For our school governing body to be truly effective I believe in utilising and combining each person’s strengths and talents. This makes us a strong and effective team. All our governors have varied abilities, be that their business acumen; past teaching experience, safeguarding awareness, special needs training, sporting prowess, environmental knowledge or their Christian commitment. Together we work. This is of enormous benefit to the school, its staff and our children, plus of course their time is freely given as is their committed support. I am most thankful for each one of them and all they do and fully expect us all to get better still. –
Alison Ivins – Chair of Governors
The main function of governors is to see that the school is being effectively managed and you are invited to contact them on any matter concerning the life of the school.
The governors meet at least once each term.
Meeting dates for 2025/2026: 26th October 2025, 4th December 2025, 5th February 2026, 19th March 2026, 21st May 2026, 9th July 2026
| Name | Governor Type | Start Date | End Date | Committee | Voting Rights | Declaration of Interest |
| Miss Alison Ivins | Chair of Governors | 23-March 2023 | 23-March 2027 | Finance, HR Safeguarding & Curriculum | Full Governors & Committees | None |
| Mrs Carol Clayton | Co-opted | 24-Oct 2024 | 24-Oct 2028 | Curriculum, Safeguarding | Full Governors & Committees | None |
| Parent | ||||||
| Mrs Tracy Blackwell | Headteacher | 01-Sep -13 | On going | Curriculum, Assessment, H&S, Safeguarding and HR, Finance & Premises | Full Governors & Committees | None |
| Mrs Morag McNulty | Clerk to Governors | 06-Mar -2024 | On going | Director ITJD | ||
| Mrs Sue Bruce | Co-opted | 24-Oct 2024 | 24-Oct 2028 | Health & Safety | Full Governors & Committees | None |
| Mr Tim Polkinghorne | Co-Opted, Vice-Chair | 22 Nov 2023 | 22-Nov 2027 | Finance | Full Governors & Committees | None |
| Mrs Dorothy Hawton | Foundation | 24 Oct 2024 | 24 Oct 2028 | Policy Review | Full Governors & Committees | None |
| Ms Gillian Dennis | Co-opted | 24 Oct 2024 | 24 Oct 2028 | Curriculum | Full Governors & Committees | None |
| Ms Mary Teeboon | Staff | 4-May 2022 | 4 May 2026 | Safeguarding, Staff, HR | Full Governors & Committees | Related to Auditor |
| Mr Nick Rowe | Local Authority Gov | 2-Mar 2023 | 2-Mar 2027 | LA, Finance | Full Governors & Committees | None |
Minutes
Governor Categories
Parent Governor – Elected by parents of children on roll at school
Staff Governor – Elected by staff at the school
Local Authority Governor – Nominated by the Local Authority but appointed by the Governing Body
Associate Governor – Appointed by the Governing Body
Foundation Governor – Appointed by virtue of the office they hold e.g. the Church
Co-opted – Appointed by the Governing Body
Full Governing Body meetings – Attendance record
| Voting Rights | 3-7-24 | 24-10-24 | 19-12-24 | 6-2-25 | 20-3-25 | 22-5-25 | 10-7-25 | |
| Mrs Tracy Blackwell | Full Governors & Committees | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Mrs K Webley | Full Governors & Committees | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | N/A | N/A |
| Miss Alison Ivins | Full Governors & Committees, Chair | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Mr Tim Polkinghorne | Full Governors & Committees, Vice Chair | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Mrs Dorothy Hawton | Full Governors & Committees Ex-Officio | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Ms Gillian Dennis | Co-opted Governor | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
| Ms Mary Teeboon | Co-opted Governor | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Mr Nick Rowe | Local Authority Governor | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Mrs Carol Clayton | Co-opted Governor | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Mrs Sue Bruce | Co-opted Governor | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Mrs Morag McNulty | Temp. Clerk to Governors | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Please click to see –
Governor Meeting Attendance Record 1st September 2023 to 31st August 2024
Any correspondence may be addressed to the Governors care of Hartington C of E Primary School or an email sent to governors@hartington.derbyshire.sch.uk
If you wish to speak with a Governor please contact the school on 01298 84254.
