Governors

• Governing Body members
• Minutes of the meeting of the governors of Parsons Down Infant School
• Other information

Governing Body members

Chair of Governors

Mrs Julia Payen

Community Governors

Julia Payen (Chair of Governors)

Sharon Goddard

Coral Taylor

 

Local Authority Governors

Brian Barnes

Rosemary Lilley

 

Parent Governors

Kate Flowerdew

Sandra Izoulet

Emila Clark

 

Staff Governors

Petrina Winsor (Headteacher)

Karen Fakes

Corinne Burton

 

Clerk to the Governors – Claire Snook

Minutes

          

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE GOVERNORS OF PARSONS DOWN INFANT SCHOOL

FINANCE AND STAFFING COMMITTEE

Held on Tuesday 28th February 2012 at 7.15pm

Present: Brian Barnes (Chair)                      Petrina Winsor                          Julia Payen

                     Karen Fakes                                     Rosemary Lilley                       Sharon Goddard

Sue Turner, School Business Manager, was also at the meeting.

Clerk: Claire Snook

1. Apologies

No apologies had been received.

2. Matters to be raised under any other business

No items of ‘Any Other Business’ were declared.

3. Declarations of interest in agenda items

None of the governors declared any specific interests.

4. Minutes of the previous meeting held on 20th September 2012

Sharon Goddard pointed out a typing error in the minutes of the meeting held on 20th September 2011. On page 5 the third paragraph should read ‘Debbie Botha has successfully completed her Certificate of School Administration course’. Claire Snook amended the minutes and Brian Barnes signed them.

5. Matters arising from the minutes of the meeting held on 20th September 2011

Action 1:       Newbury Interiors have visited the school and resolved the snagging issues although another visit has been arranged to discuss the locks on the toilet doors. Action closed.

Action 2:       The audit of the tasks undertaken by the administration team by Sue Turner and Petrina Winsor is continuing. Action ongoing.

Action 3:       Sharon Goddard has analysed the governors audit of skills forms and the informal governors meeting has taken place. Action closed.

Action 4:       Sue Turner has given a copy of the register of authorising officers to Claire Snook for attaching to the policy and circulating to the Finance Committee. Action closed.

Action 5:       Petrina Winsor has spoken to the staff about the new Additional Leave and Time Off for Other Reasons Policy. Action closed.

Action 6:       Claire Snook has emailed the Staff Expenses Policy to Sue Turner who highlighted the new procedures in the policy. Petrina explained the new procedures to the staff. Action closed.

Action 7:       Sue Turner contacted Karen Claxton to confirm if West Berks are paying for the Headteachers interview testing, no response has yet been received. Sharon Goddard offered to speak to Jane James, Andy Tubbs’ PA, to determine the situation regarding this matter. Action ongoing.

Action 8:       Karen Fakes has included a section in the school newsletter about FSM families being eligible for assistance with other school expenses. Action closed.

Action 9:       Sue Turner has obtained a form to enable the school to apply to the local authority for permission to take part in the Government Procurement Card scheme. This had been discussed at the previous meeting and the governors confirmed their agreement to the school obtaining the card. Julia Payen and Petrina Winsor signed the form and returned it to Sue for forwarding to the Accounts Department at West Berkshire Council. Action closed.

Petrina advised the governors that Nicola Fox has been appointed as the Family Liaison Worker for a group of local schools. Nicola works at the Infant and Junior Schools on Mondays and Fridays.

Rosemary Lilley asked whether the 1:1 assistance of 11 hours each per week for two children with special educational needs in Foundation Stage was sufficient. Petrina explained that the children needed significantly more assistance than that for which the school was receiving funding; the school was financing this extra provision.

6. Preparation for the Schools Financial Value Standard (SFVS)

The Schools Financial Value Standard (SFVS) replaces the Financial Management Standard in Schools (FMSIS). The SFVS has been designed to assist schools in managing their finances and giving assurance that they have secure financial management in place. Schools are required to complete the SFVS on an annual basis and local authorities will use the information collated to inform and support their audit process.

As Parsons Down Infant School attained FMSIS the school is not obliged to complete the SFVS until March 2013. The governors discussed the issue and decided to arrange a separate meeting to complete the SFVS next term. Sharon Goddard, Brian Barnes, and Julia Payen offered to assist with the completion of the standard and a convenient date will be arranged for this. Action: Claire Snook.

7. School Budget

Agree Fair Funding

Last year the governors agreed to buy back the following services from West Berkshire Council for the years 2011/12, 2012/13 and 2013/14:

 

• Accounts payable            
• Payroll                     
• Finance                                 
• Health and Safety
• Insurance                           
• Human Resources           
• ICT –MIS helpdesk                      
• ICT-Technical Support
• Legal Services      
• Governor Support           

 

and various licencing and agreement services.

The governors discussed this provision and agreed that the arrangements should continue.

Recommendations from the Pay Committee

The Pay Committee meeting had been due to take place last week but had been rescheduled and will take place tomorrow. The recommendations from the committee will be discussed at the next meeting of this committee.

Cumulative Expense Analysis

Petrina and Sue hold regular meetings to discuss the budget and monitor progress. So far this year the budget had been on track and up to period 8 the budget reports were showing a percentage spend to date of 64% against an expected spend at that point in the year of 66% with a predicted carry forward figure of approximately £30,000.

After a recent examination of the budget it became apparent that the predicted carry forward figure had risen to approximately £124,000 and would therefore be subject to being clawed back by West Berkshire Council. Sue and Petrina examined these figures in detail and took into account the proposed income and expenditure for the remainder of the financial year. The figures have also been checked by West Berkshire Council and their figures agree with the figures calculated by the school.

In order to reduce the carry forward figure the school has placed orders for additional resources for English and Maths, new classroom furniture and equipment for the new ICT Suite.

The governors were pleased that the funds had been put to good use but were concerned that this situation had arisen and asked how it had occurred. Petrina explained that last year’s budget had been set in the context of a moving landscape and money had been saved in unexpected areas. Examples of this are;

 

• when recruiting new teachers the school budgeted to pay them at UPS1 whereas 3 NQTs were employed
• a member of staff resigned and was not replaced;
• approximately £57,000 was placed in the contingency fund to pay for the proposed refurbishment of the school over the summer holidays. In the event the plans were scaled down and West Berkshire Council contributed to the costs;
• there are some surpluses on various accounts, for example, the amount allocated to Teachers Supply was £30,000 and the amount remaining in the account at the end of period 10 is £9,598.
• at the time the budget was set the staffing situation was not fully defined due to three teachers being on or about to take maternity leave;
• a rebate was received in respect of the end of the Extended Services project.

Following a lengthy discussion the governors asked whether a closer monitoring process or a different set of reports may have helped to identify the situation earlier. Petrina explained that up until period 9 the figures showed that the percentage spend against the expected percentage spend was correct and a different monitoring process or report format would have indicated the same situation.

Sharon Goddard asked for confirmation that the governors could have confidence in the figures with which they were presented at the meeting. Petrina reiterated that the figures had been checked and the remaining expenditure and commitments for the financial year had been confirmed.

The governors were advised that the predicted carry forward figure is now £65,091 which is within the amount which the school is permitted to carry forward.

8. School Account

The balance of the School Fund account is currently £1,913.

9. Strategic Expenditure Plan

Sue Turner had prepared a strategic expenditure plan detailing proposed capital projects and related expenditure. The expected capital budget this year is in the region of £6,000 and the total proposed capital spend on various projects on the plan is approximately £68,000. If the school wishes to transfer more than £20,000 from the main school budget to the capital account permission must be sought from Margaret Goldie at the local authority. The governors discussed the plan and the viability of the projects. Petrina explained that it may be possible to harness the assistance of the local authority Health and Safety team with some of the plans.

Karen Fakes explained the plan to move the Library into what is currently a cloakroom. The cloakroom would be relocated and integrated into two classrooms. To make the best use of the space some internal walls and cupboards would be rearranged. The plans would give the school a Library area which would also have space and facilities for teaching. Additional storage space would also be created.

10. School Development Plan

This was discussed in detail at the Curriculum and Standards meeting earlier this month.

11. Staffing Issues

Staffing Structure

Petrina explained the current whole school staffing structure to the governors and in particular the recent circumstances faced by the Foundation Stage team. Petrina went on to advise the governors that Amber Butler, one of the NQTs in Foundation Stage (FS), had resigned earlier this month.

Following Amber’s resignation Petrina and Karen made enquiries on ‘The Key’ and were led to believe that Corinne Burton, a Higher Level Teaching Assistant (HLTA) already based in FS, would be permitted to teach Amber’s class for the remainder of the school year and parents were advised that this would be the case. Following discussions with Maxine Slade, however, the school has been advised that it is not permissible for an FS2 class to be taught by a HLTA. In the light of this Petrina proposes to employ a teacher who will be amenable to working alongside Corinne for the remainder of the year. Maxine is agreeable to Corinne continuing to teach the class while the search for a teacher is ongoing.

Petrina told the governors that Corinne has worked extremely hard since Amber’s resignation, the class has settled well with her and the children are making good progress. In view of this Petrina asked the governors’ permission to pay Corinne at the unqualified teacher’s rate rather than the HLTA rate until the end of the year. Following a discussion the governors agreed to this.

Petrina shared her initial thoughts with the governors about staffing provision for the next academic year. To allow teachers to have time for moderation and marking Petrina is planning to base the staffing structure on 10.6 teachers next year, this will include PPA cover. Further discussions will take place about this at the next meeting.

Following Jo Palmer’s decision not to return to work after her maternity leave Petrina advised the governors that Harriet Jefferey has been appointed as the new Foundation Stage Team Leader from September.

TLR arrangements

Petrina explained the proposed TLR arrangements for next year as follows:

2b - Year 2 Team leader combined with Maths co-ordinator (1 post)

2a – FS and Year 1 Team Leaders (2 posts)

This subject will be discussed further at the Pay Committee meeting tomorrow.

Job Descriptions

Petrina gave the governors copies of job descriptions which she had recently written for the Team Leaders and teachers. Each member of staff has been given a copy of the job description relevant to their position.

