The School Governors

Our governors are at the heart of how the school operates.

If you want to contact the chair of governors or any other governor please leave a message or a letter at the school office and your request will be passed on to the relevant governor.

The role of the governing body

Critical friends

All maintained schools in England have a governing board which is responsible for overseeing the strategic direction of the school. A key role is to act as a ‘critical friend’: to support, to challenge, and to ask questions.

The governing board works in close partnership with the Interim Executive Headteacher and the Local Authority to ensure the school functions well and offers a strong provision for the education of the children it serves.

Membership of the governing board includes parents, teaching staff and representatives from the local community and the Local Authority.

Lady Margaret P – IOG April 2021

The governing board has a range of powers and duties laid down by various Education Acts.  In the main, these responsibilities relate to:

  • Setting targets and promoting high standards of educational achievement for all pupils
  • Setting the strategic framework within which the school operates
  • Management of the school’s budget
  • Ensuring that the curriculum for the school is broad and balanced and accessible to all pupils

Governors adopt, review and monitor a range of statutory policies that govern the operation of the school. These policies can be found on this website.

Governors discharge the above responsibilities through two formal governing board meetings each term. In addition, they make termly visits during the school day to monitor the impact of school improvement priorities.

Minutes of meetings are agreed and approved by the board at its next meeting. Minutes are available on request once they have been approved. Please contact the school administration team.

A number of governors also have responsibilities for specific areas within the school.  The Terms of Reference outline the specific responsibilities of the governing body.

Skills required of school governors

The National Governance Association (NGA) has published a list of skills required for school governance.  An individual governor  is not expected to have all the skills listed in the audit, but they should be covered across the governing body:

National Governance Association

 

 

Farhana Sultana

 

Name: Farhana Sultana

Date of appointment: 21st March 2019

Term of office: 4 years

Category of Governor: Parent Governor

Link Governor for :
PHSE and Healthy Relationships

Brief statement: I am a writer and columnist and I have one child in Lady Margaret. I am a Parent Governor at LMPS because it is my passion to support primary education.

I will support the school strategically to ensure students receive high quality education and planning for future development and continuous improvement. I believe parent governors have a special role, and will try to assess issues/decisions from the point of view of parents/carers.

I worked as a teacher, volunteer and teacher’s aid from 2004-2017 in Darland International school, Hambrough Primary school, Greenfields Nursery School and LMPS (summer term 2018). I hope to bring my experience as a volunteer to support LMPS with its future development.

I have completed B.S.S (Honours) and M.S.S in International Relations and a Teaching Assistant and Childcare course.

I will work with energy and enthusiasm to support LMPS to maintain high standards and future challenges.

Helen Rai
Bhavna Wadhera

 

Name: Helen Rai

Date of appointment: 2nd June 2014

Term of office: on-going

Category of Governor: Staff Governor – Headteacher

Name: Bhavna Wadhera

Date of appointment: 19th July 2019

Term of office: 4 years

Category of Governor: Staff Governor

Link Governor for:
Curriculum

Brief Statement: I have been at LMPS for almost 11 years mainly in the capacity of a finance officer and in the earlier years I have been a parent volunteer in the classroom. I have a teaching assistant qualification prior to my decision to move to finance. The school has given me the opportunity to successfully complete the CSBM, DSBM and CIPFA, which are school business and finance diplomas.  Prior to the appointment of the school business manager  I secured contracts, was the main contact of a school finance audit, project managed, monitored and prepared the school budget with assistance from bursarial services.

I believe the role of a staff governor is pivotal as it allows the governing body to gain insight into the demands and needs of the school staff to deliver the best possible learning for students. To achieve this, the school needs to be able to offer precise and accurate information on behalf of the staff and the school so that the governing body can make informed decisions. I feel that my experience from the roles I have held in the school, as a parent and a passionate member of the school staff will allow me to give the governing body a balanced view of all key stakeholders and represent the staff with conviction and honesty.

Simon Prebble – Chair of Governors
Dean Horridge
Randip Bains

lady margaret headshots 8sept15-52-3280s squareName: Simon Prebble

Date of Appointment: 16th July 2014 – (re-elected 5th May 2022)

Term of office: 4 years

Category of Governor: Chair of Governors – Co-opted Member

Link Governor for:
Safeguarding
Reading,
EYFS

Brief Statement: I am an education consultant working in schools across London. My main focus areas are providing support and challenge to senior leaders in school improvement planning and monitoring and evaluating. I have been the headteacher of 2 primary schools in Ealing. I have worked in education for 30 years in a variety of roles.

