Governance

Our Chair of Governors is Peter Ullyatt

Governors act as the school’s 'critical friend'. We are there to support the headteacher so that she can set the school's direction and stay focused on it. We establish the school's vision, which we use to help our strategic thinking. Taking our lead from Mrs. Carlton the governors think about how the school looks, whether we need new buildings and how to maintain the ones we have. Governors must check that the budget makes sense, adds up, and isn't overspent —and we also try to allocate money towards projects that will develop the school.

It is crucial to look at whether the children are making good progress, and we support Mrs. Carlton to support the staff in delivering an effective and engaging curriculum. We have built frameworks to ensure that the children are always safe, and that everybody's needs are met.

We work through a system of committees, which report back to the full governing body. Our agenda is determined by an evolving self-evaluation document, which shows us where we would like to push for improvements, and we are responsible for the extensive range of policies that every school must have in place.

The Full Governing Body meets once each term to discuss school strategy and take decisions. Many of us are in school on a regular basis, either taking Collective Worship, helping in class or just dropping off or picking up our children. Being a governor is challenging and rewarding and we are all hugely proud to be part of Downton Primary School.

The Governing Body consists of the Headteacher, Foundation Governors (appointed by the Church), Parent Governors (elected by the parents), Teacher and Staff Governors and one Governor appointed by the LA. From time to time we have Associate Governors for special projects.

Four governors currently have children at the school, one has grandchildren at the school and one used to have children here. Governor elections are held when posts are vacant; we currently have a Foundation Governor vacancy, so if you are interested in joining us please do get in touch.

If you have any questions about the work of the governors you can contact us via the school office, or by email.

Peter Ullyatt, Chair of Governors

Download Governance information below:

• 2024 Governor’s Declaration of Interests

• Governing Body as of September 2024

Information about our Governors

Peter Ullyatt
I am Co Chair and a Foundation Governor with this amazing school, We moved to the Downton area over 9 years ago and love the area and community and feel extremely lucky for our children to have benefitted from attending the school. I have been a Governor for a while now with our 3 children now successfully passed through the school and experiencing the wonderful team of teaching and support staff. 
In being a Governor, I find it quite astonishing the amount of work and effort the Head and staff put in beyond the lessons that the children experience. I hope as part of this Governor team to be able to support them in small ways to alleviate the pressure and stresses they face. I enjoy being a Governor and can assure anyone thinking of it, that it does not take a large amount of time and is extremely rewarding.  I would recommend it to anyone thinking of it.

Paula Carlton
Appointed in 2018, I am the Headteacher Governor at Downton Primary School and serve on all the Committees of the Governing Body. Previously, I was Assistant Headteacher at another school for ten years before being appointed Headteacher and attended Governing Body meetings ex officio during that period.

David Drennan
After a 10-year career as an officer and helicopter pilot in the Royal Navy, I moved to Downton village with my wife, Kate, in 2016. My current role in the financial services industry sees me "flying a desk", but I’ve always been keen to continue some form of service. Volunteering as a school governor offered me the perfect opportunity to give back and integrate into the Downton community, as well as better understand the school my children would eventually attend.
I am proud to have two daughters attending Downton CE Primary School—one in Year 6 and the other in Year 1. Over the years, I have had the privilege of holding various leadership positions within the governing body, including serving as co-chair of the Full Governing Body, chair of the Staffing & Finance Committee. I am currently chair of the Admissions Committee. My commitment as a governor is driven by my desire to help the school continue providing an excellent education for all students while supporting the dedicated staff and wider school community.

Nick Dand
I joined as a parent governor a few months after moving to Downton in 2021, hoping to make a positive contribution to the school and engage with my new community. As of the 2024 intake, I have two children in school. I have worked in the insurance industry and in biomedical research in a university setting. I was lucky enough to receive a good education that provided a foundation for lifelong learning, and I am keen in my role as a governor to support and challenge the school so that all Downton pupils benefit from early opportunities to flourish.

