Governors

Our Governors:

Mr Matthew Fowler (Chair of Governors – Parent Governor) 
Matthew is married with two children who both attend Hook Norton; his wife runs a media agency and he lives in Milcombe. He works as a Client Relations Executive for Sodexo, and previously as Operations Director in their horticultural business. He has worked in a number of horticultural contracting roles and as buyer for Sainsbury’s Homebase. Matthew is coach for U8’s at BRUFC and is a trustee and director at Banbury Young homeless Project BHYP; he enjoys spending time with his family and loves all things outdoors!

Mr Scott Orchard (Co-opted)
I am a retired School Teacher. I taught at Banbury School for 37 years, starting as a PE Teacher and finishing as Operational Headteacher. I am married with 2 daughters. My wife was a Teacher, my daughters are a Teacher and a Surgeon. I am a tour guide at Hook Norton Brewery – well someone has to do it. My interests include having an allotment, sport, walking and making my keep fit class suffer.

Vacancy (Foundation Governor)

Ms Stella Belgrove (Staff Governor – Head)
I have been Head of Hook Norton School for 16 years. Previously I was Deputy Head of a school in Stratford-upon-Avon and before that I taught in Worcestershire and in London. I began my working life as a copywriter in advertising working at various agencies, ending with Saatchi & Saatchi. I decided to retrain as a teacher as I no longer found copywriting a fulfilling career. I have two grown up children, and a writer/actor/director husband.

Mr Derek Brotherston (LA Governor)
I have lived in Hook Norton for 18 years and have spent my working life in and around Computer and IT support. I now own and run a local computer and IT consultancy business and have a keen interest in the use of technology within education.

Jean Webb (Foundation Governor)
I served as a parent governor for 4 years, when my children were at the school, before returning to the governing body as a representative of St Peter’s Church. I chair the Finance sub-committee, and I’m the church administrator. I am also a holistic therapist, being a qualified homeopath and reflexologist. 

Mrs Nellie Crouch (Associate Member)
I have twenty years of teaching experience having taught in London and Kent before moving to the Cotswolds. I have taught across all three key stages of the primary phase: Foundation Stage and Key Stages One and Two. I am Deputy Headteacher at Hook Norton, enjoying the combination of leadership and class teacher responsibilities for our successful and thriving school. I have been actively involved in voluntary work including leading children and family activities at large conventions and charitable trips abroad. I enjoy a variety of outdoor activities, entertaining friends and being actively involved in a church. I particularly enjoy spending time with my husband, daughter, son and daughter-in-law.

Mrs Hazel Hope (Associate Member)
I moved to Hook Norton with my family in April 1995 and became a member of staff at the School that September as School Secretary. During my 23 years’ service I have progressed to become School Business Manager, have been involved with the Governing Body first as Clerk and latterly Associate Governor, and an active member of the Friends of the School.
Both my children attended Hook Norton CE Primary School as pupils and thoroughly enjoyed their time here – in fact, my daughter has returned to become a member of staff as she was appointed as a Teacher a number of years ago! Out of school, I enjoy spending time with my family, playing netball, entertaining, and especially cooking and baking (handy for any cake sales!).

Mrs Tanya MacDonald (Staff Governor – Teaching)
Having trained at The Froebel Institute I then taught in London for over ten years both in a Primary School and a Nursery School where I became Acting Deputy Head. I took up the post of Foundation Stage Coordinator at Hook Norton in January 1998. I have two children who both attended the school.

Mr Hugh Protherough (Co-opted)
Hugh has lived in Hook Norton for 40 years and his children attended this school. After a career as teacher and headteacher he built a successful business managing school inspection contracts on behalf of Ofsted. As Deputy Director of Inspections for Prospects he sat on Ofsted’s Regional and National Quality Assurance Boards and was involved in benchmarking the quality of inspections and delivering training to audiences as diverse as local authorities, schools and Her Majesty’s Inspectors. A grandfather to three children, he continues to work part time as an adviser in primary schools across the midlands.

