Politics

Saskia O’Sullivan, Steve Warburton, Greg Williams and Amanda Spielman

Saskia O’Sullivan, head of science at Rendcomb College, an independent day and boarding school for children aged 3 to 18 in Gloucestershire, has been appointed to the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Science, Education and Industry Board (SEIB).

One of just 17 members, Ms O’Sullivan’s peers on board include 10 professors, 11 fellows of the RSC and two fellows of The Royal Society.

Ms O’Sullivan, whose appointment runs until 2018, said: “As you can imagine the number of students taking chemistry and the number of chemists we have got has been in decline and the RSC are keen to support teachers to up that number. I am there as a teacher so that when they are putting forward ideas I can say what works directly in classrooms from experience.”

Ms O’Sullivan began teaching in 2006 and has worked at Rendcomb College for the last four years. She was previously at Ribston Hall High School before that in Gloucester and has also worked as a social worker.

She holds an MA in natural sciences from the University of Cambridge, and an MSc in science and education from the University of Bristol.

Steve Warburton has been appointed as principal of the Greater Peterborough University Technical College (GPUTC), which is due to open in September 2016.

Mr Warburton, who has been involved in the GPUTC project for the last year and was already interim principal, brings more than 30 years of senior leadership and teaching experience.

He was headteacher of nearby Hereward Community College and was previously director of education at Thomas Deacon Academy and assistant principal at Sawtry Community College.

For the last six years, Mr Warburton has been a consultant specialising in educational technology and school improvement, recently working for Novatia.

The new £10 million GPUTC will specialise in engineering and the built environment, with an emphasis on sustainability and new technologies.

Mr Warburton said the “fusion” between academic and practical, technical learning is what drew him to the job.

He said: “Integrating 40 employer challenge projects across the years and specialisms is an exciting aspect of what we are doing, as well as capitalising on my educational technology experience to ensure that our students and staff successfully utilise its potential.”

Mr Warburton has a degree in modern history from Oxford University and an MBA in educational management from Leicester University.

Greg Williams is the new director of Landau Forte Academy Tamworth Sixth Form in Staffordshire.

He moves from his position as senior assistant headteacher at Aston Manor Academy in Birmingham.

The Tamworth sixth form is part of the Landau Forte Charitable Trust, which controls six schools.

Mr Williams said: “In the past our sixth form has been known as mainly academic but we are now looking at introducing more vocational qualifications, which will fit really comfortably in Tamworth industry, such as mechatronic engineering.

“What I am here to do is to make sure the pupils progress. One of my key other ambitions is to develop employability skills within the school. To do this I’ll be working with local employers to find out what their specific needs are.”

Mr Williams studied English literature at the University of Wolverhampton and then took a SCITT route into the classroom.

Ofqual chair Amanda Spielman will act as chief regulator on an interim basis after the departure of Glenys Stacey.

The former merchant banker and strategy consultant-turned education professional took up post on Tuesday and will serve until a permanent replacement for Dame Glenys is found by the Department for Education.

 

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