Governing Board - Patcham High School

Name			Category and any Position of Responsibility		Term of Office (original appointment)	Interests Declared* (with date if not at appointment)
Lauren Atallah			Co-opted		22.9.22 – 21.9.26	None
Christine Bennett			Co-opted Chair of BAPD Committee		22.9.22 – 21.9.26	July 2023 Product Manager The Economist
Sarah Box			Co-opted		8.5.25 – 7.5.29 (27.5.21 parent)	Employed by Chichester College Group (9/22)
Marc Ducroquet-Lavin			Co-opted Chair of QE Committee		15.7.24 – 14.7.28 (15.7.20)	9/94 Employed by DEFRA as Chief of Staff
Melinda English			Co-opted		14.10.24 – 13.10.28	Headteacher Brighton Girls GDST
Andy Fisher			Co-opted Joint Vice Chair		22.9.22 – 21.9.26	Education policy Maker, employed by the DfE
Hazel Gould			Co-opted Joint Vice Chair		8.5.25 – 7.5.29 (27.5.21-8.5.25 parent governor)	Self-employed Theatre Writer/Director 9.10.24 Trustee Brighton Fringe
Jonathan Harris			Co-opted		11.5.23 – 10.5.27	Bench Healthcare Management Ltd (Managing Director). Provision of management consultancy services to NHS 9/94 Spouse employed by BHCC in BHISS SEMH Change Programme Team which provides services to Patcham High School
Greg Johnson			Parent		12.5.22 – 11.5.26	Self-employed Barrister, Westgate Chambers, Btn
Catherine Jordan			Staff		21.1.24 – 20.1.28	Learning Mentor Patcham High School
Philip McDonald			Parent Chair of FHS Committee		17.4.23 – 16.4.27	Self-employed garden designer Governor at Westdene Primary School
John McKee			Headteacher		01.09.16 –	Headteacher, Patcham High School Sept 23 Trustee Care for Veterans Worthing
Andrew Saunders .			Local Authority Chair of Governors		14.10.24 – 13.10.28 (21.9.11)	1. Actuary. Employed by Swiss RE insurance company
Christopher Street			Co-opted		13.7.25 – 12.7.29 (13.7.21)	Solicitor – Civil Aviation Authority then 9.10.24 Employed by Willis Lease Finance Corporation
Carol Theobald			Associate Member		13.7.21 – 12.7.25	Local Councillor
Vacancies	One co-opted Two parent governors - nominations will be sought from the parental body early in the autumn term 2025/26
Other members of the board during the last year:
Julia Cason		Co-opted		11.5.23 – 29.4.25		Teacher
Isa Kwabe		Co-opted		4.7.24 - 1.7.25		Employed by RMBI then 9.10.24 Employed by Sussex Partnership foundation Trust, NHS Bank Team
Rohaise Flint		Associate member		8.5.25 – 7.7.25 (Co-opted 11.7.23 – 8.5.25)		Employed by Burgess Hill School for Girls, 9/94 West Sussex and Independent Schools Inspectorate UK

Last Updated August 2025

*Governor Interests are declared annually and at each meeting. Governors with a conflict of interest on an item withdraw from discussion and are not entitled to vote.

All members of the governing board at Patcham High School work with senior leaders in the strategic development of the school and in raising standards of achievement. They have numerous statutory duties and follow guidance from The Department for Education.

Governors must both support and challenge the headteacher, so need to gain an understanding of the school’s overall performance in order to explain its decisions and actions. They do this by attending regular meetings, carrying out school visits and meeting with senior leaders. They also attend training in order to keep up to date with the requirements of their role. Although there are different categories of governor, they are all equal, work as a team and make collective decisions. All abide by the governing board code of conduct.

The constitution of Patcham High School’s governing board allows for: 10 co-opted governors (appointed by the governing board) and one local authority governor (appointed by the governing board and approved by local authority); 4 parent governors (elected by parents/carers) and one staff governor (elected by the staff) and a headteacher staff governor (who can choose whether to take up the position). Associate members have been appointed the board to add to its skills and knowledge but do not have voting rights.

