School Governor Pen Portraits
Tony Railton
LA Governor – Chair of Governors
Chair of the Policy and Resources committee
I joined the Governing Body, firstly as a Parent Governor, in 1999 when my now grown-up children were pupils at Mowbray and my wife was very actively involved with the Parents Association. I have been a committed member of the Governing Body these past 17 years, serving on a variety of Committees and project groups, and representing the school at County Council and public events.
My interest and support for the welfare and development of young people also includes work with two others local organisations: I have been the Group Scout Leader of Stakeford Scout Group for several years, having been involved as an adult member of the Scout Movement for over two decades, and I am honoured to serve as a Trustee to Choysez; a fantastic charitable organisation based in Barrington.
Professionally, I made a career change last year and now work as a Leadership Coach, having served the NHS in a variety of nursing, management and senior leadership roles for over 38 years.
Chris Sharp
Co-opted Governor - Vice Chair of Governors
Mental Health and Wellbeing Governor
Vice Chair of the Policy and Resources Committee
I have been a member of the Governing Body since March 2015, having initially got involved through my son’s attendance at the school.
Being a member of the Governing Body allows me to work in close partnership with the school to ensure the children’s best interests are first and foremost, and that every child has the opportunity to learn, whilst having fun.
My background involves over 20 years’ experience working in Information Technology, with over half of this spent in Healthcare. I manage a team of customer support personnel, and I am responsible for service management and project delivery within a large NHS Trust.
As a member of the Policy and Resources Committee I am able to draw on my professional experience to help ensure the school’s various resources are being effectively managed. I also bring to the role a limitless enthusiasm, and have great ambition to work with like minded individuals in further developing the school.
Volunteering as a school governor is a wonderful and unique opportunity, and I feel very privileged to make a positive contribution to the future of so many talented children.
Debbie Bullimore
Parent Governor
Chair of the Pupils, Curriculum and Standards Committee
Joint SEND link Governor
I have been a member of the Governing Body since October 2013. After talking about the role of a Governor with a friend I thought it sounded interesting and good to see a different side to school life. Since I have had two children previously attending Mowbray First School and currently have two children in Mowbray Primary School I decided it was a good time to volunteer and become more involved in the future of our school.
As a member of the Pupils, Curriculum and Standards Committee I attend meetings to discuss things like: the curriculum, school visits, Ofsted visits, school data and the school improvement plan. There is a great deal of data/figures to look at but seeing the progress of all our children is something that makes it all worthwhile.
Over the past 17 years I have worked for DWP starting as an Admin Assistant, progressing to Admin Officer then to Team Leader, a role which I have been in for the last 13 years. I have managed teams that process State Pension claims, Quality Assurance teams and currently work on a Security Team.
Being a Governor is very involved but also very rewarding, seeing our children happy, safe and achieving their best.
Maureen Leslie
Co-Opted Governor
Member of the Pupils, Curriculum and Standards Committee
I retired from work in 2018, after enjoying more than 25 years working in schools within the Newcastle Education Authority. My work was primarily in Key Stage 2.
I am married with two children, both of whom are teachers. I have two grandchildren and five step grandchildren.
My main interests are my family, reading, and a range of crafts using textiles and wool. I have the dubious honour of being a Newcastle United season ticket holder.
Daniel Younger
Parent Governor
Joint Safeguarding Governor
Member of the Pupils, Curriculum and Standards Committee
I have been a member of the governing body as a parent governor since November 2020. I became interested in the role as I am passionate about the education of our young people and believe every child deserves the best education to fulfil their potential and lifelong aspirations.
I have previously worked as a Primary School teacher for five years and continue to visit many schools as a supply teacher. During my time as a teacher, I have been responsible for planning and developing areas of the curriculum and implementing these across a network of three schools. Due to my previous experience, I am also a member of the Curriculum and Standards Committee. I am also familiar with scrutinising data and ensuring we are working towards achieving as many of our targets as is possible.
Mowbray Primary School has played an important part in my career in education as I completed part of my teacher training at this school. I now currently have a daughter in Reception and a son who will be joining the school over the next few years, meaning I will have an interest in the development of the school for a long time to come.
Andrew Miller
Headteacher
Member of the Pupils, Curriculum and Standards Committee
Member of the Policy and Resources Committee
I have been Headteacher at Mowbray Primary School since September 2015. Previous to working at Mowbray I worked in Blyth as a Deputy Headteacher in a Primary School as well as in a range of roles within a Middle School.
As a Headteacher Governor I report to the Governing Body on the progress the school is making in all areas of our development plan and advise the Chair and other Governors on a range of matters in relation to the strategic development of Mowbray Primary School.
It is a pleasure to work at Mowbray alongside a highly talented staff team who strive to make the school the best learning environment they can for all children. I am very proud of their efforts in developing the school into what it is today.
I look forward to working with everyone in the future on the next stage of our development.
Laura Thompson
Parent Governor
Member of the Policy and Resources Committee
Joint Sports Premium/Pupil Premium link Governor
I have been a member of the Governing Body since November 2020, as a parent governor and have two children in the school. I am passionate about supporting the welfare and development of young children as well as ensuring all children are given the opportunity to fulfil their potential. It is a privilege to be able to volunteer my time to become more involved in the future of our school.
I have worked for the Witness Service for the past 12 years starting off as a volunteer. I then progressed onto a paid role. I have spent my time there working in various roles for the organisation. I currently recruit volunteers for 13 courts across the North East.
