I am a Surrey Local Leader of Governance, living in Fetcham and quite familiar with the school improvement journey of many schools in the county, working closely with SAfE, Surrey County Council and Strictly Education 4S. 

I have been a Governor in Surrey for well over 30 years, completing 13 at St. Andrew's Primary School in Cobham until 2001, Chair for six, and nearly 18 at Howard of Effingham School in Effingham where I was Chair for eight years.  I was the founding Chair of The Howard Partnership Trust, a multi-academy trust, formed on 1 November 2013, and remain a Trustee. 

As an LLG (formerly called Additional Skills Governor) in the last thirteen years since taking early retirement I have typically been deployed for a few terms at a time to help schools in challenging circumstances, particularly working with Chairs and their Governing Bodies to bring sustainable improvement.  I have joined the GBs of several Surrey primary schools in the LA’s support programme as an Additional Governor and at many was elected Chair.  I have also helped schools with investigations and through involvement on panels for student exclusions, parental complaints or staffing disciplinary matters. 

I am retired from full-time work after a career as a chemist with GSK for over 36 years. 

I am a local authority school governor (Management Committee) living in East Horsley working in a special needs setting for children with an acquired brain injury.   

I was formally a Headteacher (M.Ed in Special Education) for nearly ten years at special schools in Highgate, London and Harrow for children with moderate learning difficulties and behaviour issues.  During this time, I managed the transformation from an all-age school to a senior school setting providing education for a wider, more complex and diverse range of pupils' special educational needs and disabilities.  I also worked for a further two years for the local education authority as a consultant Headteacher providing training and guidance in staff appraisal, transition planning and special educational needs. 

Following early retirement from teaching, I retrained as a psychotherapist (M.A. in Child and Family Psychotherapy) specialising in young people and mental health issues, working part-time in various settings including specialist adult centres, prisons and schools in Guildford, Cobham and Kingston for more than ten years supporting staff, pupils and parents.

I am currently Chair of Governors for a Surrey Federated Special School, with a junior and a senior school – across three sites.  The Federation is a busy and active school within the local authority – having recently opened a new site for high COIN students and being selected for further growth by 2025.    

As a Local Leader of Governance since 2019, I have had opportunities to support other Surrey Schools, including being on an Interim Executive Board (IEB) for Epsom Primary School, and subsequently taking over as Chair of the new governing body.  In this role, I oversaw the creation of a high COIN unit and academisation, as well as helped recruit and train an entirely new governing body.   

I am on the Surrey Schools Forum, and a trustee for Schools Alliance for Excellence (SAfE).  Outside the education world, I am currently Chair of Cook4Care, a family court magistrate for West Sussex, and recently gave up being Chair of Home Start Surrey and the VCSE Alliance.  I do consulting work on strategy for various charities with an active interest in refugees and survivors of domestic violence.   

My professional career included working in investment banking and as a management consultant in the City of London for 20 years.  I have completed the Development of Chairs training course, and regularly attend Governors’ conferences, and governor training including on topics such as Behaviour Management, Equality, Pupil Premium, Attendance, and Safeguarding.