I am delighted to be taking up the position of Head at St David’s this September. I am passionate about ensuring every child feels happy and safe, excited about their learning and supported to thrive every single day at school. 

My career has included roles as Head of Pre-Prep at a central London independent school and, more recently, Deputy Head Pastoral at the Junior School of St Dunstan’s College. Past teaching positions, including in a pupil referral unit and HM Prison, have granted me the privilege of recognising the needs of all learners regardless of circumstance. I carry this compassion and understanding with me at all times and lead with fairness and integrity. I am also a Team Inspector for the Independent School’s Inspectorate (ISI) and hold a MA in Education.  

My husband and I have two young daughters and at the weekends we enjoy spending time in the parks and markets of South East London, an area which I am proud to call home. I am thrilled to be starting at St David’s and look forward to joining the wonderful community of families, staff and of course pupils.  

Living and working locally for many years, I have long known of the outstanding reputation of St David’s. It is a school that genuinely celebrates each child as an individual and all that makes them unique, offering a myriad of opportunity for enrichment and growth at every turn, and in doing so, supporting pupils to achieve excellent academic outcomes and confidence for their future.  

I am so pleased to be joining a school that places such care and commitment into both nurturing and challenging every child through a vibrant and ambitious curriculum, which includes Latin and golf, while also making sure the pupils enjoy a wealth of memorable childhood experiences along the way. Each time that I have visited, there is something so special about seeing the pupils explore and forage in the woodland of Forest School, perform plays and dances on the outdoor stage and race around the six acres of grounds with a sense of pure joy and freedom. It reflects a spirit of adventure and imagination that sits at the heart of this truly exceptional school, which is unafraid to let children be children.  

This aligns with everything I believe in; pupils will achieve their best academic results if they have the right balance of opportunities to be curious and brave learners, the freedom to be themselves and experience engaging and challenging lessons. With all this set in the backdrop of the incredible new St David’s facilities and grounds, it is little wonder that pupils achieve excellent success.  

I am most looking forward to getting to know all the wonderful pupils and staff at St David’s. I have been lucky enough to meet a number of pupils on recent visits, who have already made me think and laugh, and I cannot wait to see them in their classroom environment to understand what matters most to them and how to best develop them further. I want to ensure that every child is getting exactly what they need to move on in their learning and has opportunities to be inspired every day. 

This comes hand in hand with really getting to know the staff; the warmth I have received from the team thus far has been truly humbling and it is so clear to me that the team are committed and inspiring practitioners who make every learning moment matter.  I also cannot wait for Christmas! I am so excited to see the younger pupils’ Nativity performances and be part of the St David’s Carol Service. Bringing families together for these events will be a truly special experience, and the perfect culmination of my first term in the St David’s community. 

The history of the school is something to be deeply respected and preserved and I feel incredibly lucky to be leading St David’s Prep into its next phase of excellence and growth, particularly in the milestone year of 2026. As the school celebrates its centenary, we have an incredible opportunity to both honour its rich legacy and set a visionary course for the future. I am committed to preserving the strong sense of family ethos that has shaped St David’s since its foundation in 1926, where it began as a small, close-knit school rooted in care, ambition and high standards for every child. That spirit of belonging remains just as important today. I believe deeply in maintaining the warm, supportive community where every child is known as an individual and feels part of something special, while still being challenged to achieve their absolute best. And of course, long may Sports Day continue on the glorious field!  

I have loved hearing about the successes of Personalised Learning Programme at St David’s this year and feel passionate about continuing to grow and develop this bespoke programme even further. I believe that alongside enriching lessons, pupils should be given every opportunity to develop a broad set of co-curricular skills which allows for key character development in areas such as leadership, collaboration, creativity and adaptability. It is a great honour to be responsible for the education of young people, and we have a duty to ensure our St David’s pupils are given the skills which they need to thrive in the future. The continuation of programmes at St David’s such as the Junior Duke, the Year 6 Leadership Programme, PLP and Forest School will ensure that St David’s pupils develop a pastoral and character-driven skillset alongside their excellent academic achievements, to ensure they are best prepared for life beyond the classroom.    