As a member of the policy and resources committee I am able to use my professional experiences to ensure the schools policies and resources are up to date and well managed. As a new governor I am keen to learn and develop myself to ensure I do the best job for the children, staff and the school as a whole.
The role is very rewarding and I feel very privileged to have been elected as a parent governor.
Wendy Stewart
Co-Opted Governor
Joint Safeguarding Governor
Looked After Children Link Governor
Member of the Policy and Resources Committee
I joined Mowbray’s governing body just over a year ago having recently retired in early 2022 from Northumberland County Council (NCC).
During my time with NCC I worked with headteachers and governing bodies across Northumberland for over 20 years, including Mowbray and other schools in the Bedlington partnership. Latterly I was an HR Adviser assigned to over 20 schools although initially I worked in the School Support team assisting with budget setting and clerking governing body meetings as well as supporting school leadership in all areas of people management.
When I retired it made perfect sense to put my experience to use as a school governor. I was previously a governor at the school my children attended and, whilst I am no longer a mother to school age children, our eldest grandson the eldest will start school in September 2024.
Although I live in Morpeth I am a local lass who attended Stakeford Primary back in the day. My sister was at school here when it was a middle school and my Mum still lives at the family home in Bomarsund.
I consider it an honour to serve a local school and to in some small way contribute to the
wellbeing of it's staff, pupils, families and the wider community.
Claire Curtis
Staff Governor
Member of the Pupils, Curriculum and Standards Committee
I have been a teacher at Mowbray Primary School since September 2018 and joined the Governing Body in January 2023. I am currently the year 5 teacher as well as the Religious Education (RE) and Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) curriculum lead across school. Throughout my time here, I have strived to create an inclusive nurturing learning environment in which all pupils have equal opportunities to achieve their potential.
As a staff governor and member of the Pupils, Curriculum and Standards Committee, I aim to contribute towards the continuous improvement of the school's teaching and learning environment so that we can ensure pupils are the best version of themselves in order to make a positive contribution to the school community.
I feel proud to work at Mowbray alongside friends and colleagues who share my passion and dedication for inspiring and moulding the young minds of our next generation.
Joanna Elvin
Co-opted governor
Joint SEND link Governor
Member of the Pupils, Curriculum and Standards Committee
I am a new member of the governing body. I had been interested in becoming a school governor for a while, so when the opportunity arose at Mowbray Primary School I jumped at it. I have an ongoing interest in education, although all of my previous experience was from a secondary perspective, so seeing things from the other end of the educational spectrum is all new to me.
I am a trained secondary English teacher and have worked in both the south and north east of the UK. In addition, I have taught in China, Spain and Switzerland. My experience is wide, including curriculum design in three international schools and teaching Oxbridge bound students. This has been juxtaposed with working in economically underprivileged areas and teaching students with challenging behaviour and educational needs. My work now is purely online and I am a teacher and tutor for children worldwide, from Singapore, Dubai and Egypt, to Killingworth. I also work as an examiner for Cambridge and the International Baccalaureate.
In my role as a governor, I am on the Pupils, Curriculum and Standards committee, although I am very much in the learning phase of my role. I hope that in time I will be an asset to the school and look forward to learning more about both Mowbray Primary School and also about primary education in general.
Alison Dodds
Co-opted governor
Joint Sports Premium/Pupil Premium link Governor
Member of the Pupils, Curriculum and Standards Committee
I have been a member of the Governing Body for approximately nine years, initially as an Associate
Governor before my current governing role. I qualified as a teacher in 1993, working first in
Yorkshire before returning to my home county of Northumberland. I began teaching at Mowbray
Primary in 2013 as Early Years Lead, moving to Year 6 and then gaining promotion to Assistant Headteacher,
and finally to Deputy Headteacher, until I retired in 2023. During my time at Mowbray, I was English
Lead, which has since created a rewarding and new opportunity for me after retirement, as I have
worked as Consultant for English with several members of staff at Mowbray. I am also working as
a Supply Teacher, only at Mowbray, when needed. I consider teaching to be the best profession of
all, as there is nothing more rewarding than seeing children learn, develop personally and thrive in a
safe and nurturing environment.
In 2023, I was nominated to be the Chairperson of Stakeford Scouts, by Tony Railton. This role is a
completely new learning experience for me; I have lots to learn but have enjoyed meeting new
people in my local community and seeing the great work being done by volunteering adults, who
willingly give their time to provide exciting activities and experiences for children of all ages.
Being a governor at Mowbray Primary School is a great privilege and I hope that I can continue to
work primarily with the children and also staff and stakeholders to support the provision of a
stimulating, challenging and broad curriculum, which reflects the needs of all the pupils.
Ged Downie
Co-opted governor
Health and Safety link Governor
Member of the Policy and Resources Committee
Joining the Mowbray Primary School Governing Body as an invited Co-Opted Governor in 2020 is my second governorship at this school. The first time was as a Parent Governor back in 1992 when both my children
attended as pupils, now years later as my grandchildren are on roll.
Retiring from work in 2020 after 40 years working for a major American multinational manufacturer, culminating as the Senior Design Engineer, has given me the ideal background skills and free time to slot into the Governing Body and the Policy and Resources Committee. Balancing the actual finances and resources against the required is often a quite difficult task, mixed with the challenge of assisting in any Health and Safety issues,- an issue of paramount importance to us all.
On a personal note, I was educated locally taking an HND Mech. Eng at Newcastle then went on the read for a Masters in Materials Engineering at the University of Northumbria. I live locally and have regular contact
with pupils, parents and staff during the school run which often gives me an insight into the worries and concerns being discussed.