A welcome from the Chair of Governors
On behalf of the full Governing Body of Airy Hill Primary School, may I wish you a very warm welcome to our school.
Firstly, a little bit about me. I have been a school Governor for almost eight years and was elected as Chair in September 2018. I find being a Governor a very rewarding. With all my 3 children attending the school over the past nine years, I can certainly say that Airy Hill School has meant a lot to our family. I am passionate about doing my best for all the children at our school.
The Governing Body is responsible for setting the strategic development of the school and to support and challenge the Headteacher in achieving its priorities and goals. We currently stand as an OfSTED rated Good school and we are positive and committed in moving forwards towards Outstanding.
Each Governor has an area of school that they take a special interest in. This means that, as well as attending full Governing Body meetings, each Governor comes into the school to monitor their specific area. We have Governors from all different backgrounds to bring a wide range of skills and expertise.
Governors are often present in school so that we can see the children at work and to talk to them, to support the dedicated staff and to ensure the clarity of vision and ethos of the school is at
We aim to give our pupils what they need to succeed in life in order to become caring members of the community with strong moral values, and to encourage their creativity and drive through thoughtful academic study so that they achieve their true potential.
Airy Hill School operates an open-door policy and we encourage parents to be involved in school life. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact myself or Mrs Matthewman, our Headteacher.
Andrew Hatchwell
Chair of Governors
Address: 3 Esk Terrace, Whitby, YO21 1PA.
What is the role of a governing body?
Establishing the strategic direction, by:
– Setting the vision, values, and objectives for the school
– Agreeing the school improvement strategy with priorities and targets
– Meeting statutory duties
Ensuring accountability, by:
– Monitoring progress towards targets
– Carrying out the Performance Management of the headteacher
– Engaging with stakeholders e.g. parents, staff and the wider school community
– Contributing to school self-evaluation
Ensuring financial probity, by:
– Setting the budget
– Monitoring spending against the budget
– Ensuring value for money is obtained
– Ensuring risks to the organisation are managed
The governors, together as a body, have a range of legal responsibilities, being a governor is an important commitment and the trust and school will provide induction training.
What is expected of governors?
- To acknowledge that accepting office as a governor involves the commitment of significant amounts of time and energy.
- To strive to work as a team in which constructive working relationships are actively promoted.
- To observe complete confidentiality when matters are deemed confidential or where they concern specific members of staff or pupils, both inside or outside school
- To accept collective responsibility for all decisions made by the board or its delegated agents. This means that we will not speak against majority decisions outside the governing board meeting.
Name |
Date of Appointment |
Term of Office |
Appointed by: |
Category of Governor |
Finance Committee |
Meetings Attended since 1 September 2021 |
Catherine Matthewman |
01/09/2018 |
n/a |
n/a |
Head Teacher |
Yes |
4/4 |
Andrew Hatchwell |
28/03/2022 |
4yrs |
Parent Election |
Chair of Governors Co-opted Governor |
Yes |
4/4 |
Deborah Hall |
28/03/2022 |
4yrs |
FGB |
Vice Chair of Governors, Co-opted Governor |
|
3/4 |
Rhiannon Porter |
24/1/2022 |
4 yrs |
FGB |
Parent Governor |
|
1/1 |
Margaret McKeone | 28/02/2020 | 4 yrs | Parent Election | Parent Governor | 4/4 | |
Andy Dudman | 24/09/2020 | 4 yrs | FGB | Coopted Governor | 3/4 | |
Chris Watson | 24/09/2020 | 4 yrs | FGB | Coopted Governor | Yes | |
Sarah Green | 27/4/2022 | 4 years | Parent Election | Parent Governor | ||
Arthur Green | 28/4/2022 | 4 years | Staff Election | Staff Governor |
Terms of Office for previous Governors (last 12 months)
Hilary Mason |
27/9/2018 |
22/7/2021 |
Rachel Booth |
5/11/2019 |
22/7/2021 |
Emily Burns |
24/4/2019 |
16/3/2022 |
Governors’ Register of Interests
Governor | Business Interests | Personal Interests | Interests in other educational establishments |
Sarah Green | None | Staff member at Airy Hill | None |
Deborah Hall | None | None | None |
Andrew Hatchwell | None | None | None |
Catherine Matthewman | None | None | None |
Arthur Green | None | None | None |
Andrew Dudman | |||
Chris Watson | |||