Governors for Schools Quality Mark
Sibsey Free Primary School
Paul Cartwright
Chair of Governors
Hi I’m Paul, I’ve been a manager in food retail for nearly 20 years. During that time, I have gained a lot of knowledge and life skills, which I bring to my role as a co-opted Governor. I feel that it is important to give something back to the local community, and my currently employer also supports me in this aim.
I grew up in the village and attended Sibsey Free Primary School myself as a pupil, although the school has change considerably since my time!
I am now on my second term of office as a governor at Sibsey and have had the honour of being the chair of the board for 4 years now. I am always keen to learn new skills, and I feel you don’t ever stop learning… volunteering as a governor certainly allows you to expand your knowledge base, and to give something back into your local community.
To be involved in the ‘’Sibsey Family’’ and supporting the school in my role is greatly rewarding and I enjoy every minute of my association with the school.
Graeme Wright
Headteacher
As the Headteacher at Sibsey Free Primary School, I am very privileged to work with such wonderful pupils, staff and parents in a very supportive and thriving local community. My role on the governing body is very rewarding.
Jo Ingle
Clerk to Governors
Richard Atterby
Hello, my name is Richard Atterby.
I have lived in Sibsey for nearly thirty years and am Boston born and bred.
Three of my Grandchildren attended Sibsey School and experienced a very happy period of learning during that time.
Once they had left, I decided that I could put a bit back into the school following their happy experiences and decided to become a Governor.
To be involved in this school’s success is an honour and I applaud everybody who has an input from Teachers, Support Staff and Governors in providing such a happy environment for children to learn.
Christina Holmes
I am a retired Lincolnshire Headteacher and have been on Governing Bodies within both the Primary and Secondary Sector for many years. I have been Chair, and held many specific roles. Currently, I am responsible for child protection and safeguarding, curriculum, English and Maths
I have been a volunteer within the community for many years including member of the Patient Participation Group for Spilsby Surgery, ULHT Trust Member, Trustee on Spilsby Grammar School Foundation and a Parish Councillor. My main interest though has been the education of young people and being able to play a part in ensuring that they are given the best opportunities to flourish and grow in a safe environment which allows them to achieve their full potential and be happy.
Richard Stubley
I’ve always had an interest in education and completed a teaching degree in Primary Education with Early Years specialism. Since then, I’ve spent 14 years in education and training; developing curriculums, delivering in classrooms, and assuring education in a wide range of learning support roles.
My son loves being a pupil at Sibsey Free School, and I decided to volunteer time to support the school as a Governor. I have been on the Governing Body of Sibsey Free School since early 2021 as the Early Years link Governor and I recently took on the website assurance role. I really enjoy supporting the school and its staff to provide the best educational environment for all of the children, one that is recognised as being a brilliant place to learn and a welcoming community.
Ashleigh Frankish
Staff Governor
Hello, I’m Ashleigh. I am now in my third year of teaching at Sibsey and currently teach the Maples class. During my time here, I have developed a strong commitment to creating an engaging, supportive, and ambitious learning environment for all pupils. Alongside my teaching role, I am the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead (DDSL) and lead English, Curriculum, and Assessment across the school. These responsibilities allow me to work closely with colleagues to shape high-quality learning experiences and ensure that our curriculum continues to evolve to meet the needs of our children.
I became a staff governor in February 2025, and I see this role as a valuable opportunity to contribute to the strategic direction of the school. As a governor, I aim to bring the perspective of the staff team to our discussions, ensuring that decisions are informed by day-to-day classroom experience as well as the long-term vision for the school.
Being part of the governing body enables me to work collaboratively with a dedicated team of individuals who all share a commitment to the success of our school community. I look forward to continuing to support the development of Sibsey and to helping ensure the very best outcomes for our pupils, staff, and wider community.
Gill Wood
Hello, I’m Gill. My career has been rooted in international transportation management, where I have taken on various roles, including director, board advisor, and mentor to senior managers. In addition to these positions, I collaborate with the Department of Transport, focusing on feasibility studies and operational planning for new rail projects. Throughout my professional journey, I have developed substantial experience in human resources and finance, as well as management expertise and valuable life skills. I bring this diverse background to my role as a co-opted Governor.
