Governors

The role of a Governing Body, often described as being a “critical friend”, is absolutely key to the effectiveness of a school. Its three main roles are to:

1. Set the vision and strategic direction of the school.
2. Hold the Headteacher to account for the school’s educational performance.
3. Ensure that financial resources are well managed and spent.

The role of Governor is largely a thinking and questioning role. The day to day operational management of the school is delegated to the Headteacher and the Senior Leadership Team.

St Paul’s C of E Governing Body is made up of representatives from the school staff, parents, the local community and St Paul’s Church. In addition to participating in the Full Governing Body and is chaired by the Chair of Governors and meets three times per year, Governors also serve on sub-committees which are:

• Curriculum (3 times per year)

The chair of the curriculum committee is Nicola McIntish.

• Finance and Resources (3 times per year)

The chair of the finance committee is Tom Neale.

• Ethos (2 times per year)

The chair for the Ethos committee is Jan Grey.

• Pay and Performance Review (2 times per year)

The chair of the Pay and Performance committee is Tom Neale.

• Headteacher Appraisal (2 times per year)

The chair of the Headteacher Appraisal is Tom Mitchell, the Chair of Governors.

If you wish to contact the Chair of Governors of St Paul’s C of E Primary, please contact Mr Tom Mitchell via the School Office.

Tom Mitchell

Chair of Governors

Tom was elected as a co-opted parent governor in July 2022 and became Chair of Governors in October 2022. Tom has previous experience as a governor at St Paul’s Nursery School and Tom is currently the linked governor for PE. As well as being the Chair, Tom attends the finance committee and Pay and Performance Committee.

A consultant employment and commercial solicitor Tom has, amongst other things, extensive experience of working with businesses, charities, and individuals, including those in education, on a range of regulatory, corporate governance, and people issues. With exposure to the importance of good governance Tom is passionate about ensuring those he helps get it right.

Born in York and living most of his life in Holgate, Tom has two children, both at the school.

Nicola McIntosh

Vice Chair of Governors

Nicola moved to York in August 2021 and after settling in was keen to give to her community and answered a call out for new governors. Nicola became Vice Chair of Governors in October 2022. Nicola is a member of the curriculum committee.

Nicola comes with 15 years experience of being a Governor in both rural and city settings (though the demands of her last job meant she had to step aside from her governor role). Her experience has mostly been in Lower/Primary schools but has also been a Trustee of a multi site academy.

Nicola has most recently been lead Chaplain to a hospital and before that has been a vicar of rural parishes.

Nicola volunteers in Class one on a Thursday morning so is getting to know our school and Nicola will be part of the curriculum committee. Nicola is leading on PSHE and Wellbeing for both pupils and staff.

Martyn Long

Co-opted Governor

Martyn was co-opted to the Board of Governors in Autumn 2016 and has 1 child at the school and 1 who has just moved up to secondary school. Martyn attends the finance committee, curriculum committee and Pay and Performance Committee.

Martyn has extensive and wide ranging leadership and management experience across the civil service and local government, and currently works in the employment and skills sector with a focus on designing and delivering work and skills programmes and supporting career and progression pathways for disadvantaged communities. He also has previous governance experience in the charity and housing sectors.

Becca de Koning

Parent Governor

Becca was elected as a parent governor in Autumn 2018. She has 3 children at the school, one of which has just joined Class Reception. She has responsibility for Safeguarding, SEN, Pupil Premium and English.

Becca works in the Local Area Team supporting families in the city. She has also worked in safeguarding, young people’s services and has volunteered with children and young people in the charity sector.

Becca has also had previous experience of being a Trustee for a children’s mentoring charity. She is passionate about the well being of children and their families, and ensuring all children have the opportunity to reach their full potential.

Reverend Paul Millard

Foundation Governor

Paul joined the governor team following his appointment as the Rector of St Paul’s Church and also the Vicar at St Barnabas Church on Leeman Road in April 2020. As well as being governor at St Paul’s he is a governor for St Barnabas Primary School. He is new to governing, but not new to working with schools. He enjoys leading singing with school groups comes in to school to help with Collective Worships.

Paul sits on our Ethos Committee and supports Collective Worship.

Before becoming a Vicar he worked in finance and administration at St Michael le Belfrey Church in the centre of York. During his 15 years working there he became CIMA qualified and led teams of volunteers in various contexts in a large city centre church.

