Governance
Chair of Trustee Board: To be elected by Board 23.09.26
Vice Chair of Trustee Board: Tom La Dell
Governance Professional: Tracy Hartley
The Governance Structure at Horsforth School is currently made up of 5 members and 13 Trustees (including 2 parent Trustees).
Members & Trustees
As charitable companies limited by guarantee every trust has Members who have a similar role to the shareholders in a company limited by shares.
The Trustees are both charity trustees and company directors and they manage the business of the academy trust and may exercise all the powers of the academy trust.
The Members meet a minimum of 2 times throughout the year. The Trustee Board meets a minimum of six times throughout the year.
The Core Functions of the Trustee Board are:
- Strategic leadership: defining a vision, fostering a culture and championing the strategy
- Accountability and assurance: providing robust and effective oversight of operations and performance including ensuring appropriate use of funding and effective financial performance
- Engagement: strategic oversight of relationships with stakeholders
The Members:
- are signatories to the articles of association which includes definition of the trusts’ charitable object and governance structure (where they are founding Members);
- may, by special resolution, amend the articles of association, subject to any restrictions created by the trust’s funding agreement or charity law;
- may, by special resolution (which requires 75% rather than a simple majority of Members to agree) appoint new Members or remove existing Members other than, where there is one, the foundation/ sponsor body and any Members it has appointed;
- have power to appoint Trustees as set out in the trust’s articles of association, and have power under the Companies Act to remove any or all serving Trustees;
- may by special resolution issue direction to the Trustees to take a specific action;
- appoint the Trust’s auditors and receive the trust’s annual audited accounts; and
- have power to change the name of the charitable company and ultimately, wind up the academy trust.
Key Elements of our Governance
Effective governance in our Academy Trust is supported by the following:
- Trust Members – the guardians of the constitution, the right to appoint and remove Trustees, the equivalent of shareholders in a company.
- Trust Board – the Directors / Trustees:
- Ensure clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction for the Trust.
- Supports and holds the Leadership of the school to account for educational performance.
- Approves the budget and has oversight of all strategic decision and direction.
- Responsible for appointing the Headteacher.
- Audit, Risk and Finance Committee:
- Assists the Trust Board in meeting its responsibilities for financial reporting, internal and external auditing.
- Recommends appointment of Auditors to the Members.
- Agrees a schedule of audit.
- Ensures adequate risk management processes are in place.
- Ensures rigor and scrutiny in budget management.
If you are interested in becoming a Horsforth School Trustee please contact Tracy Hartley, Governance Professional at info@horsforthschool.org.
Trustees
Names, Terms of Office and Declarations of Interest(s)
| Trustee Name and Term of Office |
Appointed By | Declaration of Interests |
|---|---|---|
| Paul Bell (Headteacher) 01.09.2016 |
Ofsted Inspector, Member of ASCL | |
| Tania Clarke 30.01.2025-30.01.2029 |
Members | Deputy Director of Marketing, Communications and Recruitment at Leeds Trinity University |
| Ian Dixon 23.02.2021-23.02.2025 |
Members | Director of Brightpath UK |
| Rob Eastwood 08.10.25-08.10.29 |
Members | Employee of Belong Limited Director of Eastwood Consultancy Services Member of Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyor |
| Rosemary Edwards 29.11.25-29.11.2029 Resigned: 31.08.26 |
Members | None |
| Tessa Freer 29.11.25-29.11.29 |
Members | Manager of Horsforth Children’s Service. Horsforth School commissions part of the funding towards Horsforth Children’s Service. |
| David Gray 08.01.2026-08.01.30 |
Parent Trustee (Election process) | Head of Planning and Commercial Development MPS |
| Martin Hicks 03.10.22-03.10.26 Resigned 15.10.25 |
Parent Trustee (Election process) | None |
| Mr Tom La Dell (Vice Chair) 02.10.18-02.10.26 |
Members | Employed by Anderson Anderson & Brown Wealth Ltd. |
| Phil Parkinson 23.04.25-23.04.29 |
Parent Trustee (Election process) | Employed by Taylor Rose Limited |
| Shaun Riordan 21.09.2024 – 21.09.2028 |
Members | Employee of Salesforce |
| Amanda Turner 28.09.24-28.09.28 |
Members | Son’s partner is employed at the school as a member of associate staff |
| Steve Wood 01.07.2023 – 01.07.2027 |
Members | None |
Trustees
Attendance at Meetings, Lead Roles and Committee Membership
| Trustee Name and Term of Office | Link Roles (Linked to SIP)/Committees | Governance in other Institutions | 2025-2026 Attendance Trust Board Meetings |
2025-2026 Attendance Audit Committee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Bell (Headteacher) 01.09.2016 |
N/A | 7 of 7 | 3 of 4 (in attendance) |
|
| Tania Clarke 31.01.25-30.01.2029 |
|
4 of 7 | N/A | |
| Ian Dixon 24.02.25-24.02.2029 |
|
N/A | 6 of 7 | 2 of 4 |
| Rob Eastwood 08.10.25.08.102029 |
|
N/A | 6 of 7 | N/A |
| Rosemary Edwards 29.11.25-29.11.2029 Resigned: 31.08.26 |
|
N/A | 6 of 7 | 4 of 4 |
| Tessa Freer 29.11.2025 – 29.11.2029 |
|
N/A | 5 of 7 | N/A |
|
Mr Martin Hicks (Parent Trustee) |
Horsforth Children’s Services | 0 of 1 | N/A | |
|
David Gray |
N/A | 3 of 5 | N/A | |
| Mr Tom La Dell (Vice Chair) 02.10.18-02.10.26 |
|
N/A | 4 of 7 | 4 of 4 |
| Phil Parkinson (Parent Trustee) 23.04.2025 – 23.04.2029 |
|
N/A | 6 of 7 | N/A |
| Shaun Riordan 21.09.2024 – 21.09.2027 |
|
N/A | 5 of 7 |
2 of 4 |
| Amanda Turner 28.09.24- 28.09.28 |
|
N/A | 6 of 7 | N/A |
| Steve Wood 01.07.2023- 01.07.2027 |
|
N/A | 7 of 7 | 2 of 4 |
Trustee Diversity Data
Members Declarations of Interest(s)
| Name | Interests |
|---|---|
| Jamie Bentley |
|
|
Colin Booth
|
|
| Rosemary Edwards Resigned: 31.08.26 |
None |
| Martin Hughes |
|
| Stephen Jex | None |
| Jenny Share Resigned: 31.08.26 |
|
| Helen Shearer | None |