Felicia Hughes – Chair
I moved to Peckham in 1982 and have lived here ever since. I love the area for its nearness to London, its many green spaces and the great variety of people here. I am always pleased to see our pupils out and about, making the most of our local area.
I am retired after 35 years teaching, mostly in special schools (in fact I taught at Cherry Garden school in the 1980s!). My final position was deputy head at Greenvale school in Lewisham.
I believe passionately in all children having access to high quality, stimulating education and am delighted to be a Governor to support this.
Ewan Graham – Vice Chair
I am a co-opted governor at the school and an Associate Director at Hawkins\Brown Architects; I was involved in the design and delivery of the new school building on Bellenden Road and was delighted to be asked if I would consider becoming a co-opted governor. I live in Peckham Rye and cycle passed Cherry Garden almost every day and take real pride in my association with the school. I’m interested in building bridges in the local community and helping to ensure the pupils at Cherry Garden can make the very most of their new building. When not in the studio you will most likely find me outdoors, cycling, running or training for a variety of charity challenges. I’m a firm believer in the benefits of play, frequent physical exercise and independent exploration for learning.
Kelly Hawker – Headteacher
I am the Headteacher at Cherry Garden School and am totally committed to ensuring pupils have an amazing education which supports all aspects of their holistic development. I have a broad and varied background in teaching and supporting pupils with complex learning differences across the early years and primary phase. This includes working in a number of settings and schools, plus working for local authorities supporting learning within a broader context. I have experience of being a school governor and highly value and welcome the strategic support to drive school improvement.
My family are all originally from Southwark and my favourite food is pie, mash with lots of liquor!
Sabrina Prempeh – Staff Governor
As someone who has worked in education for more than 10 years I am ecstatic to be a member of the governing board of such a dynamic and nurturing school. As a member of staff, I often witness first-hand the hard work that the dedicated staff put in to ensure that all pupils gain the best possible education and care whilst at Cherry Garden School and as staff governor I feel that I’m a good position to represent staff and bring a staff viewpoint and perspective to the governing body.
Within my personal life, I’m a governor & trustee of my local church for over 6 years and have lived in the South East London area my whole life. I am a mother and I enjoy holidays abroad, reading, trips to the cinema and eating out.
Laura Hutchinson
I am a co-opted Governor at the School and joined the Governing Body in 2017 because I am a passionate believer in the power of education. My Dad was a teacher, so I grew up talking about it! I was looking for a school I could make a contribution to locally and found Cherry Garden. I’m so glad I did – it’s such a special, inspiring place and I’m always so impressed by the atmosphere in the school whenever I visit.
In my work life, I am the Head of PR for Historic Royal Palaces, the charity that cares for six historic visitor attractions, including the Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace and Kensington Palace. My team look after press, social media and filming across the six sites. It’s a very varied job and although I don’t work with schools myself directly, the charity does a look of work with schools, which I feel very proud of. In my spare time, I’m often to be found on a busman’s holiday, visiting historic places and museums!
Ruth Harris – Parent Governor
My youngest son started at Cherry Garden in 2019. He benefits so much from the amazing teaching and school community that I was inspired to become a parent-governor to give something back. Professionally I’ve worked with disabled children, families and schools for 15 years as a speech and language therapist. I work now in a Learning Disability CAMHS team in another borough, which increases my insight into the issues faced by disabled children and families, in addition to my own experiences. As well as supporting Cherry Garden to continue their fantastic work, I hope to speak up for families on the governing board. Parents are welcome to contact me via the office. Yoga helps me to relax.
Heidi Ahlborn – Parent Governor
My child began attending Cherry Garden in September 2021. I am passionate about a child centred approach to learning and development which is evident in my child’s school journey with Cherry. I was inspired to become a parent governor to actively support the school as it continues to develop and grow, and also to support the many school families. Professionally, I am a Chartered Accountant with experience working in risk and compliance roles within financial services firms in Canada, Ireland and the UK. I enjoy creative arts, baking and the occasional round of MarioKart.
Patricia Cox – Parent Governor
My son attends Cherry Garden and it has been amazing to see him flourish and meet his potential through the dedication of all staff at the school, which has inspired me to become a parent-governor so that I can help to continue all the progress which has been made. I work within the healthcare setting and understand the constraints which those who work within the public sector face in terms of providing a good service within the constraints of budgets and red-tape. I hope to be able to bring my voice as a parent to the board of governors to try and work together on things which can be improved, as there are obstacles which being a working parent to a child with additional needs brings. In my spare time I enjoy learning languages, exploring Southwark and the world with my child.
Dr Margaret Morton
I am a community governor at the school.
My background: I am retired but previously worked in Southwark for just over twenty years as a community paediatrician specialising in childhood disability. I feel that my work has given me an understanding of the challenges that the children at Cherry Garden School can face and of the services that they might require. I was involved in neuro-developmental follow-up studies locally and nationally and this has been very helpful when looking at the school’s reports on pupil progress.
With six grandchildren living in Southwark, four in primary schools and two fast approaching school age, I have a personal interest in primary education here and a lot of useful hands-on experience!
Jane Thomas – Community Governor
I have worked as a Nurse in the NHS for 40 years with a break in service after I had my own four children. Whilst they were in primary school I worked at a Special Needs secondary School in Lewisham as an LSA. I started my NHS career on an adult male surgical ward then progressed to being a Midwife for around 6 years, I was a mainstream School Nurse in Southwark and Lambeth for 10 years, and more recently the Children’s Complex Needs Continence Clinical Nurse Specialist for Lambeth and Southwark. I very much look forward to my fortnightly visits to Cherry Garden, it has such a lovely happy atmosphere and reminds me so much of my time in Lewisham.
I was encouraged to join the board of Governors by Kelly who I have met in my capacity as the schools continence nurse, and Felicia who I worked with many years ago in Lewisham. I was delighted to be encouraged, being in the twilight years of my career it feels that I will continue to have a voice have something to offer.
When I am not working you will mostly find me running, I am one of the run directors for Junior parkrun in Bromley and feel very passionately about encouraging everyone, young, old and in between to enjoy the great outdoors and to be as active as they can be. I am also a very crazy cat lady and am one of those sad people with thousands of photos on their mobile phone of my three cats.
India Stevens – Co-opted Governor
I am a co-oped governor at the School. I’ve been a Southwark resident since 2020 and I’ve been looking for a way to become more involved in the local community.
I was delighted to have the opportunity to get involved with Cherry Garden. I loved my own school years and am passionate about supporting quality education for all.
Professionally, I work in financial services as a Compliance Officer with experience in a range of regulatory, compliance and project management roles. Outside of work, I’m a keen amateur gardener, love cooking and an avid sports fan.
Governor Documentation
