Governors’ Profiles

Bill Kerr

Chair of Governing Body

After qualifying as a Chartered Accountant in 1985 I lived and worked in Europe for 15 years, mainly in Italy before returning to the UK. My family moved to Shepperton in 2004. After 19 years with The Vitec Group, a PLC based in Richmond, where I was Group Treasurer for the last 10 years, I retired on 31st March 2020.

I joined the Governing Board in September 2017 as a parent Governor. My daughter has now completed Year 11 and is going to College. My younger son is still attending Thamesmead. My aim is to assist and support the Head Teacher and his staff with the strategy behind their daily efforts to look after, keep safe and educate all of Thamesmead 1,000+ students.

Jason Tendler

Vice Chair of Governors

I became a Governor at Thamesmead School in September 2017 when my daughter was in Year 8. She has now left the school with strong GCSE results and is continuing her education at a local college.  I have lived in or around Shepperton for the past 20 years, so know the local area well. My professional background is in Financial Services where I have worked for over 30 years. I have undertaken customer facing roles, data analytics, product management and change management.  My role is centred on customers and delivering the best possible outcomes, working to time and budget.

I commit time to supporting Life Skills, a scheme that helps young people get the skills and experiences they need to enter the world of work. Currently I am a Vice-Chair of the Governing Body and Vice-Chair of the Personal, Development, Behaviour & Welfare committee.

Fred Pogson

Vice Chair of Governors

I moved to Shepperton in 2015 as we felt Thamesmead was the right school for my youngest child, who subsequently completed their GCSEs in 2019 and moved on to Esher College. I recently retired from the British Army, having served in the Educational and Training Services Branch. My professional background includes training design and delivery, coaching, instructor development, policy development and change management. My first degree was in Psychology and I have an MA in Education. Currently I am a Vice-Chair of the Governing Body and Chair of the Curriculum, Learning and Standards committee.

Mick Martin

Chair of Admissions Committee

I moved to Laleham in 1976 whilst in the RAF. I joined British Airways in 1978 specialising in training flight crew  and retired at the end of March 2000.    I was appointed as a magistrate in 1989 until December 2009. I then became a governor at Thamesmead where my daughter had completed her secondary education in the early 1980s. 

Iain Last

Parent Governor

With two sons at Thamesmead School and two daughters at St Nicholas CE School, I am very pleased to have been elected as a Parent Governor for Thamesmead School. As a resident of Shepperton for over 18 years, I feel privileged to have been given this opportunity by the parents to contribute something extra to our community.

My professional background equates to 28 years of Leadership and Management experience, most of which is in the field of Global IT and Communications. Acting as a parent-elected Governor, I hope to share some of this experience and further contribute to the school’s commitment to delivering an exceptionally high standard of education to all our children.

Alexis Zenonos

Governor

I recently joined Thamesmead School as a new Governor and have a daughter in year 7. I have lived in the Staines area all my life and have been a police officer since 2009. I have worked in many areas of policing, including front line emergency response, transport, firearms and have recently worked on the largest technological change programme the police service has ever seen.

I look forward to working closely with Thamesmead, senior leadership team and other Governors to ensure it is the best secondary school for education and welfare, and continues to support and prepare our children to become successful adults and leaders for the future.

Nikki Jenkins

Governor

I originally Chaired the Friends of Thamesmead Association for three years and was a member for five.

Historically, I worked at The Riverside Club in Chiswick for almost 10 years in various roles, ultimately supervising their accounts department. I took a career break to have a family and returned to work as part of the office team in an Ofsted Outstanding Primary School. From the school, I went on to be the Office Manager/Deputy General Manager of Hazelwood, home to London Irish. My daughter has now left Thamesmead to attend College.  I am delighted with the education and support she received.

Scott Lovelock

Parent Governor

I work in youth engagement Nationally and have a real passion for seeing young people realise their true potential and being the very best version of themselves.

I have a son currently attending the school and I’m really excited to be part of the excellent governing body shaping the positive future of Thamesmead.

Gareth Cooper

Governor

Originally from South Africa, I have been in the UK for 20 years now. My experience is in both Business and Education, and I’ve been teaching Mathematics & Further Mathematics at Latymer Upper, an Independent Co-educational school in West London, for 15 years – I have also been a Head of Year in the Lower School for 14 of those years.

My love for sport has also meant I have many years of playing and coaching experience too, mainly in Cricket and Hockey, and was previously the Head of Cricket at Latymer, for 7 years.  My family recently moved to Shepperton, and I joined as a Governor at Thamesmead over the Summer – I very much look forward to being a part of the continued growth and development of the school in the years ahead.

Gemma Seabrook

Governor

I recently joined Thamesmead School as a new governor. I have lived in Walton on Thames for over 20 years and both my children were educated in Surrey. I am currently working for the University of London as a careers consultant. I have worked in careers education and pastoral care, in schools, sixth form and most recently in Higher Education for 14 years.  I have helped students to make the transition into work, apprenticeships and university and I am fully committed to supporting young people to make positive choices for their own future.

Marsha Wallis

Governor

I am a new Governor to Thamesmead and am very excited to be able to offer my services to the school.  I have worked with disabled children for the past 20 years and am currently a manager of a disabled short break home within a charity in Chertsey.  I am a qualified assessor in health and social care and was the behaviour management trainer for White Lodge, where I have worked for the past 16 years.  I hope that my experience of working with children with special educational needs and communication difficulties will help the school. 

I am passionate about children achieving outcomes and believe every child has the right to a good education to help them succeed in their adult lives. 

I fill the few spare moments outside of my job and parenting by walking our two dogs, painting and drawing.

Mike Coombs

Governor

I graduated in Classics from London University then worked for IBM before starting my own IT supply and services company aimed at large corporate customers. I live and work locally, am married and have a daughter who started at Thamesmead in 2008 and who is now at university studying economics, and a son who started at Thamesmead in 2010, served an apprenticeship and is now at university studying mechanical engineering. I serve on the Executive Committee of 1st Shepperton (St Nicholas) Scout Group, and am Chairman of the fundraising team at Spelthorne Gymnastics Club.  I became a Governor of Thamesmead School in February 2009.  I played competitive football, cricket and athletics but now prefer to watch all sports. Other interests include travel, current affairs, music and history

Philip Reeves

Ex-officio

Jay Khimji

Governor

I became a Governor at Thamesmead School in November 2021, shortly after my son started attending the school. I am an actuary by profession and have provided advice to pension schemes for over 20 years. My role requires integrity, strategic thinking and analytical competence and I am keen to utilise the skills I have gained to help the school make progress towards its objectives.

I am, in addition, particularly passionate about diversity and inclusion and I believe the school must play a pivotal role in striving to ensure everyone has a chance to succeed and to help pupils set their dreams without being constrained by their background.

Staff Governor

I moved as a dependent to Staines in 2017 from India with my family. I joined Thamesmead in Feb 2022 as a Teaching Assistant and now have become a Governor. My mum, who is a teacher by profession, ran private tuition for Maths and Science and I have grown up helping her with some of her vulnerable students. After completing my graduation in Maths, I worked around 7 years in two MNC’s based in India as a software professional and have worked with various international clients in key projects. My professional expertise is in Data management for various banking and techno accounts. After I moved to the UK, I was a homemaker for a few years looking after my family.

I look forward to being a part of this wonderful community and supporting the younger generation to shape their better future.