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Governance
Welcome from the Chair
Thank you for your interest in the Governance of Stanmore College, a flourishing College based in North West London. We provide post-16yr academic and vocational education at our main Stanmore campus. We also collaborate with multiple sites across London to make our programmes available more widely. Our aim is to consistently deliver outstanding teaching and learning to achieve strong outcomes for our students.
Over the last few years, we have seen steady performance improvement, financial stability and growth. Our Governing Body is passionate about helping our students and community get the skills they need for the careers of today and the future.
We believe that strong leadership and effective governance are fundamental to our success. We regularly review our governance model and ensure our board reflects a diverse representation from varied industries, as well as from staff and students. The recruitment of outstanding leaders is a key priority for us. If you would like to be considered for our Board Membership please see below for details on how to become a Governor.
We are proud of the college, its achievements, and honoured to be a part of its continued growth and advancements.
Gideon Schulman
Chair of the Board of Governors
Become a Governor
As a governor, you will serve in a voluntary capacity, bringing your skills, expertise, and experience to a vital role. This position carries significant responsibility, and you will be expected to adhere to the seven principles of public life, known as the Nolan Principles. You will also need to sign a code of conduct that outlines what is expected of you as a board member, as well as what you can anticipate from your service on the Board.
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Becoming a Governor
The Board has a Governance Committee that oversees the recruitment of new Governors. The standard term of office for an external Governor (someone who isn’t a staff or student governor) is four years. We do not have a regular recruitment cycle, instead, we look to replace members who are nearing the end of their term or who are unable to continue serving.
Each year, the Board conducts a skills audit to ensure that the expertise of members aligns with the college’s needs, and recruitment usually focuses on filling specific gaps in our skills matrix. -
What is expected?
All governors serve on the Board and participate in at least one additional committee. Your commitment will involve attending four Board meetings and three committee meetings each year, along with participating in a training day, typically held on a Saturday. Meetings last about 1½ to 2 hours on average, while the training day lasts approximately 6 hours. This means your full year commitment will be around 30 hours.
As a Governor, you are encouraged to attend college events such as award evenings, employer events, networking, or other such occasions. Additionally, we have a Governor engagement program that allows you to explore different aspects of the college in more detail.
While Governors are not paid for their work, you can claim travel expenses.
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Governor Recruitment Leaflet
Click here to view the Governor recruitment leaflet.
Board Members
Rabbi Gideon Schulman
Chair of the Board of Governors, Chair of Governance Committee
In May 2017, Gideon joined the board of Governors and became Chair in 2019. He is a semi-retired Chief Executive of a business services company, which provides accountancy, HR, financial, and payroll solutions, following a 20-year career as a senior international HR professional.
Sundeep Bhandari
Vice Chair of the Board of Governors, Vice Chair of Governance Committee
Sundeep is an Independent Non-Executive Director with Ghana International, PNB International, and British Arab Commercial Bank, where he chairs the Board Risk Committee.
Annette Cast
Principal and Ex-Officio Governor
Annette Cast joined Stanmore College as Principal on 1st August 2022.
Kate Parsley
Chair of Renumeration Committee, Safeguarding Link Governor
Kate Parsley has over 17 years’ experience in the London public sector, predominantly in public health, including leading interventions in FE Colleges and NEET programmes.
Paul Goodman
Governor
Paul is a CFO and Commercial Director with extensive experience in the creative, events, hospitality, fashion, travel, retail and e-commerce sectors of industry.
Ying Kay
Governor
Ying is the Chief Finance Officer at an American university located in London. She brings extensive expertise in finance and accounting, complemented by an MBA in Higher Education Management, making her a highly skilled leader in her field.
Mike Bluestone
Governor
Mike serves as Director of Security Consulting at Corps Security, bringing 25 years of senior level experience in private security.
Hannah Butland
Governor
Hannah has 15 years experience as a teacher during which she specialised in A Level teaching and was a Deputy Head.
Julian Davies
Governor
Julian’s career is distinguished by his leadership in professional and higher education, marked by successful academic and commercial client delivery.
Ramin Hashemian
Academic Staff Governor
Ramin has worked at Stanmore College for a number of years and is a highly achieved teacher of ESOL (English as a second language). Ramin is especially passionate about delivering quality curriculum while incorporating cultural awareness. He has successfully incorporating a new IELTS course in the college’s provision. Ramin previously worked in the Film and TV industry after graduating from one of the UK’s top film schools. He produced his own independent drama and a daily English language chat show in Dubai! In his spare time Ramin is a keen photographer.
Zaid Gandhi
Support Staff Governor
Zaid is a qualified Software Engineer with a solid foundation in Systems and Data Engineering and has been a dedicated professional at the college for several years now.
Ambassadors
The college is pleased to appoint the following distinguished people as Ambassadors of the college. We thank them for their efforts to continuously improve the college and support positive outcomes for our students.
