Governance and Local Advisory Board

Mrs Beenal Rajyaguru – Parent Governor and Chair of Local Advisory Board

I have a son who already attends Stafford Leys Primary School in EYFS, and a daughter who is due to start school in September next year. I chose to become a parent governor this year as this voluntary role allows me to give back to my local Leicester Forest East community.

By profession, I am a Paediatric Pharmacist at a local Children’s Hospital, and have over 15 years experience in the pharmacy profession both in the community and hospital sector. I have just completed my third post graduate qualification studies earlier this year which has been a challenging experience, and my professional interests include children’s allergy and intensive care. Working part time allows me the flexibility to attend the school and dedicate the required time and resources to fulfil this role. As my professional background is in children’s healthcare my skill set can be best applied on the Health & Safety and Premises Committee which I have newly joined too.

I am very excited to become an integral member of the Governing body at the school. Being newly elected means that I have a steep learning curve ahead of me. I am very much looking forward to these new challenges and working with an incredibly dedicated team of Governors. My passionate drive and strong commitment to improve quality is paramount to ensure that I can fulfil this role effectively. I envisage that I can play a part in helping the school to achieve its long term goals and improvements in the standards across all areas of the school environment.

If you need to contact me, my email address is ​brajyaguru@staffordleys.bepschools.org

Mrs Allison Hammond – Community Governor

I wanted to become a parent governor so that I could contribute to the school in which my daughters attend. I taught English and Media Studies to key stages 4 and 5 for fifteen years and have always been passionate about the issues surrounding education, so to be part of the governing body at Stafford Leys is a real privilege. The knowledge and skills I gained in teaching and leading a department, has helped with understanding matters related to the curriculum, teaching and learning. Over the past few years I have learnt such a lot about school governance and although the role of chair demands a lot of time, it is exciting to help shape the direction of the school.

I am a member of the following committees; Curriculum, Finance, Health and Safety and most recently the Academy Improvement Board, a committee set up by the governors to oversee the Ofsted action plan. I enjoy an involvement in the interview process for new staff; a real highlight being the recruitment of our head teacher Mr Kitchen, in 2015! As well as this, I am also keen to participate in the numerous learning walks which take place throughout the academic year.

Mr Paul Howkins – Community Governor

I have lived in Leicester Forest East for over 30 years, and have had the privilege of being a governor at Stafford Leys Primary School since 2015. I am a member of the Health & Safety and Premises Committee, and chair of the Finance and Staffing Committee. My day job is as a production manager in an electronics company, a role that includes financial and health and safety responsibilities. I am keen to foster any links between the business and academic communities. I was very fortunate in my education in that the influence of excellent teachers at the schools I attended drove me to better results than perhaps I deserved. The role of governor allows me to bring my experience into the school and to help provide the pupils of today with the all the opportunities and more that had when I was at school.

Mr Robert Doxey – Staff Governor

Mr James Cross – Parent Governor

I am a Parent Governor at Stafford Leys, I have 2 sons and a daughter and with my youngest son currently in year 1 at Stafford Leys. I am proud to be a governor at the school and to be a part of the wonderful happy and safe environment that the school provides. Since becoming a governor I have been an active member working on the curriculum committee and I have recently taken over as the chair of the health, safety and safeguarding committee. I am also an active member of the Academy Improvement Board and have recently taken the role of inclusion link governor which focuses on SEND, pupil premium and disadvantaged children.

In my day job, if you can call it that, I am a Police Sergeant with Leicestershire Police and have a vast experience of managing and responding to serious and critical incidents as well as dealing with vulnerable people and a variety of safeguarding concerns. In the roles I have performed I have worked closely with other agencies such as social care, fire service and borough councils and I believe that these close working relationships and knowledge of the support available greatly assist me in being a governor. The shift pattern I work allows me to regularly be in school for visits, meetings and learning walk, ensuring that our children are taught to a high level, constantly being challenged to achieve the highest standards possible and that the behaviour in school continues to be positive and supportive creating the ideal learning environment.

Revd Dave Hover – Community Governor

​I am the Anglican (Church of England) minister at St. Andrew’s Church in Leicester Forest East, and part of my role is to offer pastoral and spiritual care & support to all who live and work within Leicester Forest East, Braunstone Town and Thorpe Astley. This very much includes our children and those with the important task of educating and caring for them, so I am delighted to be able offer my experience as a Community Governor to support the staff and pupils of Stafford Leys in this way, as well as in continuing to build the good community partnership between Stafford Leys School and St. Andrew’s Church. I am new to the Governor Team in 2020 so am learning myself, and as part of that I am keen to help develop our school as a shared learning community where we can all, pupils, staff and governors, support and encourage one another as we grow and develop together in a safe space where we can ask those important questions about life and the best ways to live and learn, with different faith and non-religious perspectives shared openly and with full respect for each person’s beliefs and experience.

Mr Simon Willcock – Parent Governor

​I am a father of 2 children, with a daughter in Year 1 and a son in pre-school.

I began my career in Accounting and trained to be a Chartered Management Accountant before I moved into teaching 12 years ago and have since gained 11 years of experience in Leadership positions in Education. I am currently the Assistant Principal at a Secondary School in Leicester City where I have been since 2014. The school has undergone some significant improvement in student outcomes over the past few years and its outcomes now put it in the top 5% of all schools nationally. Prior to this, I was a Head of Mathematics in a Secondary School in Coventry, the department became one of the most improved Mathematics departments in the Country. In 2014, I was offered the opportunity to move back to work in an under-performing school in Leicester and in 2016 the school became the best performing school in the City.

In 2016, I was appointed as a Specialist Leader of Education a role which places me in under-performing primary and secondary schools to support them in improving outcomes, curriculum and behaviour. I also have a recent experience of the new Ofsted Framework when we had a very successful visit where I worked closely with the lead inspector throughout the inspection. I have recently been selected as part of a team to visit and review 16 secondary schools across the city with the aim of improving outcomes in Mathematics.

I understand that the experiences that young people have at school has a major impact on their future. High expectations and high levels of enjoyment are essential in ensuring that all students are successful in what they do and reach their full potential with a continued and ever growing desire to learn. As a parent, I want my children to get the best education possible and I can play my part in delivering this for all children at Stafford Leys.

Miss Jess Thorne – Staff Governor

I have been a teacher at Stafford Leys Primary School since 2019. During this, I have had the pleasure of teaching in Year 5 and Year 6. Alongside my role as class teacher, I am the science lead for the school. Through this role, I have led whole school priorities in my subject and worked closely alongside teachers across the school to secure changes to science.

As part of my governor role, I am responsible for supporting student’s well-being at Stafford Leys. Since starting my career as a teacher, I have always been passionate about the importance of children’s well-being and supporting this within the classroom. As I am newer to the teaching profession, I offer insightful ideas and opinions that offer a different perspective. One of my qualities as a governor is the enthusiasm, passion and drive to continue making Stafford Leys a better environment for our students and staff.

Please open the file below for more information about our local advisory board and attendance records.

STA LAB Constitution Attendance Interests

2019-2020 Information

BEP Statutory documents can be downloaded from the Bradgate Education Partnership website under ‘About Us > Statutory Information’ or by using the direct link – www.bepschools.org/about-us/statutory-information(opens in new tab).

BEP Local Advisory Board information can be found on the Bradgate Education Partnership website under ‘Our Schools > Governors’ or by using the direct link – www.bepschools.org/our-schools/governors(opens in new tab).