Governors
Our Governors
Fairfield Academy is governed by an Academy Scrutiny Committee.
Our governors are:
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Kizzi MatangaPrincipal
Kizzi Matanga
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Michael TrussellTrust Senior Link
Michael Trussell
Michael started his career as an NQT in the David Ross Education Trust at Havelock Academy in 2009, initially as a Teacher of ICT and then taking up the post of Assistant Principal in May 2015. During his time at Havelock Academy, Michael has held various leadership positions including Head of Key Stage 3, Subject Leader of ICT and Director of IT.
In his current role as Assistant Principal, Michael has overseen the implementation of successful early careers teacher CPD programmes, established strong partnerships with a variety of ITE partners across Lincolnshire and East Yorkshire and implemented at Havelock the early rollout of the ECF Framework. He has also been a part of the University of Hull's PGCE Secondary Standing Committee. Since 2018, Michael has led on the Trust's Northern SchoolDirect Partnerships.
In 2005, Michael was recognised by the British Computer Society for his performance in A-level ICT, collecting an award at a special event held in London for achieving the top mark for the qualification across all candidate entries. Michael was also nominated for the award of 'Teacher of the Year in a Secondary School' as part of the Pearson Teaching Awards in 2018.
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Nicola GreenDRET Appointed Governor (Chair)
Nicola Green
Nicki was appointed a DRET Appointed Governor on 6 March 2019. She was elected Chair of the ASC by her fellow governors on 17 March 2020. She wanted to learn more about school governance and the primary school education to give her a better insight into her own teaching practice. She also has the assigned link roles for SEND and Literacy. Nicki is a full time modern foreign language teacher in a secondary academy and is also studying for a PhD in Education at Lincoln University. She loves languages, singing and walking.
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Zachary HeywoodDRET Appointed Governor
Zachary Heywood
Zachary was appointed a DRET Appointed Governor on 24 December 2020. He wishes to make a positive impact on his local community, and schools. He is currently a trainee solicitor, working on becoming fully qualified in the next few years. He brings to the committee both legal and local knowledge. Zachary enjoys Swimming, playing musical instruments and jogging.
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Alan TregunnoDRET Appointed Governor (Vice Chair)
Alan Tregunno
Alan joined the ASC as a DRET Appointed Governor on 20 July 2021. He is interested in the future of young peoples education and wishes to support them to get ready for the real world of the working life. Alan is also a governor at Edward Heneage Primary Academy, appointed in 2020, and has the assigned link role for SEND. He has a full-time career in Manufacturing, including teaching / Assessing and training of people from diverse backgrounds within the manufacturing Industries. Alan joined the ASC with an open mind and gives unbiased opinions. Alans interests include DIY, Outdoor pursuits, walking, Cycling and camping. He is also Treasurer of an Allotment association.
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Marc SummersellStaff Governor
Marc Summersell
Marc was appointed a Staff Governor on 4 December 2020. He has been employed at the academy as a Caretaker since early 2019 and believes his role offers a different objective insight to academy life. He feels it is important that the academy is both productive and a safe environment for the pupils to get their maximum benefit from their time there. Prior to this role, Marc was a Police Officer (both in the RAF and Humberside Police) for a total of 32 years. His many years of Policing have allowed him to gain experience in many areas which contribute to his governor role. He is very Family orientated and enjoys training at the gym, and since retiring from the Police have taken up competing in Amateur Strongman Competitions for fun.
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Tristan CreightonStaff Governor
Tristan Creighton
Tristan was elected by Staff to join the ASC as a Staff Governor on 4 December 2020. He wanted to join the ASC to become more familiar with the inner workings of the academy and support his development into the Vice Principal role. Tristan is a Y5 Teacher and Reading Lead going into VP secondment for 2021/22. He enjoys exercise and keeping fit and reading.
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Siobhan HardyParent Governor
Siobhan Hardy
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Ashley LucasParent Governor
Ashley Lucas
Ashley was appointed a Parent Governor on 2 December 2021. He decided to become a governor so he could support the school with their SEMH and Behaviour Approaches. Ashley currently works as the Behaviour Lead at two local Pupil Referral Units in Grimsby. He has a huge passion for supporting young people with their behaviour and SEMH, and more recently supporting staff in schools to better support the children they work with. In addition to this role he also works as part of a Teaching School Behaviour Outreach. In this role he delivers training plus short and long term SEMH support in schools. Prior to this job Ashley served in the Army for 10 years in the Royal Engineers. Outside of work Ashley has a huge passion for martial arts and psychology as well as spending time outdoors walking amongst the mountains and hills.
