Governors
Welcome to our Governors page, please see below for more information.
The Governing Body
| Name | Appointed/Elected by | From | To | Recorded Declarations of Interests |
| Laura Ellener | Ex officio – Head Teacher | 1/9/2026 | None | |
| Scott Wallace-Cotter (Chair) | Governing Body | 13/03/2026 | 12/03/2030 | None |
| Kate McBain (Vice Chair) | Governing Body | 02/07/2026 | 01/07/2030 | None |
| Gina Chana | Staff | 7/12/2023 | 6/12/2027 | None |
| Kimberley Hamilton-Young | Parents | 18/5/2023 | 17/5/2027 | None |
| Paul May | Governing Body (nominated by LA | 14/03/2024 | 13/03/2028 | Employed at Brentford School for Girls |
| Sofia Rahman | Parents | 1/12/2022 | 30/11/2026 | None |
| Zainab Weller | Governing Body | 18/05/2023 | 17/05/2027 | None |
| Sophy Brown | Governing Body | 14/03/2024 | 13/03/2028 | Governor at John Betts Primary, Hammersmith |
| Helen Nohlmans | Governing Body | 13/03/2025 | 12/03/2029 | None |
| Jane Mills | Governing Body | 12/03/2026 | 17/03/2030 | None |
The Governing Body meet termly. Governors reviewed their Committee structure in Summer Term 2023, and Committees were re-named to better reflect their functions. There are currently three Committees, which meet on a termly basis: Finance, Resources and Premises, Curriculum and Pay. The Governing Body agree Terms of Reference for the Committees each year, in the Autumn Term.
Governors are required to publish their attendance at full Governing Body meetings and Committee meetings for the last academic year. This requirement also applies to Governors who have stepped down (or completed their four-year term) in the last twelve months. Governors no longer in post are listed at the bottom of the table below.
Governor attendance
Governor attendance at meetings 2025-26
Governors are not all on every Committee, so blank blocks below indicate that the Governor is not a member of that Committee:
The Governing Body Composition and Roles
Role of the Governing Body
The Headteacher is responsible for the day-to-day management of the school.
In contrast, the Governing Body provides strategic management and oversight of the school. The Governors act as a “critical friend”, both challenging and supporting the Headteacher and school staff.
The core functions of the Governing Body are:
- ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction;
- holding executive leaders to account for the educational performance of the organisation and its pupils, and the effective and efficient performance management of staff; and
- overseeing the financial performance of the organisation and making sure its money is well spent.
Composition and Roles
The Governing Body of The Smallberry Green Primary School is (a mixture of parents, staff, members of the community and local authority appointments in line with our Instrument of Government which can be found here.
Within the Governing Body, named Governors take responsibility for specific areas as follows:
| Safeguarding Governor | Kate McBain
Scott Wallace (deputy) |
| Health and Safety Governor | Scott Wallace |
| SEND Governor | Kate McBain
Sofia Rahman (deputy) |
| Chair of Finance, Resources and Premises Committee | Sofia Rahman |
| Chair of Curriculum Committee | Paul May |
| Chair of Pay Committee | Scott Wallace |
Each Governor has signed up to our Code of Conduct which can be found here.
Skills, Experience and Expertise
Our Governing Body possesses a diverse range of personal and professional skills which they draw on in acting as a ‘critical friend’ to Smallberry Green. The Governing Body regularly reviews its skill set, taking into account the Department for Education’s Competency Framework for Governance. Gaps in the Governing Body’s skills are addressed through ongoing Governor training and Governor recruitment.
The Smallberry Green Primary School – Governors Diversity Report Dec 2023
Governor Activity
We play an active role in the life in the school and our activities include:
- Ongoing review and updating of all of our school policies.
- Regular visits into school. This helps us better understand how learning takes place and how the school operates in order to be a more effective Governing Body and to be able to make more insightful and impactful decisions. A copy of our school visits policy can be found here The Smallberry Green Primary School Governor Visit Policy Dec 2023.
- Regularly meeting pupils and staff to gain first hand feedback as to how the school is operating.
- Attending school events. Recent events include a Year 6 Leavers’ Assembly, Christmas Shopping Event, Autumn Fair and Fireworks Evening.
Training
Linked to our vision for the school, all of our Governors consider themselves a leader of their own learning and regularly attend training in order to help the Governing Body play our role more effectively.
Expenses Policy for Governors
Our policy can be seen here:
The Smallberry Green Governors Expenses Policy 2026
Chair of Governors: Mr Scott Wallace