Governors

Governance structure / roles and responsibilities

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Governor Biographies
 

Trudy Nazer

My name is Trudy Nazer and I am Chair of the Governors at Coombe Bissett School. I live in Clarendon with my husband Barry. My daughter, her husband and 3 of our grandchildren also live with us. We have a grandson who is in Fir class and another grandson in Oak class. I retired from full time work in in 2015 but I keep myself very busy with the family together with being a Governor.  I am also a Duty Solicitor and an Appropriate Adult working with the police. During my career I worked as a Criminal Defence Barrister in London, Commercial Director in the Flexible Packaging Industry in Greater Manchester and an Operations Director in the HealthCare Sector also in the Northwest. When I became a Governor, I felt that my legal, commercial and sales experiences may well be helpful.  Due to the financial restraints facing all schools, particularly rural ones in the UK today, I believe that all Governing Bodies will have an extremely challenging and hardworking, but hopefully rewarding time in the future.

Hugh Ballantine-Dykes

My name is Hugh Ballantine Dykes and I am a Foundation Governor at Coombe Bissett CofE School. I have lived with my wife Fiona in Coombe Bissett for 6 years, before which we lived for 16 years near Pitton. I serve on the CB&H PCC and am chairman of the CB&H Cricket Club. I’d love to encourage more young people to take up the game. I also have a passion for singing, currently with three friends in a barber shop quartet. We have four grown-up children, three of whom work and live in London. The fourth lives locally and works for the Trussell Trust. I work at a small Biotech company on the science park at Porton Down that my business partner and I set up in 2009, to develop new veterinary and clinical lateral flow diagnostic methods. At the moment we are a developing a new and affordable test for bovine TB. Our work involves regular R&D grant applications, tight budgeting and cashflow management and scrupulous attention to health and safety, quality assurance and risk management procedures in our laboratories. For 3 years in the 1990’s I ran the Children’s Heart Federation, a national charity dedicated to supporting families with children born with congenital heart defects. Together with a new Chairman, I took it on with almost zero funds in the bank and dysfunctional management and laid the foundations and funding for it to become the national voice for heart children and their families that it still is today. I am happy bringing whatever skills, knowledge and experience I may have to the Board of Governors of the school.

Emma Haworth

I am fortunate enough to be able to say that I am the headteacher of Coombe Bissett! I have been teaching for over twenty five years and have been a head for the past twelve years. My passion in life is teaching! I am at my happiest, during a school day, when I am in a classroom with the children. I love to learn and I love nurturing that love in others. Watching children thrive and flourish is a privilege that I do not take lightly. It is my aim that children should come to school every day with a smile and leave with an even bigger one!

Outside of school, my family is incredibly important. My husband and I have two daughters who are both now at secondary school and family time is very special. The four of us especially enjoy walking the newest addition to our family, our Romanian rescue puppy, Peanut. We love to spend time in our allotment and when we are not there, I am an avid reader with an ever growing pile of books by the bed!

As a family we love to travel and this love grew out of our move to the USA where early in my career, I was a member of a team establishing a brand new school in Houston, Texas. Twelve and a half years later having had two children and having lived in two US states and Seoul, South Korea (and been a member of three start up schools), we came back to the UK. We still have the travel bug, but now are more than happy to confine it to holidays!

I am blessed to be the headteacher at Coombe Bissett – the view from my office window, but more importantly the buzz from the classroom around me and the family feel of the school and its community remind me of this every day.

Steve Wyatt

“Every day is a School day!”

I have always enjoyed school and learning (although my Mum will happily tell you about the time I ran home from school because I’d done that and didn’t want to do it any more!).

A local lad, I went to Downton Primary School, followed by ‘O’ and ‘A’ Levels at Bishop Wordsworth’s School. At weekends I would work on the Trafalgar Trout Farm in Downton. After sixth form, I then went on to Southampton University to study for a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology.

After a few years working in a Nursing home and on the Nursing Bank for the District Hospital, I went back to University, this time in Aberystwyth, to gain a Postgraduate Diploma in Environmental Impact Assessment. I then worked for an Agricultural Ventilation Company based in Downton.

All through my youth I had been a member of the Scout movement and during these years I had been acting as a Beaver leader, then Venture Scout leader. It was during this time I realised how much I enjoyed teaching and learning with children so, in 2000, I decided to go to King Alfred’s College in Winchester to gain a PGCE, specialising in Key Stage 2. It was a brilliant decision – teaching is amazing! I love the unpredictability and flexibility of teaching in Primary – and I love learning!

I have been at Coombe Bissett since 2005. It is an fabulous place, with a beautiful setting and wonderful family ethos. Over the years I have witnessed its growth and development from a nely converted first school to a well-populated primary, nearly doubling in numbers. This year, however, is the first time that I have been a Governor. Hopefully, I will be able to continue the good work of previous Teacher Governors, bringing my experience of both teaching and the school, as well as continuing to learn new things. Even now, for me, “Every day is a School day!”

Debbie Vaughan

My name is Debbie Vaughan and I am a Foundation Governor at Coombe Bissett CofE School. I have lived with my husband Gwilym and our family in Coombe Bissett for 14 years.

