Hampstead Hill School Statement of Governance

Purpose

At Hampstead Hill School our governance is driven by a commitment to strategic leadership that promotes high standards of educational achievements, personal development and the health, safety and wellbeing of both staff and pupils. Hampstead Hill’s governing team is dedicated to fostering an environment where every member of our school community can excel in a safe and inclusive environment.

Roles and Responsibilities

The governance structure at Hampstead Hill is led by Andrea Taylor, our esteemed Proprietor, alongside Lewis Taylor, serving as Chair of Governors and responsible for Safeguarding and Ross Montague who brings an external perspective as our Independent Governor. This team forms the backbone of Hampstead Hill’s governance, ensuring the school’s ethos, vision and strategic direction are clearly defined and upheld.

The core responsibilities of our governing board are:

• Prioritising and playing an active role in the safeguarding and wellbeing of our pupils, ensuring all policies and practices reflect this commitment.
• Ensuring the school has a clear vision, ethos and strategic direction.
• Identifying and managing risk.
• Holding senior staff accountable for the educational performance of the school and its pupils, as well as the effectiveness and efficiency of staff performance management.
• Overseeing the financial performance of the school to ensure its funds are well distributed, spent in alignment with our educational objectives and that financial stability is maintained.
• Ensuring the school adheres to relevant government, DfE and ISI guidance compliance and legislation, overseeing the development and implementation of comprehensive policies.
• Maintaining safer recruitment practices, auditing the single central record and vis the DSL and SLT ensuring staff receive appropriate training, follow policies and uphold standards of conduct.
• Meeting statutory safeguarding duties to protect pupils, fostering an environment where staff understand their roles in safeguarding children in education.
• Monitoring the school’s progression towards meeting developmental targets.
• Upholding health and safety standards.

Implementation

Our governance model is operationalised through termly Governance Meetings. These meetings are supplemented by the publishing of termly Governance Reports co-ordinated by the Headteacher which is then followed by a Governance Report review meeting between the Governors and the Headteacher, focusing on critical aspects of school leadership and management:

• Safeguarding
• SEND
• Attendance
• Pastoral and wellbeing
• Academics
• EYFS
• Health, safety and premises management
• Financial reporting
• Policies and compliance

These discussions are enriched by termly Governance Reports from the SLT ensuring a collaborative approach to school governance is implemented.

Contact Information

For queries or further information, Andrea Taylor, Lewis Taylor and Ross Montague can be reached at Hampstead Hill School, St Stephen’s, NW3 2PP or via telephone on 0207 435 6262.