Local Governing Board
Ashlawn School is part of the Transforming Lives Educational Trust, more information about the Trust and its Local Governing Board – Local Governing Board arrangements can be found here:
Governance for Ashlawn School is robust, rigorous and proportionate, providing professional support and challenge to our academy leaders so that we are always focused on providing the best daily deal to our community.
As an academy in a schools’ trust, our governance is led by Transforming Lives Educational Trust’s Board. Much of the work of the Board is delegated to committees; in particular, there is a separate committee for each of the academies, which works as a Local Governing Board.
The Trust greatly values and supports the work of the Ashlawn School Local Governing Board and recognises the significant contribution that excellent local governance makes towards raising standards and delivering excellence.
You may also wish to contact our governance professional, who is the clerk to our Local Governing Board – you can do so at clerk@ashlawn.org.uk.
Declarations of Interest 2023-2024
Meet Our governors
Duncan Mills
Chair
I am Duncan Mills and I chair the Ashlawn School AIM Board. AIM stands for Academy Improvement Management. In multi-academy trusts governance is different to community schools. In our trust (TLET) the Ashlawn AIM Board is the local governance committee for the school and reports to the TLET Board of Trustees who are accountable for all of the schools in the trust.
I began my working career as a teacher and have worked in education and training, in one form or another, throughout. I have experience of working for a local authority and, most recently, as the CEO of an academy trust. I live in Rugby and, like my colleagues on the AIM Board, wish to play a part in the local community and to see the school continue to be successful. We are volunteers, but have a meaningful role to play in the organisation of the school. As well as supporting the school, we are expected to also challenge and ensure the quality of education is maintained and continued improvement takes place.
The Ashlawn AIM Board meets as a full group at least once every term. However, AIM Board members (known as partners) undertake training, have link responsibilities for areas of the school that involve visits and get involved in other aspects of the school life. Obviously, the pandemic has restricted some of this.
The AIM Board partners are from different backgrounds, each bringing their own set of experiences and skills to the group. Not all partners are from an education background. TLET are looking for volunteers to join us at Ashlawn and in the other schools that make up the trust. If you are interested, please contact the school for details.
Kathryn Proudlock
Governor
Kathryn joined the AIM Board in September 2021 and is the current ‘link’ Governor/Partner for the Curriculum and the Quality of Education. Kathryn is a former pupil of Dunsmore School for Girls and was then a Sixth Form Pupil at Ashlawn in its first year of inception. Currently working as an IT Senior Programme Manager for Boots, Kathryn has worked in IT since 1990 spending time in both the private sector and also 9 years as project manager for Oxfordshire County Council specifically in the directorate for Children, Education and Families.
Dr Stephen Belding
Governor
Dr Stephen Belding is an experienced teacher and Head of Chemistry at Rugby School. He has served as an A-level examiner, a PGCE mentor, and an author for both PGOnline and Seneca. In 2022, Stephen completed an MEd in Educational Leadership and Management from the University of Buckingham. He became a Governor at Ashlawn School in September 2022 and is the ‘link’ Governor responsible for monitoring data, including pupil premium.
