The Local Governing Body

The Local Governance Committee

St John’s Church of England Primary School is part of the Oxford Diocesan Bucks Schools Trust (ODBST), a family of schools united by the vision “Empowering Lives, Flourishing Together” and inspired by the Christian principle of living “life in all its fullness” (John 10:10). The Trust operates as a single legal entity, with overall responsibility for educational standards, finance, safeguarding, compliance, risk management and strategic direction resting with the Board of Trustees.

To ensure that each school benefits from strong local oversight and remains closely connected to its community, the Trust delegates specific responsibilities to a Local Governance Committee (LGC). Local Governance Committees are committees of the Trust Board and operate within a clear Scheme of Delegation. While ultimate accountability remains with the Trustees, the LGC plays a vital role in providing local insight, constructive challenge, support, monitoring and assurance.

At St John’s, the Local Governance Committee acts as the Trust Board’s “local eyes and ears”, helping Trustees understand how Trust policies and priorities are experienced within the school community. Governors work closely with school leaders to monitor educational outcomes, safeguarding, attendance, behaviour, SEND provision, pupil wellbeing and community engagement. They also provide valuable local intelligence, ensuring that the school remains responsive to the needs of its pupils, families and wider community.

Governors are strategic leaders rather than operational decision-makers. Their role is to provide support and challenge, seek assurance that Trust policies and statutory responsibilities are being implemented effectively, and ensure that the school's Christian vision and values are lived out in practice. Governors focus on helping all pupils flourish academically, socially, spiritually and emotionally.

Membership

The Local Governance Committee at St John’s comprises:

• The Headteacher
• Foundation Governors
• Parent Governors
• Staff Governors
• Skills Governors

Governors typically serve a four-year term of office and bring a wide range of professional expertise, local knowledge and experience. All governors are required to uphold the ODBST Code of Conduct, complete relevant training and act in accordance with the Nolan Principles of Public Life: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.

Foundation Governors

As a Church of England school, Foundation Governors have a particular responsibility for preserving and developing the Christian character of St John’s. They work to ensure that the school’s Christian vision, values and distinctiveness are evident in all aspects of school life and support the school’s ongoing spiritual development and SIAMS journey. Foundation Governors are appointed through a process involving ODBST and the Oxford Diocesan Board of Education (ODBE). 

Parent and Staff Governors

Parent Governors are elected by parents and carers and bring the valuable perspective of families within the school community. Staff Governors are elected by school staff and contribute their professional understanding of school life. Together with Foundation and Skills Governors, they help ensure that governance reflects the needs and aspirations of the whole school community.

Working Together

Effective governance is built on collaboration, transparency, constructive challenge and mutual respect. Governors support school leaders while holding them to account for the quality of education, safeguarding, school improvement and the wellbeing of pupils and staff. Their collective work helps ensure that St John’s continues to provide an exceptional education rooted in its Christian vision and values.

Further information about ODBST governance, including the Trust Board, Scheme of Delegation and governance policies, can be found on the ODBST website. Printed copies are also available from the school office on request.

 

GOVERNOR	CATEGORY	TERM OF OFFICE
Mrs Neelam Bhardwaja (Chair)	Foundation	10/11/25 -
Mr Andrew Kann	Parent	01/03/22 - 28/02/26
Mrs Rebecca Wright	Ex-officio Headteacher	01/09/24-
Mrs Jill Rae	Staff	12/09/22 - 11/09/26
Mr Timothy Parker	Foundation	01/04/22 - 31/03/26
Mrs Claudia Forero Jurado	Parent	16/04/24 - 15/04/28
Mr David Williams	Foundation	9/4/25-8/4/29
Mr Andrew Witherspoon	Foundation	30/4/26 – 29/4/30
Mrs Lizzie Thomas Davies	Foundation	30/4/26 – 29/4/30 23/02/26 – 22/02/30

 

Governors who left during the last 12 months:

GOVERNOR	CATEGORY OF GOVERNOR	TERM OF OFFICE	RESIGNATION DATE
Ms Jeanette Allen (Vice Chair)	Foundation	06/03/23 - 05/3/27	01/03/26
Mr Kevin Capelin-Jones	Foundation	25/11/24-24/11/28	01/09/26
Rev. Canon Tony Bundock	Foundation	01/01/23 - 31/12/26	31/07/26

