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Governance

St Mary’s is a church-aided school so a number of the Governors are appointed by the church, either by the church in Chipping Norton or by the Diocese of Oxford. Known as Foundation Governors, they must outnumber other Governors by at least two. There are also representatives of parents and staff and of the local council. The Governors meet as a body six times per year and various sub-committees meet in addition to this to focus on specific matters.

Besides their management role, the Governors are there to help if problems arise. Parents are welcome to contact the Governing Body and may do so through the school office.

The sub-committees are:

  • The Resources Committee (Chair Steve Nelson)

  • The Personnel Committee (Chair TBA)

  • The Standards Committee (Chair Steve Nelson)

  • External Relations Committee (Chair Jo Graves)

Meet the Governors

Steve Nelson

(Chair and LA Governor)

Is the Chair of the Governing Body and the Local authority Governor.  He has two children at St Mary’s School.  Steve sits on the Resources Committee, Standards Committee and the External Relations Committee.

Appointed 30 November 2020 – 29 November 2024
Votes on all the above committees

Christine McQueen

Headteacher

Is the Headteacher of St Mary’s School. Christine sits on the Resources Committee, Personnel Committee and the Standards Committee.

Appointed in 2023 (Ex-Officio) when she became Headteacher

Votes on all the above committees

Jo Graves

Vice Chair Diocese Foundation Governor

Is joint Vice Chair of the Governing Body, a member of St Mary’s Church and a Foundation Governor.  She previously taught for twenty years at St Mary’s, having finished in 2000, and her two daughters enjoyed their primary education years at the school.  Jo sits as a member of the Standards Committee, Personnel Committee and External Relations Committee.  Jo also co-ordinates the monitoring of English throughout the school.

Appointed 1 September 2018 (renewed 1 September 2022 – 31 August 2026)

Votes on all the above committees

James Kennedy

Ex-Officio

Month/year started:
September 2013.
What kind of Governor are you?
Ex officio (as Vicar).
Additional role within school, church or board:
Vicar of Chipping Norton.
What are your link subjects?
n/a
What committees do you sit on?
Resources & Personnel
A bit about your professional life/background:
James initially trained and worked as a urological surgeon, working latterly as a Lecturer in Surgery in Oxford University. In 2007 he then took a different direction, retraining and working as an ordained church leader. He was appointed as Vicar of Chipping Norton in 2013.
A bit about your personal life, hobbies, interests etc:
James is married with four children, three of whom passed through St Mary’s School. As well as reading, his other leisure interests have always been active and primarily ‘outdoor’. He loves any sport, but particularly enjoys fell-walking, rugby (now watching only!) and golf.

Linda Carpenter

Diocese Foundation Governor

Month/year started:
September 2021
What kind of Governor are you?
Diocese Foundation
Additional role within school, church or board:
Churchwarden St Mary’s Church Chipping Norton.
What are your link subjects?
RE & Collective Worship link governor.
What committees do you sit on?
Resources and Personnel
A bit about your professional life/background:
Linda worked in Primary Education for over twenty years, as Teaching Assistant supporting SEND pupils then as School Business Manager in both maintained and academy settings. She currently works part-time in the Safeguarding Team at the Diocese of Oxford, Kidlington.
A bit about your personal life, hobbies, interests etc:
Linda enjoys walking in the local countryside, seaside holidays with family, reading, sewing, and talking over coffee with anyone who will accept.

Daniel Lawson

Foundation Governor

Is a Foundation Governor. Daniel is a Maths Teacher at the Burford Secondary School.  Daniel sits on the Resources Committee and is the Health and Safety Governor.

Appointed 1 September 2017 (renewed 1 September 2021 – 30 August 2025)

Votes on the Resources Committee

Helen Perris

Foundation Governor

Is a Foundation Governor. Helen sits on the Personnel Committee, the SIAMS group and is the Science Governor link. Helen retired to the Cotswolds with her husband 4 years ago. She trained as a secondary Biology teacher but has also taught in Primary and Tertiary education.  Helen worked in Alternative Provision for the last 15 years of her career setting up and becoming Head Teacher of an Alternative Provision School for excluded pupils and those unable to attend mainstream due to mental health difficulties. 

Appointed 3 February 2021 – 2 February 2025

Votes on the Personnel Committee

Tina Shelley-Smith

Foundation Governor

Is appointed as a Foundation Governor.  Tina is on the Personnel Committee, the Standards Committee and the SIAMS group.  Tina is the Governor link for Art & DT.  A retired Design Technology teacher, Tina and her husband moved to Chipping Norton in November 2019 and have been members of St Mary’s Church since then.

Mother to four children, Tina has lived and worked in Germany and the Middle East as well as England so she understands the meaning of transition.

Appointed 1 December 2021 – 30 November 2025

Votes on all the above committees

Sherry Bishop

Foundation Governor

Is appointed as a Foundation Governor.  Sherry sits on the External Relations Committee, SIAMS Group and is the History and Music Governor link.

Appointed 1 December 2021 – 30 November 2025

Votes on the External Relations Committe

Suzanne Saunders

Foundation Governor

Month/year started:
Sept 2022
What kind of Governor are you?
Foundation
Additional role within school, church or board:
N/a
What are your link subjects?
SEND & PHSE
What committees do you sit on?
Standards
A bit about your professional life/background:
Suzanne’s career has been spent in the field of Special Education. She has taught in mainstream and special schools, been a Head of Education at a residential special school, lectured at Oxford Brookes University and been part of the Oxfordshire Advisory Service, supporting individual pupils and helping schools to develop their practice in the field of special education. Suzanne hopes to bring some of this expertise to St Mary’s as they continue to develop their SEND provision.
A bit about your personal life, hobbies, interests etc:
Suzanne is an active participant at St Mary’s Church.
She likes to keep fit through swimming, cycling, walking and ballet.
She enjoys films, theatre and the arts: She sings with a choir, and takes part in local Am Dram productions.
Suzanne reads avidly and is currently learning how to draw.
In her spare time, she conducts extensive research into the best coffee and cake venues in and around Chipping Norton.