Laura Kachale
At the start of 2022, after three years as a parent at Downton Primary School, I became a Foundation Governor in order to contribute as much as I can to the life of the school. We are a multi-cultural family, and we lived in Malawi before our son joined the school; he is now in Year 2 and we have a daughter who attends a local nursery. We are members of St Paul’s church in Salisbury, and I work full time as a programme coordinator for an international health charity. I hope that I will be able to use my skills and experience to support the school to continue to be an ambitious, happy and supportive learning environment for all children, and an enjoyable workplace for every staff member.

Annie Hardie
I moved to Salisbury when I retired in 2016 having worked for 20 years as Matron at a boarding school in Surrey. While I was there I was a Governor at Godalming Primary School for 9 years. I strongly believe that a good primary education is the firm foundation for secondary and university education, and that a primary school is an excellent place for learning lessons for life. I am originally from Edinburgh, but I have lived in England for many years, my family live in Bridport. I volunteer with the Education Department at the Cathedral, I am also a Cathedral Guide, and I volunteer with the National Trust.

Rosemary Leo
I have lived in Downton for over thirty years, and both my children (now adults!) attended the Primary School, which gave them an excellent foundation. I retired from full-time teaching a few years ago – having taught across the primary age range, and been part of a leadership team - and was keen to continue my association with children, families and education. I’m currently working in a Salisbury school, teaching intervention groups of Year 6 children, as well as doing some private tuition for children who need a bit of a boost. I have a degree in Maths and for many years was a Leading Maths Teacher in Hampshire.
I enjoy the experience of being a governor – the school is an important part of the Downton community and it’s very encouraging to see how village and school are still interlinked and how each contributes to the success and well-being of the other.

Rev Ron Hart
I left University to teach physics, and later retrained and practiced in Social Work for Kent CC  (mainly child protection and adult psychiatry). At 40 I was priested in the C of E , and since have worked in parishes and as a University Chaplain, and have an MA in Christian Studies.  I have worked in Kenya , and since 2000 have made many visits to South Sudan to work with the church there. I have been a School Governor for 30 years. I am married to Creddy who was a nurse, we have 3 children and 5 grandchildren , one currently at Downton.

Greg Yevko
I moved to Downton in 2000 with my wife and two young children, who were then aged five and three, and of course they both went to Downton Primary, regarded then, as now, as the primary school hub of the village community. Within the space of a couple of years, both myself and my wife wanted to get more involved with the school, and in 2001 she went in, initially on a voluntary basis, to help with reading; I went in as a governor. Nicky is still currently a Teacher Assistant there with 20+ years’ service(!), and I served two terms (8 years) as a governor in a number of roles, latterly as both Vice-Chair then Chair. Since taking early retirement after 37 years working in the oil industry (I am a Chemical Engineer), working in numerous refineries around the world and living in a few different countries, I saw an opportunity to once again get involved as a governor at the school in September 2023. I believe that my previous experience as a governor, coupled with the interpersonal skills that are required to progress in an international organisation working alongside many diverse people from varied cultures and backgrounds, makes me a useful resource to help the school team continue to take the place forward, appropriately challenging where it is beneficial to do so for overall school development. I thought back in 2001 it was a great school, and I believe today that it still is, and I am very proud to be a governor here.

Claire Davies
I moved to the local area in late 2021. Having previously acted as a governor within both primary and secondary school settings I wanted to seek and opportunity to undertake this role again at a local school. My previous experience as a governor includes sitting on both finance and education committees, Safeguarding lead, SEN lead and careers link governor.
Although my career in finance lends itself to having a financial focus my passion has always been for the education of young people and ensuring that their school setting is one in which they can be themselves and have the opportunity to shine. 

Phil Denton
My wife and I moved to Downton over ten years ago now. We love the village and enjoy being part of the school community. We currently have 3 children attending the school, ranging from Reception to Year 6, and so have first hand knowledge of how hard the excellent team of staff work. Having worked as a primary school teacher for around 4 years, latterly as part of the leadership team, I changed careers in 2016 and now work as a pilot based at Heathrow airport. Following a brief (not very triumphant) return to supply teaching during the pandemic, I feel I’ve developed a good understanding of the challenges facing schools  and am very much looking forward to applying my skills and experience to my new role as a Parent Governor here at DPS. I aim to do all I can to support the school for the benefit of the whole community.