Governance

The Governors of Birchwood Nursery School work with the Headteacher and the Leadership Team to ensure the highest standards of education are delivered to the children, whilst ensuing the welfare of all pupils and staff.

The governing body comprises the Headteacher and one staff governor, two parent governors, four co-opted governors and one local authority governor.  Governors other than the Headteacher are appointed or elected to serve a four-year term of office.  Prior to September 2022, some of the governing body's work was delegated to two committees, but all business is now conducted through the full governing body meetings.

Please click on each individual governors name to find out a little more about them.

      

 

• Ms Julie Cahill
  Co-opted Chair of Governors
  Ms Julie Cahill

  I am a co-opted governor at Birchwood Nursery School, joining the Governing Board in the early stages of the pandemic in 2020. I became a governor for a number of reasons. My granddaughter loved her time at the Nursery, my daughter is a Key Person and is proud to work at Birchwood and I hoped that I would have something to offer the school through my experience in education.

  I was a primary Headteacher in a school with both full and part time Nursery provision before becoming a senior adviser in a London borough. Currently I work part time as a school improvement specialist. I have plenty of experience in all aspects of leadership and management, teaching and learning and school improvement. I have particularly valued working with governing bodies, providing training and support in recent years, as well as having been a governor myself.

  I am thoroughly enjoying my role at Birchwood Nursery and aim to do all I can to support the school as it moves forward in these challenging times.

• Mrs Margaret Stocks
  Headteacher
  Mrs Margaret Stocks

  Margaret Stocks

  I am Headteacher at Birchwood Nursery School and as such I am an ex officio governor and it was a privilege to take on this role in September 2019. I am committed to working hard and ensuring all children who attend Birchwood have an enriching environment to learn in and to be the best that they can be. I have always worked within Early Years since starting my teaching career in London 30 years ago. I moved to Hertfordshire with my family in 1997 and gained experience across a variety of settings, settling down in my previous school, where I taught for 20 years and my roles included Early Years Lead, Inclusion Co-ordinator and Assistant Headteacher.

  I am passionate about Early Years and firmly believe if we get the foundations right in Nursery, then we send the children equipped for the next step of their educational journey. As our Mission Statement says,   'A secure and happy child today promotes a fulfilled, independent adult of tomorrow'.

  Beyond school, I have three grown up children, although my youngest is at University and therefore still in fulltime education. I enjoy pottering around in my garden, cooking and walking my dog Oscar.

• Caroline Neville
  Staff Governor
  Caroline Neville

  I am the Lead Nursery Teacher at Birchwood Nursery School and have been so since April 2022. I have worked in schools as a trained teacher for nearly 15 years and have taught children from Nursery to Year 6.

  Having two young children myself, I know how important the Early Years of a child's life are. I am passionate in my role as an educator and excited about being an active Staff Governor.  

• Ms Angela Cumming
  Associate Member
  Ms Angela Cumming

  I am an associated governor at Birchwood Nursery School and I am originally from Glasgow. I have worked at Birchwood Nursery since December 2004 and as Preschool Manager since November 2005. I qualified as an NNEB in 1973 and I have always worked in the day care side of Early Years. I have worked in different elements related to childcare, worked in day nurseries, been an area coordinator for Preschools in Lanarkshire in Scotland, I have been a lecturer on the NVQ childcare courses and also an assessor for these courses, to name but a few.

  I love the job I currently do and enjoy the daily challenges it brings while also seeing the children in our care grow and develop their individual skills at their own pace..

• Joseph Craig
  Co-opted Governor
  Joseph Craig

  I'm a parent governor at Birchwood Nursery School, with a son at the
  Nursery at the moment. I've been a children's author for nearly 20 years.
  As part of that, I've worked with kids of all ages at schools all over the
  world, sharing a love of reading and stories. I now work for a small
  communications consultancy, specialising in the story and language that
  financial institutions should be using to help people understand
  important but complicated subjects.  It's a huge privilege to be supporting
  the Nursery as a Governor.

