Governance

Welcome to the Governors’ section of our website

What does a Governing Board do?

The Governing Board provides strategic leadership and accountability in schools. It has three key functions:

• Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent
• Holding the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils
• Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction

Governors or trustees set the aims and objectives for the school or group of schools and set the policies and targets for achieving those aims and objectives. They monitor and evaluate the progress the school is making and act as a source of challenge and support to the headteacher. In action, this means:

• Appointing and performance reviewing the head teacher and senior leaders, including making decisions about pay
• Managing budgets and deciding how money is spent
• Engaging with pupils, staff, parents and the school community
• Sitting on panels and making decisions about things like pupil exclusions and staff disciplinary
• Addressing a range of education issues within the school including disadvantaged pupils, pupils with special needs, staff workload and teacher recruitment
• Looking at data and evidence to ask questions and have challenging conversations about the school
• Governors and trustees must be prepared to adopt the Nolan principles of public life: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership. 

Governors should also be committed to their role and to young people; confident in having courageous conversations; curious with an enquiring mind; able to challenge the status quo to improve things; collaborative to build strong relationships; critical to improve their own work and that of the board; and creative in problem solving and being innovative.

The Governing Board

The Governing Board is made up of the following roles:

7 Foundation Governors approved by the BVT on the Board’s recommendation

1 Local Authority Governor appointed by the Local Authority.

2 Parent Governors elected by the Parents.

1 Staff Governor elected by the Staff.

Headteacher.

The Governing Board is made up of people with an extensive range of skills and life experiences.

It is vital that we have at least one governor with a financial background to enable us to allocate the resources with the best possible outcome for the children. We always like to have at least one governor with a passion for the history of the school, it’s buildings and the local community.

Our strategy for the school is to provide a broad and diverse curriculum in which children are all encouraged to exceed their potential. We provide a balanced education which encompasses sport, music, and art as well as academic achievement.

We want the children to be happy and fulfilled during their time at Bournville Village Primary School.

Please find below details of how our Governing Board is structured, including the names, categories, responsibilities and terms of appointment for each Governor.

Meet our Governors

Anne Cull

Chair of Governors

Safeguarding governor

I have seen many changes and improvements at the school since I became a governor 23 years ago when my two children were pupils. As a Bournville resident of over 30 years I am passionate about providing the best education for the local children. As Chair I have overseen the amalgamation of the two schools and the development of the library, my favourite place in the whole school.

My background is finance and I co-own a metal manufacturing company in Stirchley. Between my commitments to school and work I find time for reading, gardening, tai chi, singing in a choir, crafts and spending time with family and friends.

Rachael Manamley 

Vice Chair of Governing Board

Chair of Curriculum and Standards

My family's association with school began in 1910 when the Infant School opened. My great uncle was on the school roll that day - and most of my dad’s side of the family began their education here. My Mum taught in the Juniors. I'm still "Mrs Ward's daughter" to some people in Bournville. When my daughter was in Year 1, I became a parent governor. When she left, I was appointed as a Foundation Governor. As a pupil, parent and now governor I've been part of school life for 28 years. I quite like it here!

Caroline Cadbury

Chair of Finance Committee

At the end of the 19th century, my great grandfather George began creating Bournville to provide a better standard of living for his workers and local people. He founded this school because he was passionate about providing education for all. He saw it as key to breaking down barriers and enabling young people to reach their full potential. As a school governor and a Trustee at Bournville Village Trust, I'm proud that this is exactly what we are still doing today. I am a mum of 4 and know how important it is for children to get the best possible start in life.

As a qualified accountant I help oversee the school's financial resources and how we can best deploy them for the benefit the children. I have a degree in engineering, with a further degree in physics and maths from the Open University. I maintain a keen interest in science and technology, particularly in environmental sustainability and building design.

Jonathan Payn

Pupil and staff welfare

I was a parent governor for Bournville Infant School from 2016-2018 and then a foundation governor for the same school, continuing with Bournville Village Primary School.  I am Co-chair of the Pupil and Staff Welfare committee, serve on the buildings committee and I am the designated Early Career Teacher governor. In Bournville I am also on the St Francis of Assisi Parochial Church Council.

I am a First Soloist and the Artistic Enrichment Officer at Birmingham Royal Ballet performing across the UK and abroad.  I host development events, present relaxed performances and work with the company’s education team.  I am a qualified ballet teacher and teach internationally, a former trustee of the National Youth Ballet and  passionate about the importance of the arts in education and the power of creative thinking.  Other passions include gardening, cricket and nature writing.

