School Governing Body

The role of School Governing Bodys within the Learning Trust

School Governing Bodys contribute to the work of the Learning Trust in ensuring high standards of achievement for all children and young people in the school by: 

• keeping the focus on school improvement
• being a critical friend to the school, offering support and advice 
• providing assurances to the board about school performance and about the views of staff, parents and students
• helping the school respond to the needs of parents and the community 
• making the school accountable to the public for what it does 
• working with the school on planning, developing policies and keeping these under review
• working with the headteacher school staff to exercise the powers and responsibilities delegated by the board through the process of earned autonomy; and 
• not intervening in the day-to-day management of the school unless there are weaknesses and a suitable course of action has been approved by the Board of the Learning Trust

Trust Governance Roles

Governance Recruitment

Stobhillgate Governors

	Mark Robson (Chair)	I graduated in Modern History from Oxford University and initially trained as an accountant before qualifying as a teacher. I taught at King Edward’s for over 30 years, becoming Head of History and Politics, Literacy co-ordinator, and Teacher Governor. When King Edward’s converted into an Academy I was elected Staff director. Since retiring in August 2018 I have maintained my commitment to education, updating my A Level History textbook and volunteering at Abbeyfields school. My family have lived in Morpeth for many years and my daughter attended Goosehill, Newminster, and King Edward VI schools.
	Sondos Bowker (Vice Chair)	I have spent my whole career working in education and on projects that tackle educational and economic inequality. This has included work in schools, universities and, most recently, the communities sector. I trained to teach within The Three Rivers Learning Trust and spent four very happy years working across The King Edward VI School and Newminster Middle School, where I was Curriculum Lead for English until 2021. I currently work in the communities sector, overseeing training and educational courses for refugee and asylum seeker women and children. I am passionate about equality, diversity and inclusion and I look forward to bringing my experience working with minoritised communities to my role as School Governing Bodylor. The Three Rivers Learning Trust has invested a huge amount in my personal and professional development and I am thrilled to be able to give something back as academy councillor of Stobhillgate First School.
	Hayley Herbertson (Governor)	I qualified as a teacher of Geography in 2004 and took up my first teaching role at Harton Academy where I taught for 14 years. During my time at Harton I took on the role of Advanced Skills Teacher, Lead Practitioner and was designated as an SLE (a Specialist Leader of Education) in January 2012. As part of these roles I carried out outreach work within the authority as well as providing training and support to many trainee teachers as part of both the PGCE and School Direct programme. I didn’t think that I could find another school that I would love working at as much until I applied for a job at Chantry Middle School. I was delighted to join Chantry in January 2018 and I am very proud to say that I am the Subject Leader for both Humanities and RE at Key Stage 3. As a teacher I am a strong believer in making every lesson a valuable learning experience and I believe that young people should be inspired, enthused and challenged to become lifelong learners and be encouraged to reach their full potential. I consider it be a privilege to be part of the Three Rivers Learning Trust and I am delighted to take on the role as an School Governing Bodylor for Stobhillgate First School. My daughter currently attends the school and is enjoying every minute of it. I am link School Governing Bodylor for Safeguarding which means that part of my role will be monitoring safeguarding systems and procedures to promote the safeguarding of children at Stobhillgate First School.
	Katherine Pimblott (Governor)	I am pleased to have been appointed as a Parent Fovernor at Stobhillgate, I am firstly a parent of a child currently at the school and hope to bring to the academy council contributions from a parents point of view. As well as my parents voice I hope that I can bring new and alternative thoughts being from a non educational professional background. I fully qualified as an Architect in 2008 following over 7 years at Newcastle University, I have worked in practice since then becoming a company director in 2021. I specialise in design within the care sector; for nursing, the elderly and specialist care, throughout the county for the private sector. I have also completed numerous developments in the leisure, education and cultural sectors in the North East. I consider that there are many transferable skills from my profession that I can bring to my role as an School Governing Bodylor as well as bringing the voice of a current parent.
	Ragnhild Knowlson (Trust Governor)	I am happy to have been appointed as Parent Governor for Stobhillgate First School. I grew up in Norway and attended school there up until I started my university course in Marketing Management, which was completed at Northumbria University in 2003. I have continued living and working in the UK ever since and love living here in the North East with my husband and two children, one former and one current pupil at Stobhillgate. I currently work for a well-known brand of paint manufacturer in Gateshead and have a busy customer facing role, mainly focusing on the Nordic markets due to my language skills. Being a parent in the school system here has been an eye opener and a learning journey, compared to the primary educational setting in Scandinavia, where there has always been a greater organic focus on learning through play, outdoor settings all year round and a more holistic approach. First and foremost, I bring with me my experiences as a parent but also my cultural background and hope my small contribution can help make Stobhillgate First School thrive and be the best it can be for all our children.
	Sarah Robinson (Governor)	I started by career as a Beauty Therapist working for Steiner Transocean on cruise lines. I eventually became grounded and started working in a spa followed by a beauty salon. I had a career change in my thirties doing care work in the community which I really enjoyed, alongside volunteering at Stobhill Link when Covid happened and I became full time as a Community Coordinator at Stobhill Link to assist their enabling service. I have been at Stobhill Link since supporting people within our community. I would really like to help support more parents and children, and hope to make more connections through Cheviot Learning Trust.
	Laura Askew (Governor)	I qualified as a Primary teacher in 2004 and took up my first teaching role at Seaton Hirst Middle School in Ashington. After four years, I moved to Collingwood School and Media Arts College, initially as a teacher, then as Assistant Headteacher and now my current role is Director of SEND. I am a SLE (a Specialist Leader of Education) and have worked with a wide variety of schools. I am an advocate for young people with SEND and additional needs and play a key role in ensuring that they have the best access to all the life chances that they need in order for them to succeed in their next steps. As part of my role I also deliver SEND and inclusion training for a number of external agencies and also support local schools with SEND. I am link governor for SEND. My child joined Stobhillgate in 2023 and has loved every minute, so I am also a parent and hope to reflect this in my input to my role as Governor.