Governors
The Governing Body
The Governing Body is made up of representatives from the Local Authority, School, Parents and Local Community. We meet formally once a term and have two sub groups meeting separately which are detailed below. We also individually have a specific subject area or two that we focus on to ensure the highest of standards continue to be maintained.
Our Aims
Our primary responsibility is to ensure the school provides the best possible education to our children. We act as a critical friend to help drive performance standards whilst maintaining effective financial and operational governance. We are here to provide Swallowfield Primary with clear leadership and direction that ensures the school continues to thrive and remains the most successful in the area.
How to contact us
We can be contacted via Sam Hayler, the Clerk to the Governors in the school office on 01908 582101, or should you wish to contact our Chair of Governors directly, Andrew Güntert can be reached on a.guntert@swallowfieldprimary.com
Amanda Hurst -Former Chair of Governors as of May 2021-May 2022, Co-opted Governor
Current Board
Andrew Güntert- Chair of Governors as of May 2022- Co-opted Governor and link officer for Safeguarding, the Early Years and Modern Foreign Languages
Andrew is a Chartered Accountant and has been involved in education and training for many years primarily as a lecturer and presenter extensively travelling through the British Isles. He has lived in Milton Keynes for over 30 years and he retired recently. His wife is a Special Needs teacher in MK and both his sons work abroad. He intends on using his skills, expertise and knowledge to help Swallowfield in many ways, but particularly in the area of finance.
James Rolton- Vice Chair Co-opted Governor and link officer for Schools for the Future, Geography and History
James was appointed to the governing body in September 2018. He is a Chartered Surveyor and Investment Director at British Land Plc, one of the largest listed property companies in Europe. He specialises in acquiring and disposing of commercial property and development land in Central London and the south east of England. James has lived in Woburn Sands with his family since 2011. James believes that Swallowfield plays a crucial role in the community, making Woburn Sands such a great place to live and work. His priorities include maintaining high standards across the curriculum and overseeing the school’s expansion to a full Primary School.
Louise Wisson- The elected Staff Governor and Link to Early Years
Louise joined the governing body in September 2020 and is the Assistant Headteacher for the Early Years. She has been a member of the teaching staff at Swallowfield since 2012 when she graduated from Nottingham Trent University. She is currently the Early Years leader after spending several teaching in Foundation apart from a single year in Year One prior to the newer Key Stage 1 Curriculum in 2014. Throughout the year, Louise’s main aim is to support the school in developing and preparing for the new Early Years Curriculum proposed to be in place for the academic year 2021-2022 and supporting the curriculum sub-committee, as well as voicing teaching staff perspectives.
Nicola Bowley- Parent Governor and Chair of the Curriculum Committee. Link officer for SEND and RE
Nicola joined the governing body in September 2021. Nicola has three children, twin girls who are at Fulbrook following on from Swallowfield, and a child currently in Year 1. Nicola is a qualified RE and SENDCo teacher and during her career has become more involved in working with SEN children. She is currently a specialist teacher for children with vision impairment and studying for a post grad diploma within this area. Nicola will be joining our Curriculum Committee as part of her role, and we look forward to working with her and benefiting from her professional expertise and experiences.
Laura Settle- Parent Governor and Vice-Chair of the Curriculum Committee. Link officer for PSHE, Diversity and Inclusion
Laura joined the governing body in July 2021. She has two children at Swallowfield, one within Reception and another in Year 3. She is passionate about the standard of education that our children receive. Laura is part of our Curriculum Committee, and we look forward to working with her and benefiting from her professional expertise and experiences. She is a Senior Forensic Psychologist and has worked for His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service for over 16 years.
George Foy- Local Authority Governor and link officer for PE and Computing, Data and Achievement
George joined the governing body in March 2022. He has two children at the school, his eldest in Year 1 and youngest in Reception. George is an Assistant Headteacher at a secondary school in Bedford and hopes to use his knowledge of KS3/4/5 to support Swallowfield as we transition to a Primary school. As a previous student of Swallowfield he is passionate about the school and its status within the local community. George will be joining our Curriculum Committee as part of his role.
Jon Drea- Co-opted Governor and link officer for Geography, Data and Achievement
Jon joined the governing body in May 2022. He has one child in Swallowfield, and one in Fulbrook. He has lived in the Woburn Sands area since 2006. Jon is a data and technology professional and has led large transformation work in the transport and government sectors. He is qualified to Masters level in Business administration. He will use this blend of skills to support the main board and the finance committee.
Sarah Hobson- Parent Governor for the Finance Committee
Sarah joined the Governing body in January 2023 as parent governor on the finance committee. She has 2 children, one who attended Swallowfield and now attends Fulbrook in year 6, the other is a current year 4 pupil at Swallowfield. Sarah has worked in retail for many years as a buying manager and is currently a product manager for Simba Sleep.
Becky Charles- Parent Governor for the Curriculum Committee
Becky was appointed a parent governor in January of this year. She has a daughter in year 1 and has lived in the area for over 10 years. She works as a Rail Accident Investigator and has previously worked in higher education. Becky is part of the curriculum committee.
Julie Herriott- Co-opted Governor for the Finance Committee
Julie recently joined the Governing Board as a co-opted Governor in February 2023. She is a Solicitor working for an international law firm in London at partner/director level. She is the firm’s International Conflicts Counsel leading a team of about 30 lawyers and analysts. She is co-chair of the firm’s Faith, Race, Ethnicity and Equality Network and is also a member of the Steering Group for Equality. She is married with one adult son, has lived in Wavendon for over 30 years and she has a long-standing interest in Education.
The governor sub-committees are:
– Finance, Staffing and Buildings (chaired by Julie Herriott)
– Curriculum (chaired by Nicola Bowley and Becky Charles)
Please click here for the constitution of our Governing Body
Governor Timetable and Attendence -January 2024
