Governors

The Governing Body of Bird in Bush School consists of a board of 11 members who represent different parts of the school community and who all bring different skills to the task of leading our school at this time in its infancy as Southwark’s newest Primary School.

These members include:

3 Local Authority (LA) appointed governors who are appointed by the LA which maintains the school. They do not work for the LA but are people who live or work locally and are interested in supporting a local state funded primary school. 

2 Parent Governors who are voted onto the governing body by other parents/carers of children who attend the school. Parent governors play an important role in shaping the educational experience of all the children at Bird in Bush School.

4 Co-opted Governors who are appointed by the governing body to represent the local community. These governors are selected for the skills they bring to the Governing Body.

2 Staff Governors, one of whom is the Headteacher. The other staff governor is elected by the school staff team. Staff governors represent the views of staff at governing body meetings. 

School governors provide strategic leadership and accountability in schools. They are responsible for appointing the head teacher and deputy headteachers and hold the main responsibility for finance. Governors work with the Headteacher and Senior Leaders as 'critical friends' and provide support. 

Each individual governor is a member of a governing board, which is established in law as a corporate body. Individual governors may not act independently of the rest of the governing board; decisions are the joint responsibility of the governing board.  

The governing boards key functions are to:

  • set the aims and objectives for the school

  • set the policies for achieving those aims and objectives

  • set the targets for achieving those aims and objectives

  • monitor and evaluate the progress the school is making towards achievement of its aims and objectives

  • be a source of challenge and support to the headteacher (a critical friend)

The headteacher is responsible for the internal organisation, management and control of the school and the implementation of the strategic framework established by the governing body.