Governors

Melanie Walker BA (Hons) MLitt NCTJ PGCE 

Headteacher

Melanie was first appointed a staff governor in June 2013 and filled the Headteacher governor position in September 2015.

She is an ex-officio member of all four committees. As well as being Headteacher, she is Designated Safeguarding Lead and responsible for Cared for Children.

Prior to becoming the Head, Melanie taught at our school for nine years and was a member of the Senior Leadership Team and Head of RE. Before this she was a press officer and journalist.

Melanie has a BA Hons in History and Theology and a Masters Degree in Ancient History. She is also a trained journalist and has her NCTJ qualification as well as her PGCE.

Mike Akerman ACIB Co-Chair

Foundation Governor

Term of Office: 27th February 2025 - 26th February 2029.

Mike had been a Governor since 2015 and is a member Committee 2 (Behaviour and Attitudes) and Chair of Committee 4 (Leadership and Management). Mike is the Governor with responsibility for Safeguarding and Cared for Children.

He is a retired bank official and his main passion is local & family history and the Great War.

Ellen Watson BA (Hons)

Staff Governor

Term of Office: 27th February 2025 - 26th February 2029.

Ellen is a member of Committees 1 (Quality of Education) and 3 (Personal Development).

She has been teaching for twenty years with nineteen years experience teaching Upper KS2. She has worked both in urban and rural primary schools. Her subject specialism is modern foreign languages. Within the school, she is currently Head of Teaching, Learning and Assessment, and Maths, Global Learning and MFL Lead.

Andrew Selwood

Parent Governor

Term of Office: 17th May 2021 - 16th May 2025.

Andrew is a qualified accountant who has specialised in working alongside non-finance teams, helping them to understand the financial results and impacts of their actions. He is a member of Committee 2 (Behaviour and Attitudes) and Committee 4 (Leadership & Management) with responsibility for Governors Training.

A parent with two children currently attending the school. As a parent, he has a vested interest in the school and welfare of the children and will continue to be a stakeholder of the school for a number of years.

A Bollington resident for 9 years, who relishes the opportunity to enjoy the local countryside, be that on foot or most often on his bike.

Dr Carl Mallia BSc MSc PhD

Foundation Governor

Term of Office: 23rd July 2022 - 22nd July 2026.

Carl has recently moved to the Macclesfield area and has a background in Chemistry. He is Maltese by extraction and in addition to that language is also fluent in Italian.

Carl is Chair of Committee 1 (Quality of Education) & a member of Committee 3 (Personal Development) with responsibility for Maths, History & Geography, Sport and Global.

John Rogers BA (Hons) MA Co-Chair

Co-opted Governor

Term of Office: 5th January 2023 - 4th January 2027.

John runs his own small business locally and has been a company director for 15 years. He has worked in educational ICT and as a social scientist, leading a collaborative research centre for BT and Lancaster University. John lectured and tutored part-time in the fields of Organisational Psychology and the Sociology of Work at Lancaster University for ten years.

John's daughter and son attend the school. He spends as much time as possible in the outdoors.

John is Co-Chair of Governors and Chair of Committee 2 (Behaviour & Attitudes) with responsibility for GDPR, Buildings & Estates, Health & Safety and Community.

Dr Tess Phillips MSci MA (Cantab) MRSC FHEA 

Foundation Governor

Term of Office: 27th February 2025 - 26th February 2029.

Tess joined the governing body in February 2017 and is the Governor with responsibility for IPC, Science and RE. She is Chair of Committee 1(Quality of Education) and a member of Committee 4 (Leadership & Management). She has responsibility for RE and Science.

She is a Lecturer in Chemistry at Keele University. Two of her children attend our school, a third one left in 2021. 

Tess is a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. She is interested in education at all levels and enjoys running science activities for children. She has come into school to run hands-on activities at St John’s during science week.

Sue Roberts

Foundation Governor

Term of Office 2nd September 2021 - 1st September 2025.

Sue has been an active member of St John’s community since 1993 and was employed as a Teaching Assistant from 2001- 2021. She has had experience working across the whole school in classes of single and mixed year groups. Sue has attended many residential visits with the children, nurturing their outdoor development and experiences. Alongside her two children, Mrs Roberts is also a former pupil of St John’s. 

In the community, Mrs Roberts has been Brown Owl for 1^st Bollington St John’s Brownies for the last 12 years. 

She can often be seen walking in and around Bollington enjoying the beautiful village she grew up in.

She is a member of Committee 1 (Quality of Education) with responsibility for Literacy and EYFS.

Rev Nancy Goodrich

Ex-officio Foundation Governor

Nancy was brought up in Bollington and has returned to the parish. After University she worked as a Chartered Accountant prior to being ordained. From 2012 to 2021 she was Vicar of Bolton-le Sands near Lancaster before taking up the post as Vicar of Bollington St Oswald’s.

She is a member of Committee 3 (Personal Development) with responsibility for PSHE & RSE.

Rosie Hemmings

Foundation Governor

Term of Office 2nd September 2021 - 1st September 2025.

Prior to retiring in September 2020, Rosie was the SENCO at Adlington Primary School and Bollington St. John’s School. Her responsibilities included managing the provision and support for pupils with additional needs, Pupil Premium, mental health and well-being within the school community.

Rosie completed her teacher training in Bristol and moved to Bollington, from London, in 1977. 

As a class teacher, Rosie had experience of teaching most year groups but decided to focus on developing the skills and knowledge to support more vulnerable pupils in school. She qualified as a British Dyslexia Approved Teacher in 2010 and was also the SENCO at Adlington, Pott Shrigley and St John’s.

Rosie is delighted to come into school, twice a week, to provide some additional support wherever it is needed.

She is a member of Committee 3 (Personal Development and Committee 4 (Leadership and Management) with responsibility for Mental Health & Well-Being and Pupil Premium.

Lori Hawthorn

Local Authority Governor

Term of Office 15th May 2023 - 14th May 2027.

Lori is a Local Authority Governor, who joined the Board in June 2023. She works as a Public Health Improvement Officer at Cheshire East Council. She has experience in children and young people's mental health. Part of her previous and current work is delivering training and awareness to school professionals and families.

Lori attended Manchester Metropolitan University and graduated with a HND in both Youth and Community Work and Human Nutrition. She has experience working with children and parents who are neurodivergent, and she is passionate about diversity, equality and inclusion.

She is chair for a staff network group at Cheshire East Council called 'Differently Abled'.