Governance Professional
SIPS Education - Governance Professionals
My name is Bhabinder and I am the Governance Professional for Wylde Green Primary School. I have been working within this role at SIPS Education for 10 years, and I enjoy my role as each day is different.
I work with a number of schools in different boroughs and they are all very unique. My main aim is to support them all with their governance matters to ensure that governors are supporting and challenging the school at a strategic level. For me every day in this role is a school day, as there is always something new to learn.
Prior to becoming a Governance Professional , I worked within Sandwell council supporting the wider governance team and prior to this role I worked supporting a small local organisation in helping women that were disadvantaged to engage in opportunities to access training and employment.
In terms of me personally, I was born in Birmingham and continue to live locally. I am married and we have two children, one is of Primary age and one of Secondary age. I enjoy going to the gym at least three times a week and as a family we enjoy going for walks.
I have recently attempted to become an avid gardener, although I am in the early stages of the new steep learning curve.
I look forward to working with the Wylde Green family
Emily Coyne-Umfreville - Chair of Governors
I was appointed as a co-opted Governor of Wylde Green Primary School in July 2017 and I am currently Chair of governors. I am also link Governor for English in school, so I enjoy visits to talk to the children and look at their excellent work. I have over 12 years of experience in governance across Birmingham Schools.
My interest in education and schooling comes from my research in Developmental and Educational Psychology and my PhD looked at emerging reading in KS1. More recently I have carried out research looking at vocabulary interventions in schools and barriers to education across the West Midlands. I am currently Deputy Head of Psychology at Birmingham City University.
In my spare time I am kept busy by my son James, and I enjoy reading and holidays in France.
Richard Hamilton-Martin - Headteacher
I have been a Governor at Wylde Green Primary school since January 2014. As part of my role, I share the school data with the RASP Committee which analyses standards and pupil performance.
I have been teaching for over twenty five years and a Deputy Headteacher for over fifteen years. I have worked in a variety of schools in Birmingham as well as teaching in New Zealand.
Ben Reaney
I have been a governor at Wylde Green since 2017, joining as a local authority governor. In my time at Wylde Green I have served on the Finance committee, acted as the link governor for Healthy and Safety and spent a couple of years as Vice Chair of Governors before being voted Chair of Governors at the start of the 21/22 academic year. I have a lifelong interest in education and I am proud to be part of the school community and to support school leaders deliver the best possible outcomes for the children of Wylde Green Primary School.
Outside of work and school I enjoy spending time with my family outdoors, particularly by the sea in South Wales.
Paul Carter
"I was elected as a parent governor in December 2018 and became a co-opted Governor during 2021. I am presently Vice Chair of Governors. I have two boys, Thomas and William who are both at Wylde Green and it has been amazing to watch their development as part of the Wylde Green family. This is a truly great school and I feel privileged to play a part in its strategic development.
My background is primarily finance based and I currently work as the Head of Governance for the FTSE 100 Packaging company DS Smith. Prior to this I spent over 15 years as an external auditor and I am a qualified Chartered Accountant. In 2022 I became chair of the “Finance, Staffing and Premises Committee” and work closely with the school to help monitor our financial position.
Outside of work my two young boys keep me very busy but I still enjoy running and playing football when I get the chance."
Tracey Firth
I was appointed as a co-opted Governor of Wylde Green Primary School in March 2018. I have a position on the RASP committee looking into educational standards at the school, and I am link Governor for training and pupil premium. My day job is working as a pensions actuary which is quite different to a school. But there are a lot of cross overs with the Governor role such as making sure the governance and finances are well looked after.
I have a son and daughter at the school.
Darren Harris
This is my first post as a school governor, I was appointed as parent governor in January 2022, and I'm a member of the Association of Corporate Governance Practitioners. I am a Committee member for Raising Achievement & Standards of Pupils (RASP). I am also link Governor for PE, music, art and pupil voice.
I have worked as a motivational speaker since 2013, speaking to over a quarter of a million pupils across the Country.
Outside school and work, I am a dual Paralympian and multiple World and European medallist.
Bryony Randall
I am a mother to 2 boys who both attend Wylde Green Primary School, and I was excited to be elected as Parent Governor in July 2021. I have been a nurse for over 20 years and currently work as a Specialist Nurse at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham. Being a school governor is an exciting departure from my day job and although very different there is an overlap between education and healthcare. I have particular interest in ensuring that all children achieve their full potential and am delighted to be link governor for SEND (special educational needs & disabilities) as well as sitting on the RASP committee which focuses on children’s attainment and performance.
