The role of a school governor is to contribute to the work of the governing body and to ensure high standards of achievement for all children and young people in the school. This is done by:

• Setting the school’s vision, ethos and strategic direction;
• Holding the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils; and
• Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.

At Carrington, governors work hard to do all these things and hold regular meetings, both as a full governing body (which meets three times a year) and in separate committees (which also meet once a term). The committees are specifically set up to examine specific areas of the school’s performance and more details of their work will be found by using the link on the right. Governors also visit the school from time to time for monitoring purposes, so as to see for themselves how the children’s education is being carried out. This is not an assessment of the quality of teaching (that is done by Ofsted), but rather a chance to see how the school delivers such things as the multicultural aspects of the curriculum.

Governors are volunteers and carry out their work entirely unpaid. There are various categories of governor: those coming from the parent body, the local community and the local authority (Nottingham City Council).

The Chair of Governors is Dr Helen Massey O’Neill. The Chair gives the governors a clear lead and sense of direction, helping us all to work together as a team. She also ensures that the work of governors is effectively and fairly delegated across the whole group. She is also a critical friend to the Head Teacher, offering support, challenge and encouragement.