Governors
Our Governors
Thomas Hinderwell Primary Academy is governed by an Academy Scrutiny Committee.
Our governors are:
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Dominique OsborneExecutive Principal
Dominique Osborne
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Wendy BaxterTrust Senior Link (Vice Chair)
Wendy Baxter
Wendy was appointed a Trust Senior Link on to the AIB on 20 March 2019. She has also served on other ASCs across the DRET Academies for the past 10 years. Wendy is a Regional Director for DRET and its part of her role to ensure that all aspects of school leadership are exemplary, including governance. She wishes to support ASCs by bringing her knowledge and skill-set to the meetings and there is always something new to learn from other governors. She has previously been a Teacher and also had a 20 year career in NHS management as well as running her own business supporting GP practices. When not at work, she loves to spend time outdoors and is an avid fan of parkrun.
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Emma FoxleyDRET Appointed Governor (Joint Chair)
Emma Foxley
Emma is currently serving her second term of office as a DRET Appointed Governor on the AIB. She was originally appointed on 1 May 2015. She decided to become a governor because she had recently retired from working as a Senco in a school near York and wanted to give something back to the local community. Emma has been a link governor for SEND and Safeguarding. More recently she has been Joint Chair of the AIB. She has been a primary school teacher for the past 30 years and now carries out supply teaching on a regular basis to keep her hand in. Emma has teaching experience at all levels in Key Stage 1 and 2 and a particular interest in Dyslexia and Literacy. She enjoys walking with her dogs in the North Yorkshire countryside and singing in her village choir.
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Elizabeth RohanDRET Appointed Governor (Joint Chair)
Elizabeth Rohan
Lizzie was appointed a DRET Appointed Governor on 2 December 2019 and is also Co-Chair of the AIB. She joined the AIB as she wanted to help the academy thrive, for all to be inspired and to keep the academy forward looking. Lizzie has the governor link responsibility for Parental Engagement. She has a background in hospitality and currently works as a private Chef. Lizzie volunteers with many community organisations and Chairs a local sports club. She enjoys walking, playing tennis, arts and heritage and community matters.
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Rachel BriggsDRET Appointed Governor
Rachel Briggs
Rachel was appointed a DRET Appointed Governor on 19 December 2020. She wanted to join the AIB to utilise her skills to support and enhance another academy within the Trust. Rachel is responsible for Pupil Premium and SEND. She is also an Assistant Principal and SENDCO at another academy within the  Trust. Her role is varied and includes: SEND, Pupil Premium, teaching and learning, use and analysis of data, supporting and developing staff. Rachel enjoys reading and visiting different places across the country.
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Anna ChesterClerk
Anna Chester
Anna has been clerking academies within the Trust since September 2020. Prior to that she spent 33 years working for HM Revenue and Customs, specialising in complaints investigation, including Adjudicator and MP cases. Anna is also Vice Chair and DRET Appointed Governor at Humberston Academy. Anna enjoys gardening, walking her dog and visiting museums and other cities around the world.
Governor Assigned Responsibilities
Safeguarding - Emma Foxley
Attendance - Emma Foxley
Parental Engagement -Lizzie Rohan
Pupil Premium - Rachel Briggs
Contacting a Governor
To contact a governor, please contact the Trust Governance Team by emailing governorservices@dret.co.uk
Scheme of Delegation
Information about the David Ross Education Trust’s scheme of delegation is available here.
Minutes of the Academy Scrutiny Committee
Should you wish to view a copy of the minutes of the ASC at this academy, please contact the Trust Governance Team, who will be able to provide you with an electronic or paper copy of the minutes.
Are you interested in becoming an academy governor?
We are looking for new governors to support our academies. Our governors work closely with their academies to support the Trust’s goal of broadening the horizons of young people through a world-class education, equipping our students with the skills and experiences to become their confident, academic best, no matter what.
If you have an interest in, and commitment to, improving education and would like to make a difference within your community, please register your interest in becoming a governor by completing our governor application form. If you have any questions about a governor’s role or responsibilities please contact us at governorservices@dret.co.uk
What skills, experience and commitment are required?
Governors attend six Academy Scrutiny Committee meetings a year (this may vary slightly depending on the academy) and are asked to support and enrich the academy in a range of other ways including:
- Undertaking school visits outside Academy Scrutiny Committee meetings.
- Taking on a ‘link’ governor role, liaising with academy staff and other governors on areas such as safeguarding, special educational needs and other academy priority areas.
- Sitting on panels related to the school, eg, appeals, complaints, exclusions.
- Participating in the Trust’s governor training and development programme.
We are looking for local people who would be committed to supporting the Trust’s goals. You need time, enthusiasm and a deep commitment to support these academies to be the best they can for their communities. A programme of induction, training and support is provided and expenses are covered. The Academy Scrutiny Committee role outline can be found here.
How does governance work at DRET?
At DRET, the Academy Scrutiny Committee provides support and challenge to the Principal in ensuring every child makes good or better progress and that the Academy is achieving targets and continually improving. To maximise the ability of the local governors to focus on this key area the Academy Scrutiny Committee is not required to set strategy or policy, manage financial resources, staff performance and pay, Health and Safety or many of the other areas traditionally associated with a maintained school governing body as these issues are dealt with at Trust level. This means that governors are able to concentrate on the things that really matter – pupil progress, school outcomes and aspirations.
The Academy Scrutiny Committee consists of a group of people who could be parents, community nominees, academy staff, Trust staff and Diocesan members. Each Academy Scrutiny Committee normally consists of 11-15 governors creating a balanced group of experience, skills and connections to support the academy in achieving exceptional performance.
In summary, the key responsibilities of the Academy Scrutiny Committee are:
- Understanding and promoting the Trust’s and the Academy’s vision and ethos.
- Scrutiny and challenge of achievement of targets, school improvement and pupil outcomes. Escalation of any concerns to the Trustees via the Executive.
- Supporting and facilitating parental and community engagement.
The difference between a DRET Academy Scrutiny Committees and a traditional school Governing Body
By comparison to a traditional school Governing Body:
- The Academy Scrutiny Committee’s role is not to “manage” the Academy. This is done through the Trust’s executive management structure (ie Principal, Regional Directors, Executive Management Team) and the Trust Board. Therefore, the Academy Scrutiny Committee is not required to take decisions on staff or financial matters affecting the Academy. As an Academy Scrutiny Committee Member you should have an understanding of strategic issues that impact on the Academy, and be updated on them regularly by the Principal, but you are not required to have direct responsibility for them. Instead the Academy Scrutiny Committee should be in a position to assess the impact of the Academy locally; how it is contributing to the local community, how it is relating to local families and how it understands local issues.
- As the Executive Management and Trust Board takes responsibility for setting educational standards, legal compliance and financial viability, the Academy Scrutiny Committee then has the time to scrutinise and challenge achievement of targets and school improvement, investigate the standards on the ground, to see how they are working, and explore how the Trust ethos is being understood and expressed in the way the Academy operates. As an Academy Scrutiny Committee member, your view as a parent, member of staff or as part of the community is vital in this discussion.
