Co-opted Governor

John Watkin is a retired teacher. His 38-year career included mainstream secondary schools, here and overseas, and alternative provision in London. He spent 15 years in senior leadership in both sectors, ending as headteacher of a large pupil referral unit in East London. Since retiring, John has worked as a specialist consultant, supporting local authorities in the areas of school exclusion, alternative provision and fair access.

Favourite pastimes include open water swimming, visiting art galleries, photography and walking the dog.

Appointed by the Auriga Academy Trust    Term of Office 04/04/2019 - 04/04/2023

Address - c/o Strathmore School, St Richard Reynolds Catholic College, Station Rd, Twickenham TW1 4DQ

Co-opted Governor

Jane's daughter started at Strathmore School in 2016, and joined the governing body as a Parent Governor in May 2018.

From the time her child joined the school, she has experienced and seen staff provide an outstanding environment for the children to thrive and progress in all areas of education, personal care and independence. This stirred Jane's interest in being part of the governing body and to play a key role in representing parents and caregivers to continue in receiving a high standard of personal care and education for children.

Jane's background is within the media industry, working as a marketing specialist for large media companies including The Economist Group. Her skill sets includes management, budget responsibility, analysis, planning and project management. She is also the current Chair for our school charity Friends of Strathmore School (FOSS).

She is passionate about education and ensuring that the children receive the best opportunities so that they can reach their full potential. She considers Strathmore School to be an exceptional and inspirational school, and it is a privilege to be a member of the governing body.

Appointed by the Local Governing Board            Safeguarding Governor

Term of Office 16/05/2018 - 21/03/2022 (Parent Governor)

Term of Office 21/03/2022 - 20/03/2026 (Co-opted Governor)

Co-opted Governor

Rebecca is an arts education manager experienced in developing and delivering high quality creative learning programmes, resources and training.  She has worked in hundreds of schools and settings across London, building partnerships to support creative teaching and learning and recently led on the schools’ engagement for ‘Steve McQueen Year 3’ – an artwork involving over 76,000 children.  In her spare time Rebecca enjoys cooking and reading, and is currently increasing her knowledge of all things football, thanks to her six year old son! 

Appointed by the Local Governing Board

Term of Office 05/07/2021 - 04/07/2025

Co-opted Governor

Dev joined us in September 2022. He is a parent of a child at the St Richard Reynolds campus. Professionally, Dev is a solicitor (specialising in dispute resolution in the real estate sector) and a partner at his law firm, Watson Farley & Williams LLP. He brings critical thinking, dynamism and assiduity to the Local Governing Body.

Appointed by the Local Governing Board

Term of Office: 26/9/2022 - 25/09/2026

Co-opted Governor

Marc was brought up in the local area, and has worked in FE and Sixth Form Colleges within the borough for many years. 

Marc is passionate about leading strategies within Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion across Colleges, developing operational policies to increase quality of student and staff experience.  Marc is a strong believer that diverse voices make better decisions. 

Marc enjoys setting challenging targets for others and encouraging a competitive team ethos in striving for excellence. As a leader specialising in Creative and Digital Industries, he strives to develop a culture that ensures all learners leave successfully.

Marc is new to governance, looking forward to assisting the board in developing and strengthening Strathmore School. 

Appointed by the Local Governing Board

Term of Office 07/07/2022 - 06/07/2026 

Staff Governor

Laura has  worked in Strathmore school for 7 years, 3 years as a TA and 4 years as a HLTA. Before working at Strathmore she worked in a nursery as a room leader and the setting senco. She has 3 children, one of whom is disabled.

Appointed by the Local Governing Board       Term of Office 05/07/2021 - 04/07/2025

Co-opted Governor

Alex is the Headteacher of Deer Park School in East Twickenham, and a resident of the local community. He was worked as a senior leader in Enfield, Hackney and Richmond schools, and is passionate about the provision of opportunities and personal development for young people. Prior to working in leadership, Alex was a Year 6 class teacher and is a graduate of the Teach First and Future Leaders programmes. He is now an NPQH mentor for Teach First, a mentor for Sutton Trust students, and sits on the selection panel for the Morehead-Cain scholarship. Outside of these roles, Alex enjoys the outdoors with his wife, two small children, and reasonably well-behaved dog.

Appointed by the Local Governing Board

Term of Office 05/07/2021 - 04/07/2025

Co-opted Governor

Tom works in the commercial department for a small train company up the East Coast of England. He brings experience of financial management to the board. 

Tom lives in Twickenham and has a younger brother with additional needs.

Appointed by the Local Governing Board

Term of Office 23/09/2020 - 22/09/2024

Staff Governor

My name is Amy Upton and I am a Class Teacher at Strathmore school and currently the curriculum Co-Lead for Expressive and Receptive Communication. I started at Strathmore in September 2017 at our Grey Court Campus working with secondary age learners in Key Stage 3 and 14-19. In 2020 in moved to the Russell Campus and currently work with primary age learners in Key Stage 2.

In my time at Strathmore, I have worked with a range of learners varying needs and I am passionate about quality education, learning and progress for all our learners. In my spare time I like to visit my friends and family, go for long river walks and escape in a good book!

Appointed by the Local Governing Board

Term of Office 05/07/2021 - 04/07/2025

Co-opted Governor

Mitch is both an entrepreneur and investor.  Earlier in his career, he was an entrepreneur, having helped create several technology businesses.  He later transitioned to investment management, where he has primarily focused on early and mid-stage investments in the UK and European technology startups.  An MBA in Finance from HEC Paris has provided a bridge between operational and investment roles in the tech-startup community. 

Mitch is a resident of Sheen, and he has a son in primary school and a daughter with additional needs.

Appointed by the Local Governing Board

Term of Office 21/03/2022 - 20/03/2026

Parent Governor

Aminta is a parent to one child with additional needs. She is Vice-Chair of Richmond Parent Carer Forum, and a parent rep on the Richmond & Kingston SENDIASS Advisory Group. She formerly worked in Film & Television in a production role, moving into corporate and broadcast video before having her son in 2015. Since then, she has worked for several charities and across the voluntary sector both on events and parental engagement projects. 

Appointed by the Local Governing Board

Term of Office 21/03/2022 - 20/03/2026 

Acting Headteacher

Sarah Hurtado started at Strathmore 12 years ago as a Lead Teacher for ASD and previously worked as the Lead Teacher at an Early Years and Primary Resourced Provision at Buckingham Primary School in Hampton.  She is the current Acting Headteacher at Strathmore.

Sarah is an experienced educator who previously worked in primary and special schools in the UK and South America.  Sarah advocates the need for play both for younger Strathmore learners and those who are older.  She believes that 'switching children on to learning' through motivational, fun and active learning is the key to a successful education.  She is passionate about inclusion and working with colleagues from our co-located schools.  Her aim is that all Strathmore learners are treated as individuals with kindness by staff who are equipped with specialist skills using a curriculum that offers a rich breadth of opportunities so that they have what they need to get the most out of their lives once they leave Strathmore. 

She has 2 children and loves to spend any spare time travelling and exploring our beautiful world.  

Appointed by the Local Governing Board

Term of Office 25/05/2020 - 25/05/2024

Co-opted Governor

Appointed by the Local Governing Board

Term of Office 20/09/2021 - 19/09/2025

Stepped Down 11/01/2022

Associate Governor

Appointed by the Local Governing Board

Term of Office 03/10/2020 - 03/10/2024

Stepped Down 22/07/2022

Headteacher

Stepped Down 22/07/2022