Gwilym and I have three children, Alex who is doing a PhD in Chemistry at York University, Chris who is an aviation technician in the army, and Nick who is doing a marketing degree at Plymouth University. 

I was previously a Foundation Governor and a deputy head of the Friends of Coombe Bissett School when my boys attended the school. 

Before marrying and subsequently moving due to my husband’s army career, I worked for many years in professional firms in London, my last position being office manager of a law firm in Covent Garden. After spending two years at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas, I moved with my family to this area in 2003, living initially in army quarters in Wilton. I gained a childcare qualification a few years later and worked for approximately 12 years as a nursery school teacher, including the roles of SENCO lead and safeguarding officer. 

I enjoy artistic endeavours, reading and making the most of our beautiful village while walking our little dog Shilo. 

I am keen to contribute wherever I can to the work of the Board of Governors in support of the school. 

Lucy Paterson

I am Lucy Paterson, one of the Foundation Governors at Coombe Bissett Primary School. I have always been passionate about education and was excited to join the governing body of such a wonderful school three years ago. I am a qualified teacher and have had experience teaching in an infant school for 8 years before starting my own family. I am now a full-time mother to five children, three of whom joyfully attend Coombe Bissett! I am the Literacy and Maths link governor and sit on the staffing and curriculum committee. As well as enjoying life with a young family my husband and I have been renovating our listed Victorian home in Wilton for the past six years and counting! If I have any spare time, I like to spend it reading or baking. I am also lucky enough to come into school on a regular basis to read with the children.

Brigadier Stephen Gledhill

I am a Foundation Governor of Coombe Bissett School and live in Homington with my wife Gill. We have two grown-up children, one of whom attended Coombe Bissett School back in the 1990’s when we lived in Wilton. Our other daughter is now a Teacher in a Primary school in Bristol. I was a career soldier for 30 years, during which time I served in numerous places and had a wide variety of jobs and responsibilities, including being Director of Army training.  For three years I was also Chair of Governors of both a Service Children’s Primary and Secondary School in Germany. On leaving the Army I became chief executive of a Charity dedicated to helping ex-service personnel find employment and build second careers; a job I retired from two years ago. As well as being a Foundation Governor, I am also a Councillor on Coombe Bissett Parish Council, a Member of the Coombe Bissett with Homington Parochial Church Council and Trustee of a number of Charities. My aim in becoming a Governor is to use the knowledge, skills and experience I have gained to support the School in delivering the very best education to our children.

Dominic Imms

Hello, my name is Dom Imms and I am a Foundation Governor here at the school. I have two children enrolled at Coombe Bissett and we all live together in the village with my wife and Labrador Max. Somehow despite our proximity to the school we are always in a rush to get in for registration on time! In my professional life I am an Investment Banker for a French bank in London. I work with large corporates both nationally and internationally via arranging syndicated strategic funding solutions for mergers and acquisitions,  material capital expenditure projects as well as funding for working capital purposes. Prior to this I ran my own business in Salisbury between 2011 and 2015. Outside of work I am a big rugby fan and volunteer as a rugby coach for the minis at Salisbury Rugby Football Club. I enjoy encouraging the team and teaching them new skills - it's a good run about for me too! The school is a very special place and in my role as a governor I hope to build strong working relationships with the management team and other governors at the school in order to achieve and maintain our shared vision and purpose. 

Rebecca Poole

I am Rebecca (Becky) Poole, one of the parent governors of Coome Bissett (CB) Primary School. From September 2022 I will have one daughter at the school as my eldest comes to the end of her CB journey in July 2022.

It has been an absolute pleasure and privilege to act as the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Link Governor for the past 4 years.  During which time I have seen the early years provision go from strength to strength, led by our amazing staff. As my new term begins,  I am excited to be moving on to the challenge of the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Link Governor position.

I have tried to be as active as possible within the school community and continue to be involved with the Friends of CB School, helping raise essential funds for the school. 

My professional background is in biological research, having spent many years undertaking lab-based research followed by post-graduate teaching, experiences I hope provide skills that I put to good use as a Governor of our school. In my spare time I can be spotted singing with a local choir or chairing Salisbury's Cafe Scientifique.

Aaron Rendell

I am Aaron Rendell, one of the parent governors of CB Primary School. I have two children at the school, with a 3rd starting in September!

In my early days at the school, I was involved with the ‘Friends of CB’. I hope being a governor, will not only be a great challenge but also a fantastic addition to supporting our school.

By day I am an IT Professional, working closely in the technical world of Microsoft. I hope my skills are put to good use as a Governor of our school! By evening and weekend, I’m an avid DIY’er; you’ll find me close to a DIY store or planning the next house extension!

Harry Martin

I am Harry Martin, one of the parent governors of Coombe Bissett Primary School.  It’s a privilege to be offered the opportunity to support the school, it’s pupils and staff.

My professional background is as an aviation engineer in the Royal Navy, though I’ve been seconded to the government’s defence procurement organisation in Bristol since December 2021.

I’m married to Nikki and we live in Harnham, Salisbury.  My eldest, Toby, joined the school in September 2022 and has a younger brother, Sebastian, who we hope will follow in September 2024.  I’m not organised enough to have much spare time, but most of it is spent running with our Cocker Spaniel, Meg.