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Steephill Independent School and Pre-School

‘Pupils are at the heart of everything we do’

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Steephill Independent School and Pre-School

‘Pupils are at the heart of everything we do’

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Governors

Please find below details of how our Governing body is structured, including the names, categories, responsibilities and terms of appointment for each Governor.

 

The Governing Board is divided into 3 sub-committees:

 

Finance and Strategy Sub-committee

 

Education Sub-committee

Health, Safety & Sustainability Sub-committee

 

Martin Levy (Chair)

Sandra Scotting

Peter Bramall

Clare Tucker (Bursar)

Helen Millward (Head)

 

Hazel Thurgood (Chair)

Jenny Smith Spark

Doreen Page

Bhawna Hindocha

Helen Millward (Head)

 

Kristopher Page (Chair)

Dawn Bramall

Helen Millward (Head)

Clare Tucker (Bursar)

 

 

Chair of Governors 

Martin Levy

 

Martin was Grammar school educated in Hertfordshire before embarking on a career in finance. With almost 40 years experience, Martin has held a range of senior leadership positions. Currently an Area Director, leading a team working with SMEs across London.

Martin leads the Finance and Strategy Committee and is the Chair of Governors. Responsible for oversight of the school's financial performance and driving the strategic direction of the school with the Headteacher. The financial performance of the school has thrived under his and the Bursar's leadership.

Married to Nicola, their son was educated at Steephill, and is now at University. Personal interests include most sports, with football, golf, rugby union and badminton particular passions.

Martin can be contacted by email on martinlevy@steephill.co.uk

 

Sandra Scotting MBE (Founder Governor)

 

 

Sandra’s son was at Steephill from the age of 3 ½ , progressed to Dartford Grammar School for Boys and then took his degree at Sheffield University in East Asian Studies.  During her son’s years at Steephill she was instrumental, with others, in setting up the school as a Charitable Trust to ensure that it continued after the death of its founder Miss Eileen Bignold  and has been a governor ever since.

Sandra is responsible for liaising with the Charity Commission, completing the annual returns and liaises with the auditors when completing the annual accounts.  She is now retired from her job as Intellectual Property Executive at a national newspaper group, but her experience there allows her to bring some basic legal as well as accounting knowledge to the board of governors. She was awarded the MBE in 2019 for services to various charities.

Sandra spent 12 years running a charity that raised money to build a memorial in East London to the worst civilian disaster of WW2 – the Bethnal Green tube shelter disaster.  She continues this roll in her spare time to ensure the upkeep of the completed memorial and arranges their annual memorial services.  She is also a director of RAFT – Retrofit Action for Tomorrow. This CIC provides educational programmes and professional retrofit advice to schools, local authorities and the wider community in a proactive response to the climate emergency. With that, running a branch of Foresters Friendly Society, gardening, her local historical society, and her roll at Steephill, there isn’t much free time left for other interests, though her love of reading will prevail one day.

 

Doreen Page (Founder Governor)

 

 

Doreen is a founding governor of Steephill School, who, following the sad passing of the school’s founder, Miss Eileen Bignold, worked hard with three other mums to find a way that the school could continue for their families. Doreen’s son left Steephill at the age of 9 to continue his education at Sevenoaks Prep, because at that time Steephill was unable to teach to 11. He then went on to Dartford Grammar, followed by UCL, where he graduated with masters and PhD degrees in Chemistry. Since these early beginnings, Doreen has been involved with the rise and continued success of Steephill as an Educational Trust, including the progression of the school leaving age from 9 to 11 years and gaining the large playing/sports field and Forest School.

Doreen enjoyed a 15 year career working in London for Lloyds Bank International in the Personnel Department. Doreen worked with a team which recruited and trained executive staff to work in the overseas branches and supervised personnel records. After a 10 year break to bring up her son, Doreen took on another challenging career working within the NHS. In this role, she took part in launching the 1st GP’s Out of Hours service for Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley (DAGDOC) and progressed to the role of Service Co-Ordinator for the area. Doreen enjoyed managing staff and working closely with all health professionals. After a very short break Doreen was then asked if she could work part time in a GP practice, which lasted for a further 10 years.

Throughout her working life Doreen was heavily involved with people from all backgrounds and faced dealing with both very sad and happy occasions. Doreen is often referred to as a “peoples person” and is looking forward to working in the newly appointed role of Governor for Wellbeing.

Doreen brings to Steephill her transferable skill set and experience gained through many courses and training attended during her career. Doreen liaises with the Bursar and catering staff when needed, all ensuring compliance with Sevenoaks District Council Hygiene regulations. Doreen holds food safety certificates, and has on occasion been seen in the kitchen helping to serve lunch to the children and staff.

Doreen’s interests include time spent with her family, gardening, travel, socialising with the many friends she has made during her working life, and enjoys history rather than sci fi.

