WE CURRENTLY HAVE A VACANCY FOR A CO-OPTED GOVERNOR.  IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE CONSIDERED OR SIMPLY WANT FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE ROLE THEN PLEASE CONTACT THE CLERK TO GOVERNORS VIA EMAIL - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Governance at Granville Academy 

The Granville Academy is an Academy within a multi-academy trust namely The de Ferrers Trust.  

The de Ferrers Trust is a charitable company limited by guarantee and as such is required to comply with charity law and company law.

The Trust is one legal entity with one set of Articles of Association that governs each academy within the Trust.  The Trust has a Master Funding Agreement with the Secretary of State and then each academy has a separate Supplementary Funding Agreement.  All documents referred to throughout this page can be located below. 

Our Governance Structure 

 

The Members

The Trust consists of five members who are very similar to shareholders in a normal company.  They are often considered as the custodians of the trust and act as a 'check and balance' on the performance of the multi-academy trust.  The members have the power to appoint or remove trustees, amend the articles of association and, if necessary, wind up the multi-academy trust.  To ensure robust accountability within our governance structure the members are independent of the trust board.  The members will meet as often as is necessary to carry out their duties, but at least on an annual basis.   

To see a list of the trust's members please click here.

 

The Trust Board

The Trust Board has strategic oversight and ultimate responsibility for all of the management decisions within the multi-academy trust.  The board consists of up to 11 trustees, eight of whom are appointed by the members.  The trustees are appointed purely on a skills basis.  The board's key responsibilities are to ensure, through their governance structure and leaderships teams, that the multi-academy trust is making proper and effective use of public funds and for the quality of provision.  The trust board will meet as often as is necessary to carry out their duties, but at least five times per year.  The trust board has established three sub-committees to assist them, namely the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee, the Standards Committee and the Resources Committee.  Each Committee operates with its own set of terms of reference which can be located at the bottom of this page.  The Finance, Audit and Risk and the Standards sub-committees will meet as often as necessary, but at least three times per year.  The Resources Committee will meet as often as necessary, but at least on an annual basis.  

To meet the trustees please click here.

 

The Local Governing Body

A Local Governing Body (LGB) has been established for Granville Academy. The LGB carry out the Trust’s vision, policies and priorities and engage with the academy's key stakeholders (our students, parents, staff and members of the community).  They play a support & challenge role and will seek assurances on behalf of the board in regard to academic performance and quality of care and provision for their academy.  They are responsible for making decisions by way of the powers delegated to them by the trust board in accordance with the Terms of Reference and Scheme of Delegation (located at the bottom of this page). 

The LGB has established one-sub-committee, namely the pay committee which seeks assurances on behalf of the trust board that the processes around pay progression for our teaching staff are fair and robust.  The pay committee operates with its own set of terms of reference which can be located below.

Our Chair of Governors is Declan Royston-Webb and he can be contacted via the Clerk to Governors by emailing: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Our Clerk to the Local Governing Body is S Taylor, who can be contacted by emailing: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

 

Meet our Local Governing Body 

 

Ex-Officio Governor

The Principal of our Academy also sits on our Local Governing Body as a governor.  She is referred to as an ex-officio governor.  This means that she will remain a governor for as long as she is employed in her role as Principal.  

 _{Michelle Oliphant - Principal}

Appointed: 1 September 2020  Attendance for 2020/21:  4/4
Committee Membership: None  Register of Interests: None
Bio: TBC

 

 Board Appointed Governors

Governors who are board appointed are appointed by the trust board.  Their term of office is 4 years.  At Granville Academy the governance structure allows for four board appointed governors.

 

  Declan Royston-Webb - Chair of Governors

Appointed: 15 May 2018    Attendance for 2020/21: 4/4
Committee Membership: Pay committee Register of Interests: Community Safety Officer at Derby City Council, volunteer with Derby Kids Camp.
Bio: Having worked with children and young people for many years, I have developed an understanding of the fundamental role of high-quality education for all students.  I am passionate about young people being afforded every opportunity to achieve their potential both academically and personally and it was this passion that led me to join Granville Academy as a governor in May 2018.   I have a BA (Hons) degree in Childhood & Youth Studies and have experience working within Local Authority Children’s Services as well as continuing voluntary roles in strategic positions with two local children’s charities.  As a child, I grew up within Swadlincote and whilst I have since moved out of the area, I still have links with the local community.  I am pleased to have been appointed as a governor for Granville Academy and I am hopeful that I can bring additional useful skills and experience to the team.

