Meet the Governors

 Angela Iraggi - Chair of Governors and Foundation Governor

Angela started at Nexus as a parent governor, became Vice Chair and Chair of the Strategy and Resources Committee in February 2020 and was elected to Chair of Governors in September 2023.

She is mum to George, who was diagnosed at 2 years with severe autism and learning disability, which changed her family life dramatically. He joined Nexus with no speech or personal independence and flourished beyond her expectations. He is now attends a specialist music college.

Before becoming a mum, Angela had a demanding career in Investment Banking & Finance, but gave this up to support her son. The challenges faced by those parents/carers of children with disability and complex needs to get proper support in place prompted Angela to volunteer for the National Autistic Society as an Education Rights Advisor for 3 years and this naturally led to her into governorship.

Being a governor at Nexus has given her the opportunity to be part of a forward-thinking team, and that collaborative working has already enabled growth and huge changes within the school framework, which was recognised in a great Ofsted review in June 2023. She supports the leadership team, working closely with them and the Local Authority to achieve the school’s strategic vision, in what is a very challenging landscape.

Angela is determined that Nexus will provide everything it stands for to make every pupil be the best they can be so that they have a progressive and relevant pathway into young adulthood in today’s society.  Knowing that she is making a positive difference is extremely rewarding. 

She spends most weekends either cooking to entertain friends or taking long walks with her family.  Angela also travels to Europe frequently to visit friends and family.

Helen Norris MBE - Foundation Governor

Helen has a background as a headteacher in successful special schools, Head of Specialist Educational and Disability services in a London borough and as Regional SEND Lead for London. Helen retired in 2019. 

Her passion for improving outcomes for those with special needs and disabilities developed following the birth of her son with Down’s Syndrome. Helen has been on a number of pioneering SEND national steering groups, and as a volunteer trained post graduate students at the university of Zagreb promoting cultural change and improving educational opportunities for young children with complex needs across Eastern Europe. Helen was Co- Chair of a Mencap local charity group until 2020. She is also currently a board trustee for a Multi Academy Trust. 

Helen is one of the Nexus Safeguarding governors. She is an integral part of the governing body, using her previous experience to work closely with school leaders, staff and external stakeholders to support every child and their family to have the best possible educational outcomes.

Helen joined Nexus as a Governor from early 2019, became Chair in 2020 and stepped back as Chair in September 2023. Helen enjoys spending quality time with her grandchildren and family and enjoys travelling. She has been awarded an MBE for services to Special Educational Needs and Disabilities.

Scott Jarred – Headteacher

Scott became the headteacher at Nexus in June 2018. He has spent his career working in special educational needs schools and has had the opportunity to work with students in all age ranges across a variety of needs. He has a Masters degree in autism (children) and has published work in SEND journals. Prior to starting his teaching career Scott worked in a residential SEND children’s home which prompted him to follow a career working in SEND.

Scott has been part of school Governance for over 15 years having started as a staff governor. He is passionate about the role that school governance plays in the overall development of the school and is keen to attract individuals to the governing body with a wide range of skills.

Scott is driven by the progress that we have seen in school over the last 3 years despite the challenging situations we have all found ourselves facing. He is proud of the staff team that has been developed in the school, and the passion that they have for developing the best outcomes for our students. He is keen to promote opportunities for students beyond the ‘normal’ curriculum offer and promote lifelong interests as well as lifelong skills.

Outside of school Scott has a young family, and new puppy (Luna). He is very active when he isn’t injured, alongside Crossfit and running, he has recently taken up stand up paddle boarding. One of his proudest achievements is trekking to Everest Base Camp in 2019.   

Pauline Campbell – Co-opted Governor

Pauline became a Co-opted Governor for Nexus School in December 2020 and is Chair of the Curriculum and Learning Committee. She brings a wealth of experience to support Governor colleagues and School Leaders to ensure that every child, and their family, at Nexus will have the have the best opportunities and outcomes.

Prior to retiring Pauline was a Qualified Teacher, initially working in the mainstream primary sector, but soon moved to special education. Pauline has worked with children and young people with complex disabilities across all age phases. For many years she worked for a London borough, as a member of a team working with colleagues in Health and Social Care, supporting young people, their families and schools to develop practical skills and strategies to improve outcomes. She had a particular interest in developing understanding and supporting students with Autism. Pauline is committed to promoting creative attitudes and ideas that result in positive, and meaningful, opportunities for all young people.

Pauline enjoys spending time with her three young grandchildren. She enjoys reading, Pilates, Yoga and spending time on her beloved narrow boat. Pauline also volunteers for a charity supporting vulnerable families in Surrey.

Julie Aspinall - Co-opted

Julie’s daughter joined Nexus in 2022 and Julie has been impressed by the school ethos, energy, enthusiasm and compassion of all the staff.  Her daughter has thrived since she started at Nexus in terms of her confidence, learning and independence.  The positive environment where high expectations are set for all of pupils is helping all children and young adults to achieve their maximum potential.   

After starting her career as a Police Officer and serving for 5 years she moved into Financial Services and is now an HR professional specialising in Leadership, Learning, Development and Early Careers. In her current role she is responsible for graduate and apprenticeship programmes and working with many diverse partners to ensure an inclusive approach to attracting young talent into the organisation.  She is also working to support Neurodiversity in the workplace for all colleagues. 

