Governance
Chair of Trustee Board: Rosemary Edwards
Vice Chair of Trustee Board: Tom La Dell
The Governance Structure at Horsforth School is made up of 7 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:
- Assist the Trust Board in meeting its responsibilities for financial reporting, internal and external auditing.
- Recommend Appointment of Auditors to the Members.
- Agree a schedule of audit.
- Ensures adequate risk management processes are in place
- Ensure rigor and scrutiny in budget management.
If you are interested in becoming a Horsforth School Trustee please contact Tracy Hartley, Clerk to the Trustee Board 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 | |
| Keith Bothamley 19.03.2018-19.03.2026 Retired 08.07.24 |
Members | Member of Moorlands Learning Trust |
| Ian Dixon 23.02.2021-23.02.2025 |
Parent Trustee (Election process) | Director of Brightpath UK |
| Rosemary Edwards (Chair) 29.11.17-29.11.2025 |
Members | None |
| Tessa Freer 29.11.17-29.11.25 |
Members | Manager of Horsforth Children’s Service. Horsforth School commissions part of the funding towards Horsforth Children’s Service. |
| Mr Martin Hicks 03.10.22 – 03.10.26 |
Parent Trustee (Election process)
|
None |
| Mr Tom La Dell 02.10.18-02.10.26 |
Members | Employed by Anderson Anderson & Brown Wealth Ltd. |
| Shaun Riordan 21.09.2024 – 21.09.2028 |
Members | Employee of Salesforce |
| Damon Shaw 12.12.2022-12.12.2026 |
Members | Head of Commercial Enterprises, Leeds Trinity University |
| Helen Shearer 20.09.20- 21.09.24 Retired 08.07.24 |
Members | None |
| 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 | Lead Roles/Committees | Governance in other Institutions | 2023-2024 Attendance Trust Board Meetings |
2023-2024 Attendance Audit Committee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Bell (Headteacher) 01.09.2016 |
N/A | 4 of 6 | 3 of 3 (in attendance) |
|
| Keith Bothamley 19.03.2018-19.03.2026 Retired 08.07.24 |
|
N/A | 3 of 6 | N/A |
| Ian Dixon (Parent Trustee) 23.02.21-23.02.2025 |
|
N/A | 6 of 6 | N/A |
| Rosemary Edwards (Chair) 29.11.17-29.11.2025 |
|
N/A | 6 of 6 | 3 of 3 |
|
Tessa Freer
|
|
N/A | 4 of 6 | N/A |
|
Mr Martin Hicks |
5 of 6 | N/A | N/A | |
| Mr Tom La Dell 02.10.18-02.10.26 |
|
N/A | 4 of 6 | 3 of 3 |
| Shaun Riordan 21.09.2024 – 21.09.2027 |
|
N/A | 6 of 6 | N/A |
|
Damon Shaw |
|
N/A | 6 of 6 | 3 of 3 |
| Helen Shearer 20.09.20- 20.09.24 Retired 08.07.24 |
|
N/A | 5 of 6 | N/A |
| Steve Wood 01.07.2023- 01.07.2027 |
|
N/A | 5 of 6 | 3 of 3 |
Trustee Diversity Data
Members Declarations of Interest(s)
| Name | Interests |
|---|---|
| Jamie Bentley |
|
|
Colin Booth
|
|
| Rosemary Edwards | None |
| Martin Hughes |
|
| Stephen Jex |
None |
| Jenny Share |
|
| Helen Shearer | None |