Derek Lyseight-Jones (Co-opted)

Retired teacher of forty years experience, originally in secondary education teaching A level art, music and drama but have been mainly engaged in special needs education. Was principal of Penhurst school in Chipping Norton until its closure in 2013.
Currently engaged in getting back to music, walking and being a newly qualified community first responder for the ambulance service as well as maintaining links with education. SEN and Safeguarding Governor.

Adam Lawrence (Parent Governor)

Adam is married with three children, two of whom attend Hook Norton Primary School. Adam lives in Chipping Norton and has worked in sales and consulting for the past 20 years. He has a mathematics background and works on the finance committee. Adam enjoys rugby, surfing and spending time with his family!.

Joe Williams (Vice Chair – Co-opted)

I am currently Vice Chair of governors having rejoined the governing body at Hook Norton in 2017, previously a governor for over 10 years including 3 of those as Chair of governors. I am currently managing partner in the Village Shop and the postmaster for Hook Norton Post Office, a director of the independents board of the Association of Convenience Stores which includes lobbying and advising government on issues affecting the convenience and retail store sectors, I am also an elected member of the meridian & welsh Guild of Spar UK. I have also previously spent 16 years as an operational firefighter at the village fire station and a former parish councillor. Outside of these work activities The rest of my time is mainly taken up walking and looking after my 2 lively & loveable Jug dogs.

Sally Newman (Co-opted)

My family and I have loved living in Hook Norton for the last 23 years. Until retirement my husband taught at the village school, and both our daughters attended. For 35 years I taught in primary schools in East London, Essex and Oxfordshire, spending the last 14 years of my career as headteacher of a school in Banbury. Despite being retired, I have retained my interest in, and passion for, education so I feel that becoming a school governor will be an exciting and, hopefully, useful role that I can undertake. I enjoy a variety of hobbies; keeping active through dance, gardening and playing netball, as well as watching sport, reading and spending time with my friends and family. 

Claire Watmore (Clerk to Governing body)
Claire Watmore is the Clerk to the Governors at Hook Norton and some other local schools. Claire’s key roles include taking the minutes at the meeting and circulating these to governors once the Chair and Headteacher have checked them. She also provides guidance on school regulations, instrument of government, duties, powers, procedures, governors’ terms of office and timely elections and appointments.

Contact the Governors
Letters addressed to the Chair of Governors C/O the School will be forwarded. Matthew Fowler is the Parent Governor with whom initial contact should be made. Alternatively email office.3044@hook-norton.oxon.sch.uk making the email for the attention of the Chair and the school will forward the email on.

The Governing Body:

• Sets the strategic direction of the school by:
  • Setting the values, aims and objectives for the school
  • Agreeing the policy framework for achieving those aims and objectives
  • Setting statutory targets
  • Agreeing the school improvement strategy which includes approving the budget and agreeing the staffing structure.

• Challenges and supports the school by monitoring, reviewing and evaluating:
  • The implementation and effectiveness of the policy framework
  • Progress towards targets
  • The implementation and effectiveness of the school improvement strategy
  • The budget and the staffing structure.

• Ensures accountability by:
  • signing off the school’s own self-evaluation report
  • responding to Ofsted reports when necessary
  • holding the headteacher to account for the performance of the school
  • ensuring parents and pupils are involved, consulted and informed as appropriate
  • making available information to the community.

• Appoints and performance manages the headteacher who will deliver the aims (through the day to day management of the school, implementation of the agreed policy framework and school improvement strategy, and delivery of the curriculum) and report appropriately to the governing body.

For governing bodies to carry out their role effectively, governors must be:

• Prepared and equipped to take their responsibilities seriously;
• Acknowledged as the accountable body by the lead professionals;
• Supported by the appropriate authorities in that task; and
• Willing and able to monitor and review their own performance.

The role of a governor

In law the governing body is a corporate body, which means:

• no governor can act on her/his own without proper authority from the full governing body;
• all governors carry equal responsibility for decisions made, and
• although appointed through different routes (i.e. parents, staff, Local Authority community, foundation), the overriding concern of all governors has to be the welfare of the school as a whole.