Governors

Dear parents/carers and friends of Lythe School

We would like to introduce ourselves as the Governing Body of Lythe CEVC School and give you some information about who we are and what we have achieved during this academic year. Please see the 'Current Governors' section for full details.

The Governors work in partnership with the headteacher to oversee the strategic development of the school and to help shape its vision and direction. We strive to have a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the school and to challenge and support its senior management. The Governing Body also ensures that the school fulfils its statutory duties, including promoting inclusive policies in relation to special educational needs, race equality, disability and gender.

In 2020-21 we have moved from a committee structure to a "circle model" of governance, where the governing body works as a 'whole team' without any committees, and meets every half term, or more if required. This means that governors have up to date information regarding the school, and can offer timely support and challenge, as well as take action should the need arise.

The governing body may commission assignments or projects arising from the business of any particular meeting which will be recorded in the minutes. The governing body will also at times delegate monitoring activities to either individual or pairs of members. This delegation could relate to statutory functions or to priorities identified in the School Development Plan (SDP). Any delegated decisions will be reported back to the Full Governing Body (FGB).

To support this we have Link Governors (see below) to take a focussed oversight of key areas, and  a Pay Committee which convenes twice a year. There are also are committees which only function on an ad hoc basis:include the Complaints Committee and the Disciplinary Committee. Information about the formal complaints procedure is available on the schools website together with details of all other Lythe school policies.

Individual governors have been been elected to the following roles for 2020-21

Chair of Governors: Rev Malcolm Jackson

Vice-Chair of Governors: Mrs Susan Metcalfe

The following governors have taken on the role of Link Governor for 2020-21:

Safeguarding – Mrs Josie Owen

SEN – Mrs Susan Metcalfe

Health and Safety – Mr Shaun Pearson

Limits to the authority of the governors:

• No individual governor has authority to make decisions alone. Decisions are made collectively by the whole governing body.

• The governing body delegates management of the school to the Head Teacher.

 The governors of Lythe School are always open to communication with parents and we welcome the input of parents so that we can all work together for the good of all the children of Lythe school.

Become a Governor

If you are interested in serving as a school governor, please make this known to either the head teacher, the chair of governors or any member of the governing body. We have two elected parent governor places and five co-opted governor places which are open to anyone in the community with the right skill set and an interest in the school. A governor term of office lasts four years and a governor can be re-elected. Normally there will be changes in governors each year. So please let us know if you are interested.

Contacting the Governors

The Chair of Governors, Rev Malcolm Jackson can be contacted through the School Office on 01947 893373, via e-mail to chairofgovernors@lythe.n-yorks.sch.uk or via our website here. You can find a full list of governors in the 'Current Governors' section.