Central Hub Brighton Management Committee

I have worked in special education in Brighton for the past 27 years, initially as a class teacher and then as deputy head of the PRU. I became head of the PRU in 2017 and then part of the leadership team of Central Hub Brighton before taking over as Head Teacher in April 2024. It is an honour and a privilege to lead our organisation and work with our fantastic, dedicated staff. I am in awe of the work they do to nurture and build our students' resilience and self esteem, helping them build confidence in themselves as learners.

I have lived in Hove for 20 years, and raised my daughter and foster daughter as a single parent. For 5 years I worked in the council's education team, with a responsibility for Skills & Employment. I have a particular interest in transitions into post 16 and career development. I want to ensure that all our young people have access to opportunities to develop life and employability skills, to support them into adulthood.

I have three children, now young adults, two of whom have additional needs. Improving the lives of children and young people with SEND has been a driving force for me, both personally and professionally. I have worked in the SEND world for over 15 years, providing the voice of parent carers and working in co-production with services and commissioners - both locally and nationally. I currently work as a family carer advisor in the NHS England National SEND team. An interest and passion in the broader SEND and educational environment led me to a number of governance roles, including former Chair of Governors at a primary school, and now as Chair of Trustees at Amaze - who support children and young people with SEND and their families. Both of my sons had struggles at school. My experiences as a parent of children close to exclusion from school, and the desire to support other children who struggle in mainstream education, led me to join the Management Committee.

I originate from the North East and have worked as a class teacher for 26 years. I started my teaching career in Liverpool before moving down to Brighton in 2001. I held head of Key Stage positions in mainstream schools before joining The Central Hub Brighton as a class teacher 10 years ago. I find my role of class teacher extremely rewarding and enjoy supporting the children I teach on both their academic and social and emotional journeys through Primary School. This is my second year on the management committee and I have enjoyed being part of the decision making process across all sites.

I have a long history of involvement with the management of Central Hub Brighton (CHB) having served on the Management Committee for The Connected Hub from 2017-2018, was seconded as Head of The Connected Hub in 2018 – 2020 and was Co-Head Teacher of CHB from 2021 – 2023. I now work for the Local Authority leading the SEND & AP Change Programme implementation and I also provide SEND Advisory services when needed. In addition, I was contracted by Ofsted as an Education Inspector for Local Area SEND Inspections in the South East. I very much value my continuing involvement with the management of CHB and am pleased that I can continue to use my experience of this provision, alongside my knowledge and expertise within SEND, to support CHB going forward.

I have the best job in the world; I’m a foster parent! As the newest member of the Management Committee I’m excited to be part of Central Hub and all the great work happening here. My special interests are in Curriculum and Relational Approaches.

I have lived in Brighton since 2020 and worked at Central Hub Brighton since 2022. I’m excited to be part of the Management Committee and offer what I can as a member of the school faculty to the management process. I’ve found working at the Connected Hub to be immensely rewarding with all the amazingly skilled and passionate people who work here. Knowing that I might be able to further enable the work we do here is a motivating reason to be on the committee.

I began my career in London and took on my first headship at Mile Oak Primary School seven years ago. During this time, I have worked with staff to improve the school from 'requires improvement' to 'good' and beyond. I am now in a position to contribute my expertise to other educational initiatives across Brighton and Hove. My areas of passion within education include addressing educational disadvantage, enhancing provisions for SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) students, and promoting early intervention. I am committed to striving for and supporting equity in education for all children across our city.