Westdene Primary School & Nursery

In a career based in education and languages spanning 40+ years, I have taught in primary, secondary, further and higher education, including 10 years as a Head of Modern Foreign  Languages in three Secondary Schools. My love, however, of the primary age group bought me back to language teaching in Primary Schools and finally to the exciting post of Primary Languages Consultant in Brighton & Hove.

Outside the classroom I have held a variety of roles including Examinations Officer at the Institute of Linguists, International Relations Officer in local government, and Research Officer at the National Foundation for Educational Research.

My family moved to Sussex  in 1999 and I started my association with Brighton & Hove teaching at Patcham Special School, before joining Westdene to set up the Primary French Department. When I took up the post of Primary Languages Consultant in the authority I remained involved in the school as a Governor, and working in the former Westdene Teaching School.

My contributions to the Governing Body are focussed on the Curriculum, School Improvement, and in-depth knowledge of the Local School Community.

I have been a parent governor at Westdene school since December 2017, with my youngest now in his final year at the school. A former employment lawyer, I have experience of advising on all aspects of employment law including Employment Tribunal advocacy. I have also spent a number of years working as an HR Consultant advising a number of different businesses and organisations. I have been a trustee of a local children’s charity, the Starr Trust, providing support and guidance on general staffing issues and best practice as well as reviewing how the organisation planned to achieve its charitable objectives and how its strategy to do so might be challenged.

I believe I have much to offer the school as a Parent Governor from the expertise that I have developed in my professional career and I have the time and ambition to make a solid commitment to the role. I welcome the opportunity to broaden my skill set in an environment which is outside of the commercial world and to give back to the school, having taken full advantage of what the school has had to offer my children during their time at Westdene.

I love being a Governor at Westdene. I enjoy being a part of somewhere that gives every child the opportunity to be the absolute best that they can be. I am trained as a primary school teacher and have taught from Years 2-7 in both Brighton and Hove and West Sussex. My areas of responsibility were primarily Mathematics, Assessment and Curriculum Development. I left full time teaching after the birth of my second child. I have two daughters currently at Westdene and also completed one of my teaching practices here over twenty years ago! I currently work as a supply teacher for the school.