Mrs H Walshe ~ Chair of Governors, Safeguarding Lead Governor, Foundation Governor

I am a lifelong Methodist and a member of Emmanuel Church.  I have been married for over 45 years and have one son who, with his lovely wife, has 2 children, one of whom attends The Haven School.

I worked for HMRC for almost 40 years, during which I qualified as one of Her Majesty's Inspectors of Taxes, reviewing accounts submitted by various businesses.  I also have extensive managements experience, my last role  seeing me responsible for 23 offices and all staff and work therein spread across Sussex, Kent and parts of Surrey and Hampshire.

Now retired, it  is a blessing to have time to dedicate to helping children in their quest to reach their full potential.  I became a Governor in 2016, and have been Vice-Chair and Co-Chair before becoming Chair of Governors in 2019.  As a Governor, I have been very involved in the school's finances, personnel and recruitment, health and safety, safeguarding and data analysis.  I have been on numerous governors training events over the years to improve my knowledge and to keep up to date on changes.  I shall continue to add to my knowledge in the future.

I was very involved in the research and decision to become an Academy and join DCAT in March 2023 and I am fully committed to working with DCAT and out new Headteacher so the school continues to improve in all areas giving all of our children the very best start in life.

Mr N Bastin ~ Vice Chair of Governors, Foundation Governor.

I have lived in Eastbourne all my life and met my wife at St Aidan's Methodist Church, where we later married 40 years ago.  We both were youth leaders and Sunday School teachers.  We now attend Emmanuel Church.  We have 2 children and 4 grandchildren, one of whom attends The Haven.

I have worked for the Ambulance service locally for 40 years mainly as a paramedic and have been in a management role for the past 15 years.

When out children were at Ocklynge School, I became a governors there, which I did for 24 years, including 8 years as chair.  During this time, I was asked to be a t5ransuitional governor of The haven, which meant starting the school from a vacant site until it opened, setting up the school ethos and policies.

I feel privileged that I have the opportunity to be a governor of the school and will be there to support the school and parents in fulfilling each individual pupils potential.

Mrs M Bannister ~ Methodist Governor.

I have lived most of my life in Eastbourne with just a break away at college.  I think I have attended all the Methodist Churches in Eastbourne at one time of another and I now go to Emmanuel Church.  I am a Councillor on Eastbourne Borough Council, representing Devonshire Ward.  I am deputy Leader of the Council as well as being Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Tourism, Leisure, Accessibility and Community Safety which involves many different aspects of the Council's work.

Prior to retiring a few years ago, to look after grandchildren, I was school secretary at Bourne School for nearly 30 years and am now a Governor there.  I loved both Bourne and The Haven schools event though they have very different characteristics.  Working with both schools means that I can bring difference viewpoints and suggestions to both boards.

Mr N Jewell ~ Foundation Governor

AS Deputy Headteacher of St Catherine's I have enjoyed working closely with The Haven School for over 15 years.  I was privileged to join the Governing Body in 2016.  I am a father of 2 children, both of whom are not at university.  In addition to Senior Leadership experience in three schools' I bring experience of Church School Leadership in the RC and CofE sectors, and 2 years working as a Pupil Premium consultant Headteacher for ESCC.

I am a Church of England Foundation Governor, I attend St Augustine's Church in Cooden, where I am a member of the PCC, the Deanery Synod, the choir and I assist as a reader.  It has been a privilege to serve and support The Haven in its journey from 1-form to 2-form entry, move from strength to strength under three headteachers, but remaining faithful at all times to its Christian vision as it seeks to ensure every child fulfils their God-given potential. 

Ms H Hart ~ Foundation Governor

I have lived in Eastbourne for over 40 years and have 2 adult children, I am a Anglican worshipping at St Richard's Church; I have served at the Church as a Churchwarden, and currently as a member of the Deanery Synod and the Church's PCC/

My working life began as a Science teacher for 6 years at secondary schools in Hastings and Bexhill. On leaving teaching, I completed a M.Sc.at City University, London and took up various IT programme management roles followed by senior operational roles in a major telecoms company.

I joined The Haven Governing Body as a Foundation Governor in 2020, being passionate about the transformative power of education in creating opportunities through one's life, and would like to help the school continue developing young people towards fulfilling their potential.

Dr B Vance ~ Methodist Governor

Although I was born in Leeds in Yorkshire, I have lived in Lewes for the last forty years. I have a retired husband, two grown up children, and five grand-children ranging in age from seven years to four months old. An Oxford graduate, I taught in the English Department at Queen’s Belfast for several years, before settling in Lewes. I have since done various bits of part-time and temporary teaching at university level, but gradually moved over to Christian Education journalism, writing regularly for the ‘In Touch’ weekly feature of ‘Roots on the Web’ and also from time to time for the Roots adult and all-age magazine materials. I formerly represented the URC on East Sussex SACRE. I am a URC Elder, a member of Christ Church Lewes LEP, URC/Methodist, and a member of the Central Sussex United Area Executive. I may seem something of an outsider, but I like the stimulus of meeting two denominations in an LEP at Christ Church and enjoy the fact that The Haven is a joint Methodist/Anglican enterprise.

Mr J Gwynne ~ Community Governor