Governors
St. Paul's School Governors come from all areas including: school staff, members of the Church, parents and the local community.
The Full Governing Body meet every half term.
We have 3 main committees that meet at least once every half term and more frequently if required:
- Learning & Teaching;
- Finance & Personnel;
- Health, Safety & Environment.
The Governing Body
Four Parent Governors
Manavi Banerjee Annette Medhurst Rachel Minter Sian Sweet
One Local Authority Governor
Penny Wallace - Chair
One Headteacher
Julieanne Taylor
Four Co-opted Governors
Linda Edwards Colin Hudson Philip Mirfin Vacancy
Three Foundation Governors
Richard Lamey - Vice-Chair Jan Norbury Alan Harrison
One Staff Governor
Vacancy
Name: Linda Edwards
Governor Type: Co-opted
Committees: Finance & Personnel, Learning & Teaching
As well as being a Co-opted Governor, I am also a Y6 Teacher, Assessment Leader and the Deputy Head.
My Grandad and Dad influenced my decision to teach. They both loved learning and found joy in education. I also remember some inspirational teachers who helped me choose the path which has led me to where I am today.
I see learning as a lifelong pursuit. Being involved in the learning journey of the pupils of St Paul's, and of my own children, is exciting and stimulating!
The best thing about being a Governor is that I get to be part of decisions which help improve the overall success of our school.
Alan Harrison
Governor Type: Foundation
Committee: Health & Safety
Y4 Link Governor
I am a regular attender at St. Paul’s church and a member of the PCC, so it is a real privilege to be invited to join the school’s Governing Body and thereby support the school in maintaining and promoting Christian values whilst ensuring that, so far as possible, each child is nurtured and cared for. I do have some past experience of School Governors as I became, in my capacity as a Solicitor, Clerk to the Governors of my former day and boarding Grammar School.
I grew up in the Lake District and until I went to boarding school at the age of eleven, I attended the local village school which had only thirteen pupils and one Teacher! It was, of course, a far cry from the size and resources of St. Paul’s but, nevertheless, I felt secure and was generally happy there. One abiding memory of my school days was the inspiration I gained from dedicated teachers. I believe that inspiration facilitates learning, and from everything I have learned about St. Paul’s so far, the children there have an opportunity to succeed through the inspiration and dedication of the Head and the teaching staff, supported by the Governing Body.
Father Richard Lamey
Governor Type: Foundation
Committee (s): Learning & Teaching
Vice-chair of the full governing body, PP Governor and Y3 Link Governor
I am the Rector of St Paul's Church and therefore a Foundation Governor. I am also the Pupil Premium Governor, responsible for making sure that those children, in particular, are making all of the progress that they should be and are flourishing at school.
My three children all went to a neighbouring Junior school and are now at three different Secondary schools in the local area which gives me a lot of experience of local education establishments!
I was very happy at my Junior School. I remember huge competition between the classes on Times Tables afternoons. I was a prefect and remember learning loads of fascinating things about Romans.
The two best things about being a Governor are: getting to know the pupils and realising how individual, talented and eager to learn they are; and also being able to help the School make sure that the education St Paul's offers is the very best that it can be and as good as our pupils deserve.
Rachel Minter
Governor Type: Parent
Committee : Learning & Teaching
Y5 Link Governor
The best thing about being a governor is being able to give back to a school that has provided my son with fantastic support (both personally and academically) throughout his time at St Paul’s.
I am currently a Deputy Headteacher at Beechwood Primary School in Woodley where my passions include Safeguarding and Pupil Premium which means I get to work with the more vulnerable children and families.
I went to a church junior school called St James in Wallaston in the West Midlands and my overriding memory of my time there was music. I had an inspirational teacher called Mrs Vincent who encouraged me to sing and learn to play the recorder, violin and piano. Music is a big part of my life and teaching as a result.
I have held a number of roles throughout my working life in several different industries but l have mainly been involved in three areas, sales and marketing, service centre design and operational management. The industries l have covered are everything from toiletries and medicines, to canned food, car rental, and IT related areas.
I retired six years ago but in the past sixteen years l have been separately involved as a Town and a Borough Councillor for Emmbrook Ward with my main focus since l retired being the Regeneration of Wokingham Town Centre.
I stopped being a Councillor following this year’s May elections.
I enjoy travel and golf and also assist my wife with her allotment.
I look back favourably though distantly at my schools that l attended in Huddersfield, where the ethic of working hard always came through but with the aim of enjoying our schooling.
I very much hope to put this into my time as a new Governor at St. Paul's and look forward to engaging with the staff, parents and the children.
Jan Norbury
Governor Type: Foundation
Committee: Learning & Teaching
SEND Governor, Y6 Link Governor
As a retired teacher I hope to use my skills and experience to support the school in providing a loving, caring environment based on Christian principles for all its children.
As a child, I vividly remember the teachers who made me feel good about myself and made me want to learn. As a result, my professional career always centred on the needs of the individual child. St Pauls’ ethos chimes with my own ideas for educating children so I was pleased to accept the position of Foundation Governor.
It was a good decision: I am enjoying being part of an exciting and dynamic community, where pupils and staff are valued, where school life is fun.
I absolutely adored my time at primary school both due to the teachers I was lucky to have supporting and teaching me, but also the school environment itself. A teacher at the time really encouraged me to get involved in sport and this remains something I am truly passionate about today. Physical Education in schools is something I believe is vitally important for children and I am excited to learn more about how it is taught and encouraged at St Paul's.
I am excited to be taking on a Parent Governor position which enables me to help ensure future children have the same wonderful experience at primary school as I did. My son is now attending St Paul's which only further motivates me to ensure the school is providing a positive and nurturing environment to all children attending.
Julieanne Taylor
Governor Type: Headteacher
Committees: Learning and Teaching; Personnel and Finance; Health, Safety and Environment
I really struggled at Junior School and I wasn’t very well behaved. I was regularly sent to the Headteacher. (This happened a lot!) Then I had Mr Bond, the best Y6 teacher ever. He taught me the importance of being the best version of me that I can be. He taught me to be brave and to take risks with my learning. He taught me that I could be anything I wanted to be.
Most parents can name a hundred things they want for their child. For my son, I wanted him to love learning, to be happy at school, surrounded by friends, nurtured by teachers who knew him well and wanted the best for him. I wanted him to go to a school like St Paul’s.
Being the Headteacher of this amazing school is the best job in the world. Being a governor is the 'icing on the cake' as it means that I get to work with a second team of like-minded people who believe that our pupils deserve the very best.
Penelope (Penny) Wallace
Governor type: Local Authority Governor
Committees: Finance & Personnel; Health & Safety
Chair of the Full Governing Body, Safeguarding Governor, Y6 Link Governor
My school day memories are mostly happy. I went to a village Primary School, where everybody knew everybody, before going away to a boarding school.
The best thing about being a Governor? As a retired teacher, I love being back in school with plenty of scope to keep up with what is going on in education both locally and nationally.