 

Jenny Smith-Spark

 

 

Jenny has a long and active involvement with Steephill School. Her three children flourished at Miss Bignold's and loved their time here. Jenny was the first Secretary of FOSS when it was set up to support the School by fund-raising for its educational resources. A graduate teacher in secondary school special needs education, Jenny became Headteacher at Steephill to build on Miss Bignold’s excellent work. After six years, once the School was flourishing again, Jenny became Deputy Head of the first integrated secondary school Unit in Kent for pupils with autism. Jenny has continued since then as Steephill’s Governor for SEND and Safeguarding. She holds current Certificates in Safer Recruitment in Education and for Keeping Children Safe Online also for Safeguarding Children – A Guide for Governors. Jenny follows educational matters through parliamentary debates, the DofE, ISA, the NEU and the NSPCC. She has lived in Fawkham Valley for many years and is on the Committee of The Friends of Fawkham Church, where our School Services are held. Jenny loves nature and animal life and she believes in the value of Forest School for our pupils. She is interested in equestrian sport, athletics also women’s rugby and considers that all Steephill sports should be accessible to all our pupils to enjoy.

Dr Kristopher Page M.Sci. (Hons.), MRSC

 

 

Kristopher was educated at Steephill School from 1987, under Miss Bignold, and was part of the original cohort of children present from the school’s new beginning as an educational trust in 1990. Kristopher was head boy at Steephill and was a member of Francis house. Further education was completed at Dartford Grammar School gaining an International Baccalaureate qualification, followed by a first-class honours degree in Chemistry from University College London (UCL). Kristopher has a PhD in Materials Chemistry, with expertise in materials synthesis, characterisation and microbiological testing. Kristopher subsequently held research positions at the Davy-Faraday Research Laboratory (Royal Institution of Great Britain) and later at UCL. Kristopher is an author on 25 scientific papers in internationally recognised journals and currently has had work cited over 2000 times in the literature. Kristopher has been closely involved in science communication and exhibited research work to the public at both the Science Museum, and in 2017, at the Royal Society’s prestigious Summer Science Exhibition, where he was a lead exhibitor representing UCL. This work was covered in national press and Kristopher appeared on BBC News “Health Check” talking about the work. He is currently the Inorganic and Materials Chemistry laboratory manager and deputy departmental safety officer at UCL Department of Chemistry. Kristopher is also heavily involved with efforts to improve laboratory sustainability and is always keen to work to improve both safety and sustainability in the workplace.

Outside of a busy work schedule, Kristopher’s personal interests include the annual ski trip, fixing up things with his scratch-built 3D printer, 3D design and CAD and a bit of computer gaming – when time allows! Kristopher also enjoys the outdoors, and the occasional BBQ when the British weather permits.

Mrs Hazel Thurgood

 

 

Hazel Thurgood has been involved in mainstream education since 1997 initially in a parent role, gaining a BA (hons) in Education and progressing to classroom teacher, science and maths subject lead, and SLT lead. She was also the Phase Leader of the Federation of Barnehurst Schools. Although now retired from teaching she still has a keen interest in all aspects of primary education and SEND accessibility. With two adult children she has experienced all phases of the education process from nursery to university.

 

Mrs Dawn Bramall

 

 

Dawn Bramall was an enthusiastic member of the first FOSS committee for many years when her children were at school. She ran after school clubs in Drama and Sport and organised plays for the pupils to perform for the parents. She first started the practice of Steephill pupils competing in sports matches against other schools. Dawn has continued to keep in touch with Governors and is keen to actively support Steephill School, which she values highly.

 

Mr Peter Bramall

 

 

Peter Bramall was Steephill's first FOSS Chairman when the Trust took over. He held that post for many years while his children were at the school and helped to raise significant amounts of money to support Steephill, both in major projects and classroom extras. Peter has run a successful cycling shop and business for many years. He has also gained distinction in Hospitality Training.

 

Mrs Bhawna Hindocha

 

 

After gaining a BSc in Psychology Bhawna's career began as a recruitment consultant managing large corporate accounts. Then after starting a family she transitioned into private education, specialising in EYFS before moving into mainstream primary teaching.  Over the years she has taught across EYFS, KS1 And KS2. For the past four years she has been the English subject lead - a role that allows her to nurture her passion for helping children thrive and overcome challenges.

Beyond the classroom, Bhawna has delivered workshops on mental health and empowerment for young women, drawing on her commitment to fostering confidence and resilience. In her personal life, she enjoys creative writing, volunteering with BAPS charities and spending time at the theatre.  As a school governor, she is excited to bring her experience and enthusiasm to support the school's growth and success.

 

Dalvinder Dhinsa (Davina) - Legal Consultant to the Board of Governors

Davina is a corporate and commercial lawyer with over 20 years of experience in providing legal guidance to companies and businesses. Throughout her career, Davina has helped businesses navigate complex legal landscapes, offering expertise in corporate governance, contracts, mergers, share and asset acquisitions, sales, corporate reorganisations, and demergers, management buy-outs and buy-ins, as well as advising on loans, investments, debt finance and security arrangements.

In addition to her professional achievements, Davina has been involved in the local community, volunteering at a language school and was previously a school governor at Steephill School.  Davina has a son who also attended Steephill School between 2016 to 2021 before moving onto secondary school.  

As a long-time local resident, Davina remains committed to both the legal and educational sectors in the area.  Davina also enjoys “having a go at golf” when the weather is nice.

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