Governors
Minutes of meetings
Role of the Governing body
The Governing body is made up of people from different groups, including parents, teachers and other staff, representatives from our Trust partners which include the local authority, local business and community.
A governor’s term of office usually lasts for four years.
The role of Governors is to provide a strategic view of the school, to ensure accountability and to be a critical friend. The Governing body is responsible for the overall direction of the school. It is not responsible for day to day matters which is the responsibility of the Headteacher Mr Andrew Fell. Governors also set and monitor targets, the school budget and the effectiveness of policies to ensure all students have a broad and balanced curriculum.
If you would like any information about becoming a governor at North Huddersfield Trust School then please contact the Chair of the Governing Body, Mr Phil Weston, via the school.
Governing body structure
Full Governing Body Chair – Phil Weston
Vice-Chair – Sarah Grant
Standards & Effectiveness Committee Chair – TBC
Resources Committee Chair – TBC
Melanie Brooke
Foundation Governor
Lisa Buckley
Foundation Governor
Gary Deighton
Co-opted Governor
Andrew Fell
Headteacher
Sarah Grant
Foundation Governor – Vice Chair
Ivan Kaiser
Foundation Governor
Qaiser Khan
Parent Governor
Sophie Simpson
Foundation Governor
Phil Weston
Local Authority Governor – Chair of Governors
Tim Winterburn
Foundation Governor
Foundation Governor Vacancies x 2
Staff Governor Vacancy
Parent Governor Vacancy
Julia Arechiga
Foundation Governor
(Appointed by the Trust)
Date of appointment:
19.12.19
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Pupil Needs
About me:
TBC
Melanie Brooke
Foundation Governor
(Appointed by the Trust)
Date of appointment:
23.05.19
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Personnel, Standards
About me:
I am a Trust nominated Governor and until recently was the Deputy Principal at Kirklees College where I had a wide range of responsibilities including estates and facilities management, human resources, management information and IT and student recruitment, careers and sales and marketing. I am a trained HR professional and member of the CIPD. As a member of the executive reporting to the Governing Body I know what it feels like to be a member of a senior team as well as a governor. I am also a trustee of Kirklees Active Leisure who are also one of the school’s Trust partners, and I have recently taken on a new role as a Non-Executive Director for an NHS foundation Trust where I am chair of their People Committee.
I live in the local area and I am a member of the local community and feel that my role as a governor is an important one. I enjoy being able to visit the school and helping out with other duties such as staff recruitment as necessary. I moved to West Yorkshire from London 23 years ago and my children have been raised in Huddersfield. I am really proud of the progress that the school continues to make and am looking forward to the next stage of its journey.
Outside of my work I enjoy playing and watching tennis as well as taking part, when I have the time I am involved in amateur dramatics as a member of the Huddersfield Thespians. I studied drama and English at university and am still a member of Equity the actors union as a result of work in the industry when I was younger.
Alasdair Brown
Foundation Governor
(Appointed by the Trust)
Date of appointment:
19.12.19
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Finance & Premises, Personnel
About me:
I have been involved in the leisure sector for the past 25 years, working with a range of local authorities, as well as a period of time with Sport England. Prior to working with KAL I worked for Leeds City Council for over 6 years, which provided me with a wide range of experience of working within a major city and the particular challenges faced there.
In July 2008 I was appointed to the position of Chief Executive with Kirklees Active Leisure and I thoroughly enjoy my current role, working with a variety of people and organisations to improve sport and leisure opportunities and provision for the people of Kirklees.
KAL is honoured to be a partner of North Huddersfield Trust School and is committed to supporting the fantastic work that takes place there.
Gary Deighton
Co-opted Governor
Date of appointment:
16.04.21
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
TBC
About me:
I am an experienced teacher and have worked in the profession, in various teaching and leadership roles and across a variety of educational backgrounds, for almost two decades. I have been a proud member of the teaching staff at NHTS for six years and have held a series of middle leadership roles in that time.
I am a passionate advocate for our local community and use my role as a platform for the encouragement of inclusion and the celebration of diversity. It has been an honour and a privilege to play a supporting role in the fantastic journey that our school has undertaken. As a member of the teaching staff, as well as a co-opted governor, I am excited to be able to contribute to the future continued success of our school and all members of its community.
Sarah Grant
Foundation Governor
(Appointed by the Trust)
Date of appointment:
21.11.16
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Pupil Needs
About me:
I have over 30 years’ experience in education, in Leeds, Bradford and Kirklees, where I am currently seconded to the Learning Service as a Kirklees Learning Partner.
