Alex Wesson
Year 2 Class Teacher (ECT)
De Havilland
Alex has been nominated for her exceptional dedication to De Havilland School this year. Her commitment to our community in her first year of teaching has touched the lives of children, parents, and colleagues alike. Alex's passion for education is evident in her innovative teaching methods, igniting curiosity and nurturing a love for learning in the children she teachers. She connects with each individual, tailoring lessons to their unique needs, creating a supportive and inclusive classroom. This year, Alex gained extensive external moderation experience, displaying in her books high academic standards and extensive knowledge of her learners. We are thrilled to congratulate Alex on this well-deserved award!
Sarah King

Amanda Kirby
Maths Teacher
St Clement Danes
Amanda consistently goes above and beyond, relentlessly contributing to the enhancement of student experiences. As well as being a highly effective maths teacher, she also leads one of the largest and most successful school based Duke of Edinburgh's Award programmes in the country. Amanda has also played a crucial role in enhancing the Danes Baccalaureate program via the introduction of the Anchor Award. If that were not enough, Amanda has also supported colleagues extensively with the planning and running of trips as an Education Visits Coordinator and assisted the Pastoral Team during an exceptionally challenging year. It must be said that Amanda has regularly carried out these roles during her own time and performed them with a quiet determination and an abundance of positivity. Amanda is always on hand to help colleagues and if there is an opportunity to lighten the load, often at her own expense, she will do so. Amanda is a true example of what makes St Clement Danes so special, with loyalty, dedication and compassion aplenty.
Toby Sutherland

Becky Edwards
Exams Officer
St Clement Danes
Becky has made an exceptional contribution to the lives of the young people in our school as they go through the most challenging experience of sitting public examinations - with both Year 11 and 13 experiencing that for the first time this year. Alongside her outstanding organisational skills, Becky is a shining example of making a difference through her nuanced understanding of learners' needs. She responds calmly and humanely to a whole myriad of concerns from staff, parents and students, not just within the exam periods, but across months of preparation. She is utterly committed to ensuring that individual needs are always appropriately catered for; her caring approach means students and their parents feel that individual circumstances have always been thoughtfully considered and play a significant part in boosting student confidence at a time of heightened exam stress. She is a fantastic example of treating all students with dignity in order to set them up for success.
Toby Sutherland

Claire Weetman
Teacher of English, Literacy & Oracy Co-ordinator
Onslow St Audrey's
Claire is a passionate and committed teacher who has worked exceptionally hard to enrich students learning and love of english as a subject. This is evident through her work with the public speaking competition, Herts Fluency Project, reading competition in Y9, trips and the significant effort she has made to developing resources for the Super Curriculum. Even when faced with resistance from students, Claire’s enthusiasm shines through and she works tirelessly to support both the students she teaches and the staff she works with. This determination has made a difference to the wider school life and will only continue to grow with the developments already planned for next year. Thank you Claire.
Julie Jones

Claudia Keating
Assistant SENCo
Lanchester
Claudia (a qualified and experienced teacher in her own right) came to work at Lanchester last year, as an L.S.P. Since, she has started the NASENCO award and changed her role to encompass that of Assistant SENCo and then Learning Mentor. She has been a wonderful and caring colleague with a boundless supply of energy and enthusiasm. As Assistant SENCo, she has been a constant source of support, meeting outside agencies, attending training, liaising with LSPs and completing referrals and observations. As Learning Mentor, she has established Reflect and Restore sessions at lunchtimes, supported a large number of children daily and thereby enabled their class teachers to focus on the needs of their classes. She cares passionately about the pupils, and is constantly pushing herself to find the most innovative resources and engaging ways to support them. Claudia’s brilliant work ethic has facilitated many other staff to work more productively.
Claire Hammond

Dale Hughes
Subject Leader - computer science
Croxley Danes
Dale is quietly efficient. No job is too much for him and he provides substantial support to less experienced Computer Science teachers. The feedback about Dale's mentoring from the Computer Science ITT student this year was exceptional. He is always willing to talk and help out in the science faculty and is a very professional manager.
Steve Thompson

Darcie Ireland
Head of Visual Creative Arts
Elstree Screen Arts
Darcie is one of those leaders who loves to lead. Not in a power hungry way but in a caring, supportive and visionary sense. She is always up for a new creative pursuit and this is infectious and empowers other colleagues in her department and beyond. The art floor feels like an innovative and thoughtfully curated exhibition space and students are expansive in their learning mindset. Creativity, curiosity, confidence and craftmanship are abundantly apparent. Thank you and congratulations Darcie.
Chris Mitchell

Dave Murray
Site Manager
Jupiter
Dave is amazing and goes above and beyond to make sure that Jupiter is a safe and enjoyable environment for all our children and staff. Dave is proactive and makes sure that any repair work is actioned quickly. Dave is very reliable and he is also on hand to help staff at the 'drop of a hat' if they need something moving or fixing. It is always reassuring to know that all staff and children have a lovely place to learn and work.
Karen Armstrong

David Toye
Pastoral Assistant
Chancellor's
David (with his excellent colleagues in the pastoral team) has provided wonderful care, support and comfort to some of our most disadvantaged and underserved students. He is always positive and upbeat, meticulously organised and has supported colleagues across the school with some of the most vulnerable individuals in the school. Like his colleagues, he has outstanding interpersonal skills and has developed an excellent, working relationship with some key students restoring relationships and helping them develop pro-social approaches. The school community is grateful that they can count on David (and the other members of the pastoral team) to support students and champion their wellbeing. He also has time for a bit of extra-curricular gardening and puts in a few extra hours after school to make the Chancellor’s environment as attractive as it possibly can be.
David Croston 

