The Forest Academy

The Forest Academy is part of the Barnsley Primary Partnership, which came into being in the autumn of 2016. It brings together the three primary schools: The Forest Academy, Oakhill Primary Academy and Oakwell Rise Primary Academy, which are all members of the Wellspring Academy Trust. 

The Trust has put in place a single governing body for the Partnership, replacing the three former governing bodies.  Our role has three key parts:

• in consultation with the Trust, we decide the vision, ethos and strategic direction of each of the three schools;
• we hold the Executive Principal and her senior staff to account for the educational performance of the schools and their  pupils
• we oversee the financial performance of each of the three schools and make sure that money is well spent.

Details of our current governors are set out below.  They have a wide range of backgrounds, skills and experience which they bring to this important role, and meet at least every half term to look at all aspects of the life and work of the schools.  Many of the Governors are linked with specific aspects of the life of the schools and make regular reports to the governing body.

We work closely with the Executive Principal, who is supported by three Heads of Academies and other staff, and is responsible for the day to day running of the schools.  She is accountable to governors for how she does this, and frequently reports to us. 

All our work as governors has one simple aim: to make sure that our schools provide the highest standard of education and care for all our pupils, so that they have the best possible life chances. 

Meet the Team

 

Michael Sanderson  Chair of Governors Leadership and Management Lead	Michael has served on various governing bodies in Barnsley, and helped form the Barnsley Governors Association. He was a National Leader of Governance. Having trained as a statistician, Michael worked for nearly 40 years in local government, in a wide range of roles. He links with Sam Bailey, Executive Principal, in relation to Leadership and Management, and Finance.
Father Paul Cartwright Trust Appointed Vice Chair	Paul is a parish priest in Barnsley, as well as being a chaplain to Barnsley College and West Yorkshire Police, and has a background in equalities and diversity.  He is an elected member of the General Synod of the Church of England, a member of the Society for Education and Training, and has a love of music.  Paul’s link responsibility on the Governing Body is Quality of Education.
Craig Aubrey Parent Governor	Craig is one of the Parent Governors for Barnsley Primary Partnership and his two daughters attend The Forest Academy. He was born and raised in Barnsley and works for Barnsley Council as the Community Development Officer for the Central Area Team, where he leads on projects and initiatives that build stronger, safer and healthier communities.  Craig’s link responsibility on the Governing Body is Community and Stakeholder Engagement.
Ella Copping Staff Governor	Ella has over 8 years of experience working within the education sector, and is a teacher at The Forest Academy.  She was born and raised in the local area of Barnsley and has good understanding of the area.  Ella loves to spend her time outdoors and enjoys sharing her passion for the Arts in her teaching.
Laura Barraclough Staff Governor	Laura is a LKS2 teacher based at Oakwell Rise primary school in Barnsley with previous experience in both KS1/LKS2. For the last 5 years Laura has led the Art curriculum for the school and more recently, the BLPP in designing an engaging and creative curriculum for all learners .This is complimented by her being the network lead for Art for Wellspring.
Natalie Hardman   Ex-Officio Governor, Trust Representative	Natalie has eight years experience in the MAT sector with a further six years experience within education management. She was one of the founding officers at Wellspring and led the development of the infrastructure,systems and processes throughout the growth of the Trust. She is a member of the Executive Team responsible for the business support function encompassing leadership of; Governance, Marketing & Communications, Data & Information and Academy Conversions. Natalie has extensive experience as a values driven leader who champions an inclusive community culture.
Ken Mosley Trust Appointed	Ken is a retired Chartered Health & Safety Practitioner, having worked 40 years in the construction industry in UK and China in various engineering and management roles and has several years experience in corporate governance. Post retirement Ken worked for Barnsley Football Club in an advisory capacity on management procedures. Ken's link responsibility on the Governing Body is Health and Safety and Safeguarding and Attendance.
Scott Mchale Trusted Appointed	Scott is an Associate Principal, based at Victoria Primary Academy in Leeds. His main duties include being a Designated Safeguarding Lead, specialising in online safety and Curriculum Lead for the school. Over the last 12 years, Scott has supported schools with developing fun and engaging curriculums that provide high quality learning for all children, especially in Computing. This is complimented by him being the Network lead for Computing for Wellspring. Scott's link responsibilities on the Governing Body are SEND and Behaviour.
Revd Mick Neal Trust Appointed	Revd Michael A Neal (Mick) - Mick is a retired Methodist Minister and has been a school governor for 35years and has served on a number of governing bodies in Lancashire and Yorkshire. "Being able to engage with school leadership and development and see how pupils can thrive in a positive learning environment is the main reason that I am committed to this work". Mick has chaired a number of governing bodies through the challenges of amalgamation, schools that are in deprived communities and some of which have achieved "Outstanding" from OFSTED.
Jane Kirkham Parent Governor	Jane is one of the parent governors for Barnsley Primary Partnership. Jane lives and works locally. She is part of a team of ladies who help support parents/caregivers of Oakhill school and the local community at the ‘wellbeing hub’. Jane’s link responsibility on the governing body is community.
Michala Wild Trust Appointed	Michala is from Barnsley and has a background in sports development, community fundraising and currently works for a national charity that supports looked after children. Previously Michala worked for a charity that supported a number of Wellspring schools across Barnsley and Leeds with their breakfast clubs.
Katie Pierce Jessica Jenkins Lisa McCarthy Principals	Our collective Principals have served on the governing body since their employment as Principals (and previously Heads of Schools) of their respective sites. They represent: Oakwell Rise Primary Academy, Oakhill Primary Academy and The Forest Academy.

Other recent governors have included: Helen Handley, Lindsey Groom, Mitch Stringer, Richard Whitfield and Sam Bailey. 

If you are looking for information regarding joining the Governing Body or for Local Governing Body minutes, please contact the Clerk to the Governing Body: Megan Cotney on email: m.cotney@wellspringacademies.org.uk 

Please click on the following picture which will direct you to the Wellspring's Governance Page:



Click here to view Wellspring's policies and documents:



Please address all correspondence to the Chair of Governors:

Mr Michael Sanderson
Wellspring Academy Trust
Digital Media Centre
County Way, Barnsley 
South Yorkshire
S70 2JW