Welcome to the section of the website where you can find out more about the school's governors, and the work they do.

Please find below details of how our Governing body is structured, including the names, categories, responsibilities and terms of appointment for each Governor.

Our main role is to support the Headteacher and the staff – the phrase often used to describe this role is ‘a critical friend’. We help them to set and reach targets and to strive for excellence across the whole spectrum of school life. The two key documents used for this are the School Development Plan (SDP) and the Self Evaluation Statement (SES). The SDP sets out a three year strategic plan for the school, with targets that everyone works towards and the SES sets out how well the school is doing and where we aim to make improvements.

Our legal duties include:

• setting strategic direction, policies and objectives
• approving the school budget
• reviewing progress against the school's budget and objectives
• appointing, challenging and supporting the Headteacher

The Governing Body normally meets five or six times a year. Much of the work of the Governors is carried out by three main committees:

• Finance and Staffing Committee
• Learning Committee
• Building and General Purposes Committee

These committees oversee their area of responsibility, contribute to the SES and SDP, make proposals and report to the Governing Body.

We sometimes set up other committees or working groups to look at particular issues (such as admissions policy, feasibility of operating a school minibus etc).  

There are several categories of governor, appointed by different groups that have an interest in the school. These are

• Foundation governors appointed by the Carlisle Diocesan Board of Education
• the Local Authority (“LA”)
• Parents
• Staff

 All governors have equal status, however they are appointed.

We are committed to providing an excellent environment for all pupils to enjoy during their time at our school.

Our Governing Body meetings are usually held on Wednesday evenings. We attend training sessions,  seminars and conferences to help us keep up to date with changes in schools and education and to help us do our job effectively. We also go into school to meet with the Headteacher, other members of staff and pupils to help us find out how the school is progressing towards its targets.

If you wish to know more, or are interested in becoming a governor, please contact us care of the School Office or email us at clerk@borrowdale.cumbria.sch.uk