Governors

Our school governors provide strategic leadership and accountability for our school. Governors appoint the head teacher and deputy headteacher. It is governors who hold the main responsibility for finance in schools, and it is governors who work with the headteacher to make the tough decisions about balancing resources.

Each individual governor is a member of a governing body, which is established in law as a corporate body. Individual governors may not act independently of the rest of the governing board; decisions are the joint responsibility of the governing board.

The role of the governing board is a strategic one, its key functions are to:

set the aims and objectives for the school
set the policies for achieving those aims and objectives
set the targets for achieving those aims and objectives
monitor and evaluate the progress the school is making towards achievement of its aims and objectives
be a source of challenge and support to the headteacher (a critical friend)

GOVERNOR'S REGISTER OF BUSINESS INTERESTS SEPTEMBER 2024-25

Name	Term of Office	Type of Governor	Role on Governing Board	Business Interests	Voting Rights	Attendance at meetings 6/6 per year
Khadija Pieterson	2024-2027	Co-opted	Co-Chair of Governors	Education	Yes	3/4
Dipesh Patel	2023-2027	Parent	Co-Chair of Governors	Finance/IT	Yes	2/4
Julie Rolls	2021-2025	LA	Chair of Sch Improvement	Higher Ed	Yes	3/4
Jo Pinchin	2021-2025	Parent	Safeguarding	Business	Yes	1/4
Dave Law	2022-2026	Co-opted	H&S	Retired	Yes	3/4
Feisal Bhatti	2023-2027	Parent	School Improvement	Business	Yes	3/4
Ajit Bansal	2021- 2025	Co-opted	School Improvement	Business	Yes	3/4
Emma Williams	2024-2028	LA	Chair of Resources	Business	Yes	4/4
Joao Almeida	2024-2028	Parent	School Improvement	Business	Yes	3/4
Liz Griffiths	2014-2027	Associate	School Improvement	Retired	No
Tina Carvell-Biggs	2022-2026	Associate	Resources	Finance	No
Sharifa Choudry	2015- 2028	Associate	School Improvement	Retired	No
Sally Croxford	2021-2025	Staff	School Improvement	Education	Yes	4/4
Sarah Pipe	2009- present		Headteacher	Education	Yes	4/4

Meet one of the Parkgate Junior School Governors:

Dave Law

I was born and raised East Ender who became an Essex boy, until meeting a Wembley girl who I married, and then I moved to Watford.

The Watford move was made a lot easier as living opposite the school I made an immediate connection with the area, as the school's Claret and Blue colours mirrored my favourite football team West Ham United.

With both my girls going through the school I made parental friends at the gate and also with teachers with whom I often shared morning and evening greetings.

Being involved in football all my life I thought that my playing, coaching and managing days were long over until my youngest daughter came home one day and said she wanted to play the beautiful game. After signing her up for Skills7 and researching girl teams in the local area she joined Garston Ladies. The older daughter got jealous of this and swiftly followed in her footsteps. I started watching as a parent, quickly got enrolled as a coach, was drafted onto the Exec and then took over running a team.

Last year I was chatting to Mrs Pipe and she asked me to become a Governor, as I had retired and I supposed, I must have looked bored!

I agreed and took over the roles of Health & Safety and premises management because this mirrored my working career as a facilities manager for a well known Assurance company in the City.

I have been lucky and fortunate in my life so giving back and helping out is an honour. Although small and beautifully Victorian, Parkgate Junior School has a wonderful history and a fantastic staff who exceeded my expectations for both my daughters. My aim is to ensure that experience continues to be the norm for all children now and into the future.