How Ark's governance works
Every school in the Ark network is the legal responsibility of the Ark Schools Board. This board focuses on statutory duties and delegates most day-to-day responsibilities to each school’s individual Local Governing Body (LGB).
This means that our Academy's governors are able to concentrate on the things that really matter – educational strategy, school outcomes and aspiration.
The Ark Schools Decision Making Framework outlines where responsibility and accountability sits for the key functional areas within Ark Schools between the ‘tiers’ of governance.
Our Local Governing Body
Our Local Governing Body (LGB) is made up of 6-10 members – usually people with a local connection or interest who are committed to supporting educational opportunity in the area. The board generally includes:
- Academy Principal
- Up to two Parent Governors
- One Teaching Staff Governor
- One Non-teaching Staff Governor
- One Local Authority representative
We aim to create a balanced group that will have the right skills, connections and dynamic for the LGB to work well and support the school in achieving exceptional performance. Attributes we look for include:
- Good insight into the specific challenges at the school and the general challenges of operating top-quality schools
- Excellent community links
- Specific skills as needed by/relevant to the school
- A link to the senior executive team of Ark Schools
All appointments are made by the Director of Governance for Ark Schools. The term of a governor is three years, except for the Principal, who remains a governor for the duration of his or her time in post. Governors may be reappointed for further terms.
The LGB meets four times a year.
Becoming a governor
If you have an interest and commitment to improving education, and would like to make a difference within your community, please register your interest in becoming a governor by completing our online Governor Application Form. If you have any questions about a governor’s role or responsibilities please contact us at governance.team@arkonline.org
A full programme of induction, training and support is provided. You can see more information, including role specifications here.
Contacting the governors
The current Clerk to Governors is Cathi Hughes (Catherine.Hughes@arkonline.org). Please contact them if you have any governance-related queries, or would like to contact one of the governors.
Our Governors
Ian Emerson
Ian is the Chair of the Ark Bentworth Local Governing Body and the Deputy Head (Academic) at Latymer Upper School. Previously he was the Head of Sixth Form at City of London School and worked for many years in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in two large comprehensive schools as a Head of MFL and a languages teacher. Ian has been a Governor of the school since 2018 and is particularly interested in the teaching curriculum, SEND provision and support and development of staff, both support and teaching.
Sam Campbell
Sam is a teacher of MFL in a secondary school and her son attends Ark Bentworth. She has been in the teaching profession for over 10 years and does see the importance of pupils achieving highly from primary school level as it does give them a head start in secondary school. She finds the school environment at Ark Bentworth welcoming and volunteers weekly.
Entisar Elhag
Entisar has been known to the school as a parent since 2011. Her children joined Ark Bentworth as their first school after moving to this country until they have graduated, over the last 8 years with her youngest twin daughters graduating last year. This has led to her having a long lasting relationship with the school and community and she has built a friendly relationship with the many of the parents. She joined a few schools as a volunteer in early years education including Ark Bentworth and was working closely with young children while she was studying in level 3 childcare diploma. This has made her fully aware of the importance of safeguarding. She is currently working for Little Tiger Nursery as Child Care Practitioner.
Lyndsay Harris
Lyndsay Harris is the Trust Governor at Ark Bentworth and is Director of Pastoral and Inclusion at Ark.
Andrew McBroom
Andrew is currently Deputy Head - Co-curricular & Operations at City of London School, where he has taught since 2002. In his time there, he has also been Head of History, Head of Sixth Form and an Assistant Head (with responsibility for Staff Development). He is passionate about the benefits of extra-curricular activity in helping young people develop self-esteem and resilience. He has also worked closely with Mental Health First Aid England to promote their important work. City of London School has had a longstanding relationship with Ark Bentworth and Andrew is excited about the prospect of contributing to that relationship in his role as Governor.
Julian Moon
As a trainee accountant at KPMG, Julian is part of a team that audits some of the biggest UK and international companies. He is required to deliver high-quality work at pace for clients. He believes his professional experience will be useful to ensure funding is used effectively and gives teachers the necessary resources to help pupils succeed. He is currently in the middle of his accountancy qualifications and will be fully ACA accredited by July 2022.
Andrew Ritchie
Andrew has worked locally to Ark Bentworth for 12 years and is a father of three daughters, two of whom currently attend another Ark School (KS1 and KS2). He is a respiratory doctor at St Mary’s Hospital and a lecturer at Imperial College. His research focuses on the interplay of respiratory viruses and bacteria infection in the context of chronic lung conditions. Alongside clinical duties, Andrew teaches undergraduate and postgraduate students on a number of degree courses. Outside of work, Andrew enjoys spending time in the local area with his family as well as cycling and playing the occasional game of cricket.