Governors Day

Every term, we hold our special Governor Day. These involve our Governors coming to spend the day in school with us. They spend time looking around our school, observing lessons and talking to all our children, parents and staff about ways to improve our school further.

Our most recent Governors Day was on Wednesday 22nd January 2025 .

We appreciate our Governors giving up their precious time to come and see us in action!

School Governors' Visit to St John’s – Summary

On the recent School Governor Visit Day, the governors of St John’s came together to observe and engage with the school’s daily life, ensuring a deeper understanding of its systems, practices, and culture. The visit allowed governors to connect with children and staff, experience the delivery of practices first-hand, and gain insight into the school’s priorities and strategies.

Purpose of the Visit

The visit aimed to:

• Foster meaningful interactions between governors, staff, and pupils.
• Build familiarity with the school’s inner workings.
• Witness first-hand the implementation of key practices and initiatives.

Attendees

The visit was attended by the Chair of Governors, Vice Chair, and representatives from all three committees: Faith and Ethos, Resources, and Curriculum & Standards.

Activities and Observations

Activity 1: Magic Breakfast Club

Governors began the day observing the school’s Magic Breakfast Club. The Acting Headteacher highlighted the program’s significant impact on disadvantaged and vulnerable pupils, offering a settled start to the day and fostering opportunities for socialisation and bonding.

Activity 2: Synthetic Phonics Delivery

Governors observed expert teaching of synthetic phonics using the Read Write Inc. (RWI) scheme. Pupils were highly engaged, demonstrating strong knowledge acquisition, and staff showcased their proficiency in delivering the programme.

Activity 3: Subject Leader Presentations

1. Curriculum Diversification
• The Curriculum Lead explained how the school has adapted prescribed schemes to better reflect the needs and interests of the school community.
• Newly drafted curriculum plans were shared, showcasing enhancements to ensure the curriculum is inclusive and contextually relevant.
2. Reading Engagement
   • Continued work with the Wandle English Hub.
   • Coaching and intervention planning for teachers.
   • A whole-school reading strategy focusing on critical reading domains like skimming and scanning and inference 
• The Reading Lead highlighted the school’s strong reading provision, as recognised by the recent Ofsted report.
• Key actions include:
• Future plans involve increasing parent engagement through shared reading opportunities, family workshops, and support sessions.
3. Religious Education (RE) Syllabus Implementation
• The Acting Headteacher presented the new RE syllabus, emphasising its importance as a core subject.
• Legal requirements were outlined, and the scientific approach to teaching RE through “Believing, Thinking, and Living” lenses was explained.
• The staged implementation process, teacher support, and the role of AI in planning were also discussed.

Activity 4: School Council Presentation on Recycling

The School Council presented their whole-school recycling project, demonstrating their role as courageous advocates for environmental awareness. They highlighted efforts to reduce plastic pollution and promote recycling within the school community.

Activity 5: Lunch with Pupils

The visit concluded with governors enjoying lunch alongside the pupils, providing an opportunity to engage with them directly. Governors asked pupils about their experiences at school and were, in turn, asked insightful questions about their roles and impact on the school.

Concluding Thoughts  

The Governors’ Visit Day offered a valuable opportunity to witness the dedication of the staff, the enthusiasm of the pupils, and the school’s commitment to its values. The day reinforced the governors’ understanding of St John’s priorities and highlighted the collective effort to provide a nurturing, inclusive, and forward-thinking environment.

"The School displayed a calm and purposeful atmosphere. I observed this in whole school events, such as collective worship and also in classrooms whilst observing lessons."

 Anna Manning (Vice Chair of Governors)

"The school atmosphere was calm and orderly. The displays and learning environment are  amazing. The children that I met were polite and very well mannered"

Maria McBean (Member of the Curriculum and Standards Committee)

"All staff were extremely welcoming. they were very engaged with children in lessons. High quality teaching was evident with passionate delivery"

Father Dan (Member of the Faith and Ethos Committee)

"I was able to observe the teaching of phonics and I could see that phonics teaching was very well established in the school. I was ale to learn about how the curriculum is being diversified to meet the needs of the the learners . I was also able to find out details regarding the implementation of the new RE syllabus.  I witnessed a togetherness of the staff team, which shines through everything that they do!"

Chris Taylor (Chair of Governors)