Jan Grey

Co-opted Governor

Jan Grey is known as ‘Mrs Grey’ from her time working at St Paul’s School. Jan has such a heart for the children, staff and community at the school, that when an opportunity came for Jan to pursue her dream role in tackling poverty, Jan knew she couldn't leave the school completely and Jan applied for the role of a governor.

Jan been in primary education for 34 years and held many roles in supporting teachers, as well as being a Nursery Nurse and Higher Level Teaching Assistant. Jan's main interests and passions lie in education about world faiths, cultures and traditions. Jan also loves teaching vital life skills for our children to be able to grow, be resilient and thrive.

At her previous school Jan was subject leader for RE, PSHCE, Collective Worship and SIAMS. Jan is keen to take these experiences into the governor role through the curriculum and Ethos Committee. From Jan's experience in Reception, she is also the governor for Early Years. Lastly, Jan has been a member of St Paul’s Church congregation since 2006 and has been an active bridge between the school and church, especially on School to Church events.

Hannah Severn

Staff Governor

Hannah Severn is our Year 6 teacher and Science and Computing lead at St Paul's Primary School. Throughout her seven years of teaching, Hannah has taught in key stage one and key stage two and has developed an excellent understanding of curriculum, assessment, teaching and learning across the whole school. Hannah truly feels St Paul's Primary is a place to belong and when the opportunity to become staff governor presented itself, she jumped at the chance, wanting to offer her experience and knowledge to further assist and support the vision and strategy of the school and its community.

Hannah's main interests and passions come through her mentoring and middle leadership roles, where she is passionate about coaching and guiding others on a journey to greater success. She believes that, no matter how many years you have been in the profession, there is always room to grow, learn and adapt your practice, not only for yourself, but for the children and school as a whole. Hannah studied English Language and Linguistics and Education Studies at university and, always knowing she wanted to be a teacher from a very early age, applied for her Post Graduate Certificate in Education in 2013. Following this and studies in Philosophy and Ethics and Religious Studies, she is keen to help the school progress in its curriculum and inclusion through her staff governor role. In her spare time, Hannah loves to keep fit so the perfect companion for this was a beagle puppy named Charles! Always on the go like Hannah, Charles has slotted perfectly into the family!

Neil Lester

Co-Opted Governor

Neil was co-opted to the Board of Governors in January 2022 and has 2 children at the school. Alongside being a member of the Board, Neil is also a member of the Finance Committee and Pay and Performance Committee.

Neil is qualified management accountant by trade. He has a wide range of finance, strategy and management experience from over 25 years working in central government and at local hospital, regional and national level for the NHS.. Currently, Neil works as a Head of Strategic Finance for NHS England, specialising in health service transformation and development, across areas including cancer, maternity services, learning disabilities and personalisation of care Neil hopes his core skills, experience and enthusiasm allow him to be an effective 'critical friend' and is passionate about contributing and supporting the school be the best it can be.

Neil leads on Maths and RE.

Tom Neale

Co-Opted Governor

Tom was co-opted to the Board of Governors in January 2022 and has 2 children at the school. Alongside being a member of the Board, Tom is also a member of the Finance Committee, Pay and Performance Committee and the computing subject link governor.

Tom is qualified actuary and works as a professional pension scheme trustee. Albeit in a different field, he governs for a living! Through this he has a strong understanding of the value of good governance as well as expertise in financial management and accounts.

Nigel McNally

Co-Opted Governor

I have been involved in Primary Education for the whole of my working life. I was a Headteacher for twenty five years. I trained as a teacher at, the then, St John’s College of Education, York. I joined the governing body at St Paul's in October 2022 and will be a part of the curriculum committee.

I have a special interest in St Paul’s as my two granddaughters are pupils here and my daughter is a member of the administrative team.

As part of the curriculum committee, I am particularly interested in the teaching of Humanities especially History and its role in the curriculum. Outside of Education, I enjoy travelling, reading and listening to music.

Tamasin Greenough Graham

Co-Opted Governor

Tamasin joined the Board of Governors in 2021 after being a governor at another York primary school for 10 years. Tamasin has two children, both of whom attended St Paul’s. She is chair of the curriculum committee.

Tamasin works for a computer science education charity and has worked within STEM engagement since university. She is passionate about ensuring that all children discover how science is relevant to their lives and see a place for themselves in STEM. Tamasin has supported STEM enrichment at St Paul’s for many years, providing workshops for STEM week, and running first an astronomy club, a science club and now a Code Club.