Welcome to our Governors' page

"Governors are committed and ambitious for the school's future, and have the skills and knowledge to ensure that the school continues to improve. They have a good awareness of how well the school is performing in relation to other schools nationally, and an accurate understanding of the progress of different groups within the school. They challenge the Headteacher and other leaders and hold the school to account effectively for its performance."

Ofsted, February 2015

We are all voluntary and unpaid and have joined the Governing Body of West Blatchington Primary & Nursery School because we want to support the Headteacher and her staff in making our school fulfill its potential. The full Governing Body has responsibility for reviewing core aspects of the school including Teaching & Learning, Assessment and Pupil Premium, whilst nominated governors hold a Committee for other designated areas of the school, which deal with the detailed business of holding the school to account for its decisions and actions. The working groups are for; Curriculum Standards and Diversity and Resources and Strategy. We do this against the basic questions of 'how does this help the school to improve' and 'how does this ensure that all pupils do as well as they can'. Although the governors stand apart from the school staff in our role as 'critical friends', we are also about offering guidance and support.

You will find further information below about the Governing Body and also how to contact us if you have questions, concerns or want to tell us how well you think the school is doing.

Julie Pelych

Chair of Governors

Marian Gerrett

Co-opted Governor - Vice Chair of Governing Body

I have recently retired from Brighton and Hove Council after more than 20 years working in services for families with children under 5. I was a Children's Centre Manager working alongside Health Visitors and family support staff. My role as a governor contributes towards our children having the best possible start in their education and life skills.

Ray Allen

LA Governor

As a retired Nursery and Primary headteacher of thirty years experience I continue to teach on a voluntary, part-time basis in Surrey. I have been a governor at West Blatchington Primary since before the 2008 merger of the schools and am thrilled to be part of the governors' recent increased involvement in the push to make WBP one of the most improved schools in the country.

Natalie Bellis

Staff Governor

I have been a Staff Governor since 2015 and am relishing the exciting challenge of being part of the school's governing body. I am passionate about working with families to help them achieve the best possible outcomes for their children. I also love to run and thoroughly enjoy to bake cakes.

Kathryn Martin

Parent Governor

I have worked for the past 20 years in the pharmaceutical and consumer goods industries. I am currently a procurement director of a large multinational organisation. I am a governor because I feel passionately about our school and am committed to its continued growth and success.

Rachel Simmonds

Headteacher

I was appointed Headteacher in September 2014 after spells as Acting Headteacher and Deputy Headteacher since joining the school. I am thrilled and proud to be both a leader in our school and a governor at this exciting point in our school's improvement in order that we achieve the best possible outcomes for all of our pupils.

Andrew Rogers

Co-opted Governor

I am a Data Analyst for an American Communications company, working for the past 11 years helping to improve the customer ordering data and identifying and resolving reporting gaps. I am glad to be part of the Governing Body to learn more about the Education System and to my part to make West Blatchington Primary and Nursery School an amazing place for student and teacher.

Fern Corns

Co-opted Governor

I am one of the Assistant Head teachers and am in my third year of working, having been a teacher for a lot, lot longer. I firmly believe that children have one chance at getting the very best education available to them, and am proud that at West Blatchington Primary and Nursery we strive to achieve this for all our children. I am so proud of the team that work here and the dedication they have. There are exciting times ahead for us as the school goes from strength to strength – I am so glad that I am part of that journey.

Heidi Brydon

Parent Governor

I am a mother of 3 girls, all of whom attend West Blatchington Primary School. I am the secretary of the Friends of West Blatchington (FOWB) and help organise fundraising events for the school. I am a Youth Support Leader for St Johns Ambulance in Brighton, and teach first aid and basic fire safety to children ages 5 to 10 years. I also enjoy swimming and art. I joined the Governing Body in February 2016.

Jen Colwell

Co-opted Governor

I am an education researcher and writer. I have been working with schools, pupils, parents and teachers for 15 years. I have a special interest in children's friendships and how children can support each other in their learning. I became a governor at West Blatchington as I wanted to use my professional experience to support local children to achieve their potential.

Julie Pelych

Co-opted Governor - Chair to the Governing Body

I am the MD of a Leadership Development company and a Chartered Member of the CIPD, I hold post-graduate diplomas in HR and in Executive Coaching and Leadership Mentoring. I am a qualified user of a wide range of counselling and coaching techniques.
Prior to setting up my own business, 'GAP Performance', in 1995, I was an HR Director in a blue chip global business and spent 11 years working as an HR professional in the public transport, engineering and FMCG sectors.
I'm passionate about education and providing every child with the best opportunity we can for a great start in life.

Matt Parsons

Parent Governor

I am a father of two girls who are both currently attending West Blatchington Primary School. I have been teaching for eighteen years and I am currently the Subject Team Leader of Physical Education for a secondary school in Horsham. I hope to use my experiences to help the teachers and children of West Blatchington to achieve their best.