                     

  

Staff Absence Report

Sue Turner gave the governors information about the amount of staff absence during the autumn term. The governors asked why there was a relatively high level of unpaid absence. Sue explained that a large proportion of this was due to members of staff taking time off when their children were unwell.

The governors asked if the information could be presented in a different format at the next meeting to allow them to identify differences between teachers and non-teaching staff and also exceptional circumstances. Petrina suggested that it would useful to prepare a report in the same format as that used in the Junior School. Action: Sue Turner.

12. Policy reviews

Staff Code of Conduct

 

The governors had received a copy of this policy prior to the meeting. The governors felt that an amendment should be made to include reference to social networking sites in section 9 on page 3.

Petrina suggested that the policy should be given to staff at both schools as it was possible that any member of staff could be working at either school. It will also be important, when the policy is finalised, that the staff are made fully aware of it.

The issue of staff having personal camera phones in their classrooms was discussed at length with some governors feeling that it was not appropriate for staff to have them in the classroom. Petrina asked Rosemary to look at the policy and research any guidance regarding staff having access to their camera phones in the classroom. Action: Rosemary Lilley.

Whistleblowing and Confidential Reporting Code

The governors had received a copy of this policy prior to the meeting. Petrina asked if the review date could be amended to November 2012 so that that the next review of the policy coincided with the review of the Safeguarding Policy and the LSCB return. The governors felt that the policy should be a partnership policy. Petrina asked Rosemary to look at both the Infant and Junior Schools’ policies and draft a joint Whistleblowing and Confidential Reporting Code. Action: Rosemary Lilley. Claire Snook will forward the Junior School’s Policy to Rosemary.

13. Any Other Business

There were no items of ‘Any Other Business’.

Brian Barnes thanked Petrina on behalf of Thatcham Town Council for allowing the children to be involved in the process of deciding which playground option to choose in Thatcham.

14. Date of the next Meeting

The next meeting will be held on 8th May 2012 at 7.15pm.

The meeting closed at 9.55pm.

Actions carried forward from the previous meeting

Action 2:       Sue Turner and Petrina Winsor are to carry out an audit of the tasks undertaken by the administration team.

Action 7:       Sharon Goddard offered to speak to Jane James, Andy Tubbs’ PA, to determine the situation regarding the costs incurred for the Headteachers interview testing costs.

Actions

Action CS12a           Claire Snook will contact governors to determine a suitable date for a meeting to discuss and complete the SFVS.

Action CS12b           Sue Turner will contact Clair Lloyd-Butler to discuss the format of the Staff Absence Report.

Action CS12c           Rosemary Lilley will look at the Staff Code of Conduct and whether personal camera phones should be allowed in the classroom.

Action CS12d           Rosemary Lilley will look at the Whistleblowing Confidential Reporting Code for both schools and draft a joint policy.

Agenda Item	Document
2	Minutes from the meeting held on 20th September 2011
6	Schools Financial Value Standard Documentation
7	Cumulative Expense Analysis
9	Strategic Expenditure Plan
11	Job Descriptions
11	Staff Absence Report
12	Staff Code of Conduct
12	Whistleblowing and Confidential Reporting Code

 

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE GOVERNORS OF PARSONS DOWN INFANT SCHOOL

Held on Tuesday 22nd November 2011 at 7.15 pm

Present: Julia Payen (Chair)                           Petrina Winsor                           Brian Barnes

      Rosemary Lilley                                Sharon Goddard                     Coral Taylor

      Sandra Izoulet                                          Emilia Clark                                 Kate Flowerdew

      Corinne Burton                                          Paul Fletcher-Dyer                   Karen Fakes

Clerk:     Claire Snook

1. Apologies

No apologies had been received; all of the governors were present at the meeting. Julia Payen advised the governors that Louise Doe had resigned as a parent governor and Paul Fletcher-Dyer was attending his last governors’ meeting prior leaving the area. Claire Snook will advise Governor Services of these resignations and ask them to arrange a replacement for Paul who was a LA governor. Nominations will be sought from parents for a replacement for Louise.

2. Matters to be raised under ‘Any Other Business’

The following items of ‘Any Other Business’ were declared:

• Strike action;
• Parent Election.

3. Declarations of interest

None of the governors had any specific interests to declare with regard to any of the agenda items.

4. Minutes of the previous meeting held on 13th September 2011

i. Accuracy

The minutes of the meeting held on 13th September 2011 were deemed to be a true record of the meeting and Julia Payen signed them.

ii. Matters arising from the minutes of the meeting held on 13th September 2011

Actions from the meeting held on 12th July 2011

Action 2: Julia Payen is working on establishing a portfolio of partnership policies. Action ongoing.

Action 3: Community cohesion is no longer a key priority under the new inspection evaluation schedule and Ofsted is now more concerned with the concept of global citizenship in the context of moral and cultural development. Kate Flowerdew and Coral Taylor have met to evaluate how both the Infant and Junior Schools are currently delivering this criterion. Following a discussion it was decided that Coral and Kate will meet with Naomi Williams (Co-deputy Head at the Junior School) on her return to work in December to develop this area further. Action ongoing.

Action 4: Karen Fakes has established a policy review programme. Action closed.

Action 6: Petrina Winsor and Sandra Izoulet are in the process of carrying out a review of first aid and the administration of medicines. Petrina and Sandra found that first aid information and resources are kept in various places throughout the school and it was felt that there should be a central resource and record of which all staff were aware and were able to access. Petrina advised the governors that she had found the day-to-day first aid support provided by the staff was excellent and she is very grateful for their work in this respect.

Petrina and Sandra are still working on the review following which a First Aid and Administration of Medicines Policy will be drafted and presented to the governors for discussion. Action ongoing.

Action 7: Julia Payen - The First Aid and Administration of Medicines Policy was discussed in the action point above. Action closed.

Action 8: Karen Fakes: The review of the Drugs Policy is ongoing. Action ongoing.

Action 9: Rosemary Lilley: The Looked After Children Policy will be discussed later in the meeting. Action closed.

Action 11: Julia Payen: The Expenses Policy has been approved by the Finance and Staffing Committee. Action closed.

Action 13: Louise Doe: Louise was collating the results of the Parents Survey. As Louise has now left the Governing Body and the survey was undertaken some time ago it was felt that there was no value in continuing with the collation of the results. Action closed.

Action 15: The staff did not have any suggestions as to the maintenance of links with the governors now that they are not attending meetings to report on their subject areas. Following a discussion no further ideas were forthcoming and it was decided that no further action would be taken in this respect at the present time. Action closed.

Actions from the meeting held on 13th September 2011

Action 1: Julia Payen: The Standing Orders document has been revised as discussed. Action closed.

Action 2: Claire Snook: The various polices have been amended as discussed. Action closed.

Action 3: Claire Snook: The Non-Smoking Policy will be included in the Welcome Pack. Action closed.

Action 4: Petrina Winsor: Arrangements have been made for Roger Molloy to remove some of the trees in the school grounds during the Christmas holidays. Action closed.

Action 5: Sharon Goddard: Sharon sent the skills audit to Julia. Action closed.

Action 6: Julia Payen: The informal governors’ meeting has taken place. The meeting was very beneficial and governors have offered their assistance to staff in areas in which they have particular strengths as follows:

 

• Coral Taylor, Sharon Goddard and Emilia Clark to undertake Learning Walks;
• Corinne Burton to look at the transition process between FS and Year 1;
• Kate Flowerdew to offer advice and assistance on attendance issues;
• Sharon Goddard to offer support to the administration staff;
• Rosemary Lilley to support Jackie Hicklin with SEN issues;
• Julia Payen and Sharon Goddard to offer IT support where required.

 

Action ongoing.

Action closed.

Action 7: Julia Payen: Julia has written to Karen Fakes. Action closed.

5. Policy Reviews

i. Complaints Policy

West Berks have issued a new model Complaints Policy. Petrina currently has the policy under review and will have it ready for the next full governors’ meeting. In the meantime our current policy remains the policy by which the School will deal with any complaints. Brian Barnes has attended some training about the new policy and offered to provide Petrina with a copy of the model document. Action: Brian Barnes.

ii. Charging and Remission Policy

This policy was agreed at the recent Finance and Staffing Committee meeting and was tabled at this meeting to be agreed by the full Governing Body. The policy was discussed and ratified by the governors.

iii. Financial Management Policy and Procedures including Governors Allowances

This policy was agreed at the recent Finance and Staffing Committee meeting and was tabled at this meeting to be agreed by the full Governing Body. The policy was discussed and ratified by the governors.

iv. Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy and Procedure

Petrina gave the governors a draft Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy which mirrored the PDJ policy and was based on the West Berks model policy. The governors discussed the policy and the prospect of agreeing it as a partnership policy. The governors felt that as any child protection issues which arose could involve families with children at both schools having a common policy would ensure that a consistent approach would be provided. The policy was agreed and Petrina advised that the policy will be discussed at the PDJ FGB next week. The PDJ governors will be also asked to consider adopting the policy as a partnership policy. If they give their agreement the policy will be adopted as such.

v. Safer Recruitment Policy

Petrina distributed a copy of the Junior School’s Safer Recruitment Policy for the governors to study. As the Infant School does not hold such a policy Petrina suggested that the policy be adopted as a partnership policy. Karen Fakes advised that a common policy for safer recruitment would be extremely beneficial. Recently both schools had needed to appoint new Lunchtime Controllers and were able to pool resources for advertising and interviewing. The governors discussed the policy and agreed both the policy and for it to be recorded as a partnership policy. The Junior School governors will be asked to consider the policy at their meeting next week.

vi. Education of Looked After Children Policy

The governors had received a copy of this policy prior to the meeting. The policy was discussed and agreed as a partnership policy subject to the Junior School governors’ agreement as such next week.

vii. Term Time Holiday Policy

The governors had received a copy of this policy prior to the meeting. The governors felt that it was important that the Partnership demonstrated a consistent approach to holidays requested in term time. Petrina explained that she was willing to authorise holidays during term time only in exceptional circumstances. The governors concurred with this approach to the issue. The policy was discussed and agreed as a partnership policy subject to the Junior School governors’ agreement as such next week.

