Governing Body

(Foundation/Trust) Term of office : 04/09/2018 - 03/09/2022

On the Teaching & Learning Committee 

Originally an elected parent governor with two sons at the school, I am a past chair of governors and currently one of two foundation governors sitting on both Priory’s governing body and the board of the Lewes Co-operative Learning Partnership. The Partnership, which I chair, encourages co-operative working between Lewes schools so as to provide the very best education possible for all children and young people in our communities. As a long standing resident of Lewes I very much wish to see the links between school and community continue to strengthen.

graham.arr-jones@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Local Authority) Term of office : 08/02/2019 - 07/02/2023

On the Strategic Organisation Committee

I have lived in Lewes for about 20 years and my two children have successfully navigated through Priory in recent years.  I was a governor at Western Road Community Primary School for 6 years and more recently became a governor at Carlton Hill Community Primary School in Brighton.  During my time at Western Road, we negotiated the Lewes area schools partnership for which Western Road and Priory were the founding partners.  Working as a governor across primary and secondary schools provides a useful sense of the education system as a whole.  My background is in international development and I work as a consultant mainly supporting governments to extend access to water and sanitation services in poorer communities across Africa and Asia.

ken.caplan@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Co-opted) Term of office : 15/07/2019 - 14/07/2023

On the Strategic Organisation Committee 

I have lived near Lewes for almost 27 years. I have been working at Priory for 9 years now as a science technician and been a Governor for nearly 5 years. I have had the delight of being both a student here and now a member of the staff. During my time here as a student, I was both a charity rep and a prefect. I loved being involved with the student voice at the time and trying to make a difference for my fellow students. The experience as both a student and staff member has allowed me to see both sides of the education system here. I am very proud to have been made a governor and be given the opportunity to help keep Priory a successful and happy environment for both students and staff.

susan.carpenter@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Co-opted) Term of office : 05/09/2018 - 04/09/2022

Vice Chair of Strategic Organisation Committee

I have lived in the Lewes area since 1988. Until 2006 I was Deputy Head at Heathfield Community College, and then, as an Associate Lecturer at Christchurch University Canterbury, taught on an MA course in Educational Leadership and Management for serving teachers in Kent and Surrey. Over the last 5 years I have also been teaching EFL both in China and the UK helping to organise the International Summer School at Sussex Downs College. I am passionate about teaching and learning, and want schools to be seen as positive, vibrant and inclusive learning communities. As a new governor I look forward to playing a supporting role, helping Priory School to develop and promote its role at the heart of the community in the Lewes area.

peter.colebourn@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Co-opted) Term of office : 02/05/2018 – 01/05/2022

On the Strategic Organisation Committee

David has one child at the school

I have lived in or around Lewes for the last 15 years and feel very lucky to be part of a special community. My son is a pupil at Priory school,  transitioning from Western Road Primary school in Lewes and receiving support from many teachers and parents along the way. I have a finance background graduating from the London School of Economics and qualifying as an accountant in the city. On qualifying I lived and worked in Bermuda for 10 years in various finance roles before returning to work in London. I am currently Group Finance Director of a medical assistance company.

david.conway@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Vice Chair, Trust/Foundation) Term of office : 03/09/2018 - 02/09/2022

Teaching and Learning Committee Vice Chair

Having graduated and completed a PGCE, I taught Economics and Business Studies at a large sixth form college in Essex. After 4 years I changed career and worked in the Lloyd’s of London market as a reinsurance broker. During this time I worked extensively on USA professional liability business and my family and I have been lucky to have lived and worked in both Los Angeles and Chicago for extended periods. In 2013 I retired from the City in order to reprioritise my work/life balance which has allowed me the opportunity to join Priory currently as a Foundation governor. I am currently working in property management and renovation in Sussex. I have two children, one working as a teacher, the other, in banking.

john.griffiths@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Co-opted) Term of office : 06/09/2018 - 05/09/2022

On the Teaching & Learning Committee 

I appreciate both the rewards and the challenges of being a Governor here at Priory since 2006. As the Governor lead for Safeguarding and Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance I work closely with the school to ensure that these areas are constantly being reviewed and improved. I spent twenty years working in the world of book publishing, ten as a freelance publishing and production consultant working with national and international companies and printers such as Dorling Kindersley, Penguin and Simon and Schuster. I switched from the private to the public sector in 2006, working in a range of management positions for Children's Services at ESCC including planning and performance, contracts, organisational development, children centres and the Standards and Learning Effectiveness Service. I am currently working as a freelance Skills and Employability consultant with the Sussex Council Training Providers. I have lived in Lewes since 2003 with my partner, an ex Priory student and our three children.

sarah.hinks@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Parent) Term of office : 11/12/2018 - 10/12/2022

On the Teaching and Learning Committee

Joanna has one child at the school

When I first lived in Lewes in 1992 I worked at Glyndebourne Opera House as an Assistant Stage Manager. While I continued to work in Theatre all over the world during the following 15 years it was always Lewes I came home to. The town is my home. I then trained as a teacher working initially at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama and then leading Foundation Degrees in Technical Theatre Production at Northbrook Metropolitan College. In addition I lecture in Production and Event Management at Chichester University to their degree students.