Paul Wickham

Co-opted Governor

Is a Co-opted Governor with two children in school.  Paul is a Firefighter and he sits on the Resources Committee and the External Relations Committee.

Appointed 08 February 2023 – 7 February 2027

Votes on all above committees

Laura Tinkham

Parent Governor

Month/year started:
February 2023
What kind of Governor are you?
Parent Governor
Additional role within school, church or board:
Vice Chair
What are your link subjects?
Safeguarding
What committees do you sit on?
Resources
A bit about your professional life/background:
Laura’s back ground is in Finance, she currently works as a Finance Manager for a local company as well as providing accounting and admin services locally. Her skills also include Business Administration and Personnel/HR.
Laura has also been a member and Treasurer for The Friends of St Mary’s PTA and on the Management Committee as Treasurer for Chipping Norton Preschool.
A bit about your personal life, hobbies, interests etc:
Laura has 2 children who have both attended St Marys. They enjoy family life together, days out and holidays. Both her children are very sporty so you will often find her on the sides lines somewhere in the county cheering them on!
She enjoys gardening and, in the evenings, you’ll find her enjoying a crime drama or 2! She loves to spend time with her family and friends on days out, weekends away or just to enjoy a coffee and a catch-up.

Helen Knott

Parent Governor

Month/year started:
Feb 2023
What kind of Governor are you?
Parent
Additional role within school, church or board:
n/a
What are your link subjects?
Music
What committees do you sit on?
External Relations
A bit about your professional life/background:
Helen and her family moved to Chippy nearly 2 years ago for husband Paul’s job. Before that, they lived in London and West Sussex although she is originally from Malvern. Helen currently works as a catering supervisor in Bloxham but prior to that she was a Stage Manager for 25 Years, having trained at RADA, and worked in lots of theatres around the UK. She has also been a Tutor at several colleges teaching technical theatre, Matron at a boarding school and for a while Paul and Helen were foster carers.
A bit about your personal life, hobbies, interests etc:
Since moving to Chippy they have enjoyed exploring our new area.  Helen volunteers at the Chippy Larder which she found was a great way to meet people and still help out at the theatre when she can. She likes baking, sewing, upholstery and looking after their 4 rescue chickens.

Justine Taylor

Staff Governor

Month/year started:
Sept 2023
What kind of Governor are you?
Staff
Additional role within school, church or board:
EYFS and KS1 Manager
What are your link subjects?
I coordinate History and Geography.
What committees do you sit on?
Standards.
A bit about your professional life/background:
Justine started teaching in 1993 and has been at St Mary’s for 23 years. She has taught from EYFS to Year 4. She is passionate about teaching and learning in Early Years.
A bit about your personal life, hobbies, interests etc:
Justine enjoys spending family time with my husband and two daughters. She has two cats and is kept busy by a very crazy Sprocker Spaniel (our first pet dog!). She is a Trustee and Secretary for the town hall, where she is involved in fundraising.  She loves reading, going to see comedians and watching films.

Kim Williams

Parent Governor

Month/year started:
Appointed on 13 February 2023
What kind of Governor are you?
Parent governor
 
Additional role within school, church or board:
Vice-chair
What are your link subjects?
Attendance & Computing
 
What committees do you sit on?
Standards
 
A bit about your professional life/background:
Kim works in book publishing for a not-for-profit academic publishing house, and heads up the digital and audiobook business, as well as co-heading the European office in Oxford. She is especially interested in making their books fully accessible to global audiences, and the impact of changing technologies, including AI, on the publishing industry. Mentoring and training is important to her and she is a firm believer that books can inspire people, especially young readers.
A bit about your personal life, hobbies, interests etc:
Kim and her family moved to Chipping Norton in 2019 and they have been lucky to get involved with lots of groups of wonderful people. She plays hockey at Oxford Hawks HC and loves yoga, gardening, and reading. 

Anne Strick

Associate Governor

Month/year started:
April 2002
What kind of Governor are you?
Associate Governor (previously the FGB Clerk for 20 years).
Additional role within school, church or board:
School Business Manager
What are your link subjects:
n/a
What committees do you sit on?

Resources – no voting rights
A bit about your professional life/background:
In a previous life Anne was a Police Officer in Bolton for 11 years, she then went to college for 12 months to obtain her PA’s qualification. Anne moved into admin/management and then law enforcement in Bolton Council before moving to a little school in Derbyshire as their admin officer. This set her up for their move to Oxfordshire and Chipping Norton in 2002. She became the school admin officer at St Mary’s, where she is now the School Business Manager.
A bit about your personal life, hobbies, interests etc:
Anne has two grown up children and she now has a beautiful grand-daughter! Her main hobby is archaeology, and she can be seen at various digs throughout the summer months. She really enjoys walking with the dogs in their family, painting, sewing and knitting, various crafts really which will come in very handy now with the new addition to their family! She tries to keep fit and take Aquafit classes and a Pilates class each week.

1 Foundation Governor Vacancy

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