Liz has been the Academic Director at University Centre Peterborough since 2012. As a Peterborian, she has a passion for improving education in the city and encouraging widening participation and life-long learning. She started her teaching career at Peterborough Regional College, and held positions as Head of Arts and Science. Liz is a qualified teacher and holds higher qualifications in Education and post-graduate research. In her spare time she enjoys gardening and is a member of the National Trust and CAMRA.

I joined the Academy Committee at QKA at the end of 2018. I knew from my early teens that I wanted to share my love of words, literature and the arts in general; I also realised it was important to entertain and not be a bore! So, needing an audience to practise on, a teacher I had to be! I have worked in schools and colleges my entire professional career. After graduation, my first 10 years as a young teacher were spent in Africa and the West Indies. In the UK, I taught in grammar schools, comprehensive schools, colleges and [latterly] at university, teaching teachers.

In my last ten years [before retirement] I taught, lectured, wrote and published.

I have witnessed many changes to UK educational organisation over the years: grammar/secondary modern schools; the comprehensive school revolution; foundation schools; the growth of the academy system. Such seismic changes bring huge logistical and organisational problems. But I believe three essential elements contribute to helping young people learn and achieve their hopes and ambitions: the quality of the teacher; the size of the class; a consistent and fully resourced whole-school approach to learning whether students are streamed or taught in mixed ability groups.

QKA is a vibrant and exciting place to be, reflecting a diverse and talented population which brings a wealth of different life experiences to this area of Peterborough. One of my chief interests has been in the organisation and support of all students in these complex and challenging times. I am impressed with the range and quality of the many strategies QKA has in place for all students, from individual support systems, to an enriched curriculum and the involvement of outside agencies. I look forward to playing my part as QKA develops these strategies.

My name is Dawn Bendall and I have been an Academy Committee Member at Queen Katharine Academy for almost 2 years. 

I have two happy children in the school, and I am a strong supporter of the school’s ethos and principles.

I enjoy being part of a team that challenges the school to perform to the best of its ability to ensure that all children leave having reached their full potential.

I am a retired secondary school head teacher who currently enjoys supporting Queen Katharine Academy and life with family and friends in London and North Norfolk. I joined QKA as a Academy Committee Member in March 2018.

I spent ten years as head teacher of Flegg High School in Norfolk during which time the school enjoyed success for outstanding pastoral care, enrichment and student leadership. Flegg High was Child Line’s training school for East Anglia and won acclaim for its peer support and anti- bullying strategies. Keen to pursue work that developed resilience in young people, I set up my own charity after taking early retirement in 2009. I led visits to Kenya for Norfolk teenagers where they engaged in community work and took part in student leadership training. Approximately 500 Norfolk teenagers benefitted from the charity during six years.

Petr Torák MBE is a Czech-British honorary consul of the Czech Republic in the United Kingdom and a former police officer. He is of Roma origin. His police work was centred on Czech and Slovak Roma people, the issues they face, and wider questions arising from their migration to England. In 2015, Torák was appointed MBE for "services to the Roma community".