Jackie Clark
School & Family Nurture Practitioner
De Havilland
Jackie is the deserving recipient of this award due to her dedication to the DEH community. Her commitment to the school goes beyond the classroom, as she has consistently shown immense support for our families, prioritising their safety and wellbeing. Jackie's tireless efforts in going above and beyond her duties have made a significant impact on the lives of children and their families. She has been instrumental in providing therapeutic interventions and collaborating with external services to ensure comprehensive support for those in need. Jackie's exceptional contributions have made a remarkable difference in the school community, and we are truly grateful for her presence. Without her, we could not have achieved the level of care and assistance that De Havilland School prides itself on. Congratulations, Jackie, on this well-deserved recognition!
Sarah King

Jo Hedges
Examinations Officer
Croxley Danes
This summer is Jo’s second year as Examinations Officer and she has built the whole exam ‘department’ from scratch. Jo is an absolute joy to work with. Her ability to plan with meticulous attention to detail means staff, students, parents and invigilators know exactly what is expected of them. She runs a very tight ship and following multiple inspections from JCQ, not only can they not find any fault in anything she does but they have also made notes of some of her processes to share with others. Jo is the epitome of professionalism, not only does she complete her job to the highest of standards, but she is also the kind and caring face that the students need when they are having the inevitable exam wobbles. Jo's contribution to the school is much appreciated.
Steve Thompson

Jon Starling
Teacher of Music
Chancellor's
Jon has been nominated for the wonderful work and support that he has given to the music department over the past 4 years. He is involved in extensive extra-curricular work, organising ensembles, concerts and performances at home and overseas. He has been willing to take on various second subject specialisms and most recently has been welcomed by the art department for his photography skills. He has also led our Learner Voice Council. Under his guidance, we now have a dedicated group of students who are looking to improve teaching and learning and share their voice with their peers and staff. We shall also miss him greatly, but we are pleased that he is taking up a Head of Music responsibility and a well-deserved promotion.
David Croston

Julia Sanderson
Partnerships and Talent Manager
Elstree Screen Arts
Julia has made an invaluable contribution to partnerships and careers at ESA. Futures week was outrageously ambitious and a roaring success - a whole week for year 10s and 12s to meet prospective employers, apprentice providers and university offers. Industry leaders from Sky, Snapchat and Framestore hosted our students, while the leading UK creative arts universities provided destinations guidance. Additionally, Julia sourced industry placements and employer engagements for all of our year 14 trainees while developing a new working group to develop curriculum innovations around the rapidly emerging sector of digital and virtual production. The woman has seemingly no limit to her networking and administrative skills. Thank you and congratulations Julia.
Chris Mitchell

Kate Rayner
Food Technician & OSAmbassador Lead
Onslow St Audrey's
Although Kate will say ‘I’m just a technician’, Kate works tirelessly to develop and deliver our OSAmbassador programme across OSA and her input is so valuable. Kate has taken on further responsibility this year and has worked exceptionally hard to continue the success of the offer, liaising with teachers, tutors, pastoral staff, support staff and SLT to ensure every member has the best experience. Kate led a successful reward brunch with Rachel Brindley at Christmas time, as well as having guest speaker, Dr van der Spoel in to visit. Furthermore, trips to an Escape Room and Hatfield House have been excellent rewards for our students. Finally, Kates continued passion and determination has seen the launch of the OSAmbassadors across two further DET schools, and we are really proud and grateful to Kate for her hard work!
Julie Jones

Leann Beasley
HR and Admin Officer
Ascot Road
Every school needs a Leann. She is always positive and supportive to every member of staff who stops at her desk with a question or query. Through conversations with members of staff she clearly demonstrates the DET value to encourage everyone within our Trust to feel optimistic about the future whatever they may be facing. She signposts, encourages and guides people and it never appears to be too much trouble however busy she is. She is also extremely knowledgeable about her role within the world of HR and happy to support and help colleagues as best she can. Thank you Leann for all you do, you really do help to make a difference together.
Cathy Elsley

Natalie Scott
Assistant Headteacher
Lanchester
Natalie has stepped up, becoming a fantastic assistant head teacher this year. She goes above and beyond to help all staff and is working extremely hard to continue developing the school.
Claire Hammond

Sophie Wadmore
Class Teacher & KS2 Phase Lead
Jupiter
Sophie is a conscientious and excellent practitioner. Sophie always ensures that she takes the time to speak to pupils, ensuring they are happy, safe and well listened to. She always places them at the forefront of all she does. Sophie has organised enrichment opportunities for the whole school this year, such a maths number day which was enjoyed by all. Sophie has also supported numerous staff with their practice; supporting and mentoring them and generously giving up her time and opening her classroom in order for others to learn from her teaching.
Karen Armstrong

Zak Noorali
Year 4 Class Teacher
Ascot Road
Zak is a great example of the importance of recognising talent within our team and helping it grow. He started at Ascot Road as a LSP but we always knew his dream was to become a class teacher. Zak took every opportunity to build his practise within the school and was always willing to help covering PPA and running after school clubs. He began teacher training and worked with colleagues within the school. When one of the year 4 classes were left without a teacher in the Spring term it was the perfect opportunity for him to step into a teaching role and we are so proud of what he has achieved. The class have really settled under his care and made clear steps forward both with their learning and also building better relationships with their peers. Thank you Zak for the difference you have made.
Cathy Elsley