I have one son at Priory and firmly believe that the best and most positive experience a child can have in education is when parents, carers and teachers work collaboratively to support their learning and development. I hope that as a new Parent Governor I can begin to facilitate that belief and look forward to my tenure.

joanna.loader@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Co-opted) Term of office : 03/05/2018 - 02/05/2022

On the Teaching & Learning Committee

Martin has one child at the school

I worked for many years as a solicitor promoting civil rights for members of diverse communities in London and Brighton.  My experience includes Parliamentary lobbying, setting legal professional examinations and, many years ago, teaching English in a school in Sudan.  More recently, I have worked exclusively for HM Courts and Tribunals Service. I have lived in Lewes for over 11 years and been a Priory parent since 2011. I have become a governor to support the school in challenging times.

martin.penrose@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Chair, Parent) Term of office : 21/10/2016 - 20/10/2020

On the Strategic Organisation Committee 

I have three children who all attended Priory School; my youngest took her GCSEs in 2018.  I have seen the school develop over time and respond to a variety of challenges.

I am an historian and have lectured at Sussex and Kingston Universities as well as teaching A level at a local college. At present I am at East Sussex College, Lewes, working with young adults with SEN. I also enjoy continuing to research into my personal historical interests and spend time, when possible, on my interest in art and craft.
I am passionate about education from both a personal and professional perspective and use this enthusiasm to play my part in supporting Priory School. I am link governor for SEN and try to work hard to further inclusion within education. I believe that a holistic approach to learning helps achieve positive results. 

sarah.roberts@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Staff) Term of office : 8/11/2019 - 7/11/2023

On the Teaching & Learning Committee 

I am a strong believer in a well-balanced and holistic approach to education.  I must admit that I am still rather new to the teaching profession, having previously worked as an Assistant Manager at a small boutique hotel in central Brighton as well as serving an academic year as a Teaching Assistant at Longhill High School, attached to the Learning Support Department mainly supporting students with SEN/D.  It was during this time as a TA, working with a wheelchair-bound young person who aspires to be the next Stephen Hawking, that my inspiration and determination to pursue a career in teaching flourished with the vision of encouraging our young people to reach and achieve their potential irrespective of their ability and background.

Despite my recent entrance to the teaching profession, I believe that I bring an honest, hard-working and creative approach to my work.  So, it is this same attitude that I wish to bring to this important role as a representative of the school’s teaching staff on the board of Governors.  I very much look forward to working with parents, other teaching and support staff colleagues, the Headteacher, SLTs and other Governors to help ensure that we continue to improve the educational provision we provide to our young people in order to provide them with the best possible chance to succeed, both within the educational system as well as in the wider community.

arif.said@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Headteacher) Term of office : 01/09/2010 -

I have lived in and around Lewes since 1988. Given that Lewes has been my local town I am very proud to have been given the opportunity to lead Priory School. I started my career as a graduate trainee in retail management but after two and a half years I decided to train as a teacher and completed my training at the University of Sussex. I have always taught in East Sussex, starting as a teacher of Geography and Economics at Heathfield Community College. I gained promotion early in my career and taught in Hastings for 6 years. I spent 11 years as a Deputy Headteacher at an Eastbourne school where I was twice the “Acting Headteacher”. I have also been seconded, on two separate occasions, to East Sussex Children’s Services as a 14-19 Development Manager, overseeing many of the initiatives of the previous government. I commenced at Priory School at the start of the 2010-11 academic year.

tony.smith@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Parent) Term of office : 07/12/2018 - 06/12/2022

On the Teaching & Learning Committee

Liz has one child at the school

I am a Priory parent and an active member of the Friends of Priory since 2014, including organising bars and refreshments for school events to raise funds for the school.

I am keen to represent the views and perspectives of parents to the governing body and to support music and the arts at Priory in the context of its many excellent activities.

I run my own arts management company, promoting composers and top professional musicians and managing operas, tours, concerts and recordings. Recently I have produced a series of publicly funded large-scale music education projects in schools and colleges across East Sussex culminating in performances at the Brighton Festival.

liz.webb@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk

(Co-opted) Term of office : 03/09/2018 - 02/09/2022

Strategic Organisation Committee Chair

I became interested in education when my daughters went to school, helping in their primary school and as part of the PTA committee at their secondary school. I have been the Business Manager in an East Sussex Primary Academy since 2012. Before that I worked in finance in ESCC for 9 years, in Adult Social Care and in the Schools Finance teams. I have a Chemistry degree, am a qualified Accounting Technician and completed the Certificate of School Business Management in 2012. Before working at County I ran my own retail business for 5 years and was a ceramics restorer for 17 years. I am passionate about education and believe that I have many useful experiences and skills that I bring to the role of governor, particularly in the area of finance. I love the positive ethos at Priory and being part of the team working to keep it a happy and successful school.

gaydree.wrigley@priory.e-sussex.sch.uk