning to shine and be the best that they can be!

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