 

   Kristopher Harvey

Appointed: 19 March 2019    Attendance for 2020/21: 3/4
Committee Membership: None Register of Interests:  STEM at Rolls-Royce Plc
Bio: I joined Granville Academy as a Trust Appointed Governor in March 2019 and was previously a Parent Governor at Woodville Infant school.  I have lived in the area for the last 20 years and I am a Chartered Engineer, working at Rolls-Royce in Derby.  I have a son attending Granville Academy and my daughter has recently left the school having completed her GCSEs in 2019.  As a governor I enjoy using the skills I've learnt as an Engineer in a completely different environment, one that makes a difference to young people.

 

  Madeeha Rahim-Rasool

Appointed: 18 May 2021
Committee Membership: None Register of Interests: To follow
Bio: To follow

 

 

Parent Governors

Parent governors are elected by the parents/guardians of the students who attend Granville Academy.  When a parent governors vacancy occurs, nominations are requested from all registered parents and guardians and an election takes place.  Their term of office is four years.  At Granville Academy the governance structure allows for two parent governors. 

 

 Peter Geering

Appointed: 5 March 2018  Attendance for 2020/21: 4/4
Committee Membership: None   Register of Interests: None
Bio: I have lived and worked in the local area for most of the last 30 years, initially for Bass / Molson Coors and for Coca-Cola since 2009. I have a degree in Biochemistry and I am a qualified Brewer and through my career, I have strong experience in business and financial management I have a son attending Granville Academy and I have a strong interest in helping the effective governance of the Academy, both now and for the future.

 

Staff Governor

The staff governor by the staff based at Granville Academy.  When a staff governor vacancy occurs, nominations are requested from all members of staff based at Granville Academy and an election takes place.  Their term of office is four years.  At Granville Academy the governance structure allows for one staff governor. 

 

Co-opted Governors 

At Granville Academy the governance structure allows for the local governors listed above to co-opt up to four further local governors to the local governing body in order to bring a specific skill set that will add value to the academy, making local governance even more efficient and effective.  Co-opted governors have a term of office of four years.   

 

Michelle Hurley

Appointed: 4 October 2021 Attendance for 2020/21: 2/4
Committee Membership: Pay Committee Register of Interests: None
Bio: I care passionately about the future of our next generation and ensuring that they receive the best education and support from their schooling, and as a local parent of two children, I also have a personal vested interest. The majority of my working life was spent in professional services for a global accountancy firm and more recently in the NHS as a Practice Manager in Primary Care General Practice. I have experience of various senior business support roles, including: HR performance management and recruitment, administrative team management, headcount and finance budget control, MI analysis and manpower planning and deployment. Having observed the progress of Granville over the past few years, I have every confidence in the strong senior leadership team and I'm proud to be associated with them and look forward to working with and supporting them further.

 

Ashley Poxon

Appointed: 14 May 2020 Attendance for 2020/21: 4/4
Committee Membership: None Register of Interests:  Involved with Red 7 Solutions (Midlands) Limited, Misxon Group Ltd and P6 Property Ltd.
Bio:  I am a father of 4 and have lived in Swadlincote for my entire life. I attended Granville School between 1990 and 1995 before going to Ashby Grammar Sixth Form to complete my A-Levels.  After completing my A-Levels I went to work for an IT company, and I am now fortunate enough to be a Director at two IT Companies, which specialise in Microsoft Cloud Technologies. I also have a keen interest in property development, which has led me to form my own property company recently. Outside of my work, I have a keen interest in local junior football, and provide sponsorships to a number of local teams, as well as helping with fundraising events.  In my role as a governor, I am looking forward to helping the students of Granville to excel in their education by supporting the school as well as the wider school community.

 

Benjamin Miller 

Appointed: 5 July 2021
Committee Membership: None Register of Interests: To follow
Bio: To follow

 

Emma Burditt

Appointed: 5 July 2021
Committee Membership: None Register of Interests: To follow
Bio: To follow

 

 

Sophie Leadley (resigned) 

Appointed: April 2020    Resigned: March 2021
Committee Membership:  None Register of Interests: Trust Board Member at The de Ferrers Trust

  

John Widdowson (resigned) 

Appointed: April 2020    Resigned: May 2021
Committee Membership:  None Register of Interests: Trust Board Member at The de Ferrers Trust

  

Sarah Hewart 

Appointed: September 2017 Attendance for 2020/21: 4/4 Term of office end: August 2021
Committee Membership:  None Register of Interests: None

 

All documents mentioned can be found below. 

If you wish to contact the Local Governing Body, you can do so by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by writing to the Clerk to the Local Governing Body, Granville Academy, Burton Road, Woodville, Swadlincote, Derbyshire, DE11 7JR

To access the Annual Report and Financial Statements please click here.

Articles of Association

Master Funding Agreement

Supplementary Funding Agreement 

Terms of Reference for the LGB

Terms of Reference for the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee

Terms of Reference for the Resources Committee

Terms of Reference for the Standards Committee

Scheme of Delegation

Code of Conduct for Governance

Should you need to request these documents, you can do so from the Governance and Compliance Officer – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.