Two heads have been appointed to new special schools opening in Flintshire in September. Jane Kelly has become head of Ysgol Maes Hyfryd, for secondary pupils, which will be attached to Flint High School. She was previously head of Ysgol y Bryn, a special school in Shotton. Angelique Anderson will become head of Ysgol Pen Coch, for primary pupils, being built in the grounds of Gwynedd Primary School.
Theresa Thorne has announced her retirement from Bristol Metropolitan College. Mrs Thorne will leave this summer. She has been at the school and its predecessor, Whitefield Fishponds, for 22 years. Mrs Thorne joined as head of post-16, then served as deputy head for a decade and head for nine years. As headteacher, Mrs Thorne led the move from the old school to the new site, which opened last April.
Neil Shaw will join Rose Hill Westonbirt School as headteacher in September. In August last year, the school was created through the merger of two prep schools, Rose Hill and Querns Westonbirt. It is still operating on two sites, but from September the school will be based on one campus in Westonbirt. Mr Shaw is currently headmaster of Kingswood School in Solihull.
Rosalind Turner will join Kent as the managing director of children, families and education services in May. She will take over from Ian Craig, the new chief schools adjudicator. Mr Craig ran the department following the departure of Graham Badman. Ms Turner has had a long career in education and social services and is director for children and young people in Suffolk. Before that, she spent eight years with Brighton.
Alison Butcher takes over as project director for Walsall’s Building Schools for the Future programme in April. She has a background in construction and property. Ms Butcher has been employed in the private sector for 14 years, working on public sector projects - for the past seven years almost exclusively in education.
Peter Walsh has retired as head after 35 years at Forest Hill School in Lewisham, a school he joined as a probationary teacher in 1973. He was promotd to second in charge of history, then senior house master before becoming head in 1998. During his time there, the 1,400-pupil school has undergone a Pounds 23 million rebuilding programme, effectively constructing a new building around the existing school.
The Pounds 19m Manchester Enterprise Academy opening in September has its first principal: Marie Quayle began her career as a history teacher at Great Sankey High School in Warrington. She became deputy head at De La Salle Catholic High School in Liverpool in 1999; four years later she was appointed headteacher of St Edmund of Canterbury Catholic High School in Huyton, Liverpool. Building work has just started on the academy, which will provide 750 11-16 places initially.
Emma Thompson
The actress and writer has become president of the Teaching Awards Trust. Thompson, who won Oscars as best actress in ‘Howard’s End’ (1992) and for writing the screenplay of ‘Sense and Sensibility’, (1996), appeared in ‘Love Actually’ (2003) and the Harry Potter films. In her latest film role, she plays a headmistress; ‘An Education’, written by Nick Hornby, is due to be released next year.
On her new role with the trust, she said that she owes all that she has done to her fantastic teachers.