The governors decided that they would send a letter to parents to inform them of the contents of the Term Time Leave Policy. Action: Kate Flowerdew.

viii. Staff Induction Policy

The governors had received a copy of this policy prior to the meeting. During the discussion of the policy checklist it was suggested that the new member of staff should be asked for the renewal date of their safeguarding training to ensure that training in this area could be kept current.

Coral Taylor suggested that manual handling training should be added to the checklist. This suggestion was discussed and it was felt that under the School’s Health and Safety buyback arrangement the school should be able to request some manual handling training from the LA for the current staff members; training would then be given on an individual basis for new members of staff. The governors agreed with this suggestion. Action: Petrina Winsor.

Kate Flowerdew asked if a section could be included in the policy referring to the induction of lunchtime controllers (LTC) and administration staff. Action: Karen Fakes.

ix. Age Discrimination Policy

The governors had received a copy of this policy prior to the meeting. Following a discussion the governors agreed to accept the policy. Petrina suggested that the Junior School also ought to consider the policy. The PDJ governors will be asked to the look at the policy at their meeting next week and subject to their agreement the policy will be adopted as a partnership policy.

x. Freedom of Information Scheme

The governors had received a copy of this policy prior to the meeting. The policy was discussed and agreed.

xi. Freedom of Information Scheme and Data Protection Policy

The governors had received a copy of this policy prior to the meeting. The policy was discussed and agreed.

6. Headteacher’s Report

The governors had all received a copy of Petrina’s report prior to the meeting. Sharon Goddard thanked Petrina for providing and excellent and detailed report.

7. Matters arising from the Headteacher’s Report

Rosemary Lilley asked if there had been any progress in the search for a Family Liaison Officer to replace the Family Support Worker whose role became redundant. Mrs Winsor explained that the position had been advertised again but none of the applicants for the role possessed the qualifications and experience the schools were seeking.

Sharon noted that there were two action points for governors arising from the recent Supported Self Review (SSR) and asked how and when these would be addressed. Petrina explained that she felt that there were other more immediately useful ways in which the governors could assist the school at the present time, for example, following the recent informal governors meeting offers of assistance in areas such as IT support and carrying out Learning Walks had been received from governors.

One of the action points arising from the SSR was the appointment of an AGT governor to ensure that the GB has a clear picture of provision for AGT children. Petrina felt the school needed time to consolidate before implementing too many new initiatives and she envisaged appointing an AGT governor in the next twelve months.

The second action point for governors was to undertake further training on how data can be used to monitor and evaluate outcomes for all groups of pupils. Sharon explained that RAISEonline provides interactive analysis of school and pupil performance data and offered to hold an informal training evening on the subject for governors of both PDI and PDJ in the Spring Term. Action: Sharon Goddard

Rosemary Lilley said that she was pleased to note that the staff had received training on Attachment Disorder.

Petrina informed the governors that Maxine Slade, the School’s SIA, visited last week and was very pleased with the progress made following the SSR.

8. Annual Safeguarding Report (ASR)

Petrina gave the governors a copy of the Annual Safeguarding Report and asked for their assistance in completing some of the information.

One of the points raised on the ASR concerned a policy for information sharing. Rosemary Lilley offered to investigate this matter and advise Petrina accordingly. Action: Rosemary Lilley.

9. Transition Surveys

Julia Payen had issued a questionnaire to parents of the new intake in Foundation Stage and parents of children transferring to the Junior School in Year 3 to gauge their opinion of the way in which the transitions had been handled.

Only 27% of FS forms and 8% of Year 3 forms were returned. In general the comments of parents were very positive and some useful feedback was received. Please see the report for the full details.

10. SEN Report

Petrina gave the governors a copy of the SEN report to take away and study. The governors were asked to give any feedback to Rosemary in connection with the report.

11. Matters arising from:

i. Finance and Staffing Committee

Brian Barnes met with Sue Turner today to discuss the budget. The budget is currently on track with an estimated surplus of £17,000.

ii. Premises Committee

Governors from both PDI and PDJ carried out the recent Health and Safety Walks at each other’s schools and found it very beneficial. Accident forms are being carefully monitored to look for recurring issues which may need to be addressed.

iii. Curriculum and Standards Committee

Karen Fakes provided the governors with a detailed report and analysis of the latest SATs results.

iv. Pay Committee

Sharon Goddard explained that the recent Pay Committee meeting had been inquorate and gave the governors a report on changes made to the Pay Policy following the issue of the new Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document.

Sharon went on to advise the governors that the Pay Policy states that the Pay Committee should receive a recommendation from the Headteacher’s Performance Management Review Panel regarding the Headteacher’s salary. It is then the responsibility of the Pay Committee to discuss and agree the Headteacher’s salary. Sharon therefore asked that the Pay Committee be advised of the date of the Headteacher’s PM review in future to avoid any hold-ups with regard to salary adjustments.

12. Training:

i. Information and feedback

Brian Barnes attended some training about the new model Complaints Policy and Sharon Goddard went to a training session on the new Admissions Policy. Petrina asked Sharon if she could provide her with some notes about this training session. Action: Sharon Goddard.

West Berks now provides an online training resource via its website. It was suggested that the governors look at what subjects are available for training sessions and provide feedback to the governing body after completing training. The governors felt that this would be an efficient use of time and resources.

ii. Development Governor News

The Governing Body does not have a Development Governor (DG) at present. Brian said that the Development Governor role was currently under review at another school at which he is a governor and offered to provide more information at the next meeting.

Sharon Goddard is DG at the Junior School and offered to take on the role for the Infant School. This matter will be discussed further at the next FGB meeting following Brian’s report on the subject. Action: Brian Barnes.

13. Governor Thanks

Julia Payen will be making and sending Christmas cards to all staff individually thanking them for their work over the past year.

Sharon thanked Petrina and Karen for all their hard work recently.

14. Any Other Business

Strike Action

The decision has been taken to close both schools on 30th November as a result of planned strike action by staff. A text message will be sent to all parents tomorrow to advise them of the decision and to allow them sufficient time to make child care arrangements if necessary.

Parent Election

Following the resignation of Louise Doe a parent election will be arranged by Claire Snook. Claire asked the governors to make a decision about the strategy for contacting parents who do not live with their children to advise them about the governor vacancy. Following a discussion the decision was taken that the paperwork should be sent to all parents including those who do not reside with their children.

15. Date of Next Meeting

The next meeting will be held on Tuesday 13th March 2012 at 7.15pm.

The meeting closed at 9.50pm.

Actions Carried Forward From Previous Meetings

Actions from the meeting held on 12th July 2011

Action 2: Julia Payen is working on establishing a portfolio of partnership policies.

Action 3: Coral Taylor and Kate Flowerdew will meet with Naomi Williams (Co-deputy Head at the Junior School) to discuss the development of community cohesion in the context of moral and cultural development further.

Action 6: Petrina Winsor and Sandra Izoulet will continue working on the first aid review following which a First Aid and Administration of Medicines Policy will be drafted and presented to the governors for discussion.

Action 8: Karen Fakes will continue with the review of the Drugs Policy.

Actions from the meeting held on 13th September 2011

Action 6: Governors to assist to staff in areas in which they have particular strengths as identified at the informal governors meeting held in November.

Actions

Action 1: Brian Barnes will forward a copy of the new model Complaints Policy to Claire Snook for the attention of Petrina.

Action 2: Kate Flowerdew will draft a letter to be sent to parents about the Term Time Leave Policy.

Action 3: Petrina Winsor will contact the LA with regard to arranging training in manual handling.

Action 4: Karen Fakes will add a section to the Staff Induction Policy with reference to the induction of LTCs and admin staff.

Action 5: Sharon Goddard arrange a training evening on the subject of RAISEonline for the governors of both schools in the spring term.

Action 6: Rosemary Lilley will research whether there is a model policy for information sharing with regard to safeguarding issues.

Action 7: Sharon Goddard will provide Petrina with a copy of the notes from the Admissions Policy training session.

Action 8: Brian Barnes will give the governors a report on the role of Development Governor at another local school.

 

Documents Referred to in the Minutes

 

Agenda Item	Document
4.ii	Standing Orders
5.ii	Charging and Remissions Policy
5.iii	Financial Management Policy and Procedures including Governors Allowances
5.iv	Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy and Procedure
5.v	Safer Recruitment Policy
5.vi	Looked After Children Policy
5.vii	Term Time Holiday Policy
5.viii	Staff Induction Policy
5.ix	Age Discrimination Policy
5.x	Freedom of Information Scheme
5.xi	Freedom of Information Scheme and Data Protection Policy
6	Headteacher’s Report
6	School Development Plan
8	Annual Safeguarding Report
9	Transition Survey Report
10	SEN Report

 

 

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE GOVERNORS OF PARSONS DOWN INFANT SCHOOL

FINANCE & STAFFING COMMITTEE

Held on Tuesday 20th September 2011 at 7.15pm

Present: Brian Barnes                                          Karen Fakes                                Julia Payen

      Sharon Goddard                                       Petrina Winsor (Headteacher)

Sue Turner, School Business Manager, was in attendance.

Clerk: Claire Snook

1. Apologies

Brian Barnes welcomed everyone to the meeting. Apologies had been received from Rosemary Lilley.

2. Election of Chairman

Brian Barnes was nominated as Chairman of the committee; no other nominations were forthcoming. The governors all agreed the nomination and Brian accepted the position.

3. Election of Vice-Chair

Sharon Goddard was nominated as Vice-Chair, no other nominations were forthcoming. The governors all agreed the nomination and Sharon accepted the position.

4. Matters to be raised under ‘Any Other Business’

The following items of ‘Any Other Business’ were declared:

• School Procurement Card;
• Trees;
• Future Meeting Dates;
• Scheme for Financing Schools.

5. Declarations of interest in agenda items

None of the governors had any specific interests to declare.

