I have worked in the education sector for most of my life with the last 20 years in Bridport. During this time I have benefited from meeting so many wonderful families and enjoyed watching their children flourish despite challenging circumstances. My husband and I have fostered for over 25 years brought up three children of our own and are now enjoying retirement and grandchildren.

I am delighted to have been appointed as the Clerk to Governors at Mountjoy School and with over 6 years as a Clerical Officer, I hope that my knowledge and enthusiasm will assist the incredible team of Governors we have.
My primary role is to organise and support the Governors, so that they can take the important decisions needed to secure the best outcome for our school community.
Should you be interested in finding out more about the governing board or have a query about one of the documents listed, please do not hesitate to contact me.

I am a retired Nurse, Health Visitor, Nursing Manager for Women’s Health and Paediatric Services and ended my career as a Designated Nurse for Child Protection. For most of my working life I worked in an East London borough and experienced a diverse range of people, cultures and practices. For a short time while my own 3 children were young, I lived with my husband in both Singapore and in Kuwait which again offered the opportunity of learning how different life was in the Far and Middle East.
For many years I was a Magistrate in an East London court although my last 8 years of court duties were in the Family Courts only where I served as the Vice Chairman of the Greater London Family Panel. Although I am now a retired magistrate, I still retain my links with the law and am a member of an Independent Monitoring Board at a Dorset Prison.
Through both my family court work and time spent managing Paediatrics and, latterly in Child Protection, I have gained much understanding of the difficulties faced by parents with children who are neuro-diverse and those who require a specialist education. I hope I understand a little of the many day to day challenges that have to be faced and am therefore happy to serve as a Mountjoy School Governor for as long as I am able to do so

My husband and I moved from Essex to Mosterton in 2007. We are both architects, specialising in the education sector, and my particular interest and specialism within that was in Special Need. I started my career at the then Department of Education and Science in the Architects and Building Branch. I was involved there in the research on Special Design which led to the publication of the first Building Bulletin on Designing for Pupils with SEN and the development of area standards which still form the basis of school design today. I later worked as a Local Authority Architect in Essex, involved in the development of units attached to mainstream schools for children with autism, visual impairment and hearing impairment and was a long standing Parent and then co-opted Governor of a large stand-alone Nursery School with a unit for pupils with speech and language difficulties. Later in my career my husband and I headed the Education Division of a medium sized architectural practise, and I became an education design adviser to a number of local authorities, to schools, to building consortia and to other firms of architects on the design of nursery, primary and secondary schools. I was appointed by Lambeth Council to advise on the briefing and the design of the Michael Tippett Special School, a secondary school for pupils with special needs, which won a number of awards. I also became an OFSTED Lay Inspector. I have been a non-executive Director of a General Hospital, and was an NHS Design Reviewer. Since moving here I joined the Board of the Acorn Multi Academy Trust for 18 months. We have 6 lively grandchildren who love coming to Dorset, but I certainly found helping with home schooling very challenging during the various lockdowns. We have 3 hens and a large garden. I enjoy walking, reading, knitting, house and garden visiting and the friends we have made here in West Dorset.

I am delighted to join the governing body of Mountjoy School as Parent Governor. My two children have attended Mountjoy since 2021, and they are thriving in the nurturing and supportive environment that has been created at Mountjoy. Prior to raising our family, I worked in the field of Environmental Education, working in an Ecology Centre and with several Wildlife Trusts.  I then gained a teaching qualification in Science Education and taught Science in mainstream secondary schools for over a decade. Because of my Science background I am pleased to become the Link Governor for Science at Mountjoy, and I hope that I will be able to use my knowledge and experience to support the Science teaching here.
I have always enjoyed nature and gardening, and I now spend much of my time growing a wide range of cut flowers which I sell to local customers and florists. I also hold flower arranging and crafting workshops for local charities including ASCape and The Shire at Crockermore. As a family we all like spending time outdoors, we like walking our dog together and visiting the seaside.  I also enjoy reading, yoga, and playing the piano. 

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Our son became a student at Mountjoy in September 2023 and the impact on both his life and our family life has been unbelievably positive. So positive that when an opening to become a governor at the school became available, I felt compelled to apply with the aim of supporting the school in any way possible. I have learnt a great deal from my son so far on his journey and I am looking forward to putting what I have learnt into practice and having a positive impact on areas that matter most to children and parents at the school. I am from a business background in hospitality and believe that I can bring a lot of skills around communication, thinking flexibly about employment and developing practical life skills to my role as a governor. I believe that a good mix of diverse backgrounds on the board make for better conversations around education and in turn, outcomes. I am also a member of The Friends of Mountjoy and I massively enjoy coming into school and meeting the students and being a part of school life. I hope that my role as a governor will further enhance this, as it’s definitely the best part!

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My wife and I lived for several decades in Wheathampstead Hertfordshire. We moved to Beaminster in 2020.  I am a passionate advocate for children’s rights and general well-being.
During a long legal career, in addition to private practice, I provided pro bono advice to the Citizens Advice Bureau, an environmental charity and the Environmental Law Foundation.
I am chair of the Property Lawyers Alliance. I was appointed Life Governor of the Imperial Cancer Research Fund, which merged with The Cancer Research Campaign in 2002.
Appointed President Rotary Club of Royston in 1996. Appointed Chairman of the Wheathampstead and District Preservation Society in 1996.
Chairman Royston & District Chamber of Commerce Feb 2005 – Jul 2010. I also like to solve problems collaboratively which has resulted in me acting for residents on a pro bono basis to stop permissions being given for thousands of tons of inert waste material to be deposited on a sensitive village site and to defeat a controversial planning application for a superstore.

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