Both myself and my husband grew up in the village and we both attended St Helen's, as did our sisters and my nephew, so we were thrilled when our son joined the school.  During my time at the school my dad was part of the governing body and I am very excited to be able to follow in his footsteps.  I have worked for the local authority for 15 years supporting and advising school staff and families.  Therefore, I have working knowledge of current policies and procedures. Prior to this I was TA in a Special School for 5 years.  I am happy to be part of the school’s continuing presence in the village and to be able to assist in providing a positive educational experience for all children who attend.  In my spare time I enjoy reading, sewing and spending time with my family.  I love going to the theatre and to concerts.  I like fundraising for charities and am an active member of FOSH.

I live in Colne and I have two children at St Helen’s. My professional background is in education and teaching, and I am currently Lead for Initial Teacher Training at Anglia Ruskin University. When I have some spare time, I enjoy gardening and reading a good book. The staff at St Helen’s work really hard to provide a high-quality education for all and to nurture a kind and caring learning community. It is a pleasure to be able to support the school as a governor and make a positive contribution to the local community.

My family and I moved to Colne a few years ago and have become very attached to the community and to St Helen’s, where my daughter is a pupil. I am an oncologist but also lead a research programme and unit at the University of Cambridge, through which I have gained experience of governance and of providing board-level oversight. I am really pleased to have an opportunity to use some of the skills I have gained from this to hopefully help the dedicated staff and governing body in St Helen’s to continue to deliver for local pupils and the community.

My son started this year at St Helen’s and I’d like to contribute to his journey by supporting the school and finding ways to make a difference to staff, parents / carers and children. I’m interested in finding practical applications for the latest insights in child development and psychology. I also volunteer for an organisation who campaign to ‘save the choice to care’ (representing the financial implications for parents who want to spend more time with their children). I once unintentionally ended up in a 9-month project implementing GDPR, so have more knowledge than I care for on data protection!

I live in Colne with my wife Catherine and our 3 children, all of whom are pupils at St Helen's and previously at Brambles. I have been a governor for several years and I'm excited to be part of the future journey for our school providing outstanding opportunities for every child in our local villages. My professional background is in educational technologies, where I am the IT Director for a local Multi Academy Trust. In my spare time I enjoy spending time with my family, singing as a part-time lay-clerk at Ely Cathedral, playing the piano in our Colne church band and tinkering with electronics. I also sit on the Bluntisham Beer Festival committee.

'I live in Colne with my wife Eleanor and our daughter who is a pupil at St Helen's. I studied Business Finance and Economics at university and subsequently qualified as a Chartered Accountant. I have worked in both Practice and Industry since then and have experience from small privately owned companies through to large multinational and listed corporations. I hope to provide additional insight and input to the financial management of the school to ensure that the funding received is used to best effect to provide an outstanding primary school experience for all our pupils. I enjoy cooking and spending time in our garden, where we have recently installed a vegetable garden so that we can grow more of what we eat.'

I joined the governing body in February 2020 as a co-opted Governor. I have a background as a Fellow of CILEx and before having children I worked for a local firm of solicitors. Since having children I have been able to work part time for a local charity and also undertake some work producing law based exam materials. I believe that my background in law, as well as the voluntary and educational sectors gives me an experience that is beneficial to supporting the governing body. It is a pleasure to be part of the schools governing body and I look forward to continuing to support St Helen's in the coming year.

I have worked at St Helen's since 2022 and was elected as staff governor in 2024. I graduated from university in 2008 and have been a primary school teacher ever since. I feel very passionate about my job and thrive on the new challenges that each day brings. Being a governor in the school has allowed me to help shape our collective vision for moving our school forward and I am excited to be part of a passionate, experienced and skilled group of individuals who care about our school community and want our children to shine.  As a parent and a teacher at our small, hardworking and friendly school, I feel rewarded by my governor role as the children here deserve nothing but the best we can offer.

Sally Walsh is a retired lawyer, who worked for nearly 30 years for the Crown Prosecution Service. Her most memorable cases included the “coughing major” who tried to win £1 million on ‘Who wants to be a Millionaire’ and the case of the Pakistan cricketers Salman Butt, the former captain, and Mohammed Asif, a bowler, who were given prison sentences for corruption in a betting scam that took place during a Test against England. Nowadays Sally occupies her time with volunteering at Somersham Community Library and as a reader at St Helen’s. She is also training Year 5s to run the school library. As well as that, she plays bridge to a very average standard. Sally has two adult children and five grandchildren, one of whom attends St Helen’s.

As a resident of the village and with a strong interest in the performance of our local school, I think it is important to bridge those gaps between the community and the school and other organisations and agencies. I see the governor role as the ideal opportunity to do this to ensure that children receive the best possible education, ensuring that all pupils are happy, safe and are given opportunities to reach their potential. I am keen to support the welfare of all children ensuring their safety and happiness is as important as the education they receive and ensuring that staff are equipped and adequately trained to enable this. I believe that within their learning environment children should be able to express themselves, be respectful towards staff and their peers whilst also learning important life skills. I’d be keen to promote and encourage any form of physical and outdoor activity, whether it be for learning or physical exercise, helping to improve focus, confidence and behaviour.

I am very proud to be able to share with you the wonderful things that happen in our school and the many opportunities the children enjoy! We are a lively, happy school family, where children are engaged in their learning and are keen to do their best. We all try to live by our values of Respect, Courage, Endurance, Resilience, Compassion and Trust. Our staff are dedicated to the success of every individual in the school and work hard to provide an engaging and exciting curriculum so that all the children are able to reach their full potential.

I am delighted to have joined the staff as co-headteacher this year and, ex officio, to be a member of the Governing Body.   I started teaching in 1995 in London; and moved to Cambridgeshire in 2002 as  a deputy head teacher for 5 years and then was a headteacher of a similar sized Cambridgeshire school to St Helen's for 16 years.  I look forward to working with the wonderful children, dedicated staff and governors at St Helen's.   I also work with Cambridge University Faculty of Education, supporting students working towards their PGCE.  Outside of education I enjoy walking and lawn bowls!