6. Minutes of the previous meeting

i. Accuracy

 The minutes of the previous meeting were agreed as being a true record of the meeting and Brian Barnes signed them.

ii. Matters arising from the minutes of the previous meeting

Family Liaison Officer

Local schools no longer have access to a Family Support Worker due to the withdrawal of Extended Services Funding. Following discussions with other schools in Thatcham the decision had been taken to employ a Family Liaison Officer to undertake a similar role for a group of local schools including the Parsons Down Partnership.

The planned interviews for the role did not take place in July as hoped but Petrina Winsor has a meeting with the Headteachers of the other schools later this week and this matter will be discussed and progressed.

Performance Management Policy

This policy was ratified at the last full Governing Body meeting.

Health and Safety Buyback

The level two Health and Safety Buyback has now been arranged and a Health and Safety audit is being carried out on 3rd November.

Project 2011

The building work has now been completed. There are a few snagging issues. Action 1: Brian Barnes.

Administration Hours

This matter is still ongoing. Action 2: Petrina Winsor and Sue Turner.

Audit of Skills

Sharon Goddard gave Julia Payen an audit of skills of document intended to be completed by governors to assess where their strengths lie. The governors discussed the document and it was decided to send to the governors and ask them to complete it and return it before the informal governors meeting which is being held shortly. Sharon Goddard offered to analyse the forms prior to the meeting. Action 3: Sharon Goddard.

Cleaning Contract

The school is still waiting for the cleaning company to complete the reassessment of the cleaning arrangements.

7. Policy Reviews

Charging and Remissions Policy

This policy was discussed and agreed by the governors.

Financial Management Policy and Procedures including Governors Allowances

It was noted that Appendix D, the Register of Authorising Officers, was not attached to the policy. Action 4: Sue Turner will give a copy of the register to Claire Snook for attaching to the policy and circulating to the Finance Committee.

The governors agreed this policy subject to the addition of Appendix D.

School Fund Policy

The governors discussed and agreed this policy.

Additional Leave and Time Off for Other Reasons Policy

Petrina requested that the phrase ‘per annum’ was amended to ‘per academic year’ in the sections headed ‘Governor Duties’ and ‘Time Off to Attend Interviews’ .The governors agreed to this suggestion and ratified the policy subject to this amendment. This policy will be shared with the staff during one of their regular meetings. Action 5: Petrina Winsor.

Staff Expenses Policy

 

This was a new policy which is similar to the policy held at the Junior School.

A very important point to note in the policy is that staff using their cars on school business must have adequate appropriate insurance for using their vehicle for business travel. This includes cases where a member of staff drives their own car to a training course.

Petrina pointed out that the policy states that in future staff must liaise with the finance team prior to making purchases on behalf of the school. This is a significant change in the way in which some purchases have been made in the past. In view of this Petrina asked Claire Snook to forward the finalised policy to Sue Turner who will then highlight the areas which will be new to the staff and give the highlighted copy of the policy to Petrina. The policy will then be shared with the staff and the new arrangements will be explained. Action 6: Claire Snook, Sue Turner, Petrina Winsor.

The governors discussed the policy further and agreed it.

8. Policies to be reviewed at the next meeting

 

The policies to be reviewed at the next meeting are Staff Code of Conduct and Whistleblowing & Confidential Reporting Code.

9. West Berkshire Pupil Premium Grant

 

Information about the West Berkshire Council Pupil Premium Grant (PPG) had been circulated to the governors prior to the meeting for information. Petrina Winsor explained that due to the change in the way in which schools are funded, for example with the loss of the Extended Services funding, the PPG was now being used to identify certain groups of vulnerable pupils and provide schools with extra funding to make provision for them.

The PPG is calculated based on the number of children identified in the January census as qualifying for free school meals, being children of service families or being looked after children. There are currently less children qualifying for FSM than last year but it is thought that this is because of the new registration method introduced by West Berks which means that parents have to apply directly to the LA to register for FSM. Some parents have not yet completed this process.

10. Financial Health Check and Risk Assessment

The governors decided that in the light of the new Schools Financial Value Standard (SFVS) which will shortly be introduced they would defer completing the risk assessment since the SFVS would be likely to introduce a new set of financial documents and checks.

11. Governor Skills and Knowledge Assessment

This was discussed under ‘Audit of Skills’ in the section ‘Matters arising from the minutes of the previous meeting’.

 

12. School Budget

Sue Turner gave the governors copies of the Cumulative Expense Analysis showing the budget figures up to the end of period 5. There is currently a debit balance of £39201  on the Revenue Contribution to Capital account due to the building work which was carried out at the school over the summer holidays. A total of £20,000 is due from West Berks to help offset this amount and the governors agreed that the balance could be taken from the contingency account.

The balances of the Equipment Purchase account and the Furniture Purchase account are both in debit due to the need to purchase new desks for Petrina, Karen and the Community Room and furniture for the Library. The governors authorised the transfer of funds from the contingency account to cover these purchases.

The interview expenses account is £636 in debit. Some of this is due to the charges for the testing which was commissioned for the Headteacher’s interview process earlier in the year. It was suggested that West Berks had offered to pay for these tests. Sue Turner will contact Karen Claxton to confirm if this is the case. Action 7: Sue Turner.

At this point Sue Turner raised a query which she had received from a parent about whether school trips were subsidised for families whose children were eligible for free school meals (FSM) as is the case at the Junior School. The governors discussed this issue and agreed that the school would be prepared to subsidise these families. Karen Fakes said that she was already planning to include the subject of FSM in the next newsletter and would also include a sentence to the effect that if families were claiming for FSM they may also be eligible for savings against other school expenses. The governors had previously agreed that families claiming FSM would be entitled to assistance with the cost of school uniforms. Action 8: Karen Fakes. Petrina asked Karen to give Julie Pullen at the Junior School a copy of the wording which she intended to use so that it could also be included in the Junior School newsletter.

In general the governors were pleased to note that the budget was on track.

Petrina asked that any overspends on the budget this year are not cancelled out so that areas which have been overspent can be clearly identified when setting the budget for next year.

13. School Account

 

The governors were given a copy of the School Account which shows a balance of £2,823 although £1,464 of this money is allocate to various projects.

Sue Turner told the governors that the account was due to be audited very soon.

 

14. Staffing Matters

 

Petrina advised the governors that 1:1 assistance of 11 hours each had been agreed for two SEN children in Foundation Stage. Interviews for the positions were due to take place later in the week. These children may require extra support which may have to be funded by the school.

A member of part-time teaching staff who covers PPA time has resigned and will be leaving at half-term in October. It is planned that she will not be replaced for the time being. At present there are two teachers on maternity leave with another due to leave very soon and as yet it is not known what their plans for returning to work are. Until their intentions are known it is planned that Karen Fakes will cover some of the PPA time together with some supply staff who have previously taught at the school.

Julia Payen advised the governors that Debbie Botha has successfully completed her Certificate of School Administration course. Debbie asked the governors to pass on her thanks to them for allowing her to take the course and supporting her.

15. Any Other Business

School Procurement Card

Following a ‘Financial Health Check’ which had taken place that day Sue Turner said that she had been informed by West Berks that other schools were using Government Procurement Cards to facilitate the purchase of goods online. The governors discussed this and asked Sue to find out more information about the scheme. Petrina felt that this was something from which the Junior School could also benefit. Action 9: Sue Turner.

Trees

A quotation had been received from Roger Molloy for attending to various trees around the school site. Some of the trees have grown too large causing problems for one of the school’s neighbours and need to be removed and some trees need to have branches removed to make them safer. The total cost for the work will be £1,240. The governors gave their agreement for the work to go ahead and for the funds to be paid from the contingency account.

Future Meeting Dates

Sue Turner asked if it was possible for the first Finance meeting of the academic year to be held a little later in future to allow the mid-year budget figures to be presented to the governors. Petrina said this would be taken into account in future.

Scheme for Financing Schools

This consultation document had been emailed to governors by the local authority. Brian Barnes advised that having read the document he felt that the school was already complying with many of its recommendations. The consultation period for the scheme ends next week.

16. Date of the next meeting

The next meeting will take place on 28th February at 7.15pm.

The meeting ended at 9.25pm.

Actions

 

Action 1:       Brian Barnes will contact Newbury Interiors to ask them to visit the school to resolve the snagging issues which have been noted.

Action 2:       Sue Turner and Petrina Winsor will carry out an audit of the tasks carried out by the administration team.

Action 3:              Sharon Goddard will analyse the governors audit of skills forms prior to the informal governors meeting.

Action 4:       Sue Turner will give a copy of the register to Claire Snook for attaching to the policy and circulating to the Finance Committee.

Action 5:       Petrina Winsor will speak to the staff about the new Additional Leave and Time Off for Other Reasons Policy.

Action 6:               Claire Snook will email the Staff Expenses Policy to Sue Turner who will highlight new procedures in the policy and give it to  Petrina Winsor who will speak to the staff about the policy.

Action 7:       Sue Turner will contact Karen Claxton to confirm if West Berks are paying for the Headteachers interview testing.

Action 8:               Karen Fakes will include a section the next newsletter about FSM families being eligible for assistance with other school expenses and ask Julie Pullen to include the same in the Junior School newsletter.

Action 9:       Sue Turner will find out more information about the Government Procurement Card scheme.

 

Documents Referred to in the Minutes

Agenda Item	Document
7	Charging and Remissions Policy
7	Financial Management Policy and Procedures including Governors Allowances
7	School Fund Policy
7	Additional Leave and Time Off for Other Reasons Policy
7	Staff Expenses Policy
9	West Berkshire Pupil Premium Grant
10	Financial Health Check and Risk Assessment
12	Cumulative Expense Analysis

 

 

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE GOVERNORS OF PARSONS DOWN INFANT SCHOOL

CURRICULUM AND STANDARDS COMMITTEE

                         

Held on 1st November 2011 at 7.15 pm

 

 

 

Present: Julia Payen (Chair)                           Karen Fakes                  Louise Doe

                    Emilia Clark

 

Clerk: Claire Snook

 

1. Apologies

Apologies had been received and were accepted from Petrina Winsor and Coral Taylor.

