"The Westgate School is a happy and vibrant community,
where pupils are encouraged to aim for excellence"
(Ofsted, September 2022)
Governors
Board of Governors
The Westgate’s board of governors consists of fifteen members drawn from the school’s parents, colleagues and local community. The board has three core functions:
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Ensures clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction
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Holds the Headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils, and the performance management of staff
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Oversees the financial performance of the school and makes sure its money is well spent.
Governors at The Westgate are all members of either:
The Curriculum Committee, which monitors educational progress at all stages from nursery to KS4, learning environment and pastoral support system, or
the Resources Committee, which is concerned with finance, staffing matters and facilities.
Safeguarding is a constant priority and appears on every committee and Full Governing Body meeting agenda.
As well as committee work, governors may have additional monitoring responsibility for aspects such as health and safety, SEN or safeguarding. Finally, governors are also linked with different aspects of strategic school functions and undertake regular monitoring visits.
Chair and Vice Chair of Board of Governors and Committee Chairs
Penelope Catchpole - Chair
Responsibilities - Link Governor for SEN inc LAC, Primary Phase & Nursery link governor
Penny has been a governor at The Westgate since 2010, initially as a parent Governor and currently as a co-opted Governor. Her three children all attended The Westgate and all have now graduated from university.
Penny has lived all over the UK and settled in Winchester in 2001. She ran her own legal practice for 10 years and then spent nearly 6 years working in Children's Services at Hampshire County Council. Penny is a member of the Curriculum committee having been a past Chair.
Christopher Sermon - Vice chair
Responsibilities - Resources Chair, SFVS/FMSIS Auditing
Chris has been a governor at The Westgate School since 2014, initially as a parent Governor and currently as a co-opted Governor; having previously served for eight years as parent governor at Western Primary School. He became Chair of the Resources Committee in 2018, and vice-Chair of Governors in 2021.
Now retired, Chris is a Chartered Accountant specialising in financial regulation and customer protection. Born and brought up in Winchester, Chris trained initially in London (including a year at the Bank of England) moved to Hungary for five years, then worked throughout Central and Eastern Europe before settling down back in Winchester.
He has two children, both of whom have now left The Westgate and are currently studying at university.
Paul Key - Chair of the Curriculum Committee
Paul is a co-opted Governor. He is Chair of the Curriculum Committee and is currently the Development and Training Governor.
Paul has worked in education for 30 years, initially as a classroom teacher, and for the most part of his career, in teacher education.
Responsibilities - Health & Safety link governor, STEM (Maths, Science, IT & Tech / Evolve) link, Nursery Committee
Please contact the school office if you would like to contact one of our Governors. Contact us
Should you wish to look at the minutes of the FGB meetings, please make an appointment with the school.