For 3 years I was the Principal Primary Adviser for Ealing and led the primary school improvement team. I have a lot of experience of governing boards both as a member and by supporting schools.

I have been a resident in the London Borough of Ealing for 27 years. I believe schools should have high expectations of their children, parents and staff as pupils only have one chance to enable them to be successful in their future lives.

I am looking forward to continuing to work with the governing board to challenge and support the school to improve further.

Name: Dean Horridge

Date of appointment: 30th November 2017

Term of office: 4 years

Category of Governor: Vice Chair of Governors – Co-opted Member

Link Governor for:
Premises/Health & Safety
PE and Healthy Lifestyles

Brief statement: Dean is an expert in children’s activity and obesity and has 28 years’ experience in working with children, families and communities across a range of sectors, including education, leisure and health & fitness. As head of PE in a primary school he was disappointed at the lack of physical activity his pupils undertook during school holidays. Realising the effects of inactivity during the holidays, Dean started Fit For Sport weekend and holiday activity clubs for school children in 1991. These continue to operate (with over 100 activity camps nationwide) and Fit For Sport has evolved and grown dramatically. It now employs over 500 staff, supports over 200 schools, and engages over one million children through free school and family initiatives. Fit For Sport also trains 23% of the UK’s activity leaders.

A firm believer that the journey to an active life begins with children, his overriding goal for Fit For Sport is to make a positive impact on the health of the nation by engaging and educating children and families through activity on the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.

Dean also takes a leading role in championing children’s activity in the health and fitness industry. He sits on Membership Council on the industry trade association ukactive, and also chairs the ukactive Kids Board, helping to develop and promote initiatives to improve children’s activity levels and participation.

Name: Randip Bains

Date of appointment: 21st March 2019

Term of office: 4 years

Category of Governor: Co-opted Member

Link Governor:
Curriculum

Brief Statement: I am a qualified English law Solicitor with 10 years’ experience of working in private practice with a range of clients. I currently work for the Bank of England as in house legal counsel and sit as the legal representative on risk committees within the Bank.

As a co-opted governor I feel that I have the opportunity to contribute to the local community by utilising skills that I have developed in my legal and professional career. I have always been keen to get involved in community work (past experiences including acting as a mentor, ambassador and charity work in Africa). The role as co-opted governor is quite a different and unique opportunity that appeals to me.

I am keen to gain experience of sitting on a governing body and developing my skills further in this context, in a way that makes a positive difference. I am interested to understand the challenges facing local schools and do as much as I can to assist with overcoming these or at least, providing a valuable contribution to the decision-making process.

Roop Bhinder 

 

 

Name: Roop Bhinder

Date of appointment:  3rd December 2020

Term of office: 4 years

Category of Governor: Local Authority/Citizen Governor

Link Governor: 
SEND

Brief statement:  I am currently the senior private secretary to the permanent secretary at the Department for Education, with experience working across five Government departments in the UK in a variety of policy, strategy and legislation roles.

I am interested in education, not just because of my day job, but more widely as I have experience mentoring young people trying to get into university as well as teaching study skills whilst I was at university. I strongly believe in education as an enabling tool for social mobility, and believe that all children should get the best start to life. Having grown up not too far from Lady Margaret Primary School, I am delighted to be working with a school where I have a strong understanding of the local area.

I will bring my skills and understanding of policy making, the education system and the local area to my role as Local Authority Governor.

 

Governors Register of Interests:

Governors have a legal duty to act in the best interest of the school.  Where there are personal or financial interests, which may conflict with this duty, they must identify, prevent and record the conflict.  Governors must not be involved in discussions or vote on matters to which their conflict relates.

At Durdan’s Park, governors review a register of interests at the start of every meeting.  Governors also declare personal or other interests which might be a potential source of conflict. Please click on the link below for the most up to date register of business interests.

Declarations of Interest March 2023

Governor attendance 2021-22

1st September 2021 to 31st August 2022

NameDesignationATTENDEDPOSSIBLE MEETINGS% Attendance
Mr S PrebbleChair of Governors (Co-opted Governor)81173%
Mr D HorridgeVice-chair  (Co-opted Governor)6875%
Ms H RaiHeadteacher1111100%
Ms F SultanaParent Governor5863%
Mr D NjovanaParent Governor (Resigned Dec-21)2367%
Ms S ArshadParent Governor (Appointed Dec-22)3475%
Ms B WadheraStaff Governor88100%
Ms S MughalParent Governor6875%
Ms R BainsCo-opted Governor5863%
Ms R BhinderLA community Governor5863%
Mr R PowarCo-opted Governor101191%
Ms A HancockAssociate Governor101191%
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