Governor Profiles

A list of the relevant business and pecuniary interests for our Governing Body can be found here.

Richard Martin - Chair of Governors

I am the Chair of the Local Governing Board and have been in post for the past two years.

For the past 25 years I have held a number of finance leadership positions in the technology sector, across both multinational corporates and small fintech businesses. These roles have covered disciplines across commercial finance, financial planning & analysis and mergers/acquisitions. A career in technology, starting at the infancy of the internet, has given me the opportunity to be part of, and help shape, businesses in the midst of enormous change and has enabled me to work alongside some extraordinary individuals in predominantly young and very culturally-positive environments.

I qualified as a chartered accountant and have held posts both in the UK and overseas.

My wife and I have lived in Hemel Hempstead for much of the past 25 years and have two boys who are just beginning their careers post-university.

Liz Kirkbride - Joint Vice Chair

I am a senior pracademic in legal education, having been called to the Bar of England and Wales before moving into academia. I now have over 20 years of experience in higher education, the last four years as a member of the senior leadership team in a large university law school. I have specific portfolio responsibility for learning, teaching and the student experience ensuring programmes within our school are contemporary, exciting, practical, inclusive and accessible. Aside from my experience in learning and teaching I have a keen interest in SEND and working with students from a disadvantaged/widening participation background to enable them to access higher education in law. 

I have two boys, one of which is presently attending the school. I have always been involved with their primary schools, usually as an active member of the parent’s association and am now hoping to bring my educational background to good use on the governance side. 

I am new to the Governing body of HHS.

Graeme Snell - Joint Vice Chair
 

Before retiring three years ago, I spent over 30 years in industry with roles in IT, product & portfolio management, business strategy, and marketing, including board level and director roles in the latter two. Highlights of that career included award winning work on digital inclusion and marketing campaigns in partnership with devolved and local government which generated over £35m of reinvestment funds.

Since then, I have divided my time between a role on the board of Social Housing Provider Thrive Homes, a small scale property renovation consultancy and two Governor roles. As well as being vice chair of Governors at Pixies Hill Primary school, I have served 4 years as Chair of Governors at The Hemel Hempstead School, leading the governing body through the challenges of the pandemic and the implementation of Centre Assessed Grades, a period of unexpected illness for the Head Teacher and most recently the evaluation of options for the future of the school, leading to the school joining a multi academy trust.

Henry Chan - Joint Vice Chair
 

In the last 15 years, I have been employed by different regional and international organisations within the internet domain name industry, specialised in stakeholder engagement, policy advocacy, and business and product development. I am currently a product manager at the organisation operating the UK country code top level domain registry, managing the strategic development of different product areas related to .UK domain names and being a custodian of the registry in respect of compliance to internet standards and protocols. 

Over the years, I have been an active volunteer at ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), an international organisation responsible for coordinating the management of the Domain Name System and IP addresses, with focus on policy work related to business operations of domain name registry and registrar.

I am looking to serve The Hemel Hempstead School and support its leadership in making the School the best place to learn and flourish for our children with my professional and volunteering experience. 

Ondine Achampong

I attended the Hemel Hempstead School for 7 years for my secondary school and Sixth Form education between 2015-2022 and my younger sibling also currently attends the school.  Due to this, I have experience with the workings of the school as well as the perspective of being a student.

Since leaving the Hemel Hempstead School I have continued my career as a high-performance athlete/World-Class British Gymnast competing in World, European, and Commonwealth competitions in various countries.

Ian Marsden

I had a 30 year policing career in the Metropolitan Police Service that included armed policing, responsible for assessing the need for armed officers, planning and commanding armed policing operations.

On retirement I joined the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office as a Regional Overseas Security Officer responsible for the safety and security of British diplomats. I spent two years in the Sahel region of Africa including Niger where I was caught up in a coup and safely assisted in the evacuation of British nationals culminating in the Ambassador and his own evacuation thanks to both British and American special forces.

I have now returned to the uk to work for the Ministry of Defence ensuring the safety and security of MOD civilians deploying overseas and those personal including VIPs visiting risk locations.

I have three children with two at the school. I have been involved in coaching youth rugby at Camelot and hope that my wealth of experience will be of benefit to the board of governors.

Gweirydd Williams

I am a co-opted governor. I began teaching in 1995 originally as a primary teacher. I have subsequently taught at contrasting secondary schools in Hertfordshire. I have been a member of the leadership team at Sir John Lawes School for the past 17 years and Deputy Headteacher since 2016. Most recently I completed the NPQH in December 2023.  I have two children of secondary school age and one of primary school age. My education ethos is built around achievement, care and excellence.

Fiona Dayton

I am a semi-retired teacher with 30 years of experience, 26 of those years were at The Hemel Hempstead School.  I held a variety of roles at HHS including Head of the RE department; Head of Year 13; Deputy Head of 6th Form and Head of 6th Form.  During my time at HHS I taught KS3 RE, GCSE RS, A Level Philosophy, A Level Sociology and BTec Business Studies.  My main pastoral role was working with 6th formers to help them achieve their best outcomes and take their next steps.
Since leaving HHS I have worked as a consultant at The Katherine Warington School helping them to establish their 6th Form and I now work there on a part time basis in a support role.

Nauman Akbar

I am delighted to be a part of the Board of Governors at Hemel Hempstead School as a parent governor. I have been residing in Hemel Hempstead for over 20 years and my sibling attended the school for their secondary education. My own educational background includes BA (Hons) in Economics with Marketing & French followed by Masters in Business Administration from University of Bath. In my day job I lead branches of a well-known high street bank in Central London.

Using my educational and professional experience I look forward to acting as a parent governor and be active in the school community where my children will be for years to come and form foundation for their future

Lauren Rayner

I have been teaching for over 18 years as a teacher of Art and Design and have passionately led a successful department for more than 14 years.  In my role of head of department, I am experienced in leading colleagues at different stages of their career and promoting high standards of teaching and learning as a performance appraiser, line manager and mentor to trainees.  I  have expanded the department to offer a wider range of qualifications at GCSE and A Level, extending our curriculum and increasing our numbers.  I have the privilege of working closely with both teachers and support staff.

In my role as governor, I have chaired the meetings of the Standards Committee (previously Teaching and Learning Committee) and take active part in all discussions and decision making.  Having been recently re-elected, I look forward to furthering my experience and undertaking training as required.

Amanda Davis

I have worked supporting this school for ten years, nine of which as the face of the school. in reception.  This has given me a great first-hand perspective into the goings on of a busy school.  I have put myself forward for first aid training to support the school and got involved in the allocation and administration of covid tests during 2020/21.  I have also been involved in the staff wellbeing meetings, offering a possibly different perspective to staff issues and possible resolutions.

Through my own children and a previous role within healthcare I have experience of the issues faced by those with disabilities and hope to be able to use this in any way I can for the benefit of the school and its community.

 

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