2. Election of Chair and Vice-Chair

Julia Payen was nominated as Chair of the committee; no other nominations were forthcoming. The governors all agreed the nomination and Julia accepted the position.

Louise Doe was nominated as Vice-Chair of the committee; no other nominations were forthcoming. The governors all agreed the nomination and Louise accepted the position.

3. Matters to be raised under ‘Any Other Business’

No items of ‘Any Other Business’ were declared.

4. Declarations of interest in agenda items

None of the governors had any specific interests to declare.

5. Minutes of the previous meeting

i. Accuracy

The minutes were deemed to be a true record of the meeting and Julia Payen signed them.

ii. Matters arising from the minutes of the previous meeting

Policies

The re-writing of the policies within a common policy framework is ongoing. Action: Mrs Fakes.

6. Supported Self Review (SSR) Feedback

Mrs Fakes explained that the full written SSR report was still awaited but some verbal feedback had been given immediately following the review.

Mrs Fakes said that overall the outcome had been good with some positive comments received about areas of good practice. The school was also advised that there were areas which needed to be developed and work has already begun on addressing these. The staff are feeling very positive following the review and are appreciative of having had the review so early in the year since they will be able to implement any necessary changes in time to make a difference for the children in their current classes.

Mrs Winsor is in the process of redrafting the School Development Plan (SDP) to reflect the points raised in the SSR. The SDP and full details of the SSR will be shared with the governors when they are available.

7. Standards – report on progress for each year group; end of year targets

Mrs Fakes gave the governors a set of reports analysing the end of year results for each year group.

The governors studied the reports and discussed them in detail. The governors were pleased to note that the SATs results showed the numbers of children reaching 2B+ in all subjects was above the national level.

Mrs Fakes explained that children were now expected to move up 3 sub levels per year in Key Stage 1 and were expected to achieve level 1A by the end of Year 1.

In Year 1 children made the following sub-level progress:

Reading – 2.7 sub-levels

Writing - 3 sub-levels

Maths – 2.3 sub-levels

In Year 2 children made the following sub-level progress:

Reading - 3 sub-levels

Writing - 2.6 sub-levels

Maths - 2.9 sub-levels

The reports also gave the governors information about the progress of children in various groups such as SEN, EAL and children who are eligible for Free School Meals.

The governors discussed ways in which the CLL scores in FS could be improved. Mrs Fakes advised that the letters and sounds and guided reading schemes were due to commence earlier than had previously been the case in an attempt to address this issue.

Finally the governors looked at the targets which have been set for this year. Each Year 1 and 2 teacher has been given separate targets for their class taking into account their pupils’ FS scores and current levels of progress. FS have been set a target of 75% of children obtaining 6+ Scale Points. Mrs Fakes acknowledged that these targets were very challenging and ambitious. Subsequent to the meeting Mrs Fakes advised the Clerk that the target figure of 75% of FS children obtaining 6+ Scale Points was incorrect and the actual target figure is 85%. Mrs Fakes apologised for the error.

The governors thanked Mrs Fakes for producing such comprehensive reports.

For full details of the statistics please see the attached reports.

8. Any Other Business

There were no items of ‘Any Other Business’.

9. Date of the next meeting

The next meeting will be held on 7th February 2012 at 7.15pm.

The meeting closed at 8.15pm

Actions

Action 11/1 – Mrs Fakes will re-write the policies discussed previously within a common framework and the governors will review them at the next Curriculum and Standards Committee meeting.

Agenda Item	Document
7	Setting/LA/National Summary
7	SATs Comparative Report
7	PDI Results Overview
7	Year 1 Overview
7	Year 2 Progress
7	FS2 Overview
7	Targets in relation to Age Related Expectation 2011/12

 

 

Parsons Down Partnership of Schools

Joint Premises Committee Meeting

Present: Glenn Peters                 Julia Payen                 Petrina Winsor

                     Scott Davies                  Steve Lovell                 Brian Barnes

                     Sandra Izoulet

Also in attendance was Dave Vincent, Site Controller.

Clerk: Claire Snook

 

P11/23 Welcome and Declaration of ‘Any Other Business’

 

Glenn Peters welcomed everyone to the first meeting of the joint Premises Committee of Parsons Down Infant and Junior Schools. The governors introduced themselves to each other.

Apologies had been received from Corinne Burton and Paul Fletcher-Dyer.

There were no items of ‘Any Other Business’ to declare.

 

P11/24 Election of Chairman and Vice-Chairman

Glenn Peters was nominated as Chairman of the committee; no other nominations were forthcoming. The governors all agreed the nomination and Glenn accepted the position. Brian Barnes was nominated as Vice - Chairman of the committee; no other nominations were forthcoming. The governors all agreed the nomination and Brian accepted the position.

 

P11/25 Minutes from the previous Infant School Premises Committee meeting of 14th June 2011

The minutes of the previous meeting held by the Infant School Premises Committee were agreed as being a true record of the meeting and Glenn Peters signed them.

 

P11/26 Matters arising from the Infant School minutes of 14th June 2011

Foundation Stage Roof

The school has still heard nothing from Mr Miles about rectifying the problems with the Foundation Stage roof. Glenn Peters asked for the previously prepared letter advising Mr Miles that legal action would be taken to be posted to Mr Miles. Julia Payen will obtain a copy of the letter and send it to Glenn for his information. Action: Julia Payen.

Health and Safety Policy (H&S)

Julia Payen had drafted a new H&S policy which is based on the Junior School’s policy. The Infant School is undergoing a H&S audit at the beginning of November and it was suggested that the audit team could be asked to look at the draft policy as part of the audit. The policy could then be updated to incorporate any suggestions made by the team. The policy will be looked at in detail at the next Premises Committee meeting.

DDA Regulations and Access Plan

Julia Payen has updated the Equality and Diversity Policy to incorporate the DDA Regulations and Access Plan. Julia is in the process of writing the Accessibility Plans under the following headings;

• Access to the curriculum;
• Access to the physical environment;
• Promotion of positive values;
• Provision of information.

Action: Julia Payen.

 

Anti-Arson Policy

At the previous PDI Premises Committee meeting the governors agreed to adopt the PDJ Anti-Arson Policy with the addition of the sentence, ‘It is the schools’ responsibility to ensure that the site is kept clean and tidy.’ The joint committee discussed the policy and agreed to add this sentence and adopt this policy as a partnership policy.

Glenn raised the question of whether all policies were now to be partnership policies. The governors discussed this issue and it was felt that where appropriate partnership policies would be adopted as this would help to ensure consistency and quality of outcomes for the children. It was decided that as policies are reviewed consideration would be given as to whether they should become partnership policies.

 

Keyholders

Petrina Winsor has been provided with a list of keyholders at PDI and a draft out-of-hours access protocol has been written. Petrina will share this protocol with the governors at the next meeting.

Action: Petrina Winsor.

 

Health and Safety Checks

The governors discussed the best way of carrying out the Health and Safety checks and decided that on this occasion the checks for both schools will be undertaken on the same day by governors of both schools working together. Action: Steve Lovell, Brain Barnes and Sandra Izoulet.

 

Risk Assessments

The risk assessments for new and expectant mothers and wheelchair users have now been written.

 

Health and Safety Provision

PDI has now arranged to purchase the health and safety provision provided by the local authority. As a result of this a H&S audit is being carried out early in November.

 

Caretakers Hours

This subject has been discussed at other meetings and is now closed.

Cleaning

This matter is still ongoing and Petrina is awaiting a response from the LA with regard to reviewing the cleaning contract.

P11/27 Minutes from the previous Junior School Premises Committee meeting of 27th June 2011

The minutes of the previous meeting held by the Junior School Premises Committee were agreed as being a true record of the meeting and Glenn Peters signed them.

P11/28 Matters arising from the Junior School minutes of 27th June 2011

P10n Petrina advised the governors that the LA have still not published the new Accessibility Strategy. Petrina asked that this be removed from the list of outstanding actions and advised the governors that she would let them know when the document was published. Action closed.

P11h Glenn Peters has received the report from the Travel Committee. Action closed.

P11i Laura Inglut amended the Health and Safety Check List. Action closed.

P11j A date for the Health and Safety checks is being arranged today. Action closed.

P11k Laura Inglut was advised that no funding was available for the upgrade of the fire alarm system. Action closed.

P11l No further progress has been made with the development of the outdoor curriculum area. Petrina advised the governors that this project was being managed by Naomi Williams who is due to return from Maternity Leave in December. The matter will be progressed following Naomi’s return. Action ongoing.

P11m The governors will discuss the Equality and Diversity Policy later in the meeting. Action closed.

 

P11/29 Declaration of Business Interests

None of the governors had any specific interests to declare.

 

P11/30 Health and Safety/ Premises Issues

i. Parsons Down Infant School

Following building work which had been carried out at the Infant School over the summer holidays Petrina Winsor had received a letter from Julia Powell, one of the PDI Teaching Assistants, about the fire doors which had been installed.

Mrs Powell uses a wheelchair and finds the fire doors very heavy and difficult to open causing her fatigue and exacerbating her condition. Mrs Powell requested that the school seek advice on how reasonable adjustments can be made to the doors to restore the accessibility to all areas of the school which she had previously enjoyed. Action: Petrina Winsor.

It was noted that the nearest fire exit to the area where Mrs Powell works is not accessible to her as there is a step outside the door making it unsuitable for wheelchair users.

This matter was discussed at length and it was suggested that a portable ramp owned by the Junior School could be used at the Infant School and left in place outside the fire door during the day for Mrs Powell to use should the need arise. This matter will be discussed with the LA Health and Safety team when they visit to carry out their audit early in November. This course of action will be discussed with Mrs Powell to ensure that it is satisfactory to her. Action: Petrina Winsor.

 

ii. Parsons Down Junior School

There are no outstanding issues at the Junior School.

 

iii. Health and Safety Walks

As previously discussed Steve Lovell, Brian Barnes and Sandra Izoulet will arrange a convenient date to carry out the H&S walks for both schools. It is intended that both checks are carried out on the same day.