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Anna ChesterClerk
Anna Chester
Anna has been clerking academies within the Trust since September 2020. Prior to that she spent 33 years working for HM Revenue and Customs, specialising in complaints investigation, including Adjudicator and MP cases. Anna is also Vice Chair and DRET Appointed Governor at Humberston Academy. Anna enjoys gardening, walking her dog and visiting museums and other cities around the world.
Governor Assigned Responsibilities
Literacy, English and SEND - Nicola Green
Art, Music and Pupil Premium - Michael Trussell
Mathematics - Siobhan Hardy
Contacting a Governor
To contact a governor, please contact the Trust Governance Team by emailing governorservices@dret.co.uk
Scheme of Delegation
Information about the David Ross Education Trust’s scheme of delegation is available here.
Minutes of the Academy Scrutiny Committee
Should you wish to view a copy of the minutes of the ASC at this academy, please contact the Trust Governance Team, who will be able to provide you with an electronic or paper copy of the minutes.
Are you interested in becoming an academy governor?
We are looking for new governors to support our academies. Our governors work closely with their academies to support the Trust’s goal of broadening the horizons of young people through a world-class education, equipping our students with the skills and experiences to become their confident, academic best, no matter what.
If you have an interest in, 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 governor application form. If you have any questions about a governor’s role or responsibilities please contact us at governorservices@dret.co.uk
What skills, experience and commitment are required?
Governors attend six Academy Scrutiny Committee meetings a year (this may vary slightly depending on the academy) and are asked to support and enrich the academy in a range of other ways including:
- Undertaking school visits outside Academy Scrutiny Committee meetings.
- Taking on a ‘link’ governor role, liaising with academy staff and other governors on areas such as safeguarding, special educational needs and other academy priority areas.
- Sitting on panels related to the school, eg, appeals, complaints, exclusions.
- Participating in the Trust’s governor training and development programme.
We are looking for local people who would be committed to supporting the Trust’s goals. You need time, enthusiasm and a deep commitment to support these academies to be the best they can for their communities. A programme of induction, training and support is provided and expenses are covered. The Academy Scrutiny Committee role outline can be found here.
How does governance work at DRET?
At DRET, the Academy Scrutiny Committee provides support and challenge to the Principal in ensuring every child makes good or better progress and that the Academy is achieving targets and continually improving. To maximise the ability of the local governors to focus on this key area the Academy Scrutiny Committee is not required to set strategy or policy, manage financial resources, staff performance and pay, Health and Safety or many of the other areas traditionally associated with a maintained school governing body as these issues are dealt with at Trust level. This means that governors are able to concentrate on the things that really matter – pupil progress, school outcomes and aspiration.
The Academy Scrutiny Committee consists of a group of people who could be parents, community nominees, academy staff, Trust staff and Diocesan members. Each Academy Scrutiny Committee normally consists of 11-15 governors creating a balanced group of experience, skills and connections to support the academy in achieving exceptional performance.
In summary, the key responsibilities of the Academy Scrutiny Committee are:
- Understanding and promoting the Trust’s and the Academy’s vision and ethos.
- Scrutiny and challenge of achievement of targets, school improvement and pupil outcomes. Escalation of any concerns to the Trustees via the Executive.
- Supporting and facilitating parental and community engagement.
The difference between a DRET Academy Scrutiny Committees and a traditional school Governing Body
By comparison to a traditional school Governing Body:
- The Academy Scrutiny Committee’s role is not to “manage” the Academy. This is done through the Trust’s executive management structure (ie Principal, Regional Directors, Executive Management Team) and the Trust Board. Therefore, the Academy Scrutiny Committee is not required to take decisions on staff or financial matters affecting the Academy. As an Academy Scrutiny Committee Member you should have an understanding of strategic issues that impact on the Academy, and be updated on them regularly by the Principal, but you are not required to have direct responsibility for them. Instead the Academy Scrutiny Committee should be in a position to assess the impact of the Academy locally; how it is contributing to the local community, how it is relating to local families and how it understands local issues.
- As the Executive Management and Trust Board takes responsibility for setting educational standards, legal compliance and financial viability, the Academy Scrutiny Committee then has the time to scrutinise and challenge achievement of targets and school improvement, investigate the standards on the ground, to see how they are working, and explore how the Trust ethos is being understood and expressed in the way the Academy operates. As an Academy Scrutiny Committee member, your view as a parent, member of staff or as part of the community is vital in this discussion.