Lorna Stapley - Staff Governor

Lorna has been a governor at the school for many years.  Starting work when the school was based in Hildenborough, before it moved to Tonbridge and became Ridge View and now Nexus. She has worked her way up from teaching assistant to teacher and across all the Key Stages, currently teaching in a Key Stage 2 class. Lorna is also the Family Liaison Officer, using her years of experience to support the families offers guidance and support, and to signpost them to other services.

During the school holidays Lorna has previously run a variety of different clubs and activity groups for children and young people with learning difficulties, and has always been heavily involved in the school’s PTA group.

Lorna feels very strongly about supporting the school and improving the outcome for all pupils.

Alongside her work at school, for the last 18 years Lorna has also been a Shared Lives host, sharing her home with a lady with Down’s Syndrome, autism and severe anxiety.  This role has given Lorna a great insight into the needs of parents and carers and is a role that she finds very fulfilling.

Lindsey Harris – Parent Governor

Lindsey is a parent Governor at Nexus school and is relentless in her pursuit to ensure that all children get the very best. 

Professionally, Lindsey has over 13 years of experience working within primary education as both  teacher and leader. Throughout her career she has gained experience of, and specialised in, school improvement. She has a passion for teaching and learning in the early years and is driven by her core belief that as practitioners children are the priority, everything else is just noise.

Lindsey believes that Nexus is an incredible place where all children are valued for the wonderful individuals that they are and she is extremely proud to be part of the Governing body. 

Tim Hunt – Staff Governor

Tim is the upper KS2 Curlew Class teacher at Nexus Wouldham. He joined Nexus in 2021 having moved over from working at mainstream schools. He has worked with children since 2001 when he started volunteering with his local Sure Start team as a Family Support Worker, and where he started his long association with Governing Boards when he became a Parent Governor for the Medway Sure Start Board and this led him to joining the Medway Children and Young Persons Strategic Planning Committee again as a Parent Governor. In 2001 he started his own childminding business where he worked closely with the probation service and Social Services to support disadvantaged children across Medway and Kent. When his daughter started school, he supported her schools as both a Parent Governor and a Local Authority Co-Opted Governor before starting his teaching career. This is now his third post as a Staff Governor where he will bring the experience and knowledge he has gained in the past to supporting Nexus Foundation Special School.        

 Alex Ravenscroft – Parent Governor

Alex’s daughter is autistic and she started at Nexus nursery when she was 3 and is now mid-way through primary. During her time at Nexus, she has been continually supported and encouraged to grow and develop both personally and through her learning. She is happy to go to school and feels accepted with a strong sense of belonging.   

For several years, Alex has worked for a charity that supports the parents and carers of disabled children. Her roles there have included project management and family support consultant. She worked as Hub Manager for the Autism Hubs, managing the hubs in London and The Midlands. The role involved managing two teams who deliver group sessions and 1:1s to parents, carers, PAs and family members of autistic people. In addition to this, she worked to develop region-specific networks and resources to support these families, as so many are affected by isolation and a lack of support. As a family support consultant, Alex works across several projects supporting parents and carers of disabled children throughout the country. She is currently undertaking IPSEA training and has also worked with Kent PACT - the parent carer network in Kent - to support families. 

Alex feels passionately about the work that is being carried out at Nexus and the progressive vision that the leadership team, staff and governors have for the pupils; both during their time in education and beyond. She is ambitious about the work that can be done collaboratively to ensure that all pupils transition into adulthood prepared for the next stage of life and is excited to be part of the governing board that can help to facilitate this.

Mike Kemlo – Co-Opted Governor 

Mike joined Nexus as a Co-Opted governor in May 2024 and is Vice Chair of the Strategy & Resources Committee. 

He is an experienced professional with a proven track record of achievement, particularly strong analytical and organisational skills, with the ability to deliver through others. 

Mike recently retired after more than 6 years as the Director of Infrastructure & Finance at a Special School & Children’s Home based in Kent. During this time, he was responsible for Finance, HR, Premises, Health & Safety, ICT, Training, Administration, Catering, Housekeeping and Community Engagement. This has provided him with a wide breadth of knowledge working with local authorities, regulators, and other partners to help improve the provision for young people with severe complex needs. 

Prior to this, Mike worked for 33 years in the Financial Services industry, in a multitude of senior management roles in performance management, business development, operations, and marketing. 

He is a Vice Chair of governors at a Medway Special School Academy Trust, and Chair of the Friends of Bradstow School charity. He now works part-time as an independent consultant mainly to support children’s homes. He is married, has a daughter and has lived in Kent his whole life. Mike enjoys sport, running a local table tennis team, travelling, socialising, music, gardening and reading. He now wants to share his knowledge and experience to help improve the lives and futures of children. 

Paul Stepto – Local Authority Governor 

Paul joined the Governing Board of Nexus School in September 2024. At KCC, he sits on the Children, Young People and Education Cabinet Committee and the SEND Improvement and Assurance Board, which was set up to tackle the shortcomings in KCC’s SEND provision that were identified by OFSTED and the CQC. He also sits on the Home-School Transport Appeals Panel where he frequently adjudicates on appeals relating to children with SEND. He has a personal interest in SEND and neurodivergence as his grandson is on the autism spectrum and attends another special school in Kent. Between 1990 and 2000, he taught languages in a non-selective secondary school. This was at a time of increasing emphasis on the inclusion of SEND children in mainstream schools, so he was able to witness some of the pros and cons of the policy. 

He visited Nexus in 2021 and was very impressed by the dedication of the staff, the ethos and the site’s facilities. The following year, he helped with KCC Highways on the introduction of traffic calming measures on Upper Haysden Lane.