Our Staff

I studied at Oxford University from 1997 to 2001 and then worked for a church. During this time I had my first taste of schools as an adult, leading assemblies in a local primary school. I moved to London in 2004 where I taught Classics in a number of schools including Mill Hill School, Haberdashers Aske’s School for Girls and Francis Holland School in Chelsea.

I moved to South Africa in 2008 and taught in Johannesburg Bible College until the birth of our first child. In 2011 I began teaching at St John’s College in Houghton. I was privileged to lead the delivery of Latin within the school and design the curriculum for Southern Africa. I was also given the opportunity to develop the staff within the school and design integrated curriculum to help children think constructively about their role in society.

We returned to the UK in 2017 and I took up the role of Principal of Emmanuel Christian School. Oxford is a city that we love as a family and have many roots in and it’s a privilege to lead a school in this city which is rooted in faith, hope and love.

I have been teaching for the last 11 years in a range of schools. I am currently the Year 3 and 4 teacher and I teach Maths and Science across Key Stage 2. I have always been fascinated by nature and I really enjoy helping children see the wonder that God has placed in the world around them.

Emmanuel is a special place where children can be known and nurtured as whole people. In a small community we can build and sustain strong relationships with the children, families and colleagues. Emmanuel offers the opportunity to work collaboratively across the whole school. The use of topics which hold learning together within classes and across the year groups ensures that the learning is integrated and holistic.

I studied Education & Psychology at Durham before moving home to Scotland where I worked for a year in Learning Support. I then did a Masters in Community Music at Edinburgh before finally succumbing to the family trade and training to become a music teacher. I completed my PGCE in Oxford in 2012 and have been here ever since. Having taught primarily in secondary schools, I am excited to join ECS to inspire younger children in their music making. I love helping children of all ages build confidence and discover the joy of making music. As a musician I play piano, harp and sing. I enjoy leading music at church, and have a lifelong love of musical theatre.

I taught at Emmanuel from 2013 – 2014 and have really enjoyed being back since I returned in January 2023. My role involves working with children who need additional support in Key Stage 2 and I love being able to support all the creativity which is going on in the Year 3 and 4 classroom. It is also such a privilege to support the children in their own relationship with God and to use the different skills I’ve acquired through my life journey to encourage them. 

I have taught PE in Cirencester and Zimbabwe and am passionate about excellence in sport. I have been a member of Cirencester Hockey Club throughout my adult life and am co-captain of one of their teams.

As well as working at Emmanuel, I run my own business, Flamingo Training supporting teams so that they can identify their different gifts and support one another so that they can flourish together with a united purpose.

I started helping at Emmanuel in June 2020 and was struck by the way every child receives the care and attention they need and staff pull together as a team to help the community thrive.

I decided I wanted to teach after seeing the difference I was able to make for a child whose reading I supported. I did some of my teacher training at Emmanuel and have taught here ever since. I love teaching Year 1 and 2 where I help many children as they learn to read and discover the joy of reading.

Emmanuel is a place where children are not just names on a page but people we get to know. The class sizes mean that we can understand and appreciate each personality and help them grow as individuals.

I enjoy teaching at Emmanuel because we have the opportunity not just to teach wonderful things to children but to see children grow visibly in wonderful ways.

I attended a small Christian school in New York City before moving to the UK and have always been interested in being involved in teaching where faith and studies are integrated. I studied Ancient History at University and enjoyed tutoring this to young children while I was there.

After university, I was involved in church based ministry and visited Emmanuel during the course of that year. I am really enjoying the opportunity to learn and grow as a Christian teacher at Emmanuel alongside Mrs Senanu. 

I trained as a teacher at university and after teaching in a school, moved to Nigeria with my husband where our first child was born.

For over 20 years in the UK I home schooled my own children, channelling and developing all that I’d learned as a teacher. I love all types of music and still perform with Southgate Opera society. Now that I have grandchildren it’s wonderful to teach in a school which is bringing the experience we gave to our children to many more people in this city.

Learning in Acorns is full of life: giving every child confidence in the fundamentals of learning in a way which equips them for learning well throughout their time at school.

I’ve been part of Emmanuel many years since my first child started in the school. I am an artist and trained as a teacher and love leading Little Acorns, working with children and parents at this really crucial stage in their development.

Nursery is a wonderful time to explore the world and art gives many ways of children expressing their discoveries. We love beautiful books in nursery, exploring words and pictures together.

Emmanuel is a very peaceful and creative place to work. Children feel safe and secure and so even the very youngest learn deeply as they explore together.

I grew up in Northern California and came to England in my early twenties. 19 years later I am still here after meeting my husband, Cristo, and putting down roots in the U.K. I trained and taught as a secondary science teacher but absolutely love being part of the Early Years team and working alongside the children as they learn to learn together in many imaginative and creative ways.

Our family joined ECS in 2011 when my eldest son started in Reception. We moved away from Oxford in 2014 but last year the opportunity came for us to be involved at ECS again and I’m really grateful for the opportunity to serve in this special place. I have a wide range of skills from admissions secretary at a theological college, to bee keeping, to mucking out horses, and look forward to seeing how all these things might be of use at Emmanuel.

I grew up in California and enjoyed learning in a Christian school there. With my husband, I’ve been very involved in ministry, particularly supporting worship in the local church. I enjoy helping children have confidence to use the unique instrument of their voice and enabling them to find joy in singing old songs and new.