Governors

Susan Asser

Chair of Governors

sasser@harrowlodgeprimary.com

I have been a governor at Harrow Lodge since July 2010, first as an additional governor, then a community governor and now a Local Authority governor. I have been chair since November 2010. My working life was primarily in the higher education sector, latterly as the Registrar of The University of the Arts London. I am a qualified Chartered Secretary and Fellow of the Institute of Secretaries and have a Master’s degree in Education Management. It has been and continues to be a privilege to serve on the Governing Body of Harrow Lodge and I am excited about the future of the school.

Lynette Searle

Head teacher Governor

lsearle@harrowlodgeprimary.com

After leaving school, I gained a First Class Honours degree in Social Psychology and Computing at Loughborough University followed by a PGCE at the same institution. I began teaching in 1986 and taught in Catholic Primary Schools for 29 years until joining Harrow Lodge Primary School in 2015 as Deputy Head Teacher. During my years as a teacher, I gained extensive experience teaching all age groups in all forms of structures including vertical grouping and village school structures (3 year groups in one class) I taught part-time whilst bringing up my 2 children, sometimes as a cover teacher and other times job-sharing. I took on the role as Head Teacher at Harrow Lodge Primary School in September 2018. I have a passion for social mobility believing that every child has the right and the ability to achieve success regardless of their background and regardless of the cards life deals them. Teachers have the power to ensure that every child who passes through their hands gains the confidence, aspiration and ability to reach the very pinnacle of success.

Nicci Bednarczuk

Staff Governor

I have been a teacher at Harrow Lodge Primary School since achieving my PGCert qualification at Brunel University in 2016. I also gained a First Class Honours degree in BSc Sociology and Communications at Brunel University in 2014. I thoroughly love to teach and am passionate about promoting positive mental health among our children. Making a difference to the lives of young children is very important to me and I am keen to have this role to help the school to keep building from strength to strength.

Andy Nicholls

Co-opted

Andy Nicholls has been a co-opted (Community) Governor at Harrow Lodge Primary School for over eight years. I have seen a number of changes throughout the years and would like to say, as a committed member of the governing body, our ethos is to transform, Harrow Lodge Primary school with the help of all parties with in the local community to provide an outstanding school within the borough. My background is in construction with over twenty years’ experience as a carpenter/joiner, progressing into architecture, when I completed my degree at Greenwich University. I changed my career in 2009 and retrained into the childcare sector to progress my wife’s business due to her company expanding.

Sarah Cole

Parent Governor

As a previous pupil of Harrow Lodge Primary (or Wykeham as it was back then), the school has been part of my life for over thirty years. My mum was a teacher here throughout my childhood, and I enjoyed almost seven years as a pupil myself. The school has now seen my eldest son through his very happy primary school career, and my youngest son is currently enjoying his time here! My career has always been in education, working both in a Special Educational Needs School and as a swimming teacher. I have spent over 14 years of my life dedicated to working with children with Special Needs and Disabilities. I became a parent governor because I care about the school and I care about all children and their education and opportunities in life. This role allows me to be more active in ensuring that our school is the best it can be for everyone involved.

Lisa Shepherd

Trust Governor

I completed my teacher training at the Institute of Education, London College University and have worked in a number of schools across Havering. I joined Eastbury Primary School in Barking and Dagenham in 2016 as Deputy Head, became Co-Headteacher in 2017 and Headteacher in 2020. Eastbury is a large, inclusive school with over 800 pupils. We also have a nursery and an ARP for deaf children. The school achieved its first ever “Good” judgement in February 2019 and has significantly improved in all areas. I believe that all children deserve the best educational experience possible and learning should develop and nurture every child to fulfil their potential. I am a Trust Governor who wants to support the school to be the best it can be.

Rob Griggs

Parent Governor

My name is Rob Griggs and I am the Director of Policy and Public Affairs at Airlines UK, which is a trade body for the UK airline industry. In this role, in a small team, I am responsible for managing media relations and external communications for the industry, support its strategic planning work, and also manage a number of events and other pieces of work, with associated budgets. Beyond my main role, I also chair the Communications Working Group of the industry-wide Sustainable Aviation coalition, which is looking to deliver on the sector’s net zero carbon goal. My son started at Harrow Lodge Primary School in September 2021 and, as parents, my wife and I witnessed the progress he made in his learning in just a few short weeks, and how happy he was to attend, to learn and to see his friends in an environment where he is clearly encouraged to be his best and to take pride and satisfaction in his achievements and those of others. We are hugely grateful for this, and I would like to try and do what I can to support the school to be even better by contributing as a Parent Governor.

David Norris

Trust Governor

I am an assistant head teacher at the local secondary school Hornchurch High School. I am currently overseeing the personal development of students at the school which includes their PSHE (Personal, Social, Health and Economic) education, careers and leadership. As part of my role, I have worked with Harrow Lodge for many years to help develop positive relationship between the schools. It is always great to see how the students react when they meet each other, be that in a workshop, sporting events or visits. I feel it is so important that primary school students get to interact with secondary as they learn so much from each other.