 

P11/31 Friar Reports including Racism Reporting

i. Parsons Down Infant School

The governors looked at the summary figures for FRIAR forms completed at the Infant School and noted that in comparison the figures were much higher than the figures reported by the Junior School. It was suggested that there was probably an inconsistency between the two schools in the criteria used for determining the necessity to complete a FRIAR form. It was also suggested that as the Infant School children are younger than the Junior School children minor injuries arising from trips and falls were more likely to occur.

Petrina Winsor advised the governors that she was intending to carry out a review of First Aid and the way in which First Aid provisions and medicines were stored. The completion of relevant paperwork such as FRIAR forms would form part of this review. Sandra Izoulet offered to help with this review.

It was noted that a consistent approach to the completion of forms across both schools would make comparing the collated figures more meaningful.

 

ii. Parsons Down Junior School

 

The governors noted from the Junior School FRIAR summary sheet that there had been several incidents of racism and asked Petrina for more information about this and the action taken by the school.

Petrina explained that assemblies had taken place to address racism issues and that a pupil who was responsible for some of the incidents had since left the school.

P11/32 Strategic Expenditure Plan – PDJ

 

The governors looked at the Strategic Financial Development Plan detailing funds available for capital projects. It was noted that the balance of the contingency account is £8,750 and the governors felt that apart from the purchase of a projector for Thames class this amount should be kept in reserve for carrying out routine maintenance.

Petrina Winsor explained that the Strategic Financial Development Plan allowed the governors to capture and cost out proposed projects and see at a glance the current financial situation. It was felt that it would be beneficial for the Infant School to produce a similar report. Action: Julia Payen.

Brian Barnes told the governors about funding available from the Greenham Common Trust. The Trust allocates funds to charities for specific projects. As the Schools Association is a charity it would be able to apply for funding for future projects. The governors discussed this and requested Claire Snook to draft a letter to the Chair of the PDSA asking them to register with the Trust to allow the school to take advantage of this scheme. Action: Claire Snook

 

P11/33 DDA Update

The governors were given a copy of the Equality and Diversity Policy which had been updated by Glenn Peters. The policy was discussed and agreed. Petrina Winsor will now complete the accessibility action plans which form part of the policy with the Senior Management Team. Action: Petrina Winsor.

P11/34 Agreement of Braeside Residential Trip

Petrina asked the governors to give their permission for the Year 4 residential trip to Braeside to go ahead from 22nd – 24th February next year. The governors asked Petrina whether the relevant risk assessments and health and safety checks had been carried out. After being assured that this was all in order the governors gave their consent for the trip to take place.

P11/35 Any Other Business

There were no items of ‘Any Other Business’ to discuss.

P11/36 Date of Next Meeting

The next meeting will be held on 16th January 2012 at 4.00pm at the Infant School.

The meeting closed at 5.10pm.

P11/37 Actions

 

P11o Julia Payen will speak to Sue Turner to obtain a copy of the letter to be sent to Mr Miles in connection with the FS roof and will forward it to Glenn Peters prior to its being posted.

P11p Julia Payen will write the accessibility action plans.

P11q Petrina Winsor will finalise the draft ‘out-of-hours’ protocol and bring it to the next meeting.

P11r Steve Lovell, Brain Barnes and Sandra Izoulet will arrange a convenient time to carry out the Health and Safety checks for both schools.

P11s Petrina Winsor is awaiting a response from the local authority with regard to reviewing the PDI cleaning contract.

P11t Petrina Winsor will contact Occupational Health to seek advice about adjustments to the fire doors.

P11u Petrina Winsor will speak to Julia Powell to discuss the fire escape arrangements suggested for her and ensure that she is satisfied with them.

P11v Julia Payen will speak to Sue Turner about producing a Strategic Financial Development Plan for the Infant School.

P11w Claire Snook will draft a letter to the PDSA asking them to register with the Greenham Common Trust.

P11x Petrina Winsor will complete the action plans relating to the DDA regulations.

 

Documents Referred to in the Minutes

Item Reference	Document
P11/31i	PDI FRIAR 1 Incident Monitoring Form
P11/31ii	PDJ FRIAR Reports Sept 2010 – Aug 2011
P11/31ii	PDJ FRIAR Reports Sept 2011 – Aug 2012
P11/32	PDJ Strategic Expenditure Plan 2011/12
P11/33	Equality and Diversity Policy

 

 

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE GOVERNORS

OF PARSONS DOWN INFANT SCHOOL

 

Held on Tuesday 13th September 2011 at 7.15pm

 

Present: Julia Payen                          Petrina Winsor                          Brian Barnes

                    Kate Flowerdew                 Louise Doe                                   Paul Fletcher-Dyer

                  Corinne Burton                   Rosemary Lilley                       Sandra Izoulet

                  Sharon Goddard               Coral Taylor

 

Clerk:      Claire Snook

 

 

1. Apologies

Mrs Payen welcomed everyone to the meeting and introduced two new community governors, Coral Taylor and Sharon Goddard. Coral and Sharon are also governors at Parsons Down Junior School (PDJ). The governors introduced themselves to Coral and Sharon.

 

Apologies had been received from Karen Fakes and Emilia Clark.

 

2. Election of Chair

Julia Payen was nominated as Chair for the current academic year. No other nominations were forthcoming, the governors all agreed the nomination and Julia accepted the position.

 

3. Election of Vice-Chair

Brian Barnes and Kate Flowerdew nominated themselves for the role of Vice-Chair. Both governors left the meeting while a vote was taken. Following the vote Kate was elected as Vice-Chair.

 

4. Completion of Business Interests and Governor Declaration Forms

The governors completed the Business Interests and Governor Declaration Forms and handed them to Claire Snook.

 

 

5. Terms of Reference

The Terms of Reference had been circulated to the Governors prior to the meeting. Amendments had been made to the document to accommodate the changes in the Premises and Pay Committees which are to be joint committees with Parsons Down Junior School.  The Terms of Reference were agreed and ratified.

 

6. Standing Orders

The Standing orders had been distributed prior to the meeting. The governors queried the section on page 8 headed ‘Staff Appointments’ which was felt to be ambiguous.  Petrina Winsor clarified the situation with regard to staff appointments by explaining that she would welcome and invite advice and assistance from governors when appointing new members of staff.

 

The governors discussed some alternative wording for this section. Julia Payen offered to take a further look at the document and revise the wording. Action 1: Julia Payen.

 

7. Matters to be raised under ‘Any Other Business’

The following items of ‘Any Other Business’ were declared:

• Trees;
• Supported Self  Review;
• Efficacy of Governing Body;
• Staffing Matter (Part II).

 

8. Declarations of Interest

None of the governors had any specific interests to declare.

 

 

9. Minutes of the previous meeting

i. The Minutes of the meeting held on 12th July 2011 had been distributed to the Governors prior to the meeting. The Governors deemed the minutes to be an accurate record. Julia Payen signed the document.

 

ii. Matters arising from the minutes of the meeting held on 12th July

 

Action 1: Claire Snook has provided Sue Turner with a copy of the signed minutes of the FGB meeting held on 24th May 2011. Action closed.

 

Action 2: Julia Payen is still looking at the policies which could be common to both schools with the aim of establishing a portfolio of partnership policies. Action ongoing.

 

Action 3: Kate Flowerdew will liaise with Coral Taylor, who is now also an Infant School governor, and Naomi Williams, one of the Deputy Heads at the Junior School who is due to return from maternity leave in November, to discuss the Community Cohesion Policy. Action ongoing.

 

Action 4: Karen Fakes will establish a policy review programme. Action ongoing.

 

Action 5: Claire Snook has made the amendments to the Behaviour Policy. Action closed.

 

Action 6: Karen Fakes and Petrina Winsor will arrange an audit of how medicines are administered and where they are kept whilst in school early next term. Action ongoing.

 

Action 7: Julia Payen will research a suitable model First Aid and Administration of Medicines Policy. Action ongoing.

 

Action 8: Karen Fakes will arrange for the staff responsible for Health Education to revise the Drugs Policy. Action ongoing.

 

Action 9: Rosemary Lilley had taken a look at the draft PDJ Looked After Children Policy. Rosemary had made some minor amendments to the policy which she gave to Claire Snook. Claire will make the amendments and the governors will discuss the LAC policy at the next FGB. Action ongoing.

 

Action 10: Claire Snook has amended the PM and policy and given it to Julia Payen to sign. Action closed.

 

Action 11: Julia Payen plans to have the Expenses Policy prepared for the next Finance and Staffing meeting. Action ongoing.

 

Action 12: Claire Snook has made the arrangements and completed the paperwork for Mrs Taylor and Mrs Goddard to join the governing body. Action closed.

 

Action 13: Louise Doe is continuing with the collation of the Parents Survey results. Action ongoing.

 

Action 14: After discussion with Glenn Peters, Chair of the Junior School Premises Committee, it was decided that it was not feasible to change the time of the joint Premises Committee meetings. The meetings will commence at 4.00pm and will take place alternately at the Junior and Infant Schools.

 

Action 15: Mrs Fakes will speak to the staff and ask them for their ideas as to how links with the governors can be maintained and advanced. Action ongoing.

 

 

10. New Policies

The governors had received copies of all of the following polices prior to the meeting.

 

Governor Induction Policy

The governors discussed some minor amendments to the policy – noted on the draft attached to theses minutes. The policy was agreed subject these amendments. Action: Claire Snook.

 

Rosemary Lilley offered to conduct Level 1 Safeguarding training for any governors or staff from either school who need to complete it.

 

Governor Visits Policy

The governors suggested a minor amendment to the policy – noted on the draft attached to these minutes. The policy was agreed subject this amendment. Action: Claire Snook.

 

Asthma Policy

The governors suggested some minor amendments to the policy – noted on the draft attached to theses minutes. The policy was agreed subject these amendments. Action: Claire Snook.

 

Allegations of Abuse Against Staff Policy

The governors agreed this policy without any amendments.

