Trustees
This information gives an overview of an academy Trustee’s responsibilities.
Trustees have a strong focus on three core strategic functions:
- Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction;
- Holding the Principal to account for the educational performance of the school and its students, and the performance management of staff; and
- Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent
Trustees are appointed to provide:
- strong links between the academy and the community we serve
- a wide experience of the outside world
- an independent view
- a focus on long term development and improvement
- accountability to the community for the use of resources and the standards of teaching and learning within the academy
- support for the Principal and staff
Trustees are expected to:
- attend meetings of the Trustee board
- work as a member of the Trustee board (not as an individual) in the best interests of the academy
- show an interest in academy activities
- become well-informed about education in general and about our academy in particular
- become familiar with the rules of academy governance
- keep up to date with changes in education legislation
- attend training courses, where appropriate
Trustees are involved in the following activities:
- senior staff appointments
- the financial management of the academy
- student discipline
- the curriculum
- community links
Mrs Jodie Gourlay is our Clerk to the Trustees. The Clerk to the Trustees is primarily responsible for the smooth and efficient running of meetings of the trustee board and any other committees. To this end, Mrs Gourlay works closely with the Chair of Trustees and the Principal to provide assistance and support.
Mrs Gourlay can be contacted by emailing clerk@newent.gloucs.sch.uk
Mr Chris Germaine
(Chair) Trustee
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Chris has lived Newent for 23 years and has a close association with the Town. He spent the early part of his career at Newent Community School and Sixth Form Centre and, therefore, feels passionately about education and the quality of education that Newent provides for local students. Chris is a keen cricketer and is Chairman of Newent Cricket Club. He coaches the junior members, many of which attend Newent School. Chris is also involved with cricket development at County level, and is Manager of the County Under 15 side. Chris has recently started to run and is a member of Newent Runners and has recently taken his leadership in running qualification.
Ms Nicola Gee
(Co-Vice Chair) Trustee
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A former pupil of Newent Community School and Sixth Form Centre, Nicola has worked in various educational roles in both London and Gloucestershire. Currently a Key Stage 1 Primary Teacher, she has also worked in the education department of the Victoria & Albert Museum and spent 10 years as an Early Years Teacher. Having started her teaching career in London, she moved back to Gloucestershire in 2004 with her husband and young children. She has three children, two still attending Newent and one moving onto university. Although new to being a governor Nicola has extensive experience as a volunteer in the education sector having been chair of both her local toddler group and playgroup and also a long standing committee member for her primary school fundraising group. As a governor Nicola looks forward to supporting and challenging the work of the school as it continues to move forward in providing excellent learning experiences and opportunities for all students.
Ms Sandy Hayes
Trustee
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Sandy has worked in education for over 30 years. For almost 20 of those, she has been immersed in the world of school improvement. She has been a local authority school improvement consultant in Gloucestershire and one of His Majesty’s Inspectors. She is currently head of school evaluation and assurance at the Windsor Academy Trust in the West Midlands and a serving Ofsted inspector. Sandy lives in Gloucestershire with her husband and son. Her quality time is spent cooking for them, growing things in their small, packed garden and lots of singing.
Mr James Joyce
Parent Trustee
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For our society to become the society I passionately believe in, we need to fully invest in our children and that is why I became a governor of Newent Community School in late 2020.
My background is working in various European Countries for multi-national advertising agencies . Before moving to Gloucestershire, in 2016 and building from scratch the house we live in, I was both a District and County Councillor. I also served and chaired Norfolk’s Childrens Services panel and currently serve on an Adoption Panel. My hobbies are Cricket, Flying and old cars.
Mr Robert Weston
Trustee
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Bob has no personal connection with Newent Community School, other than his son attending as a pupil over 30 years ago. Indeed, he’s only lived in Newent for the last year. Immediately before 2022 he lived in Highnam, Gorsley, Huntley and Gloucester Docks. Born and bred in Birmingham, he spent the best part of the first forty years of his life there before moving to Gloucestershire with his family in the mid 1980’s to work in Systems/Business Analysis and IT Project Management with various Financial Services companies. In the early 2000’s he went to work for the Civil Service, initially covering the South West and for the last ten of those years working out of London.
Last year he finally decided to retire and moved from the Docks to Newent. He is so glad that he did that and is now in the fortunate position of being able to do what he wants instead of what he has to do. Bob carries out a small amount of voluntary work and spends some considerable time working on a family farm locally in the Newent area.
Being retired, Bob now has plenty of time to follow his interest in all sports, most notably football.
But he also wants to contribute to his local community and what better way than in an environment aimed at helping and developing the current and future young people of that community? At a time when the providers and recipients of education face unprecedented challenges any support that he can give will be willingly offered.
Mr Gareth Wood
Trustee
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Gareth grew up in Gloucester and is an ex-student of Sir Thomas Rich’s. He then moved to Chelmsford where he studied for his degree, before returning in 1998. He is married with two children, and is the founder and Managing Director of an established local marketing company. He has worked at a strategic level with some of the biggest brands in the UK, along with start ups and a variety of local SMEs. These have included both commercial and not-for-profit organisations. He has also played an active part in the development of youth football and rugby teams in the local areas.
Mrs Dawn Burke
Principal / Trustee
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Dawn has been teaching for just over 20 years, working in a variety of contexts and boroughs. Being Gloucester born, returning to her home county has been a welcome surprise to her and her family.
Teaching wasn’t her first thought though as she did research for a while, before realising her heart was in helping others understand her subject and finding ways of making this understanding grow. Over time this love for science has beeen joined by a love for learning, and how to lead learning.
From the moment she arrived at Newent the School stood out as a community striving to be and do the best for its students. As part of this incredible team she hopes to see staff and students move into an amazing future together, all being the best that they can be.
Mrs Nazmin Dagada-Khan
School Business Leader / Company Secretary
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Email: businessmanager@newent.gloucs.sch.uk
Telephone: 01531 820550
Mrs Jodie Gourlay
Clerk to the Trustees
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E-mail: clerk@newent.gloucs.sch.uk
Telephone: 01531 828923
Miss Catherine Dufour
Staff Trustee
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Catherine has been a teacher for 22 years and 20 of those years have been at Newent. Catherine started as a teacher of RE and PSHE and is now Head of Nelson and Head of RE
Emma Steward
Trustee
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Emma grew up locally and attended Newent School and Sixth Form Centre as a pupil. In 2008, she began an accountancy apprenticeship with a firm of accountants in Cheltenham before gaining her ACCA qualification in 2016 working in Gloucester
Today, Emma remains working in practice as an audit manager, specialising in external audit and enjoys her varied client base which include companies and charities predominately in the South West.
Emma lives in Newent with her husband and two young daughters, who keep her very busy! But in her rare free time, she loves live music, swimming and spending time with family and friends.
Emma is keen to combine her understanding of the school and local community alongside her financial experience to make a positive contribution in her role as trustee
Members
Members have a distinct but limited role, however, an incredibly important one. Members act as the ‘guardian’ for the effective operation of the Trust by ensuring through holding the Board to account that the organisation is well managed and governed.
The principle rights and powers that Members have to achieve this are:
- appoint other Members;
- amend the Articles of Association;
- change the name of the Trust;
- appoint and remove one or more Trustees;
- approve the appointment of the Principal as a Trustee;
- approve the appointment of external auditors;
- receive the annual accounts and annual report from the Board;
- give directions by special resolution to the Board; and
- (if necessary) to wind up the Trust.
Mrs Karen Elen
Member
Mr Lee Hampton-Whitehead
Member
Mr David Hogg
Member
Mr Chris Rayfield
Member