Dr Arthur Terrence David Butland OBE
Ambassador
Dr Arthur Terrence David Butland OBE, known as Dr Terry Butland, is a physicist, who has worked at very senior levels in the British nuclear industry, and in British higher education, becoming Deputy Vice Chancellor and Deputy Chief Executive of Middlesex University.
Councillor Jean Lammiman
Ambassador
Councillor Jean Lammiman was elected local Councillor for the Hatch End ward of the London Borough of Harrow in 1994, and was elected as Mayor of Harrow in May 2007.
Viresh Paul
Ambassador
Immediate Past President, London Society of Chartered Accountants at ICAEW, and local business owner of a growth focussed accountancy practice.
The Recruitment Process
A description of the role outlining the responsibilities of a Board member is available by request. If you would like to learn more about serving on the Board, please email our Human Resources Manager, Sayma Shah or contact us.
If you’re interested in becoming a governor, here’s how the recruitment process works:
Initial Interest
After expressing your interest, you will have an informal briefing with the Director of Governance and Principal to discuss the role, responsibilities, and your suitability.
Application
If you decide to apply and there is a vacancy, you will need to submit details such as your CV and a supporting statement to the Governance Committee, which will then conduct an interview.
Recommendation
If you are deemed suitable, the Governance Committee will recommend you to the Board for approval of your nomination.
What Committees Do
Each committee reviews policies, documents, and proposals in detail, tracking progress and activities throughout the year. They report their findings and recommended actions to the Board at termly meetings.
The audit committee oversees risk management will meet with internal and external auditors. They typically gather once a term, and include the Principal and Deputy Principal to participate in their reviews.
Governor Committees
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The Curriculum and Quality Terms of ReferenceDownload
- Last updated: 09.12.24
- Type: PDF
- Size: 80kB
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The Governance Committee Terms of ReferenceDownload
- Last updated: 09.12.24
- Type: PDF
- Size: 112kB
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The Resources Committee Terms of ReferenceDownload
- Last updated: 09.12.24
- Type: PDF
- Size: 81kB
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The Audit Committee Terms of ReferenceDownload
- Last updated: 09.12.24
- Type: PDF
- Size: 149kB
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Capital Build Working Party Terms of ReferenceDownload
- Last updated: 09.12.24
- Type: PDF
- Size: 113kB
Governance Minutes
Board Effectiveness 5 Year Review 2023
Review can be found below, next review due 2028
Summary of findings:
Within the overall review of the Board’s effectiveness, there is an appropriate governance function at Stanmore college, increasingly enabling the Board to address the challenges of their sector.
This summary of review outcomes should be read in conjunction with the full report as the report contains important contextual information, rationale, and evidence for all the recommendations made. The review considered the Board’s effectiveness and governance maturity across the 5 principal areas.
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Team
The Board has sought to recruit members with diversity of skills, expertise, and thought, to bring different perspectives to discussions and decisions. Setting out a detailed strategy/principles/KPIs for greater diversity and inclusion at Board level could support this work further. Board members understand how their skills and expertise are relevant to the college’s work and are committed to improving governance. Succession planning for both the Executive and the Board could be more formal as this is a key risk area, and therefore requires greater clarity. Using exit interviews is a fantastic way to support succession and governance improvement and should be considered.
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Alignment
The Board has been engaged in strategic planning discussions, agreeing the vision, values, and ethos of the college, and reviews risks on a regular basis. Expanding the governors strategic role to include a more generative mode of governance, could strengthen the Board’s alignment behind the strategy. As the Board becomes more familiar with the Local Skills Improvement Plan and the college’s Accountability Agreement, it’s members should gain a deeper understanding of local skills need, both immediate and future, and how the college’s curriculum plan aligns with this.
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Enabling
Board members, which include a number of new members, are growing in confidence in their role as critical friend, providing constructive challenge. Members are committed and are keen to participate and feel appreciated. Members feel able to contribute freely and willingly to discussions in meetings. More detail in executive reports on the decision-making process underlying presented recommendations and actions, including implications on stakeholders and on the achievement of the strategic objectives, could give board members greater confidence in the decisions they make.
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Relationships
There is a satisfactory level of candour and mutual respect between governors and between governors and the senior team. More opportunities for social interaction between governors and between governors and the Executive will continue to support relationships built on trust and openness. The Board seeks engagement with all stakeholders and wishes to see this element of the role increase, enabling greater triangulation of executive information and more understanding of the implications of discussions and decisions on stakeholders.
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Governance Roles & Structures
The Governance Professional has collaborated closely with a National Leader of Governance to ensure governance structures and processes are appropriate, and statutory and regulatory compliance is being met. Roles and responsibilities are set out clearly in documentation and could be further clarified through the issuing of a Letter of Engagement to board members, and as part of a personalised induction program.
Board Effectiveness 5 Year Review
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EGR Report October 2023Download
- Last updated: 16.12.24
- Type: PDF
- Size: 660kB