Governance at PolyMAT
A Multi Academy Trust is a charitable company limited by guarantee for the benefit of education. It is an independent legal entity with whom the Secretary of State has decided to enter into a master funding agreement. As such, it has Members and Trustees. It is funded by the DFE but independent of local authority control.
Governance Structure
structure diagram
Committees & Chairs
Committees of the Board
Name | Chair | Vice-Chair |
---|---|---|
Trust Board | Sylvia Perrins | Sarabjit Singh Bahra |
Finance & People Committee | Una Tomkins | Liulu Chen |
Audit, Estates & Risk Committee | Selom Anim | Terry Madden-Nadeau |
Safeguarding and Standards Committee | Gulcin Sesli | Matthew Stubbins |
Local Academy Committees
Academy | Chair | Headteacher/ Head of School |
---|---|---|
Bannockburn Primary School | Sue Kimmins | Rachel Ford |
Woolwich Polytechnic School for Boys | Holly Broughton | Tom Lawrence |
Woolwich Polytechnic School for Girls | Danielle Whittaker | Lizaan Williams |
Members
The members are akin to the shareholders of a company. They have ultimate control over the Academy Trust with the ability to appoint some of the Trustees and the right to amend the Trust’s articles of association. They are signatories to the articles, may appoint new members (with a 75% majority) or remove existing members. They may issue a direction to the Trustees, by special resolution, appoint the Trust’s auditors and have the power ultimately to wind up the company. Members should be “eyes on and hands off”.
MEMBER INFORMATION
Name | Role(s) | Date of Appointment | Date of Leaving | Business & Pecuniary Interests |
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Bob Janes |
Chair of Members |
10/06/2014 |
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Byron Parker | Member | 01/09/2022 | None | |
Lynne Wainwright | Member | 01/09/2019 | None | |
Julia Richardson | Member | 22/12/2020 | None | |
Robert Young | Member | 15/07/2024 | None |
Trustees
The Trustees are responsible for the three core governance functions of setting direction, holding the CEO and Headteachers to account and ensuring financial probity. They must also ensure they are complying with charity law requirements. The Trustees are company directors and must comply with company law requirements, notably regularly attending meetings, managing conflicts of interest, seeking advice from the Executive team, and ensuring the Trust has appropriate procedures in place for reporting financial information. The Board of Trustees sign off the annual accounts and are responsible for the Trust’s accountability to parliament and to the Secretary of State.
Interested in becoming a Trustee? Apply here
TRUSTEES
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Local Academy Committee (LAC)
What is a local Academy Committee?
An Academy Committee is an increasingly common method of local governance as discussed in the NGA document “Welcome to a Multi-Academy Trust”. It replaces the LGB with a new Committee which operates under much more focused Terms of Reference which emphasise the committee’s core function – to raise standards of learning and achievement and ensure pupil progress across all key stages within the academy. Each academy will have its own Academy Committee which replaces the LGB.
Those who sit on an Academy Committee will become Academy Committee Members (ACM). Each Academy Committee will require two Parent ACMs and two Staff ACMs to be voted on from the respective academy populations. All other ACMs will be appointed by the Trust Board.
What are the differences between an Academy Committee and an LGB?
There are a number of differences which will be outlined in the Terms of Reference. The key differences include:
- The removal of much administrative and compliancy duties which can detract from a focus on learning and achievement – these will sit with the Trust Board whenever possible.
- More active involvement in creating agendas, scrutinising evidence and judging standards – all of which will allow better support of school leaders and more focused holding to account.
- More active involvement in visiting the school, meeting leaders and other staff, speaking with students and parents – this will help triangulation and monitoring and give ACMs a real insight into the successes and needs of each academy.
- Responsibility to collate and share best practice between academies via the Best Practice Committee.
- Regular communication with the Trust Board about successes and areas for improvement.
An AC will convene once every half-term, six times a year in total. Each AC Chair will report back to the Trust Board each term and will also work closely with the Chair of Trustees in a supportive and open relationship. The AC Chair will have a very close working relationship with the Headteacher and SLT of the academy and form a partnership of accountability and support.
