The Piggott School is a school with a Church Foundation. This reflects the School's history and the involvement of The Church of England in the education of young people in their communities; it does not mean our pupils or their families have to have a Christian faith, or any religious faith. But everyone is expected to respect the teachings of the Christian faith.

Foundation Governors at the Piggott School

The governing board has three core functions:

• ensure clarity of vision and strategic direction for the school
• hold the headteacher to account for pupil outcomes and quality of teaching and learning
• ensure financial probity

As the Piggott School is a Church of England School, the governing board is made up of Foundation, Parent, Co-opted and Staff Governors.  All governors have a collective responsibility to ensure the effectiveness of the school as a place of learning and as stated in the Piggott School’s Governing Body statement; ‘by using our collective expertise we enable the Piggott School Community to flourish’.

Why Foundation Governors?

The Church of England’s vision for education “is deeply Christian, with Jesus’ promise of ‘life in all its fullness’ at its heart.  In line with the Church of England’s role as the established Church, our vision is for the common good of the whole community.” 

It is a requirement of the Trust under which the Church of England Schools were established to have Foundation Governors.  Foundation Governors are full governors as are all other governors on the Board but are appointed by the Diocese to maintain the school’s distinctive Christian character.  So, while the whole governing board agrees to uphold the Christian ethos of the school, the Foundation Governors have a particular responsibility to ensure that the Christian foundation of the school is reflected in all aspects of the Piggott School.

As Foundation Governors we have a particular responsibility to:

• support and develop the distinctive Christian ethos of the school, framed within the Christian vision and values of the school, to deliver outstanding education to all students
• strengthen the links between the school and local churches and communities
• ensure effective collective worship and religious education provision
• live according to the vision and values of the school:

‘Go and do likewise’ Luke 10:25 - 37, The Parable of the Good Samaritan

We live with love and compassion, seeking help in times of need

Currently, the Foundation Governors’ worship at one of the local parish churches of St Andrew’s, St Mary’s Twyford and St Mary’s Wargrave. 

A significant development in recent years has been the establishment of a Chaplaincy at Piggott School.  Westy, youth worker at St Andrew’s Church, is the school Chaplain and works one day a week at the Piggott and through his work has further strengthened the strong pastoral structure in place for students and enabled regular prayer meetings for staff.  The SMSC (Spiritual, moral, social & cultural) committee also upholds the responsibilities of Foundation Governors through its work which to date has included monitoring around: school vision, RE, Collective worship, Chaplaincy, Reflection spaces, staff wellbeing, British values, charitable giving, and SIAMS (Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools).

The Governors' SMSC Committee meets termly. This committee has the responsibility for measuring the impact that the Christian vision of the school has on students and adults, the provision the school makes because of this vision and how effective this provision is in enabling all students to flourish.