Rahima Begum

Parent Governor

My name is Rahima Begum. I graduated with a 1:1 in Early Childhood Studies (BA Hons) and after recently completing a PGCE in primary teaching, I am now a year 2 teacher. Growing up as a child I attended West Blatchington Infants and Juniors myself, having a fabulous experience. Over the years and especially now I can really appreciate how the environment and community have flourished and merging both sites into a primary school can only mean a positive learning environment! I am looking forward to meeting and working with many parents, staff, children as well as governors to support the betterment of our school’s ethos, values and visions.

Governor Quality Assurance Visits

Governors conduct quality assurance visits in order to review and support the school's progress against its strategic aims and objectives. Please click on the link to view the latest Quality Assurance Visit Report:

Governors Quality Assurance Visit - January 2018

West Blatchington Governors

The Governing Body is made up of the following appointments:

Name Role Term of Office Appointed By Appointment Date

Ray Allen	LA Governor	01.09.16-31.08.20	Local Authority	01.09.14
Natalie Bellis	Staff Governor	20.04.15-19.04.19	Staff	20.04.15
Marian Gerrett	Co-opted Governor	01.09.18-31.08.22	Governing Body	01.09.14
Kathryn Martin	Co-opted Governor	28.03.19-27.03.23	Governing Body	20.04.15
Rachel Simmonds	Headteacher	01.09.14 - Ongoing	By virtue of role	01.09.14
Fern Corns	Co-opted Governor	16.01.17-15.01.21	Governing Body	16.01.17
Heidi Brydon	Co-opted Governor	07.06.19-06.06.23	Governing Body	07.06.19
Jennifer Colwell	Co-opted Governor	29.02.16-28.2.20	Governing Body	29.02.16
Julie Pelych Andrew Rogers Michael Bellis Matt Parsons Rahima Begum	Co-opted Governor Co-opted Governor Co-opted Governor Parent Governor Parent Governor	16.01.17-16.01.21 23.03.17-25.03.22 20.5.19-19.05.23 07.06.19-06.07.23 07.06.19-06.07.23	Governing Body Governing Body Governing Body Parents Parents	16.01.17 23.03.17 20.05.19 07.06.19 07.06.19

In the last year we have also had the following people on the governing body:

Name Role Term of Office Appointed By Appointment Date

Philip Worsfold Co-opted Governor 08.12.12-07.12.18 Governing Body 08.12.14

Kym Lyons Co-opted Governor 12.02.19-16.04.19 Governing Body 12.02.19

West Blatchington School Governing Body Declaration of Interest 2018-19

^Name	^{Date Declared}	^{Business/Pecuniary Interest}	^{Governor Role in Other Educational Establishments}	^{Personal Interests}
^{Ms Marian Gerrett}	^01.10.18	^None
^{Ms Rachel Simmonds}	^01.10.18	^{Head teacher}	^{Mile Oak Primary}
^{Ms Fern Corns}	^01.10.18	^{Acting Head teacher}
^{Dr Jennifer Colwell}	^01.10.18	^None
^{Mrs Julie Pelych}	^01.10.18	^{Managing Director of ‘GAP Performance Ltd’}
^{Mr Ray Allen}	^01.10.18	^None
^{Ms Heidi Brydon}	^01.10.18	^None
^{Mrs Kathryn Martin}	^01.10.18	^None
^{Ms Natalie Bellis}	^01.10.18	^{Family Liaison worker in School}
Mr Andrew Rogers	01.10.18	None
Mr Michael Bellis	15.07.19	None
Mr Matt Parson	15.07.19	None
Ms Rahima Begum	15.07.19	None

^{West Blatchington Attendance Table 2017/18}

^Name	26.03.18	21.04.18	16.07.18	01.10.18	03.12.18	12.02.19	25.03.19	20.05.19	15.07.19
^{Ms Marian Gerrett}	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
^{Ms Rachel Simmonds}	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
^{Ms Fern Corns}	Y	Y	Y	Y	N	Y	Y	Y	Y
^{Dr Jennifer Colwell}	Y	Y	Y	N	Y	N	N	N	N
^{Mrs Julie Pelych}	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
^{Mr Ray Allen}	N	Y	N	Y	Y	N	N	Y	Y
^{Ms Heidi Brydon}	Y	Y	Y	N	N	Y	Y	Y	N
^{Mrs Kathryn Martin}	N	Y	Y	Y	Y	N	Y	N	Y
^{Ms Natalie Bellis}	N	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Mr Andrew Rogers	N/A	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	N	Y
Mr Matt Parsons									Y
Mr Michael Bellis									Y
Ms Rahima Begum									Y