The Governing Board

Helen grew up in the west of Ireland and is one of six siblings. Having worked in London for 12 years as a teacher and deputy headteacher, she moved to Cornwall in 2001. Prior to taking up the headship of Archbishop Benson Primary School in 2014, Helen had the privilege of being the headteacher of two other schools in Cornwall. After more than fifteen years of headship, she still remains enthused and excited about how schools can make a real difference to the life opportunities of children. She loves Truro and the special place that Archbishop Benson holds within the local community.

When away from work, Helen enjoys the chance to relax and spend time with her husband and daughter. A perfect day would involve some sight-seeing, a nice walk, a beach BBQ (weather permitting!) and the chance to read a good book.

Amanda is a parent governor with two children at the school. Whilst new to the governing board, she has been a class representative for FABB for the past 5 years.
When she isn’t at work she is an assistant Headteacher at a large primary school in Cornwall, Amanda likes to relax by baking, reading and spending time with her family (preferably on a beach!).

Mel was born in Truro and attended ABB (both infants and juniors). She is an Appointed Governor who joined the panel in Autumn 2017 and also has 2 daughters with the school. Mel is also a Class Representative and member of FABB.
Mel’s qualified as a solicitor in London and worked in the City until 2005 when she returned to Cornwall and is now a Partner at Coodes Solicitors. Any free time is spent with her husband and daughters.

Julian was born abroad (Papua New Guinea) and spent some of his childhood in Iran before his family settled in England. Julian has been involved in education for over 20 years and first worked at Cornwall College where he became Head of Foundation Studies which specialised in working with students with additional learning needs. Julian moved to Truro College in 2009 and is part of both the management and safeguarding teams. Aside from his safeguarding duties Julian has responsibility for employability and transition and is on the Government’s advisory panel looking at vocational and technical education. Julian is married and has two children who both enjoy attending Archbishop Benson. In Julian’s spare time he is Secretary of Truro Squash Club and the Welfare Officer for Truro Community Football. Julian is passionate about providing all those in education with the skills and knowledge to be able to meet their full potential.

Will was born in Penzance and spent his childhood in Devon and Cornwall. He attended Archbishop Benson as a child and is delighted to now have two children at the school.
Having studied Biology at university Will taught for 14 years in a range of schools, ending up as a Head of Science at a large secondary comprehensive in Surrey and writing A Level Biology papers for OCR.
Having been an active Christian since university Will trained for Anglican Ministry in Oxford in 2016-2019, where he gained a BA in Theology and an MSt in Philology. He is now curate at St Kea Church where he leads the Truro congregation who currently meet at Penair School.
Will is married to Naomi and enjoys exercising and Cornish beaches, though he has yet to master surfing!

Mandy was born and has lived in Truro all her life. She went to St.Paul's School (Archbishop Benson's predecessor) and the County Girls Grammar School in Truro (now Sainburys).

Mandy is a local business person. She currently owns and runs with her sons the popular Zafiros -Bar/Restaurant - and the Office Nightclub.

All of Mandy's close family have been to the school, her grandson is at the school at the moment.

Mandy is a Members appointed Governor, she is currently the Governing Board’s Special Educational Needs and Disability Governor. She sits on the Governing Board's Personnel, Pay & Pastoral Committee and on the Governing Board's Focus Group for School Improvement Data.

Mandy is a trustee of LARF Cornwall a charity set up in memory of her daughter to help support teenagers and adults undergoing cancer and leukaemia treatment. The charity has raised over £140,000 to date for more details go to www.larfcornwall.co.uk

In what spare time she has Mandy likes to escape to the sunshine in Spain, despite her love of Cornwall.

Roger has lived in Cornwall for twenty-five years. He has been Dean of Truro since 2012, and prior to taking up his appointment at the cathedral, he was the Rector of Redruth for over ten years, followed by seven as Archdeacon of Cornwall. The cathedral’s strap-line is sacred place and common ground in which every person matters, and Roger is committed to applying this to all aspects of cathedral life. He is married to Lois, and they have two children and two grandchildren. Roger reflects his Norfolk ancestry by being a keen Norwich City supporter, an exercise of hope over expectation! He also reads Scandi noir, listens to classical music and sings tenor in a local choir.

Born in Cornwall, Jenny has two daughters at Archbishop Benson School. She qualified as an occupational therapist in 2001 and specialises in working with people, both as an occupational therapist and case manager, who have sustained catastrophic injuries. Jenny enjoys spending time with her family and friends.

Georgina grew up in Essex and moved to Cornwall in 2010. She has worked with children for much of her life in various professional and voluntary roles, most recently as an HLTA and as a Foundation Governor in Cornish Schools. Georgina has 4 children and a Grandson, her 2 youngest children attend ABB. She enjoys being a member of FABB and a Class Representative. In her spare time Georgina enjoys family time, especially on the water.

Matt grew up in Truro and despite spending several years away chose Cornwall as the place to raise his family. He has a child who has just started their journey at Archbishop Benson and another who can’t wait to start. Matt has worked in a variety of educational settings over the past 10 years, teaching in the Middle East, working with children in care, secondary and post 16 before deciding that primary was the age group for him. He is now an Assistant Headteacher in a large school in Newquay overseeing Data and Assessment. Matt enjoys spending time with his family and playing sports

Melissa was born and raised in rural British Columbia, Canada. She studied economics before moving to the UK to attend the London School of Economics in 2010 to complete her Masters. Since graduating, she has worked on several aerospace development projects in Cornwall, and has been part of the Spaceport Cornwall team since its inception in 2014. Spaceport Cornwall will be the first place ever in the UK to launch to space, and Melissa is passionate about communicating this exciting project to a wider audience, including local schools. Melissa’s daughter, Robin, is currently in Reception at Archbishop and they love spending time outdoors as well as travelling back to Canada as often as they can!

Born in New York City, Mel considers herself a citizen of the world having lived in South Africa, Portugal, and The United Arab Emirates before settling in the UK in 1995 to train to be a PE teacher. Graduating in 1999 Mel worked in 3 Luton schools as a PE teacher, head of PE and head of maths eventually moving to take up an Assistant Principal post at CSIA in 2011. In 2014 Mel was delighted to accept a Deputy Headteacher post with responsibility for teaching & learning and student outcomes at Penair School.
Mel remains as passionate about securing the very best for the generations to come as she was when she first entered the profession.
When not at work, Mel, her wife (also a maths teacher), and their dogs can often be found walking the coast path or exploring the hills and mountains the British isles have to offer from the comfort of their campervan.