I began my career as a science teacher but moved into Inclusion and Special Educational Needs to deal with some of the problems and issues facing many of the enthusiastic young scientists I was teaching. I still have a keen interest in the developments in science and science education, and am a member of the Institute of Physics.
I am an enthusiastic photographer and walker, which is useful as my rescued lurcher dogs need plenty of exercise!
Dr Ivan Kaiser
Foundation Governor
(Appointed by the Trust)
Date of appointment:
21.03.16
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Finance
About me:
I am a Trust Governor and initially joined the Pupil Needs committee before moving to the Finance committee which also addresses Health & Safety, something I am passionate about. I am really looking forward to working with the team of highly enthusiastic Governors and NHTS Staff specifically in this area and see great potential to leverage best practises at both NHTS and Cummins Turbo Technologies where I have been employed for the last 19 years.
I have worked in multiple departments during my time at Cummins ranging from product engineering through to operations quality and manufacturing engineering where I am currently Manufacturing Platform Leader for new product introduction. It is an honour to serve with such a dedicated team of Governors and school staff and I’m really proud to be associated with the pupils and staff at NHTS and look forward to many more years of collaboration.
Sophie Simpson
Foundation Governor
(Appointed by the Trust)
Date of appointment:
14.02.18
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Personnel
About me:
I am a mother, wife and business owner. I also now have the title of school governor. I was brought up in the Ashbrow Ward but have travelled many places. I studied LLB Law at Leeds Beckett University and proceeded to work as an Operations Manager in a fast paced sales environment.
I am very passionate about young people, their future, how they develop and decided that moving into running my own business as a youth and community facilitator and event organiser was a natural fit.
After the loss of my daughter to anencephaly in 2016, I wanted to help young people be heard, to learn how to find who they are and what they stand for. This drove me to step out of my comfort zone and set up my own business, alongside one of my closest friends and thus Conscious Youth was born!
Conscious Youth is a community organisation based in Huddersfield, which is led by and for young people. We seek to redress the balance by developing Young People’s skills, knowledge and aspirations. The work we do focuses on creating & delivering preventative youth work through youth clubs, projects, programmes & events for young people between the ages of 13 – 24. The young people we work with are from hard to reach, disadvantaged, LGBT & BAME communities. Our core aim is to improve the mental and emotional resilience of young people. Our work is centred on three key themes; community cohesion, active citizenship and personal development.
In my spare time I am a volunteer public speaker for Forget Me Not Children’s Hospice and I play netball for a local team.
I feel I have many strengths I can bring to the governing body and excellent links with the community.
Tim Winterburn
Foundation Governor - Vice Chair
(Appointed by the Trust)
Date of appointment:
09.09.19
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Personnel, Finance & Premises, Standards
About me:
I worked at Cummins for the last 22 years until recently taking early retirement. I serve on the Finance and Personnel Committees, because I think I can help the school in these areas. It’s wonderful to do that alongside such an enthusiastic group of people from the local community and to work with the staff. I’m incredibly proud to be linked with such an exciting school, and with such dedicated staff and pupils.
Phil Weston
Local Authority Governor - Chair of Governors
(Appointed by the Trust)
Date of appointment:
02.10.17
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Personnel, Finance & Premises, Standards
About me:
My involvement with North Huddersfield Trust School began when Holmfirth High School (where I used to be a governor) worked with Fartown High School. I chaired the Interim Executive Board that oversaw the opening of the new school. I saw the great potential of the school and was keen to continue as a governor when NHTS opened. I was delighted and honoured to be elected as Chair of Governors of the school. We have seen great improvements since NHTS opened in 2011.
My background is in education. I was a secondary school teacher and leader for 18 years before becoming a school improvement officer in several local authorities. From 2006 to 2016 I led the Achievement Service in the Bradford district prior to my retirement. I have three children, now all adults, who attended Holmfirth High School and my wife Sue was also a teacher in a Huddersfield secondary school. In my spare time I enjoy walking, cycling, gardening and watching sport – I am a season ticket holder for my home city team, Notts County.
Andrew Fell
Headteacher
Date of appointment:
29.04.19
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Personnel, Finance & Premises, Standards
About me:
TBC
Tahera Hussain
Co-opted Governor
Date of appointment:
09.19.19
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Pupil & Family needs
About me:
TBC
Danielle Johnson
Parent Governor
Date of appointment:
03.02.20
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Pupil & Family Needs
About me:
TBC
Qaiser Khan
Parent Governor
Date of appointment:
03.02.20
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
Pupil & Family Needs
About me:
Anna Matsis
Staff Governor
Date of appointment:
06.03.18
Term of Office:
4 years
Sub committee membership:
TBC