Vacancies

Two parent governors - nominations will be sought from the parental body early in the autumn 2025/26 term.

One co-opted governor.

Vacancies do occur from time to time and we are always looking for members to diversify our team. If you might be interested, please direct any enquiries to

[email protected]

All governors are expected to be ‘critical friends’ to the school, supporting the whole school team and, when appropriate asking questions. Broadly the work involves the following:

Attending full Governing Board meetings.
Joining a committee and attend its termly meetings.
Exploring and forging links with the school – for instance with school improvement areas, subject areas or a particular aspect of school life for example, Health and Safety.
Building links with other governing boards – for instance with our feeder primary schools and other Secondary Schools across Brighton and Hove.
Occasionally attend school events.
At least once a year, attend one of the ‘governor’ days held each term. They also commit to undertake training (which is free) as necessary to carry out their role.

Most of the work of the governing board is delegated to three main committees that usually meet termly. There is also provision under the Teachers' Pay Policy for a Pay Committee. No powers have been delegated to any individual governor.

Chair of Governors	Andrew Saunders
Vice Chairs of Governors	Hazel Gould and Andy Fisher
Chair of Finance, Health and Safety Committee	Philip McDonald
Chair of Behaviour, Attitude and Personal Development Committee	Christine Bennett
Chair of Quality of Education Committee	Marc Ducroquet-Lavin

Finance Health and Safety Committee

The committee’s terms of reference include: ensuring fair and effective performance management and the effectiveness of leadership and management section of the school development plan; overseeing the financial performance of the school, making sure its money is well spent and ensuring financial probity. Due to the significant expenditure involved in approving the budget, business for this committee in May is undertaken by the full board.

Behaviour, Attitude and Personal Development

The committee’s terms of reference include: improve attendance and behaviour for learning for all groups and strive for excellence; engage with stakeholders and remove barriers to learning; improve personal development and support delivery of these sections in the school development plan.

Quality of Education Committee

This committee oversees the implementation of the National Curriculum as prepared by the Headteacher to ensure the school performs its responsibilities to have a clear and ambitious vision for providing high-quality inclusive education to all students at the school. It should be realised through strong, shared values, policies and practice.

Minutes of the full governing board (FGB) and committee meetings, which include the attendance of governors, will be available below once they have been approved unless they are confidential. Papers considered, if not confidential, may be available by request to the Clerk to Governors at [email protected].

Meetings scheduled for 2025/26 are:

Full board: 9th October 2025; 22nd January 2026; 7th May 2026 and 7th July 2026.

Behaviour Attitudes and Personal Development Committee: 8th December 2025; 9th March 2026 and 8th June 2026.

Finance Health and Safety Committee: 10th November 2025 and 23rd February 2026.

Quality of Education Committee: 21st October 2025; 26th March 2026 and 4th June 2026.

Meetings 2024/25:

Full board: 9th October 2024; 23rd January 2025; 8th May 2025 and 7th July 2025.

BAPD Committee: 5th December 2024 and 9th June 2025.

FHS Committee: 24th October 2024 and 3rd March 2025.

QE Committee: 13th November 2024; 27th March 2025 and 30th June 2025.

Meetings 2023/24

Full board: 19th September 2023; 18th January 2024; 29th April 2024 (Confidential); 9th May 2024 and 9th July 2024.

BAPD Committee: 14th December 2023; 4th March 2024 and 6th June 2024.

FHS Committee: 15th November 2023 and 22nd February 2024.

QE Committee: 14th November 2023 and 6th March 2024.

Meetings 2022/23:

Full board: 22nd September 2022; 19th January 2023; 11th May 2023 and 11th July 2023.

BAPD Committee: 29th November 2022 and 8th June 2023.

FHS Committee: 14th November 2022 and22nd February 2023.

QE Committee: 7th November 2022; 21st February 2023 and 12th June 2023.