About Us

Governors

The main duties and responsibilities of the Board of Governors are to:

  • Know and support the aims of the School and its Mission statement;
  • Ensure that these are achieved.

Governors determine the overall direction and development of the School through good governance and clear strategic planning, working with the Head to do so.

Edge Grove’s Board of Governors come from a wide variety of walks of life, but all take a keen interest in the School and attend many School events throughout the academic year.

If you would like to contact the Board of Governors, please do so via the School Bursar (bursar@edgegrove.com)

Please read more about the Edge Grove Board of Governors below:

Mrs Miranda Barnett

Interim Chair of Governors

Miranda is new to Edge Grove but was a governor at a primary school in Borehamwood for 16 years including five years as chair. She lives locally in Radlett and grew up in Elstree.

Miranda qualified as a barrister and worked as a lawyer for 25 years before taking a year out to study in the US. She now works for the Government, heading a team that looks at the impact of possible futures on strategy and operating models. She is also qualified as a workplace mediator and an executive coach.

Miranda is married to Daniel and they have an Australian Labradoodle and three human children who are all at various stages of higher education. She spends a lot of time at the theatre, enjoys baking and aspires to travel a bit more.

Mr Gareth Burger

Gareth was born in South Africa, where he qualified as a Maths and Science teacher at the University of Witwatersrand, before completing a Masters in Educational Management in the UK. He has worked at St Albans School for the past 22 years, and is currently Assistant Head: Co-curricular and Head of Third Form.  Ensuring pupils enjoy a fulfilling, well rounded and happy education remain a key priority of his in his role. In addition to this, he has also worked in the 13+ entry point for over 10 years and continues to work together with prep schools in ensuring the successful transition of young pupils into secondary education. He is currently also a governor at two SEN schools, St Luke’s in Redbourn and The Collett School in Hemel Hempstead. He currently lives in Welwyn Village with his wife Jessica, son Jonty and daughter Imogen. Supporting the Springbok rugby team and trying to stay fit remain his two guilty pleasures.

Mr Daniel Emkes

Daniel was brought up mainly in Surrey, but with six years in Calcutta when his father set up a tea company branch there. He was educated at Whitgift and read Economics at Collingwood College, Durham before qualifying as a Chartered Accountant with Spicer & Pegler. He joined his father’s tea broking business in the City and soon took over, traveling widely in East Africa and Asia. After nearly 20 years in the tea industry, he was a consultant briefly before working for Harrow School between 2009 and 2021 as Finance Bursar and then Director of Finance and Systems. He is now a part-time Finance Consultant.

Outside of work Daniel is kept busy by his four grown up children and three grandchildren. Daniel is a keen sportsman and played most sports at school, including 1st XV rugby and represented Durham at water polo, swimming and hockey and numerous sports at college level, including squash and cricket. He played National League water polo for 20 years and currently plays squash and golf. He is also part of the Bedford Park Run core team and has run over 200 Park Runs.

Ms Amanda Godfrey

Amanda has been a member of the Edge Grove Board of Governors since January 2015. She has over 30 years’  experience as a school leader, as a headteacher, Executive Head and CEO of a local multi-academy trust. She began her teaching career in London before moving to Hertfordshire in 1996. Since then she has worked in Hertfordshire and beyond as a National Leader of Education (NLE), Ofsted Inspector and worked with schools in Hertfordshire to provide support, training and leadership advice. She has led a number of school improvement initiatives and worked closely with Hertfordshire Local Authority over many years. Amanda has recently retired and enjoys spending time with her family at home in St Albans and walking the South West Coast Path in Cornwall.

Mr Paul Kendall

Deputy Chair of Governors

Paul has been a member of the Edge Grove Board of Governors since 2010. He is Managing Director of Coupers, a Hyundai and Seat dealer that has been operating in St Albans since 1933. Paul is an Edge Grove Old Boy (1970 to 1976) and has two daughters Emma and Sophie who attended Edge Grove from 2000 to 2009 before moving on to Princess Helena College in Hitchin. He is married to Gerdien and lives in St Albans. He plays and coaches Eton Fives at Aldenham but loves all kinds of sport, especially cricket at Lords.

Mrs Wendy Kent

Wendy joined the Edge Grove Board of Governors in January 2024. Now retired, a significant portion of her career was with the London Stock Exchange where she held several senior positions. In her final role, she was responsible for all Real Time Data, from product development and management to marketing and sales. She also managed the Regulatory News Service and the Listing Application process.

In 2009, she embarked on a change in career, becoming Bursar at Sevenoaks Prep School in Kent. At the same time, she joined Bethany School, where her children attended, as a governor. In 2017, she was appointed the Vice Chair of Governors.

Wendy moved from Kent to Hertfordshire in 2023. Keen to as a continue governor locally, she chose Edge Grove for its educational and nurturing environment.

Wendy likes walking, yoga, travelling and spending time with her family.

Mr Zahid Khawaja

Zahid was previously a member of the Edge Grove Board of Governors and Chair of the Finance Committee at Edge Grove between 2007 and 2014 before moving overseas; he then re-joined the board in September 2021. With an extensive commercial portfolio, Zahid has served as an executive and non-executive director on company boards and on senior management committees since 1994. He is highly skilled in risk management, corporate governance, business transformation, change management, finance, legal and compliance matters. In non-executive roles, Zahid provides independent challenge, constructive scrutiny and validation of management decision-making and builds positive relationships with key stakeholders. He is a long term resident of Radlett and a past parent at the School.

