Claire is the Programme Lead for the PGCert/MA School Leadership of Mental Health and Wellbeing and for The School Mental Health Specialist qualification that is also offered at a PGDip/MA level.
Claire has a broad spectrum of experience resulting from extensive educational practice in both mainstream primary schools and specialist provision gained over the last 25years.
She has recently returned from Thailand after a four-year period teaching at an international school in Bangkok where she was the Head of Learning Support, SENDCo and DDSL. Claire has been a senior leader in both the EYFS and Primary teaching phases but has always maintained her classroom practice, supporting the children to be the best they can be. She has worked in higher education as an ITT mentor and later became the programme lead for the ITT School Direct programme. She taught on both the under and post graduate teacher professional development programmes. Utilising her coaching skills, she supported the wellbeing of the students on placement and championed the teachers acting as mentors. As a teacher governor she led on the beginning of a project to create a happier, healthier workplace by developing a wellbeing strategy for the school.
She will be drawing on her expertise and experience from working in the education sector to support the students engaging in the programmes and as a recent graduate of the MA School Leadership course, she brings with an insight and understanding around the challenges of working and studying and allowing some ‘me time’.
Claire hopes to develop her professional curiosity further as an integral part of her new role as programme leader and welcomes the opportunity to engage with and connect with fellow professionals all seeking to embed a systematic change in their setting and make a difference to the lives of the young people and the wider community in which they work.
She is passionate in her belief that our own emotional wellbeing is of paramount importance if we are to be the best that we can be.
Outside of work, Claire is a very proud Auntie to her nephews in Australia and God Mother to four children in the UK. She enjoys attending the cinema, concerts, and the theatre – and once flew to Singapore for the day to see Aladdin on stage! Claire engages in regular yoga and mindfulness sessions which really help her to maintain a balanced sense of wellbeing and is a trained mindfulness teacher.
