Meet the Governors

We currently have 13 governors* on the school’s Governing Body. They are:

• Mrs Sarah Griggs
  Co-Headteacher/Associate governor**
  Mrs Sarah Griggs

  I have been a headteacher since 2006. In that time the school has grown from a smaller than average 4-11 school to a large primary school with a nursery. As a small school with a small leadership team initially, there was a need for me to rapidly develop the needs of every aspect of school life. Now as a larger and expanding school there is an ever changing need for new skill sets and an increasing amount of HR and personnel matters.

• Mrs Claire Griffiths
  Co-Headteacher/ Associate Governor**
  Mrs Claire Griffiths

  I have been working in schoolsï ¿ ½since 1994 (hard to believe as I look so young!)

  I like the fact that every day is different and that the children bringï ¿ ½new ideas each day as well.

  My favourite thing - Teaching a lesson and all the children leave with a big smile, knowing they have enjoyed learning and understanding something new.

  A word to describe me "Tenacious!"

• Mrs Jackie O'Toole
  Vice Chair
  Mrs Jackie O'Toole

  I have been a Governor at Valley View forï ¿ ½many years.

  I previously worked within the service industry focusing on provision ofï ¿ ½ Facilities Management Services to both private and public sector clients.ï ¿ ½

  I've accrued many years of experience dealing both with procurement and negotiation of legally binding contracts with a keen focus on detailed financial information.ï ¿ ½ I now work part time within the banking industry so am very used to dealing with numbers!

  I have held a management position with responsibilities including the recruitment, induction and on-going support of a team along with the requirement to discipline and (where necessary) dismiss staff.ï ¿ ½ In addition to people management, I had direct responsibility for budgeting, forecasting and ultimate control of finances.ï ¿ ½

  Having spent over twenty years working with large organisations, I have a clear understanding of regulatory requirements.

  I am now the very proud mother of three children (2 of which are at Valley View).ï ¿ ½ I have a keen interest in special educational needs, particularly for those children on the Autistic Spectrum.

• Mrs Lesley Dawson
  Co-opted Governor
  Mrs Lesley Dawson

  As a former police detective working in child abuse, vice and child protection I have extensive knowledge and experience of dealing with children and perpetrators of crime against children.ï ¿ ½

  I have been a day nursery and childcare provider for children from birth to 13 years, for the past 19 years.ï ¿ ½

  I have extensive knowledge of personnel and HR issues, finance and business management.ï ¿ ½ Have some knowledge of marketing and as a company we are going through a re-brand process which is increasing my knowledge and understanding particularly of ï ¿ ½newï ¿ ½ types of marketing such as social media.ï ¿ ½

  I have experience of bidding processes and applications for funding.

  I have good communication and interpersonal skills.ï ¿ ½ Not afraid to deal with conflict and happy to challenge.ï ¿ ½

  I have three sons myself who are now grown up and doing well, so have experience of their education and my expectations are that the children at Valley View will have the same quality of education that my sons had.ï ¿ ½

• Mr Russell Atkins
  Co-opted Governor
  Mr Russell Atkins

  My name is Russell Atkins. I am currently employed by Leeds City Council within the Taxi and Private Hire Licensing Department. In my role as an Enforcement Officer, I am responsible for ensuring the compliance of Taxi and Private Hire drivers, their vehicles, and the companies that they work for. A major part of my role is investigative work, investigating criminal offences regarding licensing legislation and serious public complaints against license holders. Â

  When not at work, I volunteer as a Special Constable with West Yorkshire Police. This is something I am very proud of and really enjoy doing. I feel that I am able to support my local community through policing by making people safe and feel safer. I have been a Special Constable for six years, working in the first instance at Pudsey Police Station and then more recently transferring to Elland Road Police Station in order to step up into a supervisory position. Â

  Alongside my volunteering as a Police Officer, I am also a Civilian Instructor with the Royal Air Force Air Cadets, at 44F (City of Bradford) Squadron. During my teen years I was myself an Air Cadet and attended my local Unit at Thornbury Barracks. I feel that my time with the RAFAC shaped me into the man I am today, giving me life skills, confidence, self-discipline, and pride, enabling me to be the best person that I can be. After aging out of the organisation as a cadet at the age of 20 over 5 years ago, this year I have returned to the Organisation at the request of the Officer Commanding 44F Squadron. As they had lost a huge number of cadets through the COVID-19 pandemic, I was tasked with taking a lead on the recruitment for the Squadron, and I have taken the numbers from 4 cadets when I arrived in April to 28 now, with a further 39 recruits who will begin with us in January 2022. To me it is a privilege to be able to provide the youth of today with the same experiences I was lucky enough to have as a cadet.

