The Horizon Local Committee met regularly throughout the year. In September 2022 we held a special meeting where our yearly training on safeguarding for governors was delivered and where we agreed our priorities for the year, which were subsequently added to the College SIP. In June 2023, our meeting considered the progress we had made against our priorities, including what we had done well and what could be improved in our governance practice. Our discussions covered issues such as getting the balance right between support and challenge and looking at a skills audit of the local governing body. 

 Local governors monitored progress against the SIP and ensured we carried out our responsibilities in line with the College’s vision and strategy. We did this by holding  at least one business meeting and one training meeting per term. Business meeting agendas covered the Principal’s report including data and commentary on safeguarding, attendance, staffing, QofE, behaviour, policies etc.  

 Training meetings allowed us time to explore areas of the College in more detail, for example we held sessions on SEND, literacy, and personal development with presentations by staff followed by a Q&A. 

 Our knowledge was enhanced by the inclusion of link governor reports; governors visited the College and followed an agreed protocol when examining more deeply their link area, for example safeguarding, QofE, and behaviour and attitudes. 

 In these ways we feel that we know the College and can check that improvement is happening in the necessary areas. 

 Governors attended events in the College, for example the Open Day in September, dance shows, and celebration of achievement evenings. Governors also sat on panels, including student discipline committees, and college contract meetings. 

 Continuous Professional Development is very important to us as governors and we access external training/development sessions from HCAT, the local authority, and the BGA, as well as considering information and data that come from the Barnsley Alliance and the Schools Forum. In that way we understand the wider context of the College. We are an outward-looking group and are aware of issues that are important to the College’s stakeholders. 

 Horizon Community College became an academy in 2019 after choosing to join HCAT because their vision and values were aligned to ours. HCAT is a growing MAT within Barnsley and has just updated its terms of reference and scheme of delegation to clarify the roles and responsibilities of trustees and local committee members. We feel that by joining the right trust the College has the advantages of belonging to a larger organisation without losing our identity. 

 We are very proud of our dedicated staff, led by Mrs Huddart, and our students, who are embracing with enthusiasm the exciting offer given to them in the five years they are with us. Both staff and students have been through three extremely difficult years and have embraced change with resilience and determination. 

 As we move to be a local committee rather than a local governing body, we too are embracing change. We have said goodbye to old friends Dave Kennedy and Sandra Creeton who were founder governors of the College in 2012, and Tom Knowles and Sarah Harrison who have been excellent staff governors. We also said goodbye to Yiannis Koursis, who is moving from his role as the very successful Head of Barnsley College to Bedford. We wish our former colleagues well and look forward to the future and working with new local committee members.