• Mr Geoffrey Strack
  Local Authority Governor
  Mr Geoffrey Strack

  I am an Associate governor of Birchwood Nursery School. My children and most of my grandchildren have been fortunate in being able to attend Hertfordshire Schools. My own career has been across all sectors of education - Primary, Secondary, University and working with Ofsted. I worked as a local authority adviser and was fortunate in being involved in the introduction of ICT in schools at a National and International level. This included working in the USA, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Germany and Viet Nam. My current interests are team building, well-being for children and staff, improving my own knowledge of Early Years and the format of governing body meetings. In 2018, I was presented with the Herts, Outstanding Governor of the Year Award. In addition to having the privilege of being a governor at Birchwood Nursery, as required, I help with other Herts Primary Schools.

• Vivianne Candy
  Parent Governor
  Vivianne Candy

  I am a parent governor at Birchwood Nursery School. My daughter is attending the Nursery School and was in the pre-school previously. I am a trained Microbiologist who is moving out of academia. We have recently moved to Hatfield and I am looking forward to getting involved in the school and being part of the local community.

• Naomi Pascall
  Parent Governor
  Naomi Pascall

  I am a parent governor with a daughter who attends  the Nursery School.  

  I am currently studying dental hygiene at Eastman Dental Hospital and have 9 years' experience working in the dental sector.

  I'm very much looking forward to taking a more active role within the Birchwood Nursery School community.

 

 

 

Role of the Governing Body

The governing body provides strategic leadership and accountability in schools and has three main functions:

• Oversee the financial health and performance
• Ensures the school is meeting educational expectations of its pupils
• Ensures the clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction of the school

The governors work together to reach collective decisions which support the best outcomes for the children as well as the financial stability of the school.  

 

Contacting the Governing Body

Parents are welcome to contact the Chair of Governors by letter c/o the school office or by email jcahill@birchwoodnursery.herts.sch.uk

Note however that governors cannot get involved in individual pupil matters or problems in the day-to-day running of the school. The Class Teacher/ Key Person should be contacted in the first instance. Governors will only become involved if necessary as a last resort through the school’s complaints procedure.

Governor Information

Information about governors - their terms of office, any pecuniary interests declared and a record of their attendance at meetings - is published annually at the end of each academic year. The details for the academic year 2022-2023 are given below.  

Governor	Category	Appointed/Elected by	Term of Office	FGB Attendance	Register of Interests	Role
Julie Cahill	Co-opted	Governing Body	26.05.2020- 25.05.2024	6/6	Independent School Improvement Consultant (not Herts) Daughter a member of Birchwood Nursery staff	Chair of Governors/ Safeguarding/EYPP and Equalities Governor
Vivienne Candy	Parent	Governing Body	08.07.2021-07.07.2025	4/6	None	Health & Safety Governor
Joseph Craig	Co-opted	Governing Body	08.07.2021-07.07.2025	1/6	None
Caroline Neville	Staff	Staff	16.05.2022- 15.05.2026	6/6	None
Lauren O'Keefe	Co-opted	Governing Body	18.05.2023 -  17.05.2027	1/1	None
Naomi Pascall	Parent	Parents	19.10/2022 - 18.10.2026	4/5	None
Margaret Stocks	Headteacher	Ex officio	01.09.2019-	6/6	Governor at Sauncey Wood School (Harpenden)  Governor at Batford Nursery School (Harpenden)	Headteacher
Geoffrey Stack	Associate Member	Governing Body	14.10.2022-23.10.2026	4/5	Governor at Parkside Community School (Borehamwood);  Governor at St Nicholas Primary (Elstree)
Leavers
Caryn King	Co-opted	Governing Body	26.05.2020 - 10.11.2022	1/1	None	Vice Chair of Governors
Kathryn Kitson	Co-opted	Governing Body	01.06.2019  24.11.2022	0/1	Governor at Brookmead Primary School (Leighton Buzzard)