Our Governors
We are incredibly fortunate to have a highly skilled and dedicated Governing Body, bringing a wealth of expertise to the strategic leadership of our school. Our governors work closely alongside the staff team, offering thoughtful support and challenge to help drive continuous improvement. They can often be found in school in their governor capacity — visiting classrooms, talking to pupils, and seeing learning in action. The children love welcoming them in and are always eager to share their work, ideas, and achievements.
Governors of Kniveton Primary School
All schools in England have a Governing Body which is responsible for overseeing many of the strategic decisions of the school. A key role is to act as a ‘critical friend’: to support, to challenge, to ask questions and ultimately to represent the school community.
The Governing Body works in close partnership with the Headteacher, staff and the local authority. Whilst the Headteacher is, responsible for the day to day running of the school, the governors are involved with such things as staffing, curriculum, school buildings and finance. It ensures the school functions well and maintains the proper range of academic and social objectives.
The Governing Body is made up of 11 governors divided into 5 governor categories.
- Headteacher
- Co-opted Governors (4)
- Staff Governor (1)
- Local Authority Governor (1)
- Parent Governors (2)
- Foundation Governors (2)
| Name | Katy Popple |
| Appointed by | Governing Body |
| Term of office | n/a |
| Responsibilities on governing body | Headteacher |
| Relevant Business/Pecuniary Interests | None declared |
| Governor at another school | None declared |
| Relationships between governors and any other staff members | None declared |
| Name | Mike Burrows |
| Appointed by | Governing Body |
| Term of office | 17.02.2024 – 16.02.2028 |
| Responsibilities on governing body | PE and Sports Funding Link Governor; GDPR Link Governor |
| Relevant Business/Pecuniary Interests | None declared |
| Governor at another school | None declared |
| Relationships between governors and any other staff members | None declared |
| Name | Matthew Mellor |
| Appointed by | Governing Body |
| Term of office | 10.12.2025 – 09.12.2029 |
| Responsibilities on governing body | Quality of Education and Science Link Governor |
| Relevant Business/Pecuniary Interests |
None declared |
| Governor at another school | None declared |
| Relationships between governors and any other staff members | None declared |
| Name | Keeley McDonald |
| Appointed by | Governing Body |
| Term of office | 18.07.2023 – 17.07.2027 |
| Responsibilities on governing body |
Headteacher Performance Management Committee, EYFS , SEND , Bullying and Behaviour & Attitudes Link Governor |
| Relevant Business/Pecuniary Interests | None declared |
| Governor at another school | None declared |
| Relationships between governors and any other staff members | None declared |
| Name | June Lomas |
| Appointed by | Governing Body |
| Term of office | 04.10.2022 – 03.10.2026 |
| Responsibilities on governing body |
Finance Link Governor; Leadership and Management Link Governor; Pastoral Link Governor; Pupil Premium Link Governor |
| Relevant Business/Pecuniary Interests | Employed by the school on a supply basis, Trustee of Kniveton Village Hall |
| Governor at another school | None declared |
| Relationships between governors and any other staff members | None declared |
| Name | Henry Carter |
| Appointed by | Elected by Staff members |
| Term of office | 12.02.2025 – 11.02.2029 |
| Responsibilities on governing body | Safeguarding / Child Protection Link Governor |
| Relevant Business/Pecuniary Interests | None declared |
| Governor at another school | None declared |
| Relationships between governors and any other staff members | Teacher in school |
| Name | Doug McConnachie |
| Appointed by | Nominated by LA, appointed by Governing Body |
| Term of office | 17.04.2022 – 16.04.2026 |
| Responsibilities on governing body |
Vice Chair of the Governing Body; Finance and Personnel Committee ; Monitoring and Evaluation Committee; Headteacher Performance Management Committee; Premises Management Link Governor, SATS monitoring Link Governor |
| Relevant Business/Pecuniary Interests | None declared |
| Governor at another school | None declared |
| Relationships between governors and any other staff members | None declared |
| Name | Paul Heany |
| Appointed by | Elected by Parents |
| Term of office | 15.10.2024 – 14.10.2028 |
| Responsibilities on governing body | Chair of Governors |
| Relevant Business/Pecuniary Interests | None declared |
| Governor at another school | None declared |
| Relationships between governors and any other staff members | None declared |
| Name | Georgina Smthye-Dillon |
| Appointed by | Elected by Parents |
| Term of office | 10.12.2025 – 09.12.2029 |
| Responsibilities on governing body | English, PSHE, Quality of Education for SEND, RE Link Governor |
| Relevant Business/Pecuniary Interests | None declared |
| Governor at another school | None declared |
| Relationships between governors and any other staff members | None declared |
| Name | Vacant |
| Appointed by | Governing Body |
| Term of office | |
| Responsibilities on governing body | |
| Relevant Business/Pecuniary Interests | |
| Governor at another school | |
| Relationships between governors and any other staff members | |
| Governors stepped down this academic year | Rob Savidge, 17 October 2025 |
Foundation Governor (Ex-officio)
| Name | Vacant |
| Appointed by | Governing Body |
| Term of office | |
| Responsibilities on governing body | |
| Relevant Business/Pecuniary Interests | |
| Governor at another school | |
| Relationships between governors and any other staff members | |
| Governors stepped down this academic year | Rev Phil Mitchell, 1 January 2026 |
Governing Body Information
In December 2014 the governing body elected to reconstitute under The School Governance (Constitution) (England) Regulations 2012. Our Governor Terms of Reference outline the basis on which the Governing Body operate. The Governor Impact statement details functions of the governing board and an up-to-date account of their influence.
The standard term of office for a governor is four years. The Chair and Vice-Chair are elected annually at the first meeting of the academic year. The Chair of Governors is Paul Heaney, who can be contacted via the Clerk to the Governors. The Vice-Chair of Governors is Doug McConnachie.
A number of governors serve as ‘Link Governors’ with responsibilities to review curriculum and other areas of the school’s role. Each link governor meets the subject leader in school who is responsible for that subject area. The Governing Body also has Committees to deal with specific details of governing the school. These committees report back to the Governing Body meetings.
Governing Body meetings
The Governing Body has 5 full Governors meetings a year to meet and review the progress of the school. Each governor’s attendance record for this academic year is below.
Governor's attendance record, 2025-26
| Governor name | Governor type | 14/10/25 | 10/12/25 | 10/02/26 | 17/03/26 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Katy Popple | Headteacher | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Mike Burrows | Co-opted Governor | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Matthew Mellor | Co-opted Governor | – | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Keeley McDonald | Co-opted Governor | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| June Lomas | Co-opted Governor | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Henry Carter | Staff Governor | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Doug McConnachie | Local Authority Governor | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Paul Heaney | Parent Governor (Chair) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Georgina Smythe-Dillon | Parent Governor | – | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Reporting salaries of high paid staff.
All local authority maintained schools are required to publish annually on their websites the number of individuals (if any) earning over £100k a year. This information is required to be published in bands of £10k.
At 01/09/2025 no staff at the school earn more than £100k a year.