Meet the governors

David Arnold – Parent Governor – Sandy Lane Primary School 

My son Ezra recently started at Sandy Lane and I have a daughter Annabelle who will be following in Ezra’s footsteps in a couple of years!

I grew up in a family of primary school teachers and I spent six years working as a maths teacher in a large secondary school in Watford. My wife and I moved to Bracknell in 2017, and I have been working for an education-technology company in Windsor ever since.

I am keen to be an active member of the Sandy Lane community and support the school as a parent and a governor.

Ruth Bovill OBE – Community Governor 

Having wanted to fulfil a lifetime ambition to teach, I embarked on an Open University degree and became a teaching assistant in a local primary school.  I subsequently worked in a specialist school for children with autism. Over the years, I qualified as a primary teacher and worked my way up to becoming head of department, assistant head and spent my last 5 years as the head teacher.  The school achieved its best Ofsted rating of ‘good’ in January 2015. Having worked in education for some 20+ years I retired in September 2017 and was awarded an OBE.

Shraddha Gujarathi – Trust Governor 

I have more than six years of experience in the higher education sector abroad (India). I am highly passionate and dedicated to work for the Sandy Lane Primary school, where my knowledge would be utilised for the betterment of the school and the community.  I aim to provide a safe and nurturing environment for our staff and cherished pupils to enjoy and achieve high.

Having previous experience in the education sector, I was keen to get into educational settings and was interested in understanding the education system in the UK. While searching for voluntary work for the community on the Bracknell Forest Council website, I got to know about this opportunity and I am now a proud member of the governing body of Sandy Lane Primary School.

Ian Mack – Community Governor 

I have been successful in building strong professional relationships and have excellent communication and analytical skills. I retired and returned to the UK in 2019 and having spent over forty years as CEO of a turnkey supply company operating across the Middle East & North Africa.

As a Governor at Sandy Lane Primary School, I wanted to put to worthwhile use the considerable experience I have gained in the business world both in the UK (7 years) and Middle East (40 years).

Although I have much to learn about being a Governor, I have thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity afforded by the role to help Sandy Lane’s children in their exciting journey of self-improvement.

Tim Robb – Trust Governor 

I have two sons, Henry and Avery). Henry started at Sandy Lane in September 2020 in reception. I have lived in Bracknell since 2014 but my wife was born in Bracknell and she attended Sandy Lane a few (undisclosed) years ago.

In professional life, I work as an analyst in the Civil Service and have spent 2020/2021 working on the response to COVID-19.

With two sons, either at the school or joining soon, I have a clear interest in how the school goes forward and how it delivers for the children. I was keen to look at how I could help the school and saw the governor vacancy as a way I could use my skills and experience to help support the school to delivering for the community.

Jenny Sachar – Trust Governor 

I have lived in Bracknell for over twenty years and both my children attended primary and secondary schools in the borough. I have a keen interest in literacy.

I became a governor to help promote a partnership between home, school and community to develop life-long learners. The work is challenging but rewarding.

Katie Wade - Staff Governor – Sandy Lane Primary School 

I have worked at Sandy Lane Primary School in both KS2 and KS1 and I am currently a part-time year 1 teacher. I have been a teacher now for over 10 years, working at two other Bracknell Forest Primary schools.  I am a driven, passionate and nurturing teacher who works hard to facilitate the best possible experiences for the children in our community. Importantly, I am also committed to my family and I have a little boy, George. I am blessed to be from a large family so I spend my time at home with loved ones young and old! We have recently moved into a new home, so I am busy renovating the house and garden.