Register of Governors Relevant Business and Pecuniary Interests

GOVERNOR	RELEVANT BUSINESS OR PECUNIARY INTEREST	CONNECTED PERSONS	GOVERNANCE BODIES IN OTHER EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS
Andrew Kann	Member of NAHT	Natasha Kann (spouse) - Teacher at St John's CE Primary School Lacey Green until 31/8/24	Headteacher Castlefield School High Wycombe
Claudia Forero Jurado	Buckinghamshire Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service Member of Unison	nil return	nil return
Jill Rae	Staff member at St John's CE Primary School Lacey Green	nil return	nil return
Timothy Parker	Director of Lagonda Club Member of Family Law Bar Association, Association of Lawyers for Children, Southeastern Circuit, and Institute of Arbitrators	nil return	nil return
David Williams	-	nil return	nil return
Andrew Witherspoon		nil return	nil return
Lizzie Thomas Davies		nil return	nil return
Rebecca Wright	Headteacher at St John's CE Primary School, Lacey Green	nil return	nil return

The clerk to the Local Governing Body is Tracey Robbins of Entrust Support Services and can be contacted by e-mail: tracey.robbins@entrustclerk.com

Governor Meetings and Responsibilities

The Local Governance Committee (LGC) at St John’s meets formally six times each year and works closely with school leaders and the Trust to provide strategic support, challenge and assurance. Governors help ensure that the school continues to deliver high-quality education, maintain strong safeguarding practice and live out its Christian vision and values. As part of the Oxford Diocesan Bucks Schools Trust (ODBST), the committee operates within the Trust’s Scheme of Delegation and contributes local knowledge and oversight on behalf of the Trust Board.

Strategic Oversight and Accountability

Governors are responsible for monitoring key aspects of school performance, including educational outcomes, attendance, behaviour, safeguarding, pupil wellbeing, SEND provision and school improvement priorities. Through regular meetings, visits and discussions with school leaders, governors provide constructive challenge and seek assurance that Trust policies, statutory requirements and strategic objectives are being implemented effectively.

The committee's role is strategic rather than operational. Governors do not become involved in the day-to-day running of the school but instead focus on supporting leaders, evaluating impact and ensuring that all pupils have the opportunity to flourish academically, socially, emotionally and spiritually.

Finance, Resources and Risk Management

As part of the Trust governance structure, financial responsibility remains with the Trust Board and Executive Team. Governors nevertheless play an important role in monitoring how resources support the school's priorities and improvement plans. They review relevant information, consider the impact of spending decisions and provide local assurance regarding the effective use of resources, staffing and facilities.

Governors also support the school in maintaining a safe, healthy and inclusive environment. This includes monitoring safeguarding arrangements, health and safety procedures, risk management and site security. All governors complete safeguarding training and remain up to date with current guidance to ensure that children, staff and visitors are protected and supported.

Governor Training and Development

ODBST is committed to ensuring that governors have the knowledge and skills required to carry out their responsibilities effectively. All governors undertake regular training, briefings and professional development opportunities. This enables them to remain informed about developments in education, governance, safeguarding, finance and church school distinctiveness, ensuring that they can provide effective support and challenge.

Link Governor Roles and School Visits

Governors are linked to specific areas of school improvement and regularly engage with school leaders to deepen their understanding of priorities and progress. Through planned monitoring visits, governors gather first-hand evidence of the school's strengths and development needs, helping the committee understand how strategic decisions translate into practice.

These visits are not inspections and governors do not make judgements about the quality of teaching or the performance of individual pupils. Instead, they focus on evaluating the impact of school initiatives, understanding the experiences of pupils and staff, and providing informed feedback to the wider Local Governance Committee. Written reports from visits contribute to the committee's monitoring and assurance role and help support ongoing school improvement.

Working Together for Continuous Improvement

Effective governance is based on collaboration, trust and a shared commitment to excellence. By working closely with school leaders, the Trust and the wider school community, governors help ensure that St John's remains a nurturing, ambitious and distinctly Christian school where every child is encouraged to achieve their potential and flourish.

The curriculum links are as follows:

LINK	GOVERNOR
English
Maths	Claudia Forero Jurado
EYFS	Andrew Whitehead
Science
RE/SIAMS	Lizzie
History/Geography	Timothy Parker
Sport	David Williams
Music/Art	All Governors
Safeguarding & Child Protection	Andrew Kann
SEND & Pupil Premium	Claudia Forero Jurado
GDPR	Andrew Kann

Governor Meeting Attendance

Agendas and minutes of all governor meetings are available for inspection in the school office.  The table attached sets out the number of Full Governing Body and committee meetings attended by each Governor during the academic year 2025/26 with the number of such meetings they were eligible to attend in brackets.

GOVERNOR	LGC
Neelam Bhardwaja	5 (5)
Andrew Witherspoon	3 (3)
Lizzie Thomas Davies	3 (3)
Caroline Gulliver	1 (1)
Jeanette Allen	2 (2)
Rev Cannon Tony Bundock	6 (6)
Kevin Capelin-Jones	0 (6)
Claudia Forero Jurado	6 (6)
Andrew Kann	6 (6)
Timothy Parker	5 (6)
Jill Rae	6 (6)
Martin Scoble	1 (3)
David Williams	6 (6)
Rebecca Wright	6 (6)