Shahadat Hussain - Staff Governor
I have been at Wylde Green since January 2019. Since joining the Wylde Green team, I have worked as a support teacher in Year four and class teacher in Year two and Year four. I am currently an additional in Year 4. I am also the Computing lead and organised the successful Computing Fair in July 2022, which was a wonderful event. In my spare time I enjoy watching and playing football. I am also a keen gardener, who enjoys growing vegetables. Since joining the Wylde Green team, I have enjoyed working alongside and collaborating with my colleagues, teaching children across the school and getting to know the parents.
Richard Green
I was appointed as a co-opted governor in December 2022 and am privileged to have a child at the school. I currently do catch up tutoring in Birmingham schools, after retiring as a Headteacher of a local school. From my previous role, I have experience in education and of being part of a governing body. Before becoming a teacher, I worked for a high street bank as a branch manager so have a finance background. I have been appointed as the Safeguarding governor.
Lucy Jenks
I was delighted to be appointed as a co-opted governor on December 2022. As well as serving on the committee for raising achievement and standards of pupils and head teachers performance. I have special responsibility for EYFS.
This is my first governor position, my previous experience working with schools is derived from my role as a Children's Occupational Therapist, enabling children and young people to be able to do the things they need to do and want to do as part of their daily lives.
My daughter joined Wylde Green Primary in 2020 and has flourished under the school's care. I am excited about being able to help support the school.
In my spare time I enjoy completing craft activities and have recently taken on an allotment with some friends.
Howard Collins
I was appointed a co-opted governor at Wylde Green in December 2024 and have had some previous experience in the same role at a primary school in Leeds.
I have worked in optometry for over 20 years, firstly in community practice and then teaching at the University of Bradford while I completed my PhD, and latterly lecturing at Aston University.
Working with undergraduate students, I am keenly aware of the impact that quality education plays in helping young people secure the future that they deserve, and look forward to working with the team at Wylde Green Primary School to support the great work they do in promoting their students’ success.
Zelpher Ferguson
I qualified as a teacher in 1993 and have over 30 years of professional experience across a variety of sectors. This includes state education, the independent sector, further education and business. In April 2022 I became the Founder of Aluna Behaviour Consultancy as a Behaviour Strategist. My work involves providing support for children, young people and adults with all aspects of behaviour; delivering specialist training, workshops and coaching opportunities for professionals, pupils and parents.
Jane Glendenning
After a 10 year career in advertising and marketing, I became a teacher in 2005 working as a Pastoral Leader in comprehensives in Birmingham and Dudley before moving to King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls in 2009 as Head of English. From 2017 for 7 years I was the Director of Pastoral Care for Years 7-11 and the Designated Safeguarding Lead for the school and during that time collaborated with the NHS, Warwick University, Papyrus and supported research trials with the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families and became an early adopter of the Birmingham Schools Wellbeing Census.
My desire to learn more about the issues impacting on our society has meant that I have had extensive training around topics such as contextual safeguarding; online safety; FGM; radicalisation; and child criminal exploitation. Due to my concerns about the impact of the pandemic I have also undertaken training in Psychological First Aid, to supplement my Mental Health First Aid and ASIST (Suicide Safety) training and to better understand and support people affected by trauma and adverse conditions. I have also delivered staff and parent training on topics ranging from self-harm and mental health to family violence and criminal exploitation.
Over the course of 10 years, in various guises, I have worked with colleagues across the City and feel privileged to be on secondment for 3 years (3 days a week) as the Schools of King Edward VI Birmingham Foundation Leader in Education for Safeguarding and Wellbeing. My role is to support schools, particularly DSLs, Senior Mental Health Leads, Headteachers and governors through close collaboration and reflective practice. This includes policy development; reviewing practice and working with external agencies to provide students with the opportunity to flourish in a safe, secure and supported environment.
Whilst at school, I deliver PSHE to Year 7, 11 and 13 and as an Assistant Head am the Sustainability Lead and Staff Wellbeing Lead. I am also the Safeguarding Associate (Governor) for a secondary school in the northeast of the city.
