Governing Body
Who are we?
The governors are a group of individuals, made up of parents, staff, members of the community (co-opted) and the Local Authority. Governors typically serve for four years, and will have a variety of responsibilities during this time. An effective governing body will have people from different backgrounds with mixed skills. Governors are not education experts – they are there to bring a fresh perspective.
The role of the governing body is a strategic one. Its key functions are to:
- Set aims and objectives for the school.
- Agree the policies for achieving those aims and objectives.
- Set targets for achieving those aims and objectives.
- Monitor and evaluate the progress the school is making towards achievement of its aims and objectives.
- Be a source of challenge and support to the head teacher.
Governor Recruitment
If you are interested in becoming a governor please contact Lucia Page – The Clerk of Governors via the contact section of the website.
Annual Governance Statement 2020
Chair of Governors – Mr S Fitch
Vice Chair of Governors – Mr S Ive
The Clerk of Governors – Mrs L Page
Should you wish to contact any member of the governing body, please make contact via Clerk, Mrs L Page. Visit the Contact section of the website.
If you are interested in becoming a governor or just want to find out more about what governors do, please visit National Governors’ Association for more information.
Meet the Governing Body
Authority Governor
Mrs C Dottin-John
Member of Pay Committee, Training & Development Governor
Mrs Dottin-John has been living in Ashford with her husband and children for over 10 years. She became involved with Great Chart Primary School when her children began attending and has been a Governor since 2008. She has worked in social housing for over 27 years and holds a senior management position within a Kent housing organisation. She brings an understanding of developments in the housing sector and experience of working with services such as Social Services, Kent Police and other government agencies.
Co-opted Governors
Mr S Fitch
Chair of Governors, Inclusion, EYFS Governor and member of Headteacher Performance Management Committee
Mr Fitch lives in Great Chart and is married to Ruth, they have 2 children. On leaving school Mr Fitch joined the RAF as a pilot. After 13 years he left and moved to live in Africa working for Mission Aviation Fellowship. He and his family spent 8 years living in Kenya and South Africa. They moved to Kent in 2011. He still works for Mission Aviation Fellowship as the International Operations Support Manager providing advice, support and training to flight operations teams in 13 countries around the world. He enjoys cycling, travelling, reading and cooking.
Mr S Ive
Vice Chair of Governors, Chair of Pay Committee, Mathematics and GDPR Governor
Mr Ive has been teaching since 1979 at several local primary schools. In 2004 he was appointed as a deputy head of Kennington CE Junior School. He became the headteacher of Kennington in 2008 until his retirement in December 2015. Throughout his 37 years in teaching he has maintained a keen interest in providing opportunities for children to enjoy and participate in competitive sport, running football, cricket and athletics clubs and teams in all the schools in which he has taught. He was secretary of the Ashford Primary School Sports Association from 1984 to 2015, helping to organise many inter school tournaments. From 2012, he was chair of the Mid Kent Panel for the Headteacher 11+ Appeals and he was also a member of the group of local headteachers that promoted and designed Goat Lees Primary School for the Local Authority. He has previously been a staff governor at Ashford South and Kennington and he is now looking forward to using his experience in education to help and assist Great Chart Primary School in any way he can in his role as governor.
MR R Manek
Mr Manek is married with two young children of which one attends Great Chart Primary. He graduated from University of Wales in 1997 with an LLB Honours and qualified as a Barrister specialising in criminal law. He is a Pupil Supervisor & Head of Advocacy as In-House counsel in the nationwide law firm, GT Stewart. His wife is also a lawyer who works for the Nursery & Midwifery Council. He is a sports enthusiast and a keen cricketer who captained Kenton Cricket Club (Harrow) playing in the Middlesex County League winning back to back league titles. He enjoys travelling abroad and has travelled North America, South America, Australia, Africa and India. He worked for a magic circle law firm in Sydney before qualifying as a lawyer in the UK. He used to supervise an integrated summer school for many years teaching sports to children of all ages. Growing up as a teenager, he used to attend Sylvia Young Theatre School and appeared in West End theatre and television. At university, he was elected as a president of the Students Union, Asian Society.
mr p mutabaruka
Mr Mutabaruka is married with two young sons who both attend Great Chart Primary School. Upon completing his secondary school in Ashford at the Norton Knatchbull school, he moved to Leicester for further education and spent several years volunteering and working with young people in a local church. Mr Mutabaruka is lead Pastor of a church in Ashford as well as running an exports business. He plays several musical instruments and is passionate about sport. Proud to be a part of Great Chart school to support and contribute to the success of the school community.
Mr A Parish
Governor with responsibility for Finance, Health & Safety and Security, Member of Pay Committee
Mr Parish is married with two grown up children, who both attended Great Chart School. He has been involved in the school since 1993. Been a Governor at the school since 2002, initially as a LA Governor and later became a Co-opted Governor. He recently retired from the police after serving 31 years in the Metropolitan and Kent forces. Worked in several areas of policing, finishing as a Detective Inspector. Proud to be part of Great Chart School.
Mrs B Walsh
Finance and Curriculum Governor, Chair of Headteacher Performance Management Committee
Mrs Walsh has worked for Barclays Bank for over 40 years in many different roles. The last 20 years she has been the Branch Manager for Ashford and surrounding branches. She is currently an Area Manager for Barclays looking after the branch network, and the colleagues within these, across Kent and into Sussex. She has been involved with Great Chart School for many years through the Barclays Matched Fundraising and also the Moneyskills Programme whereby she and colleagues from Barclays have been actively involved in classroom activities supporting pupils. Her daughter is also a teacher at the school and Mrs Walsh is now looking forward to being involved with the school as a Governor and supporting in a much broader way.
Dr J Wong
Governor with responsibility for Child Protection, Safeguarding and Looked-After Children (incl. E-Safety)
Having worked locally as a family doctor for over 10 years, Dr Wong hopes to bring his understanding of the health, emotional and social needs of children and their families to the governing body of Great Chart Primary School. Dr Wong also has a training and education background being an accredited GP trainer. He is familiar with the requirements necessary to promote a good learning environment and wishes to help Great Chart School maintain this expectation to enhance the learning of pupils.
Parent Governors
Mr C Gibbins
Chris has been living in the local area for nearly 14 years, and originally from Essex. Married to Kerry, the school finance officer, they have three children who all received their educational start at Great Chart. Working in London as an operations director for a lift and escalator company, and coaching the girls team at Ashford Rugby Club, Chris hopes to bring a business and culture driven background to the support function of the governors skill set.
Mrs S Windle
Governor with responsibility for English and Curriculum, Member of Headteacher Performance Management Committee
Mrs Windle lives in Singleton with her husband Phil. They have a daughter who is currently at Great Chart. She has a background in interior design and prior to being a full time mum she worked as a kitchen designer for a showroom in West London. She is also involved in the Friends’ Association and enjoys supporting the school. Her other passions are dressmaking, health and fitness.
Staff Governors
Mrs P High
Responsibility for Inclusion
Mrs High has been at Great Chart School since January 2000 when she started as Year 5 Teacher and ICT Manager. She came from a school in Stockton-On-Tees where she taught in Year 2, Year 4 and Year 6. Over the years she has taught throughout KS2 and was also a Senior Leader before becoming Inclusion Manager in 2008. She is currently Deputy Head with overall responsibility for Inclusion.
Mrs W Pang
Headteacher
Mrs Pang has been involved with Great Chart School since 1991. She became a deputy headteacher in 2004 and progressed on to being the headteacher in 2013. She has been a staff governor since 2003.