Miss Alison Ivins – Chair & Parent Governor I have been connected to Hartington CofE Primary School as a parent since 2012, when my eldest children first started. From that moment I knew the school was really something special, and I have watched it grow and thrive as the truly marvellous and nurturing environment that it is. The team at Hartington are some of the most dedicated and compassionate people I have met in Education and they make sure that all the children there have access to a high quality education, within a beautifully caring environment. The children interact with the community and church regularly with stimulating projects, and the school remains a very important asset to the village. I simply can’t think of a better school and environment for all my children to undertake their Primary years. So when offered the opportunity to join the governing body I was delighted to be able to give something back and help support the staff and students at our wonderful school. I have myself worked in education since 2005. I have supported in Primary education and then went on to teach English in Secondary before becoming an English Lecturer. Since 2017 I have held Senior Management positions within the Further and Higher Education and Skills sector. I endeavour to support the school with my skills and knowledge, and I have a broad range of experience with educational management, curriculum, systems, policies and finance. But my real passion lies with literacy and numeracy, and ensuring that all students have access to the support they need to be successful in this area. In my current role I work with 16+ learners that have failed to achieve their gateway English and maths qualifications at school, often because they have not had a positive educational experience, and have not necessarily had access to an encouraging and excellent school such as Hartington in their formative educational years. So I work at the other end of the education spectrum to enable school leavers and adults to succeed in English and maths so that they can progress in either further/higher education or employment, and improve their future prospects and opportunities. |
Tracy Blackwell – Head Teacher  Favourite subjects at school: PE, Art and Literacy. As well as having the privilege of being Head Teacher here at Hartington C of E Primary and enjoying the honour of working alongside the youngsters here on a daily basis; teaching and nurturing them; watching them grow and develop, I am also incredibly pleased to work alongside the dedicated governor team to ensure the right decisions are made for the good of both pupils and staff alike. It is really lovely to be in a position to lead the school and work so closely with passionate members of our local community including partners, staff and residents. This school has always had a strong Christian ethos, which is reflected in the vision of being at the heart of the community and working in partnership to provide the best quality holistic education for every child. |
Mr Tim Polkinghorne – Vice Chair Governor  The staff remain passionate about individual pupil progress and it feels good to offer time and support to such dedicated committed members of teaching staff and governors in a village school Thank you for all your efforts – much appreciated by many parents. |
Mrs Dorothy Hawton – Ex Officio Speaking as a member of St Giles’ congregation, we would like to strengthen the links with the school and find creative ways to work with the children. I have enjoyed the services where the children have demonstrated their great talent and realise that there will be mutual benefits from such a partnership. Finally, as we live in such a beautiful part of the country, I look forward to helping with any activities which encourage the children to appreciate and care for their environment. This is so important for the development of thoughtful, responsible young people we need for the future. |
Ms Gillian Dennis – Co-Opted GovernorI have been teaching for over twenty years, initially in primary, but then in secondary education. During this time, I have also taught English GCSE to adults as an Adult Education Tutor for Derbyshire County Council, finally concentrating on just this aspect of teaching. This has been very rewarding as I have supported adults of all ages back into learning and encouraged them to overcome their barriers to learning, often from bad experiences at school as a child. This has made me very aware of the real necessity of a positive, caring atmosphere for children at school and the importance of links with the church. Although I only moved to Hartington a few years ago, I am pleased to now be able to have the opportunity to support the school as a governor. I am interested in the environment and concerned at the cost of negative human impact on our world. I spend much of my time outdoors with my dogs. |
Ms Mary Teeboon – Staff Governor and Co-opted Governor Favourite subjects at school – history and child development I have been working here at Hartington C of E Primary School since September 2009, initially as a SENTA and then more recently as EYFS co-ordinator, having completed further training to become a HLTA in the summer of 2020. I am now pleased to have joined the governing body where I am able to offer my continually developing knowledge of safeguarding and the curriculum. I also have experience of being a governor at another primary school and am a deputy manager for an additional needs play scheme, which I have been a part of for 20 years.I feel the schools Christian vision of ‘Caring and Sharing as part of God’s family’ is demonstrated daily by the whole school community and the school is a warm and caring environment that works hard to develop links between families, the local community and the church. I feel honoured to be a part of the school team and to know that my experience and input are appreciated. |
Mr Nick Rowe – Local Authority GovernorHaving lived in rural villages for most of my adult life, I appreciate how fortunate Hartington and its surrounding areas are to have an excellent Primary School forming part of the local community.With a background of forty years working for large global companies, where I held senior positions, I hope that some of the skills and knowledge I have acquired can be productively employed in retaining and developing such a valuable asset. Access to high quality state education provided me with many opportunities and in a similar manner I hope that I can contribute to ensuring that Hartington Primary School establishes a firm foundation for all of its pupils in their formative years. |
| Mrs Carol Clayton – Co-opted Governor |
| Mrs Sue Bruce – Co-opted Governor |
| Vacancy – Parent Governor Clerk to Governors – Mrs Morag McNulty |