I also want to continue to look beyond the school gates and play an active role in our local community. Whether through supporting local charities, collaborating with community organisations, visiting local residencies, environmental projects, or fundraising initiatives led by the children themselves, I know pupils gain so much from understanding the positive difference they can make to the lives of others. This is evident from the continued success of the Silver Stories initiative, which sees Year 6 pupils visiting residents in a local assisted living facility on a weekly basis to share stories, puzzles and musical performances. These experiences help to nurture empathy, kindness and a sense of social responsibility, while strengthening our connections with the community around us and I look forward to further building these relationships next year and beyond.  

One of the things that excites me most about St David’s is the opportunity to ensure each pupil is prepared for the future that is right for them as an individual. We prepare children for a wide range of senior schools and take pride in the breadth and strength of our destinations, with pupils successfully moving on to a diverse range of schools that best suit their individual strengths, interests and aspirations. Pupils have excellent successes in both independent and Grammar school applications with outstanding results seen year upon year, and I look forward to working closely with families to ensure the continued successes of future school and scholarship applications.  

Academic success comes hand in hand with a strong sense of self and pastoral wellbeing. Our small class sizes, high-quality specialist teaching and support and extension groups ensure every child gets targeted teaching and learning opportunities, balanced with a rich programme of sport, art, music and extra-curricular clubs. When children feel known, valued and recognised they are more likely to push themselves in their learning, ask questions and embrace challenge. It is important that children develop resilience, independence and strong learning habits from an early age. Academic success is not just about what children know; it is about their willingness to persevere, think critically and learn from mistakes. 

For me, the final piece to academic success is a close relationship between school and home. When there is a strong relationship between parents and staff, pupils feel well supported, cared for and motivated to do the best that they can. I want parents to know that my door is always open, and I am always happy to take the time to listen, talk things through and work together in the best interests of every child. 

Our world is changing so rapidly, and we have a great responsibility to prepare our pupils for an uncertain future. I firmly believe that we, as teachers, must ensure our pupils are supported for this by developing a love of learning, a curious mindset and the ability to solve problems calmly and effectively. Our children will go into a vibrant and diverse working world, probably living or working within international teams, and completing tasks that we cannot predict. 

I want every child who leaves St David’s to do so having experienced the very best preparation for this by recognising how to communicate respectfully with others, how to lead and follow, how to be gentle and assertive, and how to collaborate. They will need to be globally minded, forward thinking and courageous. Our school is a community where pupils are honest, bold, reflective and ambitious, both for themselves and others; I believe that this, alongside excellent academic preparation, will prepare pupils for success at every step of their next journey.   

In ten years’ time, I would hope children look back on their time at St David’s with real warmth and pride and say that it was a place where they felt happy, known and truly valued as individuals. 

I hope they would remember a school that challenged them academically and helped them achieve their very best, in an environment where they felt supported and encouraged to take risks in their learning. I would be so proud to hear them say that they developed a real love of learning here, and that they were inspired by their teachers to be curious, confident, forward thinking and resilient. 

I also hope they would talk about the experiences that stayed with them long after they left school: becoming a digital leader and competing in robotics competitions, creating a tap dance routine in PLP, singing at the O2 with Young Voices, writing for the school newspaper or performing at the Shakespeare Monologue Competition, competing in the St David’s Dash or a Netball or Lacrosse finals, conquering horse riding or rock-climbing on School Journey and celebrating traditions like Sports Day and Cultural Exchange Week. It is my goal and intention to foster a school life that provides joyful, shared experience to help shape our pupils’ childhoods whilst preparing them for whatever their futures may hold. Most of all, I would want every child to say that St David’s was a place where they formed lasting friendships and learned to be kind and respectful to others, and left feeling confident, motivated and exceptionally well prepared for their future.