School champions
The core function of a School Champion is to monitor an aspect of the school’s work to gain a further understanding of it, in order to provide a platform for support and challenge.
Within the Learners’ Trust Local Governing Bodies are referred to as ‘School Champions’. The term ‘Champions’ is apt, as a major function of these locally determined boards within the Learners’ Trust is to champion the needs of the children, school, staff and the local community that each individual school setting serves. School Champions also bring vital contextual knowledge to their role which supports them in their strategic function of being a ‘critical friend’ to the school.
School champions meet several times a year and consider school information through headteacher reports and standard agendas based on school self evaluation. The school’s Trust Partner is a direct link back to the Trust board room so representation from the school is always present.
However, The Champions Board at High Greave Infant School has been temporarily suspended following the procedures set out in the handbook below:
Monitoring and review on behalf of the suspended Champions Board
- As part of their risk management and risk mitigation duties, the Trustees may request sight of the standardised Champions slideshow presentations from the headteacher about the school and its activities at either full board or committee meetings;
- In the event of the suspension of the School Champions Board, the headteacher will continue to produce the same number of headteacher reports as before and present them to the Trust Partner. These will then be taken forward and critiqued by their group of ‘partner Headteachers’ from within the hub region via email;
- The expectation of the partner Headteachers is to offer challenge either in-person or over email. The relevant Trust Partner will quality assure this dialogue;
- By exception these reports may also be considered within the relevant fortnightly Mini-headteacher’s group as an agenda item and/or at Executive Team meetings on Monday afternoons, or in 1-to-1 meetings between the Trust Partner and CEO.
Working more closely with the Executive Team and those that are responsible for governance
On an annual basis, following suspension:
- Trustees, acting in their role as those responsible for governance across the Trust, will offer challenge and support to the Executive Team in relation to the stated school as part of their calendared meetings as they see fit;
- Re-consideration of any of the above relevant stages is prioritised by those who have contact at a local level (Trust Partner, Headteacher etc.) to seek any possible way forward to re-start the Champions Board at either a stand-alone or Executive (in conjunction with another local Trust school) basis.