St Brigid’s School Standards Committee (SSC)

An Overview

St Brigid's Catholic Primary School is part of the Lumen Christi Catholic Multi Academy which comprises of seven local Catholic schools in South West Birmingham and one in the East of Birmingham.

• St Brigid’s Catholic Primary School
• St Paul's Catholic Primary School
• St Columba's Catholic Primary School
• St Joseph's Catholic Primary School
• St James' Catholic Primary School
• St John Fisher Catholic Primary School
• St Thomas More Primary School
• St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Secondary School

The Lumen Christi Multi Academy is governed by a Board of Directors, who delegate certain responsibilities to each school through their School Standards Committees. The School Standards Committee’s primary role is to oversee the strategic management of the school on behalf of the Board of Directors. They check that the aims and objectives of the school are being delivered, discuss and approve proposals for various policies, check that the budgets and spending plans are all correct, highlight any areas of concern and offer advice and suggestions.

School Standards Committee (SSC)

St. Brigid’s has a School Standards Committee made up of 9 members including the Principal.

• 5 Foundation Representatives who are practicing Catholics and are appointed by the Diocese. They are usually members of St Brigid’s parish, often with direct links to the school.
• 2 Parent Representatives who are nominated and elected by the parents of the school.
• 1 Staff Representative who is nominated and elected by the staff of the school.
• School Principal

Our current School Standards Committee is:

Mr Noel Sutton                        (Foundation)              CHAIR

Mrs Jane Hodgkinson             (Foundation)               VICE CHAIR

Mr Chris Hughes                     (Foundation)

Mr John McHugh                    (Foundation)

Mrs Florence Njere                 (Foundation)

Vacant                                     (Parent)

Mrs Siobhan Tyrie                   (Parent)

Mr Andrew Carry                     (Principal)

Mrs Caroline Chapman           (Observer)

Mrs Tracey Edwards               (Staff Governor)

Mrs Jeanette Foster              Clerk to the SSC

The full SSC meet six times per year - once each half term - plus any additional ‘extraordinary' meetings and training days as and when they are required, for example, to approve a new policy due to new legislation or to discuss an Ofsted / CSI report.  

During 2020-2021, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the SSC virtually met more regularly to agree risk assessments, policies and keep up to date on the changes to school life.

Other Activities

The Representatives are invited to get as involved in school life as often as they can. Individual Representatives are linked to a particular House or Subject which involves them coming into school and meeting with the teachers, getting to know the students through attending assemblies, Masses and other events thus supporting the school in any way they can. Through meeting two or three times a year with the Subject Leader they can get a really good idea of how it all works and offer advice and suggestions if required.

Being a member of the SSC is an enormously challenging but very rewarding experience. It provides an opportunity to develop new skills and strengthen existing ones. We each have the chance to increase our understanding of areas such as finance, personnel, and strategic planning, gaining a greater awareness of the education system as a whole and, most importantly, get a huge sense of satisfaction knowing the children benefit from our efforts.