Governors

I have lived in Enfield for 45 years working as a teacher/SENCO/Deputy Head in a local 4 form entry school.

I have also held various positions as a school governor for 20 years.

Having retired a few years ago, I am kept busy by my 4 children , my various volunteering posts and generally leading a full, active life.

I am currently a governor at a one form entry Church of England school and a Trustee in a large local academy trust, both in Enfield.

I am also a Quality Care Checker for Enfield Council, visiting residential homes and care settings, speaking to staff and residents in order to observe provision and improve services.

I hope to use my experience and interest in education to work with everyone at George Spicer to make it the very best it can be.

My family and I have lived in Enfield for many years and my children attended local schools. My background is in nursing and teaching.  I have been a primary teacher for over 20 years, having taught in two schools and have recently retired from my role as Headteacher and Head of a Teaching School. I continue to be involved in education, which includes carrying out Pupil Premium Reviews with schools and some work with the Enfield School Improvement Service.

I therefore bring experience, knowledge and skills relating to a range of educational issues to my role of governor. I will aim to apply these to help ensure the continuing success and enjoyment of the children at George Spicer School.

I have lived in Enfield for over 15 years and my eldest child is currently in year1 at George Spicer.

My professional background is as a Family and Child Care Solicitor.

I wanted to become a Parent Governor to use my professional experience and interests to work with the other Governors to help George Spicer provide the best for all pupils. 

My name is Darren and I've lived in London for the past 17 years, and specifically Enfield for the past 8 years. I have a daughter in Year 3 at George Spicer.

From a professional point of view, I work in finance and have done for 21 years, specialising in utilities and construction and currently work for Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield looking after the finances of their construction companies at Westfield London and Westfield Stratford.

Outside of work I'm an Ambassador for the Evelina Childrens Hospital in Westminster where we spend a lot of time working with the charity arm on fundraising events and have worked closely with SANDS (Stillbirth and Neo-natal Death Society) to provide support and give a better understanding of what its like to be a bereaved parent, as sadly our son Isaac lived his short life at the Evelina during 2012.

I wanted to become a Parent Governor because, I think my financial and management background could be of some help, but also because I've seen what a fantastic school George Spicer is from the facilities to the teaching and support staff. It's a pleasure to get the opportunity to support the school, teachers and board as a parent representative over the next few years.

I am happy to be joining the George Spicer Governing Board. I live in Enfield and have two grown up children and four grandchildren all in primary school education.

I have recently retired from a senior position in the NHS after 23 years leading technology Programme delivery in a number of top acute Trusts including The Royal Free NHS Foundation Trust and Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.

I am passionate about encouraging all children to look at the technology opportunities in their future. I believe technology has a meaningful place in a school when used as a tool to assist in learning, reading and writing.

With a wealth of staff management, financial and planning experience, I am pleased to be joining as a member of the Resources Committee.

I have lived and worked in Enfield nearly all my life and have taught in several schools for over thirty years. I have a special interest in Early Years and Key Stage 1 and have enjoyed seeing children successfully transition into school with confidence and enthusiasm. 

I am looking forward to working with the other members of the Governing Body and hope that my experience, knowledge and interest will help the school to be as successful as it can be. 

• To review, monitor and evaluate the school’s curriculum, ensuring that it is broad and balanced and meets the needs of all pupils.
• To monitor policies related to the curriculum and achievement eg Religious Education, Behaviour, Attendance and Assessment.
• To monitor pupil attendance, ensuring there are effective procedures in place to improve attendance and to fulfil statutory requirements.
• To monitor and evaluate the progress and achievement of all pupils’, including specific groups.
• To analyse any performance trends and compare school data against Local Authority and national data eg for phonics and Year 6.
• To monitor progress against the school’s improvement plan priorities.
• To understand the targets set within the school and challenge any areas of concern.
• To consider recommendations from external reviews of the school e.g. Ofsted or the Local Authority, agree actions and monitor their impact.
• To ensure that all children have equal opportunities.
• To identify and celebrate pupils’ achievements.
• To monitor arrangements for educational visits and ensure there is a named co-ordinator.
• To ensure all statutory requirements for reporting and publishing information are met and the school website content is fully compliant and presented in an accessible way.
• To monitor the school’s publicity, public presentation and relationships with the wider community.

Finance

• To review, adopt and monitor a Finance Policy and all other financial policies, eg Charging and Remissions Policy and Debt Policy.
• To establish and maintain a three year financial plan.
• To draft and propose an annual school budget to the full governing body.
• To make decisions relating to service level agreements.
• To monitor the income and expenditure throughout the year of all funding against the annual budget plan.
• To advise the full governing body of the school’s financial situation and to alert them of any potential issues.
• To review, complete and submit the School Financial Value Standard (SFVS) and carry out any identified actions.
• To receive and act upon any issues identified by a Local Authority audit.

Staffing

• To ensure that the school is staffed sufficiently to meet its needs and ensure effective operation.
• To agree the school’s Appraisal Policy and oversee its implementation - including the appraisal procedures for the Headteacher.
• To establish a Pay Policy for all staff and ensure this is followed.
• To ensure that staffing procedures, including recruitment procedures, follow equalities legislation.
• To annually review procedures for dealing with staff discipline and grievances and monitor these procedures
• To monitor and evaluate the impact of continuing professional development on improving staff performance

Health and Safety

• To ensure that an annual inspection of the premises and grounds takes place and a report is received identifying any issues.
• To inform the governing body of any issues identified in the report; and set out a proposed order of priorities
• To establish and keep under review an Accessibility Plan and a Building Development Plan
• To review, adopt and monitor the Health and Safety Policy.
• To ensure the school gives appropriate consideration to how mental health and wellbeing are embedded in the curriculum and other school activities and analyse the impact.
• To ensure effective wellbeing policies, procedures and training are in place to support everyone within the school.
  
   

• 25 September 2024
• 4 December 2024
• 19 March July 2025
• 9 July 2025