Tharsini Joganathan

Chair of Buildings Committee

Qualifications: LLB (Hons)

I am a practising solicitor and am currently Head of Legal Services at the Arts Council of England.  During my 17 years in the legal sector, I have gained significant experience in commercial property, capital development and build, investment, securities, banking and charity law.  I trained and worked in London before moving to Birmingham in 2013. I have also served as a trustee on a pension board, gaining invaluable governance experience.

I have a special interest in the arts and cultural education of children and young people.

Louisa Jones

I have been a governor since 2017 when I was elected parent governor; since then I accepted the role of foundation governor.  I am currently the SEND governor for the school and I co-chair the Pupil and Staff welfare committee as well as sitting on the Curriculum and Standards committee.

I am a Principal Educational Psychologist for a Local Authority and previous to this I have been a SENCO at a high school and a primary school where I also taught KS2.  Therefore, I bring to the role experience and knowledge of working within different sectors of education.

Both my children have attended Bournville Village Primary and I feel a strong commitment to the community to ensure that children attending our school are happy, confident and have access to an educational setting that understand their individual needs and strives to enable all children to achieve.

Susan Barratt (CBE)

Sue has been working in Education for the past forty years. She is a past Head Teacher of Bournville Junior School and more recently she was the Director of Bournville Teaching School Alliance.

Sue is currently Executive Head Teacher of Al Furqan Primary School.

Sue has been a member of a number of national, regional and local educational steering groups and committees. She is still passionate about all aspects of education.

Sue was awarded a CBE for Services to Education.

In her spare time Sue loves to read, she is an active member of the WI and she enjoys spending time with her grandchildren.

Alyson Merrifield

Staff Governor

I am a class teacher, currently in Year 2 and Staff Governor at BVPS, serving on the Pupil and Staff Welfare and Curriculum and Standards Committees.  I am married with two children; both attended our lovely school and now attend secondary schools in our local area.

Prior to my journey to become a teacher I studied Interior Design and received a BA (Hons) Degree at Birmingham Polytechnic I worked for architects and designers in London, then Birmingham working in the Hospitality and Leisure sector and as a retail manager for Habitat UK.

An interest in early years education led me to apply to become a volunteer initially at Bournville Infant School, during which time I qualified to become a Teaching Assistant with a focus on Learning Support for children with fine motor control challenges.

If I am not tending to my kitchen garden or being taxi service to my ballet-mad daughter, you will find me with a cat on my lap and my nose in a book; I am an avid reader of children’s and ‘grown up’ literature alike – and enjoy concerts and theatre.

Madeline Newton

Parent Governor

I am a parent governor and have 3 children currently at Bournville Village Primary School. I am a commercial property solicitor working part-time for a commercial law firm in Birmingham. In my spare time, I enjoy family days out, country walks, running and socialising. 

Anne Meadows

Parent Governor

Qualifications: BCL, MA (Oxon)

Our family has lived in Bournville since 2014.  Our eldest son is currently a pupil at Bournville Village Primary School, and we hope our youngest son will be able to join him in due course.

I became a parent governor because I am passionate about ensuring the best educational outcome for all.  I was the first member of my family to attend university and thrilled to win a place to read law at Oxford.  This was in no small part due to the amazing teachers who inspired and believed in me throughout my time at school, and who gave their time and skills freely so that I might achieve my goals.   I am therefore keen to pay it forward to help ensure that all children have the best start, learning across a balanced curriculum, and know the excitement of limitless opportunities.

When not at home with my family or volunteering, I am a senior competition, regulatory and public lawyer working part-time for a global law firm in London.  My career to date has afforded me the opportunity to work with a variety of bodies including government departments, regulators, trade associations and companies, and provides a useful background in areas such as strategy, critical thinking, collaboration, problem-solving, data protection and governance.

Lisa Vickerage-Goddard

Local Authority Governor

I spent ten years as a school governor of a primary school in South Yorkshire before moving to Birmingham in 2016. I work as a Senior Lecturer in Secondary Religious Education at Newman University, where my role is to train teachers and act as Academic Lead within the faculty of Education. I am dyslexic, and both my children (now grown-up) have SEND, so I am interested in supporting children with additional needs. I have a wide range of roles and experience in Education, and I am delighted to serve as the Local Authority Governor at Bournville Village Primary School.