Our 2023/24 Board of Governors

The principal responsibility of the board is to ensure that the School is run in accordance with its charitable objectives and that all the functions of the School are authorised by the powers provided by its Articles of Association, company and charity law and in relation to risk management and legal compliance. The strategy and development of the School is set by the Governors who approve the plans and budgets presented by the Headmistress and Bursar. The Full Board meets once a term and is supported by the Audit, Carrdus, Design, Development, Education and Welfare, Finance and Resources, and Nominations Committees. Each Committee meets at least once a term and submits reports and recommendations to the Board, with the exception of the Audit Committee, which convenes at least once a year, and the Design Committee, which convenes as required. Tudor Hall School Enterprises Ltd papers are submitted to the Tudor Hall board for consideration. External professional advice is sought as and when necessary. The Trustees are all volunteers and their support is essential in ensuring that Tudor Hall School continues to thrive.

The Board seeks to ensure that its members provide the breadth and depth of experience to carry out its duties effectively and efficiently. It is important that the trustees have empathy with the objects, aims and ethos of the School; to achieve this the board is made up of independent members, Old Tudorians, and current and former parents so as to maintain balance and perspective.

The day-to-day running of the School is delegated to the Headmistress and the Bursar who both attend the Board and relevant Committees, together with the Head of Carrdus School as appropriate. Other members of senior management attend relevant meetings as required.

Alison Darling, Chair of Governors, has 18 years' experience of school governance at four schools in both the independent and maintained sectors. Alison is Chair of Governors at her local primary school in Herefordshire and an advocate of single sex education for girls having been Co-Chair of Governors of the Kingsley School in Leamington Spa for over 10 years. She has seen schools and their communities through significant and often challenging periods of change. She has been responsible for initiating and leading governance self-reviews and ensuring the findings lead to better practice. Alison is a former Tudor Hall parent and believes she has both an understanding of parents' expectations when choosing a school for their daughter as well as knowledge and experience of the challenges facing our smaller independent schools.

Duncan Bailey, Chairman of the Carrdus Committee, now at Runnymede College, Madrid, was Headmaster of Cothill House - an Independent boarding school for boys aged 8-13. Before that he was Directeur at the Château de Sauveterre for 8 years. He began his teaching career at Eton College (where he had been a student) after language degrees at the University of Manchester, and then later, Vienna University. He is tri-lingual and a very keen sportsman and is a current parent at Tudor Hall.

Sally Bowie, Old Tudorian, is currently a Deputy Lieutenant of Leicestershire and chair of the Lord lieutenants young people awards, Lay Canon of Leicester Cathedral and sits on the Court of Leicester University. She is involved in a number of charities and appeals including The Women in Philanthropy Fund, Sally is a former parent of Tudor Hall.

Debbie Chism is a practising solicitor with over 20 years' experience exclusively in the field of family law and is currently a partner at Stewarts. She is a graduate of Oxford University, having attended an "old-fashioned" girls' state grammar school. Debbie is a former Tudor Hall parent.

Karen Coles, Headmistress at Sarum Hall School.

Ben Evans, Headmaster at Windlesham House School.

Jonny Hammond-Chambers is Registrar at Oundle School, having been Housemaster and Head of Geography prior to that. He started his teaching career at Ludgrove (prep school) and then went on to Scots College, New Zealand. He has been a governor of a Scottish prep school for ten years and has a MA in Educational Leadership at the University of Nottingham.

Nick Holliday is General Secretary of the Dulwich Preparatory Schools Trust and, for fifteen years until his retirement in December 2019, he was also Bursar of Dulwich Prep London, one of the UK’s largest independent prep schools. He is a graduate of Oxford University and spent ten years as an army officer in The Life Guards before moving into financial services. For twenty years he worked for various asset management companies looking after pension funds, charities and other institutions, latterly at Schroders.

Ateh Jewel is a journalist, broadcaster and diversity advocate. She has been in the publishing industry for 20 years.

Bob Lari is a Chartered Accountant with international experience in corporate finance. He has business interests in healthcare and property development and is currently a director of Godswell Park. Bob is a current parent.

Charles Newsome is a Divisional Director of Investec Wealth & Investment and has worked in the finance industry for all of his working career. In addition to this he has held school governance positions within the State Education Sector and has sat on the Board of a Not for Profit financial training organisation as Vice Chairman. Charles is a former parent of Tudor Hall School.

Jennifer Scarfe, Safeguarding Lead, has worked in education for 16 years holding a variety of roles in both academic and pastoral capacities. The last 11 years have been spent in single sex education with her most recent position being Deputy Head Pastoral and Designated Safeguarding Lead at Badminton Girls’ School, Bristol. She has a keen interest in adolescent mental health and teaches the Youth Mental Health First Aid courses for Mental Health First Aid England. Her desire to see young people grow up to be happy, well-adjusted young adults has led to her securing a funded place to train as a Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist, studying with the Tavistock and Portman. Outside of work she enjoys mountain biking and hiking with her husband in the region around their holiday home in Andalucía.

Mark Sewell is a partner of Evelyn Partners Investment Management (formerly Tilney Smith and Williamson Investment Management). He was formerly a member of the Stock Exchange (elected 1984) and is currently a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investments. He served as an army officer with the Grenadier Guards from 1975 to 1980 before embarking on a City career during which he has accumulated more than 40 years of investment and broking experience. He has three daughters all of whom attended Tudor Hall. He is a governor of Lord Leycester's Hospital, which is a Warwick-based charity.

Rodney Style qualified as a Chartered Accountant and Chartered Tax Advisor in the City before joining Haines Watts as a partner in 1985. He ran the Oxford office for 36 years dealing with audit and tax matters. For ten years he was on the Group National Board chairing the Board for 6 years. He retired from Haines Watts in 2021 although he remains a Non Executive Director of a number of businesses. His daughter was educated at The Carrdus School and Tudor Hall.

If you wish to contact the Chairman of Governors, the postal address is:

c/o Clerk to the Governors
Tudor Hall School
Wykham Park
Banbury
Oxfordshire
OX16 9UR

Or via email: chairofgovernors@tudorhallschool.com

Registered name: Tudor Hall School

Registered number: 2995266
Place of registration: England
Registered office: Wykham Park, Banbury, Oxfordshire, OX16 9UR
Charity number: 1042783