Governors – Who’s Who

Alice Purcell – Head teacher

Ann Boyce – Chair of Governors

Co-opted Governor

I have lived in Ide for over 40 years and was elected Chair of Governors in September 2017. I was a secondary school teacher for 37 years and deputy head at Maynard School for 20 of these, where I taught Biology and was responsible for pastoral care, curriculum development, staff appraisal and the induction of newly qualified teachers. I also did inspections for the Independent School’s inspectorate and so had the privilege of seeing a lot of different schools, which taught me a lot.

Although I had always loved my job, after retiring I decided I had probably done enough education, but eventually found I just couldn’t stay away. I am now really enjoying being involved with children and school staff again. With all my experience relating to secondary schools, finding out about the work of primary schools has been a steep learning curve for me but one that has inspired enormous respect for what they do.

Being able to guide and support children as they develop the huge range of skills and knowledge they need to cope happily and confidently in the future is a huge challenge, cheerfully undertaken by all the staff. It is a challenge that I feel is too often underestimated. I am also enjoying working with such a talented, diverse, and committed group of governors who are all determined to have a real impact so that our children are able to enjoy and get the very most out of their time in school.

Jayne Lockwood

Staff Governor

Damon Rew

Parent Governor

I have lived in the village for the past 7 years with my wife and two children, the oldest of whom is in Maple Class and the youngest is in his final year in pre-school.

I have been a qualified social worker for the past 13 years; initially working in various child protection and disabled children teams for the first decade of my career, and more recently in an adult safeguarding team for the past 3 years.
I am keen to be involved with the direction of the school and make a positive contribution towards ensuring that the school upholds it’s current high standards, whilst making further strides forward to ensure that all children in the school receive the best possible education and experience during their time there.

Maddie Marshall – Staff Governor

Kirsty Grant

Co-opted Governor

Living in Ide and with my daughter in Maple Class, it will be a privilege to contribute to and support the school that’s central to our community. I’m passionate about the possibilities that education can bring to someone’s life and keen to be part of a governing board that aspires to enable all children to thrive.

I trained as an Occupational Therapist and have worked with young people across health and education services for the past 12 years. Currently, I lead the operational delivery for counseling, mental health and disability services at the University of Exeter. As a governor, I hope to draw on my knowledge and experience in HR, policy development, safeguarding and well-being.

Maggie Parkes

Co-opted Governor:

Lead Governor for SEND and Safeguarding, Curriculum Link: Art, Music and Drama. I have a background in teaching, having trained and worked as an art teacher and later taken a further degree in Special Educational Needs. After bringing up my children I returned to full-time teaching and until my retirement taught art and basic skills to blind and visually impaired children.

I live in the village and my first involvement with Ide Primary School was when I took a temporary part-time post supporting a visually impaired child. Since leaving this post I have volunteered at the school on a regular basis. Some years ago when the opportunity arose, I applied to become a governor; a position that has provided me with a great amount of interest and satisfaction.

Sarah Cooke – Vice Chair

Co-opted Governor

I have been living in Ide for the past 20 years. When I first moved to the village, I was a Governor at the school, under Edwina Hill, and was involved in the planning and building of the new school hall which was a very exciting project!

My daughter went to Ide Primary School and is now at Exeter College enjoying A-level courses.

I have been in Primary education for many years, as a teacher, Deputy, and Headteacher, as well as School Travel Advisor and so, have experienced all aspects of education.

I currently work for a private tutoring firm providing bespoke educational packages for students who are unable, temporarily, to access mainstream education. It’s a fascinating and rewarding job and I enjoy it enormously.

I’m excited about getting involved with the school once more and look forward to working alongside Alice and the staff to assist in guiding the school over the next 4 years of education.

Sebastian Caunter

Parent governor

My family and I have lived in Ide for over nine years. My stepson Oscar left Ide School in 2017 and my Daughter Matilda started in the Pre School in 2019 and recently moved to the main school and Oak Class.

I am the Operations Director at LSL Corporate Client Services. We are a specialist property management business that manages a residential property portfolio of over 4000 properties both for sale and rental across the UK. I manage a team of just over 60 staff mostly based in our Exeter office. My responsibilities are varied but mainly focused on business development, budgeting, and financial control, and HR.

As the family has been part of the school for many years I am very keen to contribute what I can to the continued success of the school. I hope my experience and knowledge of property and my understanding of finance and health and safety requirements can offer some assistance to the Governors.