Local Governance

The Role of the Local Governing Body

Welcome to the Governors’ section of our website which aims to introduce you to the governing body at our school.

The key role of the LGB is to provide a balance of challenge and support to school leaders, understanding the strengths and areas for improvement in the school.

Our responsibilities are to:
1. Deliver the Trust and school strategy and vision, contributing to the creation of the School Development Plan and ensuring this sets priorities to deliver the strategy articulated by the Trust in the Local context
2. Support educational Improvement by ensuring that the plans put in place by Head Teacher and School Improvement specialists are leading to improved outcomes for children. This will include reviewing the impact and effectiveness of the pupil and sports premium spend, as well as reviewing progress against the School Development Plan
3. Monitor how effectively resources are allocated to meet priorities
4. Monitor safeguarding outcomes in the school
5. Review recommendations from the Bridge specialists relating to IT and Health and Safety and highlight any concerns identified with proposed plans
6. Engage with stakeholders – examine, evaluate and feedback to parents and other stakeholders on the overall quality of the children’s experience in the school as well as identify, understand and respond to stakeholder’s views and concerns.

If you would like to find out more about what Governors do, or find out about vacancies, please don't hesitate to contact the Clerk to Governors, Julia Stoneman clerk-jstoneman@bridgeschools.co.uk

At Harrowbarrow Primary, we have recently moved to a joint governing hub with Blisland Academy, Lanlivery Academy, Darite Academy and Copper Valley Academies. This gives governors the opportunity to make comparisons between similar settings and for headteachers to work together for the benefit of all our children.

LGB Monitoring at Harrowbarrow Primary Academy:
As the strategic leaders of our school, Governors have a vital role to play in ensuring every child gets the best possible education and are therefore an integral part of the monitoring schedule.
Our roles and responsibilities remain strategically aligned to the skills and knowledge of individual members to ensure that the body has the ability to hold the school to account and promote continual school improvement.

The following monitoring visits take place each year:
Data and Standards
SEND
Pupil Premium
Sports Premium
Curriculum including wider curriculum and assessment
Website compliance
Recovery Premium/School led tutoring
Phonics/early reading
EYFS
Safeguarding
Behaviour and wellbeing

A copy of Local Governing Body minutes are available from the school office. Please inquire if you would like a copy to read.

Mr Adrian Hines
Chair of Governing Hub - Responsible for SEN and safeguarding
I was appointed in 2014 as a Parent Governor at Rydon Primary School, a 420-pupil school in Kingsteignton, Devon. I was elected to the role of Chair in 2016. At this time, the school was part of the Templer Academies Schools Trust (TAST), a MAT comprising two secondary and two primary schools. Upon taking on this role, I prioritised establishing clarity regarding roles and responsibilities, and sought to develop improved insight amongst the Governing Board members. During this period, I also served on the TAST Board, and chaired the TAST Audit Committee, before stepping aside to lead the Governing Body through a challenging period of change arising from a merger of trusts to form Education South West (ESW), which now comprises four secondary and six primary schools. I am currently taking a lead in developing local governance across ESW, seeking to improve cooperation between the Local Governing Bodies, and between the Local Governing Bodies and the Trust Board. I have also implemented a Trust-wide Governor training programme, and have designed and delivered “Basics of Governance” training within this programme. In developing governance across the Trust I have been working with a National Leader of Governance, and with the DfE-funded GovernorSpace leadership development programme. I am an Associate Board Member of Devon Association of Governance, and have recently been appointed as the Primary Academies Governor Representative on the Devon Education Forum.
Outside of school governance, in my “day job” I have over 15 years of experience in leading teams of scientists and software engineers, and of committee work at local, national and international level. My work roles have also involved a number of interactions with the Education sector. My teams have included qualified trainers who are responsible for development and delivery of training materials for a variety of audiences, and I have visiting positions at the Universities of Exeter and Leeds which both involve interaction with both undergraduate and postgraduate training activities. As a public sector employee, I benefit from my employer offering flexibility to enable me to work around Governor duties.

Andrew Hunt
Headteacher

Mrs Nicola Bloye

I have been a school governor at Harrowbarrow since February 2023, I have always been passionate about contributing to the development of young people, particularly recognising the need to ensure that every single student has access to the best possible education and opportunities in life and I am keen to extend my own skills into being a great school governor.

I work in the farming and agriculture industry, managing our family businesses which include agricultural contracting, farm waste recycling & haulage. I have grown up in the local area and both of my children have attended Harrowbarrow Primary therefore I am passionate about supporting the school and its community in any way that I can.

Mrs Emma Troup - safeguarding governor

Mr Ross Dyter

I joined the Royal Navy as an Engineer Officer straight after completing my A levels. Following basic training and a specialist sea training I undertook a 4 year Masters degree in Engineering before returning to sea to continue my career, becoming a Charge qualified Marine Engineer Officer with the Royal Navy and a Chartered Engineer with the Institute of Mechanical Engineers.

I left the Navy when my daughters were born and we moved to Harrowbarrow a few years later. When they joined the pre-school I joined the committee and also became a Governor in 2013, becoming Chair of Governors in 2015. In my role as Chair of the Single Academy Trust as we were then, I oversaw the budget and provided support to the senior leadership team. As the numbers on our board have changed I have also taken on various other positions including Safeguarding, Health and Safety governor as well as sitting on the recruitment panels for many of the current teaching staff.

Mrs Leanne Francis
I became a governor at Harrowbarrow in March 2023. I have two children in the school and felt passionate to support the school and becoming a governor has enabled me to do that. I also like to volunteer in school. I help with reading once a week, I helped the children sewing for an anniversary quilt and I've also helped on numerous school trips. I believe the school is a great school and my children absolutely love going to Harrowbarrow.

Mr Adrian Ferrier

Having graduated from Plymouth Polytechnic and completed a PhD at the University of Sussex, both in Environmental Science, I spent 18 months in London as an asbestos analyst . Subsequently I joined the Ministry of Defence pursuing a career in Health and Safety, initially at site level but on successive promotions to regional (based at HMNB Devonport) and national level, widening to include environmental protection and sustainability. Work ranged from solving individual problems through to developing and assuring H&S policy for large and complex organisations; I developed good analytical, interpersonal and strategic thinking skills. My final appointment, as Head of Health and Safety for UK Research and Innovation, saw me establish the corporate safety management system for a federation of scientific research councils. Throughout I have maintained my presence in Cornwall with my daughter attending Harrowbarrow school. Having retired I wanted to continue using my career skills whilst giving something back to the community, I was therefore delighted to join the governors at Harrowbarrow school 18 months ago with the opportunity to help those at the start of their education. My other interests include photography, gardening and walking.

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