Following a decade of experience in Coaching and Sports Development, I became a full time PE Teacher at The Manor Preparatory School, Abingdon in 2010. Armed with only a few coaching badges to support my experiences, I set about bridging the theory/practice gap by undertaking a degree in Sport, Coaching and Physical Education at Oxford Brookes University. Passing with First Class Honours was a tangible reward for my work but most invaluable was the richness of my learning from an education that enabled me to directly link pertinent academic research with contextual experiences from past and current job roles. Now with an informed passion for Physical Education, and a desire to make a wider impact, I continued my academic education by studying for a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (Leadership and Management) in 2017. This led to my first Head of PE position at Gateway School, Great Missenden in 2018.

Excited to put my ideas into practice, I introduced a play-based curriculum that was underpinned by providing the right environment for our children to develop the tools needed for lifelong participation in physical activity. After seeing Gateway through the landscape change of 2020/21, I returned to Oxfordshire to take up another Head of Department role at Summer Fields School, Oxford. Although my full-time teaching experience is limited to the private sector, the three schools that I have worked in have been contextually very different. My own education was solely within the state sector, as was my work in schools prior to full-time teaching; providing valuable experiences in shaping my views of the PE space today. I look forward to connecting with, discussing, and challenging ideas with others who share my passion for PE in my role as a PE Scholar Associate.