 

Non-Smoking Policy

The governors agreed this policy without any amendments.

 

One of the governors mentioned that she had seen parents smoking on the school field during an event last summer. The governors suggested that a copy of the Non-Smoking Policy should be included in the Welcome Pack for all new parents when their children join the school. Action: Claire Snook.

 

11. System for Policy Reviews

The current system of policy reviews was discussed and it was felt that currently policies are reviewed by the Governing Body but not always fully considered with the staff.  It was felt that policies are not always embedded in the day to day running of the school.

 

In the future it is planned that curriculum policies will be reviewed by the members of staff responsible for them under their areas of learning and it is hoped that governors may undertake to review certain policies as they become due.

 

Petrina suggested that the governors should take a look at policies as and when they fall due for review and prioritise them so that the most important policies are reviewed in depth with any related policies. To aid this the governors will look at policies which are coming up for review at each meeting and decide which should be prioritised and which should have their review dates extended.

 

 

12. Governors Paperwork

The governors were asked for their preferred method of receiving their paperwork. Following a discussion it was generally agreed that it was preferable to receive hard copies of documents rather than emails with attachments which needed to be printed and which could be extensive.

 

The following system was agreed

•  agendas will be emailed to governors a week before a meeting is scheduled to take place as a reminder and a printed copy of the agenda and associated documents will be sent to governors  via post.
• Minutes of meetings will be emailed to governors when they have been agreed by the Chair (GB or Committee) and the Headteacher. Printed copies of minutes will be posted to governors with the agenda for the next meeting.

 

13. Any Other Business

 

i. Trees

Petrina has received a complaint from Mrs Cowdrey, a resident of Heron’s Way, whose garden backs on to the Wildlife Area on the corner of the Infant School and Junior School sites.

 

There are several large trees in the Wildlife Area producing roots which have caused damage to her garden and patio. The resident has tried to remedy the situation but to no effect and the problem is not covered by insurance. Mrs Cowdrey has asked if the school can help with this issue.

 

Petrina has taken a look at the trees and agreed that they have become too tall and some action needs to be taken. There are also other trees around the site which have either become too large or which are sited close to drains and could potentially cause problems.

 

Petrina suggested that it would be beneficial to obtain the opinion of a tree surgeon both about the trees causing damage to Mrs Cowdrey’s garden and about other trees on site giving cause for concern. The governors discussed this issue and felt it would be wise. Petrina suggested that she should contact Roger Molloy, a tree surgeon who has previously carried out work at both the Infant and Junior Schools. The governors agreed to this suggestion. Action 4: Petrina Winsor.

 

ii. Supported Self Review

Petrina advised the governors that as part of school’s School Improvement buy-back package she has requested a Supported Self Review (SSR). This process involves School Improvement Advisors (SIA) and consultants working with staff to identify areas of strength and areas which need improvement. The SSR will take place on 17th and 18th October.

 

The SSR will involve the SIAs, in this case Maxine Slade and Karen Claxton, looking at planning, pupils’ work, and talking to the core co-ordinators, children and governors. There will also be lesson observations which will take place jointly with Petrina.

 

Sharon Goddard has been involved in planning these reviews and explained to the governors that they could be seen as a health check for the school to ensure that it is making progress and moving in the right direction.

 

The governors asked how feedback from the review would be received. Petrina advised that the SIAs would hold a meeting with herself, Karen Fakes and Julia Payen at the end of the second day of the review to explain their conclusions. These results would then be passed on to the staff and governors by Petrina.

 

iii. Efficacy of Governing Body

Julia Payen explained that she felt that the Governing Body (GB) could be more effective and she would like the governors to be able to spend some time to look at what the GB does well, where improvements could be made and how the governors can best help the school and the staff.

 

Sharon Goddard told the governors that in her role as a governor at the Junior School she had spent time with her link class helping them with ICT issues as ICT was one of her particular skills.

 

Petrina explained that she saw the Junior School GB as a resource, somewhere to go for help and advice.

 

 It was suggested that the governors carry out a skills audit to enable them to ascertain where their skills lay and how they could be put to best use. Sharon said that had access to a skills audit document and offered to send a copy to Julia. Action: Sharon Goddard.

 

The governors decided to hold an informal evening meeting to include the Senior Management Team to discuss the skills audit, the GBs strengths and weaknesses and how best to support the school and staff.  Action: Julia Payen.

 

iv. Staffing Matter

See Part II Minutes

 

14. Date of next meeting

The next meeting will take place on 22nd November at 7.15pm.

 

 

The meeting closed at 9.30pm.

 

 

Actions

 

Action 1: Julia Payen will look at page 8 of the Standing Orders document and revise the wording of the Staff Appointments paragraph.

 

Action 2: Claire Snook will make the suggested amendments to the policies.

 

Action 3: Claire Snook will speak to Debbie Botha about including the Non-Smoking Policy in the Welcome Pack.

 

Action 4: Petrina Winsor will contact  Roger Molloy and ask his opinion about action to be taken with some of the trees in the school grounds.

 

Action 5: Sharon Goddard will send the skills audit document to Julia Payen.

 

Action 6: Julia Payen will contact the governors with suggested dates for the informal evening meeting.

 

Action 7: Julia Payen will write to Karen Fakes re Part II Minutes item.

 

 

Agenda Item	Document
5	Terms of Reference
6	Standing Orders
10	Governor Induction Policy
10	Governor Visits Policy
10	Asthma Policy
10	Allegations of Abuse Against Staff Policy
10	Non-Smoking Policy

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other Information

Parsons Down Schools Partnership
Nearly New Uniform List - March 2012
Item	Brand	Size	Price	Notes
Red Fleece Jacket with logo		11-12	£7.00
		11-12	£6.00
		9-10	£8.00
		24"	£5.00
		7-8	£6.00
Blue Fleece Jacket with logo		9-10	£6.00
		6-8	£4.00
Red Showerproof Jacket with logo		11-12	£7.00
		9-10	£10.00
Blue Showerproof Jacket with logo		6-8	£5.00
		11-12	£8.50
White shirts - Girls	Tesco - brand new	4-5	£2.00
Red V-Neck Jumper with logo		3-4	£4.00
		3-4	£4.00
		4	£4.00
		6-7	£5.00
		7-8	£5.00
		7-8	£5.00
		7-8	£5.00
		9-10	£5.00
Red Cardigan with logo		3-4	£4.00
		5-6	£3.00	some black marks
		5-6	£5.00
Grey Pinafore	TU	8	£2.00
	TU	8	£2.00
Grey Skirt	George	10-11	£2.00
	George	5-6	£2.00
	Adams	10	£2.00
	Mothercare	6-7	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	Tesco	8-9	£2.00
	TU	6	£2.00
	George	7-8	£2.00
	George	7-8	£2.00
	George	7-8	£2.00
	Tesco	5-6	£2.00
	Banner	9-10	£2.00
	Tesco	3-4	£2.00
Grey Trousers - Girls	Mothercare	4-5	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	BHS	8	£2.00
	M&S	9	£2.00
	M&S	9	£2.00
	TU	8	£2.00
	TU	6	£2.00
Grey Trousers - Boys	M&S	12	£2.00
	M&S	9	£2.00
	TU	10	£2.00
	TU	10	£2.00
	Mothercare	9-10	£5.00
	Mothercare	9-10	£5.00
	Mothercare	9-10	£5.00
	Tesco	13-14	£2.00
	Tesco	13-14	£2.00
	Tesco	12	£2.00
Grey Shorts
Red Summer Dress	TU	6	£2.00
	M&S	10	£2.00
	M&S	10	£2.00
	M&S	10	£2.00
	M&S	10	£2.00
	M&S	10	£2.00
	Tesco	8-9	£2.00
	Tesco	8-9	£2.00
	M&S	9	£2.00
	M&S	9	£2.00
	TU	8	£2.00
	TU	8	£2.00
	Ladybird	8-9	£2.00
	Banner	8-9	£2.00
	Debenhams	10	£2.00
	Banner	10-11	£2.00
	Ladybird	9-10	£2.00
	Ladybird	10-11	£2.00
	Next	12	£2.00
	Mothercare	4-5	£2.00
	Mothercare	7-8	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
Red Baseball Cap			£3.50

 

 

23rd January 2012

 

Second-hand Uniform Sales

 

Dear Parent / Carer

Following the trial of several second-hand uniform sales last year it has been decided not to continue them this year.

We do however have a large stock of second-hand/nearly new uniform that has been donated that remains for sale.

We have produced a list of all the uniform that we hold with the sizes and prices for each item. This list is attached and will be posted on the schools websites and continually updated.

Should you wish to purchase a piece of uniform, just email uniform@pdi.westberks.org stating which items you would like and the school your child attends. The items will be delivered to the reception of the appropriate school where you can check and pay for them.

Should you wish to donate any uniform, especially the logo jumpers and cardigans, please deliver to the school receptions. We will only be accepting the following for donations in the future:

• Grey trousers, skirts or pinafores
• Red cardigans or jumpers with school logo
• Red gingham summer dresses
• Fleeces or waterproof coats with school logo

We are still happy to try to sell items on your behalf. Just tell us how much you want for the item, and we take 25% of the cost when the item is sold.

All monies received from the sale of nearly new uniform goes into the funds of both schools.

Any enquires about this nearly new uniform service can also be directed to uniform@pdi.westberks.org.