Mr Charles Lilley

Charles joined the Edge Grove Board of Governors in 2013. He is a solicitor working in IT consultancy as the Commercial and Legal Director of James Harvard Limited. He was previously Head of Legal at Sopra Steria UK in IT and Business Process outsourcing services and before that in the chemical industry at Courtaulds. He is married to Maarit and lives in Chiswick. They have a daughter who attended The Lady Eleanor Holles School in Hampton and Leeds University and a son who attended Latymer Upper School in Hammersmith and Edinburgh University. Charles is an Edge Grove Old Boy (1970-1976) who went to Haileybury and then read Law at Newcastle University.

He has a particular enthusiasm for sport, playing all sports through school, rugby through University and for a few years beyond, and golf and tennis in more recent years. He is an enthusiastic spectator whenever he has the opportunity. He also has a keen interest in music and the arts.

Mr Nick Marchant

Nick is a House Master at Harrow School. He studied Electronic Engineering and Computer Science at University College London, after which he completed a PGCE at the University of Bath in Technology, joining Harrow in 1995. During his time at there he has been a teacher of Design Technology, Head of Curriculum ICT, Chairman of the Treasures Committee, Officer Commanding the Royal Marine section of the CCF and Director of the Harrow Summer School. He has also accompanied pupils on scuba diving trips, Duke of Edinburgh expeditions and construction projects in Africa. For many years Nick was the official photographer at Harrow, specialising in sports, theatrical and group photography. 

Nick is a keen long distance runner, open water swimmer and enjoys playing the piano.

Mrs Sue Maughan

Sue is both a past parent of Edge Grove, having had three children attend the School between 2004 and 2021, and a previous member of staff holding the post of Development and Alumni Manager between 2017 and 2023. Sue has a degree in chemistry from Exeter University and worked for Glaxo Wellcome as an analytical chemist before having her children. Since then she has become an ambassador for the Smile Train charity and has continually raised money and awareness for them since her own child was born with cleft palate. Her fundraising has continued at the School, having previously organised numerous Friends of Edge Grove events and several Edge Grove Balls.

Sue’s passions lie within parental and community relations, fundraising and the pastoral care of both pupils and staff.

Mrs Sarah-Rose Perry

Sarah-Rose believes in the critical importance of schools shaping our future generations, having been blessed with an education at North London Collegiate School and Westminster School. She graduated from the University of Cambridge with a first in Engineering, and embarked on a career in Investment Banking. Working in Corporate Finance, she provided strategic guidance to company Boards and management teams, but then decided to move in house to improve the governance, efficiency and effectiveness of the firm she worked for. Sarah-Rose is now in her fourth Head of Compliance role, currently at BTIG. Previously she has worked for Deutsche Bank, Nomura, Octopus Investments, the CME and Westpac.

Sarah-Rose is invited to speak as a panellist at industry events on risk and compliance, and enjoys supporting charities – most recently Thames21. She also has a love of teaching, having taught at a school in Tower Hamlets through an educational charity, supported sixth formers through IntoUniversity and having tutored her own children who attend City of London and NLCS.

Mr Andrew Robson

Andrew has been a Governor at Edge Grove since 2012. He is a former pupil of the School, and moved on from here to Haileybury and then to the the Royal Agricultural College. He is presently Senior Partner of Sidleys Chartered Surveyors of Oxford and is personally responsible for managing a variety of clients’ property interests in agriculture, residential, commercial, retail and education. His firm particularly specialises in the modernisation and alteration of listed educational buildings.

Andrew is married with two sons who have now flown the nest. He is a keen tennis player and was a keen cricketer but appears to have been retired by his local selectors meaning that he now spends more time on the golf course at Leighton Buzzard. He is a lifelong Arsenal fan and enjoys long walks in the country with his wife and their spaniel.

Mr Ian Sheldon

Ian is currently the Senior Deputy Head of Queenswood School and was elected to the Governing Body in 2019. A physical chemist, he was educated at Bedford School and the University of Oxford, where he worked on simulating the electron transfer reactions taking place in photosynthetic bacteria in his Masters year. He moved to Cambridge to train as a teacher and since obtaining his PGCE, has taught at Haileybury, Bedford School and now Queenswood. He has now returned part-time to the Faculty of Education at Cambridge and is studying educational assessment with the intention of completing an MEd in due course.

Through the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, Ian developed a passion for hill walking and wild country which continues to this day.

Mr Jeremy Stevens

Jeremy has been an Edge Grove Governor since 2014. He is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors with over 35 years’ experience in the property industry. He is joint owner and Managing Director of Warrant Investments Plc, a property investment company based in Watford which specialises in the commercial, residential and leisure property sectors. As a property owner, Jeremy has a client’s perspective of property and legal issues and provides guidance with regards to Estate and New School developments. Jeremy was born in Enfield and has lived most of his life in North London, before moving with his family to Chalfont St Giles in 2007. He is married to Lesley, an Interior Designer and has twin sons William and Christian who both attended Edge Grove. William was Head Boy in 2014.

Jeremy is a keen supporter of England and West Ham United and enjoys all sports, particularly cricket, football and skiing. He is a member of Radlett Cricket Club and a qualified Level 1 Umpire. Further interests include collecting antiques, British black and white films and walking the family dog.

Mr Tim Petty

Clerk to the Governors

To contact a member of the Governing Body, please either write to them at the School, c/o The Clerk to the Governors, and your letter will be forwarded unopened.  Alternatively, please contact the Bursar via bursar@edgegrove.com.

Discover More...