Meet the Governors

Since September 2018, our school has been federated with St. Patrick’s R.C. Primary School. When the schools joined Emmaus Catholic Academy Trust in April 2025 they became, ‘The Partnership of St. Edmund’s and St. Patrick’s’. We have one governing body which is made up of representatives of the Church, parents, teachers and Associate Governors. The function of school governors is an important one. As Catholic schools we are required to assist Catholic parents in their duty of educating their children. Governors of our schools, and in particular foundation governors, have a responsibility to ensure that, at all times, the schools are conducted in accordance with the Diocesan Trust Deed and serve as a witness to Jesus Christ in every aspect of our work.

The Local Governing Board of the Federation of St. Edmund’s and St. Patrick’s

As a school that is part of the Emmaus Catholic trust, our Governors form a local governing board (LGB) within the multi-academy trust.

The LGB is a subcommittee of the Trust.

The existence of the LGB supports the Trust's ethos and the aligned autonomy of the school.

The Governors are made up of various groups including:

·         Foundation Governors (representing the Bishop)

·         Parent Governors

·         Staff Governors

·         Associate Governors

Foundation Governors are appointed by the Bishop    

Parent and Staff Governors are Elected while Associate Governors are invited to join the LGB for their expertise.

Terms of office as per the Trust Scheme of Delegation.  Responsibilities include:

·         Appointing and dismissing staff

·         Setting the Admission Policies

·         Establishing and monitoring the curriculum

·         Health and Safety

·         Safeguarding

And many other areas determined by the Trust. These can be found on the Emmaus website under the section Policies/Scheme of Delegation.

Governors hold six LGB meetings per year. 

 

Who are they?

 

Our Local Governing Board is as follows:

 

Yvonne Kinsey, Chair of Governors

My name is Yvonne Kinsey and as a former pupil of St. Patrick’s I was delighted to be nominated by the parish priest to become a governor. Since my own children and other family members are also former pupils, St Patrick’s School and parish has always been a part of my family life. I have many years experience of working in a primary school and I have worked with vulnerable children who have additional needs. This is something I am passionate about and therefore I am the link governor for Safeguarding & Child Protection, Looked After Children, SEN/D, the Equality Duty, pupil & staff welfare. I work closely with Mrs Shaw, our SENDCo and the two Deputy Headteachers at both schools regarding the effectiveness of safeguarding. You will most probably see me at church celebrations as I am also a catechist for the Sacramental Programme.

 

Mary Arnold

My name is Mary Arnold and I have been involved with the two schools since 2017. My experience in education is quite substantial; I was previously a Deputy Headteacher of a Catholic High School, I have worked in numerous schools supporting all areas of school improvement and my current roles include Quality Assurance and Moderation for Manchester Local Authority.  I have a vast amount of experience in governance as I have been on various IEBs (Interim Executive Boards) as well as providing training for governing boards. But, my heart is in Collyhurst!  My primary school was St. Patrick’s and I know the community here very well. I am passionate about standards in education and I joined the governing body because I want to ensure that all of our children get the best possible start in life and the education they so deserve. Therefore, it is important to me that certain grants like the pupil premium, sports & covid catch up are spent appropriately.

 

Peter Clough

My name is Peter Clough and I have been a governor at St. Edmund’s for over 15 years and am delighted to be part of the federation as we continue our work.  I enjoy working collaboratively with other governors to improve the lives of children in this locality. I am particularly interested in the health and safety of our children and staff and therefore the work we undertake on the resources committee is invaluable. I love keeping in regular contact with the schools and make the most of technology by following our facebook pages & websites. I am the link governor for health & safety in both schools.

 

Miss Loughrey, Staff governor

 I am proud to be have been elected by colleagues to join the governing board in June 2025 and I joined school leadership as Assistant Headteacher in September 2025.  I am passionate about ‘staff voice’, their welfare, workload & well-being. I’m proud to represent all staff so that they have a voice when making important decisions about shaping the future of our schools.

 

Mr Omotolani Dawodu

 My name is Omotolani Dawodu and I joined the governing body in September 2022. My youngest child attends St. Edmund’s and I am delighted and feel privileged to have been elected by parents of the school. I have over 20 years management experience in Accounting and Finance sector including the last 10 years in Fin Tech holding governance positions. My motivation to join the Governing Body is to bring in more parental perspectives to decisions that are made for the benefit of the children and school at large. I love to use my skills and knowledge (where needed) to ‘give back’ and support maintaining the high standards.

 

Reverend Father Paul Daly, Ex-Officio

I was delighted to join the governing board in September 2022 when I joined the parish. I have a wealth of experience in governance and understand the impact strong governance can have on schools. I will support school leaders to put the Church’s mission into practice by celebrating and embracing the diversity in our parish schools. Of course I enjoy working with parents and children; particularly those who are following the Sacramental Programme and those transitioning to High Schools.  I work very closely with the Executive Headteacher to ensure the Catholic life of both schools is at the forefront of our priorities.

 

All of our governors can be contacted by leaving a message at either school office.

St. Edmund’s: 0161 205 1700 St. Patrick’s: 0161 834 9004

MEMBERSHIP in 2024-25

Name	Appointed by & Term of office	Links within school	Pecuniary Interests	Attendance
Yvonne Kinsey	4 years 01/04/25-31/08/26	Safeguarding & Child Protection, PREVENT, LAC, SEND, Equality duty, pupil & staff welfare	No	71% in 2024-25
Mary Arnold	4 years 01/04/25-31/08/26	Catholic life of the schools, Pupil Premium, Sports, Covid Catch up grants	Yes Works as a consultant for school improvement	100% in 2024-25
Peter Clough	4 years 01/04/25-31/08/26	Health & Safety	No	100% in 2024-25
Mr O. Dawoda	Parent Governor:   4 years 01/04/25-31/08/26	Parent voice	No	70% in 2024-25
Abby Loughrey	Staff Governor:   4 years 01/06/25-31/05/26	Staff Voice	No	100% in 2024-25
Reverend Father Paul Daly	Ex Officio	Catholic life of the schools	No	11.1% in 2024-25
Patrick McMahon	Ex Officio – Executive Headteacher	N/A	No	N/A
Resignations in 2024-25
Peter Aulton		SLT, Quality Assurance, Performance Management, CPD	Yes Daughter on the teaching staff	92.3% in 2024-25
Anne Clinton	Ex Officio	N/A	Yes Siblings on the teaching staff	100% in 2024-25
Angela Fisher		RE, Reading, English	No	93.3% in 2024-25
Kristian Cope		Finance, Premises, transition to Y7	No	60% in 2024-25
John Mensah		Parent voice, finance	No	22.2% in 2024-25
Mrs Natalie Gordon		Staff voice, the curriculum including Early Years	No	100% in 2024-25