Many thanks

Julia Payen

Chair of Governors

Parsons Down Infant School

Nearly New Uniform List - January 2012
Item	Brand	Size	Price	Notes
Red Fleece Jacket with logo		11-12	£7.00
		11-12	£6.00
		9-10	£8.00
		24"	£5.00
		7-8	£6.00
Blue Fleece Jacket with logo		9-10	£6.00
		6-8	£4.00
Red Showerproof Jacket with logo		11-12	£7.00
		9-10	£10.00
		5-6	£5.00
Blue Showerproof Jacket with logo		6-8	£5.00
		11-12	£8.50
White shirts - Girls	Tesco - brand new	4-5	£2.00
Item	Brand	Size	Price	Notes
Red V-Neck Jumper with logo		3-4	£4.00
		5 - 26"	£3.00	some black marks
		5-6	£5.00
		9-10	£5.00
		11-12	£5.00
Red Cardigan with logo		7-8	£3.00	some badge holes
		7-8	£3.00	some badge holes
Grey Pinafore	TU	8	£2.00
	TU	8	£2.00
	Mothercare	7-8	£2.00
	TU	5	£2.00
Grey Skirt	George	10-11	£2.00
	George	5-6	£2.00
	George	5-6	£2.00
	Adams	10	£2.00
	Mothercare	6-7	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	Tesco	8-9	£2.00
	TU	6	£2.00
	George	7-8	£2.00
	George	7-8	£2.00
	George	7-8	£2.00
	Tesco	5-6	£2.00
	Banner	9-10	£2.00
	Tesco	3-4	£2.00
Item	Brand	Size	Price	Notes
Grey Trousers - Girls	Mothercare	4-5	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
	BHS	8	£2.00
	M&S	9	£2.00
	M&S	9	£2.00
	TU	8	£2.00
	George	6-7	£2.00
	TU	6	£2.00
Grey Trousers - Boys	Tesco	5-6	£2.00
	Tesco	5-6	£2.00
	M&S	12	£2.00
	M&S	9	£2.00
	TU	10	£2.00
	TU	10	£2.00
	Mothercare	9-10	£5.00
	Mothercare	9-10	£5.00
	Mothercare	9-10	£5.00
	Tesco	13-14	£2.00
	Tesco	13-14	£2.00
	Tesco	12	£2.00
Grey Shorts	TU	5	£1.00
	M&S	6	£1.00
	M&S	8	£1.00
Item	Brand	Size	Price	Notes
Red Summer Dress	TU	6	£2.00
	TU	6	£2.00
	M&S	10	£2.00
	M&S	10	£2.00
	M&S	10	£2.00
	M&S	10	£2.00
	M&S	10	£2.00
	Tesco	8-9	£2.00
	Tesco	8-9	£2.00
	M&S	9	£2.00
	M&S	9	£2.00
	TU	8	£2.00
	TU	8	£2.00
	Ladybird	8-9	£2.00
	Banner	8-9	£2.00
	Debenhams	10	£2.00
	Banner	10-11	£2.00
	Ladybird	9-10	£2.00
	Ladybird	10-11	£2.00
	M&S	7	£2.00
	Next	12	£2.00
	Mothercare	4-5	£2.00
	Mothercare	7-8	£2.00
	M&S	8	£2.00
Red Baseball Cap			£3.50

 

 

 

Ofsted Inspection

The school was inspected on 14th and 15th January 2010. The Ofsted report is available below. Click on the link below to see a copy of the report.

V3%20Parsons%20Down%20Infant%20School%20for%20PUB%20270110

 

 

Parsons Down Infant School

Freedom of Information Scheme

November 2011

 

The Governing Body is responsible for maintenance of this scheme.

1.  Introduction: What a publication scheme is and why it has been developed

One of the aims of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (which is referred to as FOIA in the rest of this document) is that public authorities, including all maintained schools, should be clear and proactive about the information they will make public.

To do this we produce a publication scheme, setting out:

 

• The classes of information which we publish or intend to publish;
• The manner in which the information will be published; and
• Whether the information is available free of charge or on payment.

 

The scheme covers information already published and information which is to be published in the future.  Our publication scheme is available on our website to download and print off or available in paper form. (Some information may not be made public, for example personal information.)

This policy conforms to the model approved by the Information Commissioner.

 

2.  Aims and Objectives 

The school aims to:

• Create in school a happy and stimulating environment, which will help children to acquire self-esteem, self-discipline and a caring attitude, which is respectful and concerned with the needs of others.
• Foster and secure the active co-operation of parents as partners in the education of their children, projecting the school as the focal point of the community it serves.

• Help pupils to develop lively, enquiring minds, the ability to question and argue rationally, to develop individual responsibility, aesthetic sensitivity and an enjoyment of the learning process.
• Encourage pupils to acquire knowledge, skills and practical abilities relevant to their lives at home, at work and leisure, and to develop positive and responsible attitudes as members of society in a rapidly changing world.
• Assist children to understand the world in which they live and interdependence of groups and nations.
• Provide opportunities for the development of children’s well-being and support all those with special needs.
• Develop a balanced curriculum capable of constant review and evaluation, which can respond smoothly to the needs of the modern society. To help children to use language and mathematics effectively.
• Enable children to develop an understanding of personal, social, moral and religious values and a respect for other people’s beliefs and cultures.

 

This policy is a means of showing how we are pursuing these aims.

 

3.  Categories of information published

The policy guides you to information which we currently publish (or have recently published) or which we will publish in the future. This is split into categories of information known as ‘classes’. These are contained in section 6 of this policy. 

 

• The classes of information that we undertake to make available are organised into four broad topic areas:
• School Prospectus and Year Group Parent Handbook

 

Information published in the School Prospectus and Year Group Parent Handbook.

• Governors’ Documents

 

Information published in various Governing Body documents.

• Pupils & Curriculum

 

Information about policies that relate to Pupils and the School Curriculum.

 

School Policies and other information related to the School

 

Information about policies that relate to the school in general.

 

4.  How to request information

If you require a paper version of any of the documents within the scheme, please contact the school by telephone, email, fax or letter. Contact details are set out below or you can visit our website at www.parsonsdowninfant.org

  Email:                             office.pdi@westberks.org

  Tel:                                 01635 862475

  Fax:                                01635 874558

Contact Address:               Parsons Down Infant School, Paynesdown Road, Thatcham, Berks. RG19 3TE.

 

5.  Paying for information

Information published on our website is free, although you may incur costs from your Internet service provider. If you do not have Internet access, you can access our website using a local library or an Internet café.

Single copies of information covered by this publication are provided free unless stated otherwise in section 6. If your request means that we have to do a lot of photocopying or printing, or pay a large postage charge, or is for a priced item such as some printed publications or videos we will let you know the cost before fulfilling your request. Where there is a charge, this will levied in accordance with the School’s Charging Policy.

 

6. Classes of Information Currently Published

 

 

School Prospectus

 

Class

Description

School Prospectus

The statutory contents of the School Prospectus are as follows, (other items may be included in the prospectus at the school’s discretion): The name, address and telephone number of the school, and the type of school The names of the Head Teacher and Chair of Governors Information on the school policy on admissions A statement of the school's ethos and values Details of any affiliations with a particular religion or religious denomination, the religious education provided, parents' right to withdraw their child from religious education and collective worship and the alternative provision for those pupils. Information about the school's policy on providing for pupils with special educational needs. Number of pupils on roll and rates of pupils’ authorised and unauthorised absences National Curriculum assessment results for appropriate Key Stages, with national summary figures The arrangements for visits to the school by prospective parents

Information relating to the Governing Body

Class	Description
Instrument of Government	The name of the School The category of the school The name of the Governing Body The manner in which the Governing Body is constituted The term of office of each category of Governor if less than 4 years Details of any trust If the school has a religious character, a description of the ethos The date the instrument takes effect
Minutes  of meeting of the governing body and its committees	Agreed minutes of meetings of the Governing Body and its Committees.

 

Pupils & Curriculum Policies.

 

Class	Description
Home – School agreement	Statement of the school’s aims and values, the school’s responsibilities, the parental responsibilities and the school’s expectations of its pupils for example homework arrangements.
Curriculum Policies	Statements on following the policies for the secular curriculum subjects and religious education and schemes of work and syllabuses currently used by the school
Sex Education Policy	Statement of policy with regard to sex and relationship education
Special Educational Needs Policy	Information about the school's policy on providing for pupils with special educational needs
Equality and Diversity Policy	Statement of policy for promoting equality
Collective Worship	Statement of arrangements for the required daily act of collective worship
Child Protection and Safeguarding Policies	Statement of policy for safeguarding and promoting welfare of pupils at the school.
Behaviour and Anti-bullying Policies	Statement of general principles on behaviour and discipline and of measures taken by the head teacher to prevent bullying.

 

School Policies and other information related to the school

 

 

Class	Description
Non-Curriculum Policies	Statements with regard to other Policy and Procedure not related to the curriculum.
Published reports of Ofsted referring expressly to the school	Published report of the last inspection of the school and the summary of the report.
Post-Ofsted inspection action plan	A plan setting out the actions required following the last Ofsted inspection.
Charging and Remissions Policies	A statement of the school’s policy with respect to charges and remissions for any optional extra or board and lodging for which charges are permitted, for example school publications, music tuition, trips.
School session times and term dates	Details of school session and dates of school terms and holidays.
Health and Safety Policy and risk assessment	Statement of general policy with respect to health and safety at work of employees (and others) and the organisation and arrangements for carrying out the policy.
Complaints procedure	Statement of procedures for dealing with complaints.
Performance Management of Staff	Statement of procedures adopted by the Governing Body relating to the performance management of staff and the annual report of the Head teacher on the effectiveness of appraisal procedures.
Staff Conduct, Discipline and Grievance	Statement of procedure for regulating conduct and discipline of school staff and procedures by which staff may seek redress for grievance .

 

 

7. Feedback and Complaints

As a school we welcome any comments or suggestions you may have about the details of this policy.  If you want to make any comments about the publication scheme or if you require further assistance in accessing documents mentioned in the scheme or should you wish to make a complaint then initially this should be addressed to:

 The Headteacher, Parsons Down Infant School, Paynesdown Road, Thatcham, Berkshire. RG19 3TE.

If you are not satisfied with the assistance that you receive or if we have not been able to resolve your complaint and you feel that a formal complaint needs to be made then this should be addressed to the Information Commissioner’s Office. This is the organisation that ensures compliance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and that deals with formal complaints. They can be contacted at:

Information Commissioner, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF

Or

Enquiry/Information Line:  01625 545 700

E Mail:  publications@ic-foi.demon.co.uk.

Website :  www.ico.gov.uk

Date Agreed              November 2011

Review Date              November 2014