Governance at Woodfield Infant School & St George's Junior School 

Our Governors play an important part in the life of school at Woodfield Infant School and St Georges' Junior School.  They take their role very seriously and have undergone a great deal of training and development to ensure they are effective in the role.  Governor attend meetings, complete link visits which support the school development plan, attend update sessions and come along to many of our activities and events.

Our combined Woodfield and St George's Governing Body is structured as follows:  

• Our Chair of Governors role is currently vacant.  
• Our Vice Chair of Governors is Phil Merrick (Trust Appointed) Term of Office Ends January 2028

• Sophie Sherran, (Parent Governor) Term of Office Ends April 2028
• Paul Donoghue (Parent Governor) Term of Office Ends November 2025
• Julie Raynor (Parent Governor) Term of Office Ends October 2027

Governance at Woodfield and St George's

As part of Empower Multi-academy Trust, Woodfield Infant and St George's Junior Schools have a very effective governance structure. The board of Trustees is responsible for the three core functions of governance of the school:

• Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction;

• Holding executive leaders to account for the educational performance of the organisation and its pupils, and the effective and efficient performance management of staff; and

• Overseeing the financial performance of the organisation and making sure its money is well spent.

The Role of a Governor and how to make a valuable contribution to children's education!

To find out more about the role Trustees and Governors play in children’s education, the NGA have produced an animated film which you can view on the NGA Website.

Governance Structures and Lines of Accountability

The board of trustees appoint the chief executive (CEO), to whom it delegates responsibility for delivery of its vision and strategy, and will hold the CEO to account for the conduct and performance of the trust, including the performance of the academies within the trust, and for its financial management.   

In turn, the CEO line manages other senior executives and the academies’ headteachers, setting their targets and performance managing them.  

The board constitutes committees for finance and standards; these look in detail at resources and progress and attainment across the trust.  At least three trustees must sit on each of these board committees. 

The board delegates some of its school level monitoring and scrutinising functions to Local Governing Bodies (LGBs), and uses these committees to promote stakeholder engagement and as a point of consultation and representation.  Trustees do not need to sit on LGBs, and so lines of communication to the board of trustees are clearly established, with chairs of LGBs meeting on a termly basis with the CEO and trustees.

Our Local Governing Body Team

The Local Governing Body of Woodfield Infant School and St George's Junior School represents interested parties such as parents, staff, the wider community and the Empower MAT Board of Trustees. We meet regularly, usually once each term. The governors are volunteers with various careers and life experiences who bring with them different ideas and perspectives. Although every governor is different they all have one common aim at heart, to provide a high quality education for the children of both schools.

The Governing Body believes that all children deserve the best start to their educational life and we are constantly working with the headteachers to find new ways to improve the education each school provides.

If you would like to find out more about the work of the local governing body, or are interested in becoming a member of the LGB, please do not hesitate to contact either school office.

Empower Trust 

For more information about the governance of Empower Multi-academy Trust, including information about the structure and remit of members and the board of trustees, please click here