In 2022, I relocated to Sibsey after living in the USA for twenty years. Upon arriving, I immediately felt that Sibsey was the ideal place for me to settle. Recognizing the importance of contributing to my new community, I decided to apply for the position of co-opted Governor, a role I genuinely enjoy.
Serving as a co-opted Governor is very important to me, as it provides opportunities to share my experience, acquire new skills, and challenge myself. This role allows me to engage with and spend time alongside Mr. Wright and the wonderful team and students at the school, making the experience both fulfilling and rewarding.
Tom Ladds
I became a parent governor in October 2022. Our eldest son Wilfred has just started Pines class and my niece Rosie is in Oaks and my other niece Grace finished at Sibsey three years ago, so I have a fairly long connection with the school. We went out of our way to come to this school as we have always liked the strong sense of belonging the children develop here, being big enough to offer plenty of opportunities but small enough to make each child an individual part of the school.
I am a self-employed agricultural finance broker, and in the past worked in politics in the House of Commons before moving back up to Lincolnshire for a period working for the County Council. I have a strong interest in news and current events, enjoy getting a run in when time permits, am always distracted by passing agricultural machinery, and being outside is always my preference whatever the weather.
I can’t wait to help continue to build on the brilliant work Sibsey Free Primary School does for its children and the community.
Jon Hutchinson
Jon is a Regional Director at the Reach Foundation. His work focusses on supporting schools and trusts to develop cradle to career provision in their communities, as well as building school leadership pipelines through regional headteacher preparation programmes.
Since 2022 Jon has held an international Fellowship with New America on the Learning Sciences Exchange. Jon is also cofounder of Meno Academy, a platform providing high quality, bite-sized subject knowledge videos for primary school teachers. He currently sits on the new government's independent Curriculum and Assessment Review panel.
Prior to this, Jon was a primary school teacher and assistant headteacher at Reach Academy Feltham, an all-through school in London, rated outstanding in all areas. Alongside teaching, Jon was also a Visiting Fellow at Ambition Institute, where he tutored on the Masters in Expert Teaching Programme. Over the last decade Jon has also regularly acted as an expert advisor to the Department for Education, including as a member of the core group which developed the Early Career Framework.
From 2018-2020 Jon led the development of a fully resourced humanities curriculum at Key Stage 2, which successfully won a bid for the Department of Education's Curriculum Fund and was later taught in over 150 schools, before being acquired by Pearson.
During the pandemic, Jon was part of the team that set up Oak National Academy, and led the primary humanities curriculum for the first year. He has written chapters in several education books, including the ResearchEd Guide to Leadership, the ResearchEd guide to Professional Development and Primary Huh 2.
Jon is the series editor for a collection of primary subject leadership books for Bloomsbury.
Joanne Hutson
My name is Jo Hutson and I am a past pupil of Sibsey Free Primary School.
I have lived in Sibsey almost all my life and have watched the school grow from strength to strength. I have been a past chair of governors for several years under Mr Coote and am delighted to now be working with Mr Wright to help get the school recognised for the outstanding establishment we know it is. I have worked in business finance and have also been a school administrator and a dance/drama/musical theatre teacher as well for over 30 years.
My 3 children have attended Sibsey school, all going forward to different grammar schools and all have/currently attended university studying diversely assorted degree courses.
Diversity Statement
Diversity is important and we want governing boards to be increasingly reflective of the communities they serve.
We encourage schools to collect and publish governing board members’ diversity data. Information
must be widely accessible to members of the school community and the public. Board members can opt out of sharing their information, including protected characteristics, at any given time including after publication.
Schools must ensure that individuals cannot be identified through the publication of data, particularly when board member levels are low. Read more about this in the data protection toolkit for schools and Equality Act 2010: advice for schools
There is no prescriptive way to collect diversity data from volunteers; this needs to be done on a voluntary basis. Schools may prefer to adopt a similar approach to how they collate the diversity data of pupils.