  With regards to Valley View, I feel I have a strong connection to the school. I was part of the first group of Year 6 children to be at the school in 2006 after the closures of Rodley and Aire View Primary Schools. I then returned to the school in order to complete two weeks of work experience while I was at High School, and I also now have two nieces in the school. On my recent visit to the school to meet with the Co-Headteachers in order to discuss the roll of a Governor, I was astounded to see the vast changes and improvements to the building. I could see that the children had a wonderful learning environment and could sense a feeling of safety, security and a warmness that must be very inviting to the children and encourages their learning.

  I would consider it to be an honour to be a part of this schools Board of Governors, to have a part in helping to continue its success and assist with taking the school where it is aiming, and it deserves to be.

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• Mr George Cull
  Co-opted Governor
  Mr George Cull

  I joined as a parent governor in May 2022 and I am the parent of Eleanor who started at Valley View in September 2021.

  I want to be a governor to be part of supporting Valley View to provide that great experience of school for all pupils and families.

  I bring  skills and experience from working as part of the leadership team of a sport and physical activity charity, supporting staff and overseeing the financial management of the organisation.

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  In my day to day work I have lots of contact with schools and headteachers in North Yorkshire and  will bring that understanding and insight from this work. Â

  Outside of work, and when I am not acting as a chauffeur for Eleanor, I keep active by playing football and competing in triathlon and this demonstrates why I am particularly keen to ensure that health and wellbeing provides a strong foundation for children to learn and grow.

• Mrs Clare Gregory
  Staff Governor
  Mrs Clare Gregory

• Mrs Amy Urmston
  Staff Governor
  Mrs Amy Urmston

• Vacancy*
  Co-opted Governor
  Vacancy*

  
  We currently have one vacancy on our Governing Body. If you are interested please contact the school office for more details. Â

• Vacancy
  Parent Governor
  Vacancy

• Vacancy
  Parent Governor
  Vacancy

• Mrs Amy Smith
  Previous Parent Governor
  Mrs Amy Smith

  I am the parent of Rosie who attends Valley View.

  I have worked as an Early Years and Primary School teacher for the last nine years. I am passionate about providing the best experiences for the children I teach and ensuring they are happy at school. I applied for the position of parent governor as I felt I had the time and commitment to give to another school and I strongly believe every child deserves access to a high-quality education.

  Previously I have been a staff governor at my place of work, so have a good knowledge of how to support and challenge the school. I have previously attended governor training which proved really useful to the role and I am keen to learn more through further training.

  I am competent in both Literacy and Numeracy and I take a lead on the Design Technology curriculum at the school I work at. To improve the outcomes for my class I regularly analyse data and feel this a skill which will be needed as a governor.

  I volunteer for a charity supporting bereaved parents. I run monthly support meetings which give parents a safe space to talk openly and my role is to listen, offer comfort and support.

• Mrs Judith Monaghan
  Previous Vice Chair (until July 2024)
  Mrs Judith Monaghan

  I have been the Chair of Governors at Valley View since 2010.ï ¿ ½ Throughout this time I have enjoyed watching the school grow and develop into the thriving, successful school it is today.ï ¿ ½ One of my children attended Valley View many years ago therefore I have first hand experience of what it is like to be a parent of a child at this school.

  I am particularly proud of the school's sporting achievements in recent years.ï ¿ ½ Sport plays a big part in my family life and I was delighted when I found out that the School had won the Leeds Platinum Award in 2017.ï ¿ ½ This shows how the school values sport and promotes the enjoyment of sport for all pupils and families.

  I currently work for theï ¿ ½government's department of Work and Pensions and have done so for many years.

• Kate Senior
  Previous Co-opted Governor
  Kate Senior

• Andrea Lindop
  Previous Staff Governor
  Andrea Lindop

  I started working in schools in 2011 and have been a teacher at Valley View since 2015.

  Everyday is different, which is always exciting and it keeps everyone on their toes. One of the best things about working in schools is definitely working with such dedicated staff and children. It is always such a pleasure to see children succeed and to watch their learning journeys throughout their years at school.

  So many funny things happen daily that it would be so hard to choose just one moment. I guess that is what makes this job so special! But one of the best things I love about working in schools is giving children opportunities. For example, seeing children on school trips is always so wonderful and seeing the big, beaming smiles on their faces says it all really!ï ¿ ½

  A word to describe me is 'dedicated'.

• Becky Maston
  Previous Staff Governor
  Becky Maston

  I have been working in schools since 2015.

  One thing I love about teaching is the variety that every day brings. One hour you can be teaching about the Rivers of the world, then in the next hour you can be learning how to using coding software on the computer! You can also always count on the children to bring variety to your day as you never quite know which direction their inquisitive minds will take the learning.

  One of the funniest things that has happened to me as a teacher is on many occasions being mistaken as one of the children in the class! At 5ft tall, you easily blend into a crowd of Key Stage 2 children!

  The one word that describes me as a professional is 'energetic'.

* We currently have one vacancy for a Co-opted governor.

**The two headteachers currently share the Headteacher and Associate governor roles, therefore when it comes to voting the headteachers share one vote.