Our Governors  

Governors may be contacted via the school office or at chair@albertthegreat.herts.sch.uk

Dr Paul Heatley: (Chair of Governors) Paul is a Foundation Governor. He was a local GP for over 35 years. During that time he was involved with practice management and finance, local health service management, GP appraisal and training young GPs. He has experience as a Programme Director for the West Herts GP training scheme and as a trustee of the Hospice of St Francis. He serves on both the Resources and Curriculum Committees. He is  Link Governor for R.E. 

Victoria Baily: (Vice Chair) Victoria is a parent governor and has one son in the school. She is Head of Department for a UK regulated bank specialising in Property finance and has been in the UK banking sector for over 20 years. She serves on the resources committee and is link governor for Safeguarding and Health and Safety.

Fr. Kim Addison: Fr. Kim is our Parish Priest and Foundation Governor. He is an experienced governor, Link Governor for RE. He serves on the Resources Committee. 

Remedios Felices Pelayo: Reme is a Parent Governor and has one daughter in the school. She works in the private sector in a Finance Department. Reme serves as Chair of Resources Committee and is Link Governor for PSHE. 

Mr Ian Palumbo: Ian is Deputy Headteacher at John F Kennedy Catholic School and has worked there since 2007. He brings his skill set to St Albert’s based on his knowledge and expertise as one of the senior leaders at John F Kennedy. He is Link Governor for the Website and sits on the Curriculum Committee. 

Jennifer Barber: Jennifer is a Foundation Governor and has three children at the school. Jennifer works at a local preschool and has a background knowledge of Governing having served as Committee Chair in another setting for 6 years. Jennifer is part of the Curriculum committee and became a part of the Governing board to better understand our school and help it improve where possible. 

Fiona McDonagh: Staff Governor Fiona joined St Albert the Great in September 2021, having worked at St. Thomas More in Berkhamsted before that. She is head of Science and is working towards raising attainment in Science and encouraging young people to aspire to STEM careers.  She is committed to delivering Catholic education. She is on the Curriculum and Admissions Committee’s. 

Minutes of the Governing Body meetings are available on request from the school office.

Laura Barnes:

Mrs Debra Gee: Debra is a former Parent Governor, now Foundation Governor. She works as a School Counsellor as part of Hertfordshire County Council’s Safe Space Service. Debra serves on both the Curriculum and Resources committees and is the Link Governor for Human Resources. 

Mrs Alison Spice:  Alison is a Foundation Governor.  She has a background in Marketing, Corporate Events and Promotions and was a Swimming Instructor for many years.  Alison is responsible for HR and SLT administration at JFK Catholic Secondary School.  She is the Link Governor for Pupil Premium, SEND and serves on Curriculum and Resources Committees. 

GOVERNOR MEETING INFORMATION

ASCAT St Albert the Great Governor 23-24 Attendance

WHAT DO GOVERNORS DO?

School governors and trustees are people who want to make a positive contribution to children’s education.

Governors are one of the largest volunteer forces in the country and have an important part to play in raising school standards. The role of the governing board is absolutely key to the effectiveness of a school. Time and time again Ofsted (the national inspection body for schools) has noted that the most effective schools demonstrate effective leadership and management – including by the governing board.

Strategic leadership

School governors provide strategic leadership and accountability in schools. They appoint the headteacher and deputy headteacher. Governors hold the main responsibility for finance in schools, and it is governors who work with the headteacher to make the tough decisions about balancing resources.

Each individual governor is a member of a governing board, which is established in law as a corporate body. Individual governors may not act independently of the rest of the governing board and decisions are the joint responsibility of the governing board.

The role of the governing board is a strategic one with three key functions:

• Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.
• Holding the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils
• Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction

School governors have a number of responsibilities:

• Governors set the aims and objectives for the school or group of schools.
• They set the policies and targets for achieving those aims and objectives.
• They monitor and evaluate the progress the school is making and act as a source of challenge and support to the headteacher (a critical friend).

The headteacher is responsible for the internal organisation, management and control of the school and the implementation of the strategic framework established by the governing board.