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 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 Tassy Greenough Graham.

  • Finance and Resources (3 times per year)

The chair of the finance committee is Tom Neale.

  • Ethos Working Party (3 times per year)

The chair for the Ethos working party is Reverend Paul.

  • 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. 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.

Tom Neale

Vice Chair of Governors

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.

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 enjoys leading singing with school groups comes in to school to help with Collective Worships.

Paul sits on our Ethos Working Party 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.

Neil Lester

Parent 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.

Charlotte Catton

Parent Governor

Charlotte joined the governing body in Summer 2023 as a parent governor. This is her first time in a governor’s role, but she has had a close relationship with St Paul’s, having chaired The Friends of St Paul’s for 3 years and been on the committee for 5 years. Charlotte is the link governor for SEN, Pupil Premium and Art.

She is also a primary school teacher and has worked in private education for the last 16 years. Currently, she teaches across all 3 key stages and has a keen interest in Forest School. She recently qualified as a Level 3 Forest School practitioner and is currently developing a Forest School program in her current job.

Charlotte has two children currently attending St Paul's and a third child who went through St Paul’s and is now in high school.

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!

Nigel McNally

Co-Opted Governor

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

Nigel has a special interest in St Paul’s as his two granddaughters are pupils there and his daughter is a member of the administrative team.

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