Meet the Governors

Victoria Sullivan - Chair of Governors

As well as being the Chair of Governors I am currently the Local Authority Governor for the school. I joined the Governing Body as a parent governor in March 2019 after being the Secretary of the Friends fundraising committee since 2015. Both my children were at the primary school before joining JFAN; my daughter is in Year 7 and my son in Year 11 now. As the Chair of Governors, I am responsible for making sure the whole governing body is effective, and we have great relationships with the school and all our stakeholders. I am also the lead governor for safeguarding and attendance.

I run my own HR consultancy business and am passionate about the impact strategy and leadership can have on organisations, including schools. In my spare time I love baking and dancing to a good disco tune. I'm known to like a glass of wine too! 

Clair Rava- Staff Governor

I joined the Newport team in March 2024 as the Office Administrator bringing my warm personality and strong organisational skills to the role. I work as part of the office team ensuring everything runs smoothly behind the scenes. With a passion for helping others and supporting the school community, I hope to use the knowledge I have gained from working in the financial sector for over 20 years, and working at a pre-school, to assist me on my governorship. Outside of work, I enjoy card making, baking delicious treats, and singing.

Rob Graves - Co-opted Governor

Rob joined our Governing Body in October 2023 as a co-opted governor. He is a qualified accountant who enjoyed a long international career with 3M, a US based multinational manufacturing company. For the last 16 years Rob served as a non-executive director on the boards of a number of NHS Trusts in Gloucestershire where he lived until recently. He was also a member of the governing body of his local primary school for 12 years.

Rob believes very strongly in the importance of contributing to community and having now moved to this area, is keen to take on this role where his knowledge and experience can be useful in helping this school thrive.

Layla Price - Parent Governor

Layla joined the Governing Body in summer 2023 where she recognised the opportunity to become more involved in the exciting developments of the school. Layla has seen the school change over a number of years, having had two older children go through the school some years ago and a daughter presently in year 4. What remains consistent is the unique nature of Newport Primary School as a safe, inclusive and exciting place to learn. 

As a Deputy Headteacher in a local secondary school, Layla has had experience of a number of school priorities, including teaching and learning, curriculum and assessment, special educational needs and student wellbeing. Layla is currently the Designated Safeguarding Lead in her own setting, leading the pastoral provision for all students. 

Alison Harris - Co-opted Governor

I come from a family of primary school teachers and so have been part of teaching and education for all my life. I spent 15 years in Milan, Italy, where I taught English to both children and adults, conducted teacher training, and served as an examiner for Cambridge Assessment.

Upon returning to my native Liverpool, I taught English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) to asylum seekers and spent 10 years at the University of Liverpool, teaching English for Academic Purposes. I later transitioned to an operational role, recruiting teachers and organising the curriculum for large summer pre-sessional courses. Five years ago, I moved to the South East, initially working as Head of Operations for a Cambridge-based social enterprise that provides careers-related events in schools. I now work in digital publishing for Cambridge University Press & Assessment.

I am passionate about the opportunities that education provides and the importance of a great start to a child's learning journey. In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my grown-up children, travelling—especially to Italy to maintain my love of the language—and following my beloved Liverpool Football Club.

Lucy Chillingworth - Co-opted Governor

I am delighted to be part of Newport Governing Body from January 2025. Since moving to Newport in 2022, I have been passionate about supporting the local community and the facilities that we and other families have access to. Within my day job, I am a global director for Live Entertainment and Dining Proposition for a concierge service. Within my role I am responsible for commercial partnerships and the business strategy as to how we service our members to access the events and restaurants that they want to go to around the world. I look forward to using the skills I have acquired within the school environment. In my spare time, I love spending time with family, keeping fit, reading and being a social butterfly!

Lloyd Anderson - Parent Governor

As a long-term Newport resident and parent of two young children—one already attending the school—I’m proud to support our community during this exciting period of positive change. I bring over 20 years’ experience across customer service, facilities management, business operations, and digital strategy. In my current role as Director of Digital Strategy and Operations at AstraZeneca, I help lead several R&D laboratories and corporate sites across the south of the UK. Alongside professional qualifications in HR (CIPD Levels 3 and 5), project management (PRINCE2), and business continuity (BCI), I recently completed a bachelor’s degree in Digital and Technology Solutions. I’m particularly keen to support the curriculum’s digital development, ensure effective resource and facilities planning, and help strengthen community partnerships—contributing to a school that remains the first choice for local families.

Welcome to our Governors’ section. 

Here you will find information about the role of the governing body, details of how our Governing body is structured, including the names, categories, responsibilities and terms of appointment for each Governor.

The Role and Responsibilities of the Governing Body

Governing bodies are the key strategic decision makers and vision setters in every school. They are also a key part of the overall system for school accountability. Governing bodies have a vital role to play in driving up school and pupil performance and ensuring that resources are used well to give every child the best possible education.

In all schools, governing bodies have three core strategic functions:
a. Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction;
b. Holding the headteacher to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils; and
c. Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.

These functions are reflected in regulations for maintained schools that came into force in September 2013 and in the criteria Ofsted inspectors use to judge the effectiveness of governance in both maintained schools and academies.

In practice, governors are a group of volunteers who include parents, staff and members of the local community who act collectively to make decisions that matter to the school and are motivated to do the best for the children of the school.

Governing bodies help set the school’s aims and values. They also make decisions on matters such as performance targets, school policies, and the school’s single plan.  They oversee the use of the school’s budget and have responsibility to obtain value for money for that budget. They are responsible for the appointment of the headteacher.  In addition, governors monitor, support and challenge the headteacher and staff on how well those policies and targets are followed through. They do this by visiting the school, getting to know its strengths and weaknesses, and asking useful questions that foster an ethos of continuous improvement.

When to contact the Governors?

Should there ever be things you’d like to raise, please feel free to contact us. We’re happy to receive your comments and feedback. Many of us are regularly in and around the school, and several of us are often in the playground at drop-off and pick-up times. Alternatively, please feel free to leave a message with the office.

If you have any concerns that you have raised with the school and you do not feel they have been dealt with accordingly then please contact Victoria Sullivan at chair@newport.essex.sch.uk