Welcome to Heronswood School Improvement Board - Governance

The main role of the School Improvement Board (SIB) is to provide strategic leadership and accountability in schools. Our Head Teacher, Mrs Pierpoint is responsible for the day-to-day running of the school. She is responsible for the internal organisation, management and control of the school and the implementation of the strategic framework established by the SIB. 

Governance at Rivers CofE Academy Trust: Moving Forward 

During the last eighteen months, Rivers conducted its first external review of governance since the trust was established in 2014. The review was commissioned because trustees and school improvement boards recognised that the governance needs of the trust have changed as a result of its rapid growth over the last five years. Nationally, multi-academy trusts are recognising that trust governance needs to evolve as trusts develop and grow and many are now looking to implement new governance structures. Rivers is committed to being a leader and champion of innovative and sector-leading governance practice. 

Historically, the trust’s local governance has been provided through local governing bodies and, more recently, school improvement boards. The new structure will create advocate roles at local level to replace the existing school improvement boards. The aim of the proposed new governance structure is to define clearly the roles and responsibilities of the different governance tiers to avoid duplication, to strengthen communication between governance tiers and to maximise the use of the skills, knowledge and expertise of everyone within the governance team in order to ensure impactful governance across the trust. The new structure will ensure that pupils remain at the core of all decision-making. Trustees recognise the importance of the local voice and are committed to ensuring that the local tier contributes to the development of organisational thinking. Importantly, the election of two parent representatives per school will ensure that the voice of parents/carers will contribute to decisions made at trust board level. 

Please do not hesitate to contact Kate Brunt, CEO of Rivers CofE Academy Trust, if you have any further questions or comments about our proposed new governance structure: kbrunt@riverscofe.co.uk  

The role of the SIB Members is a strategic one, its key functions are to:

See below for more information.

All Governors provide their time on a voluntary basis. They are expected to attend Local Governing Body meetings which are held once a term and in addition attend workshops and school visits on a regular basis. Our Local Governing Body consists of the following individuals: 

Representing	Name	Appointed by	Date Appointed	Term Expires	Link Governor Role
Head Teacher	Mrs Pierpoint	RMAT	4.9.14 conversion date to Academy	NA
Community Governors	Phil Coldicott Chair	RMAT and LSIB	5.1.16 5.1.20	5.1.24	Computing & E-Safety,  NQTs, Leadership and Management
	Lindsey Hyde	RMAT and LSIB	1.10.19	1.10.23	Website and Policies
	Sue Mills	RMAT and LSIB	26.11.19	26.11.23	SEND, EAL, Behaviour and Learning Attitudes
	Vanessa Eyles	RMAT and LSIB	28.1.20	28.1.24	Attendance, Safeguarding and Legal
	David Grist	RMAT and LSIB	28.1.20	28.1.24	Data, Curriculum, Growth and HR
Parent Governors	Sarah Poole Vice Chair	Parents through election process	13.11.18	13.11.22	Early Years
	Nicholas Watson	Parents through election process	10.1.17  10.1.21	10.1.25	Finance, Pupil Premium, LAC and PLAC
Staff Governors	Mrs Crockett	Staff through election process	17.10.13  17.10.17	17.10.21	Health and Safety
	Mrs Kingston	Staff through election process	11.11.19	11.11.23	GDPR
Clerk	Tracy Barnes	RMAT	5.9.16	NA	Governor Training