Governors

About the Governors

Every school has a governing body whose members work as a team. Governors are responsible to parents, funders and the community for making sure the school provides a good quality education. Governors, together with the Headteacher, promote high standards of educational achievement.

Governing bodies may include:

• Parents elected by other parents with children at the school;
• The head teacher, if he/she chooses to be so;
• Staff elected by other staff;
• People appointed by the local education authority;
• People chosen by governors from the local community;
• People chosen by the Trust

  Governing bodies may also include representatives from the church, charitable trust or business interests.

  If you have any enquiry for the Governors please email the Clerk (Mrs. Di Hicks) d.hicks@ratton.e-sussex.gov.uk in the first instance; she will then forward your query to the appropriate Governor.

  The following are the Governors for Ratton School :

  David Brabner – Parent Governor

  David is a qualified dentist and manager in the East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust. He has lived in Eastbourne since 1985 and has two children at Ratton School. David recently joined the Governing Body in late 2010. He is particularly interested in mathematics and sciences and keen to ensure students reach their full attainment potential in these areas. Interests outside of work include cycling, walking and Manchester United.

  Carole Bradbrook – Parent Governor

  Di Clarke - LEA

  Di has worked as a full-time teacher in Secondary Education and Sixth Forms for over 30 years, in Inner London and also for 21 years in Eastbourne. She greatly enjoys her role with Ratton School and being involved with students and staff as the school develops through new challenges. Di’s main interests lie in the fields of SEN and progression routes to Further Education as well as the development of strategies that assist every student to attain the highest level that they can.

  Cathy Dean - Staff Governor

  Cathy has been a governor for 2 years. She teaches German, Spanish and French and is the KS4 coordinator for MFL. She is also an International Schools Coordinator and is particularly interested in links with schools abroad. We have a lot of activities with an international dimension which means our students have really developed their appreciation and understanding of other cultures but have also developed a greater understanding of their own culture.

  Colin Etwell – Staff Governor

  Lisa Gillette - Parent Governor

  Lisa has worked in the voluntary sector for 14 years with various charities.  She has gained a variety of experience including governance, equality and diversity projects, dignity at work initiatives, mediation and building partnerships.  Lisa manages an Advocacy Service across Sussex and will bring her skills and experience to the role of parent governor working in an open and supportive way to make a positive contribution nto the governing body.  

  Rose Godfrey – Community Governor
  
  Rose is a community governor whose professional expertise is in education. She has worked in a great variety of secondary schools whilst she was a school improvement adviser in an outer London Borough, a northern metropolitan city and in East Sussex. She has also been both an Ofsted inspector and a School Improvement Partner. Rose has a particular interest in self-evaluation and understanding how schools can identify and successfully implement activities which will help them continuously improve.

  Linda Lamb – Community Governor

  Linda is a Family solicitor, specialising mainly in children law. She originated from Edinburgh where she worked as a district nurse/community midwife in a rural area of Aberdeenshire. Later Linda studied for a Law Degree at Aberdeen University and practiced as a Solicitor in Scotland. In 1995 she moved to Eastbourne after re-qualifying to practice in England and is married to an Australian secondary teacher with two primary school daughters. Linda enjoys her role as a Governor at Ratton because of the direct contact with the pupils, parents and staff.

  Peter Lindsey – Community Governor (Chair of Governors)

  Peter has been the chair of governors at Ratton since 1 April 2006. Peter was the Editor of local newspapers in Sussex for the past 20 years, and now splits his time between lecturing in journalism and working in Public Relations. Peter is always happy to hear from parents with comments, suggestions and observations.

  Ken Mengham - LEA
  
  Kent was elected originally as a Parent Governor and served on the Governing Body whilst his three daughters were being educated at Ratton. Since then he has been co-opted on to the Governing Body and later was elected as a Local Authority Governor. As a retired architect, he has been closely associated with alterations and additions to the premises at the school and has had the pleasure of chairing the Board and several committees, currently chairing Premises, Health & Safety Committee. He has witnessed many educational changes and leadership changes under different Headteachers, but during this time his interest and motivation has remained as strong as ever, as our efforts to promote Ratton School have been inspired by our maxim: "Achieving Together".

  Wendy Padget – Parent Governor

  Wendy has been a Parent Governor for about one year and enjoys it immensely. She has one daughter who was educated at Ratton and is now at University and a son currently Year 11. Wendy has been a Teaching Assistant in other schools for ten years and feels the knowledge gained in that post has proved very useful in other areas of education, including being a Parent Governor.

  Jacky Pierce - Staff Governor

  Toby Rollestone - Trust Governor

  Toby is a Trust Governor who works for Macconvilles.

  Helen Smith - Parent Governor

  Laurence Smith - Trust Governor

  Laurence is the Managing Director of Drusillas Park

  John Voice – LEA

  John retired as a Headteacher in July 2003 but felt that he wanted to continue with a role in education. Being a governor at Ratton School allows him to keep this interest and enables him to pass on some of his knowledge and experience.

  John’s background is teaching – 20 years in the classroom teaching Science and Physics – followed by 20 years as a Headteacher which included a small amount of teaching. He was Headteacher at Ratton for 10 years followed by 10 years at a school in St. Leonard’s.

  He has served on various committees over the last 7 years including Curriculum and now Monitoring and Chairing the Staffing committee. John enjoys the committee side of being a Governor as well as supporting the students in Music, Dance and Drama.

  Suzanna Wallis – Parent Governor

  Suzanna has three children, all of whom are either past or current students of Ratton. She is a nurse working with vulnerable teenagers within the community; where she has been in post for 10yrs. Suzanna is also involved in two charities which support children (and their families) with life-threatening illnesses. In her spare time Suzanna enjoys spending quality time with her family and friends.

  Sally Wellings - Trust Governor

  Sally is the Marketing Director of St. Bedes School, Eastbourne

  Joan Williams - LEA

  Joan is retired but previously worked as the Voluntary Help Co-ordinator for Eastbourne Health Authority facilitating her great interest in ‘people’. She joined Ratton Governors in 1992 and was on the panel that appointed the previous Headteacher and, again, appointed and welcomed the present Head, David Linsell. Joan has seen many changes to the school, new buildings and a dance studio and an increase in the number of students.