About Governance of the Steiner Academy Hereford
The governors are accountable in law for all major decisions regarding the school and for its overall strategic direction. They have a duty to
- determine the vision and the strategic direction of the school
- ensure the school meets its statutory requirements
- know the strengths and weaknesses of the school
- provide support and challenge to the leadership of the school
Our Governors
Co-Chair of Governors
Justine Lee has two children in the Lower school. She is a marketing and communications consultant specialising in the Third Sector. Justine also has extensive experience of working with young people and assists with the school’s Duke of Edinburgh’s Award programme.
She is a member of the Admissions Committee.
Justine was co-opted to the Board of Governors in January 2014.
Co-Chair of Governors
Harry Rouse has two young children in the school. He is a construction manager and environmentalist working in the construction sector locally.
Harry is a member of the Finance and Premises Committee.
He was appointed a Governor in September 2013.
Vice Chair
Claire Dawson is a parent to 2 children who have attended the Hereford Waldorf School and the Steiner Academy Hereford. She is a qualified Social Worker working in social care and social work for 30 years. She believes that children need childhood and that our school supports this and believes that Steiner Waldorf education has a future in the 21st century.
She is the Chair of the Personnel Committee.
Claire was appointed as a Governor in July 2016.
David Donaldson, now retired, was a class teacher at the school from 1991.
He is a member of the Teaching and Learning Committee and the Lower School link Governor.
David was appointed as a Governor in September 2013.
Paul Douse has a son at the School. He runs 2 businesses in Hereford, one in retail and the other in manufacturing. He is a member of the Hereford and Worcester Chamber of Commerce and the Federation of Small Businesses.
Paul is the Chair of the Finance and Premises Committee.
He was co-opted as a governor in May 2016.
Adam Brierley has two children in the school. He is the Recruitment Operations Manager at PGL, a company that runs residential outdoor education trips for children. He oversees safeguarding in the recruitment of staff. Adam managed a PGL centre and was the designated Safeguarding Lead.
He was appointed as Safeguarding Governor in January 2017 and is also a member of the Personnel Committee.
Lyn Rushbrooke is a builder and also a glass blower. He is married to the teacher who founded the Hereford Waldorf School and was heavily involved in the first ten years and has remained involved with the school.
Lyn is a member of the Finance and Premises Committee and Teaching and Learning Committee and the Upper School link governor.
Lyn was appointed as a Governor in Sept 2012.
Laura Hughes has 2 children in Lower School. Laura was impressed with the loving and nurturing environment at the school, that allows each child to develop at its own pace whilst instilling a sense of community and an appreciation and reverence for the natural world. Laura is a member of the Personnel Committee.
Niki Nakamura worked as a teacher and in industry before living and working in Japan as a translator. She returned with her husband and three children in 1991, who joined the Hereford Waldorf School. Niki joined the finance group from 1992 and was the school’s administrator from 2000 to 2013, retiring in 2014.
She is a member of the Admissions Committee, Finance and Premises Committee and Personnel Committee.
Niki was co-opted to the Board of Governors in January 2015.
Sylvie Sklan worked for the Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship from 1997 to 2017 and led on all matters related to state funded Steiner schools. She was involved with Hereford Waldorf School in its early days as a parent, supply teacher and member of the school Council.
She is a member of the Teaching and Learning Committee and the Admissions Committee.
Sylvie was the nominated Sponsor Lead for the Academy from September 2008 to April 2017.
Jill Tate has been an Early Years Teacher and Playgroup Leader, and has taught French in a local secondary school. She joined the Hereford Waldorf School in 1994 as a French Teacher and became a Learning Support Teacher and the Upper School Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator (SENDCo). She retired as SENDCo and continued to support Upper School pupils as a Learning Support Teacher.
Jill retired in 2018 and was appointed Governor from September 2018.
She is a member of the Teaching and Learning Committee, the Finance and Premises Committee and is the SEN Link Governor.
Georgie Ursell has three children in the School. Having attended a Steiner school herself, Georgie is keen to ensure that the quality of the Steiner education flourishes in the Steiner Academy. She is a professional artist and a member of the Admissions Committee and the Early Years Link Governor and became a parent governor in April 2016.
Sarah Doyle is a Teacher Governor at the school. Sarah is the Upper School History Teacher and an Upper School Guardian.
Alison Gebert is a Teacher Governor at the school. Alison is the Lower School Special Needs and Disability Coordinator and a Special Needs Teacher at the school.
As set out in the articles of Association, The Board comprises up to 10 appointed governors, two elected parent governors, two teachers, and the Principal. Governors may appoint up to 4 co-opted governors. All governor appointments are for four years. When a governor vacancy occurs, the governors draw up a shortlist of suitably qualified persons for the role from names that have been put forward. The Academy Leadership Team is asked for their views on the shortlist before an approach is made to the person at the top of list. The appointment of a new governor is ratified by the members of the Association.
The Board meets 6 times in the school year. Board minutes are available from the clerk – either a paper copy or by email, if a request has been made to the clerk. There are a series of Committees that usually meet about 3 weeks prior to a Board meeting.
Additional regular meetings include:
- Governors meet once a year (after the February Board meeting) to share the vision and strategic direction for the coming year.
- Governors meet twice a year with the teachers.
- Governors can opt to join any meeting of the Strategic Planning Group (SPG), which meets as and when needed to focus on a single issue. The SPG comprises members of the Academy Leadership Team and governance leadership team.
- Governors meet with parents in an Open Forum after the Annual General Meeting (AGM).
- The governance leadership team meets weekly with the Principal.
The Committees
There are a series of governance Committees which meet regularly to deal with issues in greater detail. Each Committee has the authority to make decisions as set out in a Scheme of Delegation for Decisions.
The Committees act as an umbrella for the various working groups that come and go as the need arises. These working groups play a crucial role in advising and making recommendations to the Committees and are an opportunity for parents to get involved.
| Terms of reference and membership for each Committee were agreed by the Full Governing Body on 6th July 2018 and are reviewed annually. |
Committee Quorum (as per Articles of Association) No vote on any matter shall be taken at a meeting of a committee of the Governors unless the majority of members of the committee present are Governors.