Interested in becoming a Local Academy Committee Member? Apply here
Local Academy Committee Members (Local ACMs)
bannockburn primary school
Name | Appointing Body | Category | Date of Appointment | Reappointed | Term of Office | Date of Leaving |
Business & Pecuniary Interests |
Meetings attended 2023/24 |
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Rachel Ford | Ex Officio | Headteacher | 01/11/2023 | n/a | None | 5 out of 5 | ||
Robert Young | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/11/2023 | 3 years | None | 5 out of 5 | ||
Sue Kimmins | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/11/2023 | 01/11/2024 | 1 year | None | 5 out of 5 | |
Briget Fosang | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/11/2023 | 01/11/2024 | 1 year | None | 4 out of 5 | |
Kafayat Eletu | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/11/2023 | 3 years | None | 4 out of 5 | ||
Petra Handoca | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/11/2023 | 2 years | None | 5 out of 5 | ||
Nikita Chaudhari | Parent Body | Parent Committee Member | 01/11/2023 | 2 years | None | 5 out of 5 | ||
Gary Corrin | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/11/2023 | 2 years | None | 3 out of 5 | ||
Siobhan Chapman | Staff Body | Staff Committee Member | 01/11/2023 | 2 years | None | 2 out of 5 | ||
Joshua Ayodele | Trust Board | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/11/2023 | 3 years | None | 2 out of 5 | ||
Navrup Kaur | Parent Body | Parent Committee Member | 01/11/2023 | 4 years | None | 2 out of 5 | ||
Izabela Tache | Trust Board | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/11/2023 | 4 years | None | 3 out of 5 |
Woolwich Polytechnic School for BoYs
Name | Appointing Body | Category | Date of Appointment | Reappointed | Term of Office | Date of Leaving | Business & Pecuniary Interests | Meetings attended 2023/24 |
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Jack Davies | Staff Body | Staff Committee Member | 01/09/2021 | 4 years | None | 5 out of 5 | ||
Richard Kashoro | Parent Body | Parent Committee Member | 01/09/2021 | 4 years | None | 4 out of 5 | ||
Emma Copeman | Parent Body | Parent Committee Member | 18/06/2024 | 4 years | None | 1 out of 1 | ||
Tom Lawrence | Ex Officio | Head of School | 01/09/2021 | n/a | None | 5 out of 5 | ||
Lizaan Williams | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/09/2021 | 4 years | None | 4 out of 6 | ||
Debbie Hawgood | Staff Body | Staff Committee Member | 01/09/2021 | 4 years | 07/10/2024 | None | 5 out of 5 | |
Tunde Odutola | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/09/2021 | 4 years | None | 5 out of 5 | ||
Natasha Kett | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 10/11/2022 | 4 years | None | 4 out of 5 | ||
Dr. Anita Houghton | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 28/04/2023 | 4 years | None | 5 out of 5 | ||
Dammy Showole | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 11/05/2023 | 4 years | None | 2 out of 3 | ||
Dominic Norton | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 05/06/2023 | 4 years | None | 2 out of 3 | ||
Holly Broughton | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 11/09/2023 | 4 years | None | 5 out of 5 |
Woolwich polytechnic school for Girls
Name | Appointing Body | Category | Date of Appointment | Reappointed | Term of Office | Date of Leaving | Business & Pecuniary Interests | Meetings attended 2022/23 |
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Anca Czifra | Parent Body | Parent Committee Member | 01/09/2021 | 4 years | Employed by PolyMAT | 6 out of 6 | ||
Susan Ikpefuran | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/09/2021 | 4 years | None | 4 out of 6 | ||
Lizaan Williams | Ex Officio | Head of School | 01/09/2021 | n/a | None | 6 out of 6 | ||
Tom Lawrence | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 01/09/2021 | 4 years | 23/05/2024 | None | 2 out of 5 | |
Danielle Whittaker | Parent Body | Parent Committee Member | 01/09/2021 | 4 years | 18/12/2024 | None | 5 out of 6 | |
Uduak Jesuthasan | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 28/03/2022 | 4 years | 20/11/2024 | None | 3 out of 4 | |
Holly Broughton | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 10/11/2022 | 4 years | 11/09/2023 | None | 5 out of 6 | |
Molly Adkins | Staff Body | Staff Committee Member | 02/02/2023 | 4 years | None | 3 out of 6 | ||
Nadine Milwood | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 24/04/2023 | 4 years | 01/03/2024 | None | 1 out of 2 | |
Alhaq Kochattinpurath | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 05/05/2023 | 4 years | None | 2 out of 2 | ||
Gloria Boadi | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 11/09/2023 | 4 years | None | 3 out of 6 | ||
Rosemary Folkes | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Committee Member | 18/09/2023 | 4 years | None | 3 out of 6 | ||
Nicole Chapman | Trustees | Trust-Appointed Associate Member | 16/09/2024 | 4 years | None |
For more details regarding governance at Woolwich Polytechnic School for Girls, see the governance section of the school website here
Deep Dive Forum
What is a Deep Dive Forum?
Just as the Academy Committees (ACs) are a driver of improvement within each academy, the Deep Dive Forum (DDF) is a driver of improvement between each academy. However, the Deep Dive Forum is not an accountable body like the AC. Instead, it is a chance to scrutinise and understand areas of practice common to both schools in much more depth on a regular basis, giving those involved much greater insight into key areas of our schools’ work. It is also a forum for sharing ideas and collaborating. The key features will be:
- A schedule of “Deep Dive” topics will be calendered throughout the year – eg Pupil Premium, Safeguarding, Progress of More Able Students.
- Each school will present in detail their work for each area and members will be able to scrutinise and compare ideas.
- Recommendations can be made for areas that schools could collaborate.
- Any members of either AC can attend the DDF.
The DDF will convene once a term. The Chair of the DDF will share outcomes with the Trust Board and each AC to summarise best practice, areas for development and areas for future collaboration.
The ACs will formally report to the Trust Board as an Accountable Body. The DDF will share information back to the Trust Board and also to each AC so that the best findings are shared to help each school. We refer to the DDF as a Supporting Body as it provides support for school improvement.