Nominees from teacher associations and unions

last updated:31 Aug 2009

The following people have been nominated to sit on the GTC Council:

• Caroline Kolek, Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL)
• Gillian Stainthorpe, Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL)
• Mick Lyons, National Association of Schoolmasters/Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT)
• John Rimmer, National Association of Schoolmasters/Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT)
• Max Hyde, National Union of Teachers (NUT)
• Julie Davies, National Union of Teachers (NUT)
• David Whitewright, Voice
• Tony Neal, ACSL
• Gussie Andersen, National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT)

Scroll down for member biographies.

Caroline Kolek - Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL)

Caroline Kolek was nominated by ATL onto the Council in 2008.  She sits on the Audit, Monitoring and Review Committee.

Caroline Kolek is a SENCO at a Secondary Community school in Somerset.  Other responsibilities include Designated Teacher for both Looked After students and EAL students.  Caroline is the Lead Officer for Child Protection.

She is the school rep for ATL and serves on the union’s Executive Committee.  Caroline has also been elected onto the TUC South West Regional Council.

Caroline was a Head of Year before becoming a SENCO and completing a Masters Degree in Education with the Open University.

‘I am proud to have been elected onto the GTC as an ATL representative.  I am committed to a fully inclusive educational system which meets the needs of all our learners allowing them to achieve their full potential at whatever level that may be.'

Caroline is happily married to Stephen and has four children and two step-children.

Declaration of interests

b) Any unpaid office held in a professional or public body, including those which are associated with education. Offices include posts such as President, Chair, Chief Executive, Treasurer, Council Member or Secretary.

• Executive Committee member – Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL)

Gillian Stainthorpe - Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL)

Gillian Stainthorpe was nominated onto the Council by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers in 2000, 2004 and 2008.  She is Chair of the GTC’s Registration and Regulation Committee and sits on the Executive Committee.

Gillian taught from 1969 until July 2006 when she took early retirement, she was a Project Manager with the Curriculum & Language Access Service in Bury.  In this post, she led a team of teachers and Bilingual Language Assistants and was responsible for the specialist provision of English as an Additional Language for Asylum Seekers and New Arrivals in all schools in the authority.

She is Branch Secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers.  At a local level she is a teacher representative on the Children’s Services Scrutiny Committee, Joint Consultative Committee and a member of the Education Appeals Committee.
Gillian has brought to the General Teaching Council her wide and varied teaching experience from nursery through to adult as well as expertise in English as an additional language issues, experience of special educational needs issues and a keen interest in education development.

Through her involvement with the GTC she hopes to continue to contribute to an effective professional body faithfully representing the voice of the teacher and upholding the values of the education profession.

Declaration of interests

a) Posts held in the course of full and part time employment, self employment or practice, including partnerships and directorships.

• Bury MBC – supply teaching register.  Also paid supply for Association of Teachers and Lecturers Union (ATL) Secretary role

b) Any unpaid office held in a professional or public body, including those which are associated with education. Offices include posts such as President, Chair, Chief Executive, Treasurer, Council Member or Secretary.

• Teacher Representative for Support Services and Special Education on Learning Communities Scrutiny Committee
• ATL Branch Secretary for Bury

c) Membership of professional bodies and trade or other associations which is unpaid, either educational or non-educational.

• ATL

Mick Lyons - National Association of Schoolmasters/Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT)

Mick was nominated by NASUWT onto the Council in 2008.

Mick started teaching in 1975 in a Secondary Modern School where he was the only Science teacher. The school went Comprehensive in 1977 and the department has grown.

Mick has been Head of Department four times in his career filing for a variety of reasons and was also a Pastoral Leader for five years.

Mick is the National Executive member for the North East for the NASUWT and has been an active Teacher Trade Unionist for over 30 years.

Declaration of interests

None declared.

John Rimmer - National Association of Schoolmasters/Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT)

John Rimmer is a secondary teacher and was elected onto the Council in 2004 and was nominated in 2008 as the representative for NASUWT.  He sits on the Registration and Regulation Committee.

John is a secondary teacher at Cardinal Newman High School, Warrington.  He currently supports the school through primary liaison and delivers exemplar practice in physical education for primary colleagues.

He is NASUWT Negotiating Secretary representing Warrington teachers in all aspects of casework and negotiations about pay and conditions of service.  He is also an elected NASUWT National Executive Member for the North West and sits on the OCR National Regulations Committee.

John was born in Blackeley, Manchester.  He enjoys all sports, especially golf, soccer, tennis and fell walking.

Declaration of interests

None declared.

Max Hyde - National Union of Teachers (NUT)

Max was nominated onto the Council in 2006 by the National Union of Teacher and re-nominated in 2008. She was elected to the GTCE Executive in late 2009 and is the Lead Member for Equality & Diversity.

Max is a mother and grandmother and has been a teacher of chemistry and physics for over 30 years.

Max has worked in a variety of schools and units trying to pass on to her pupils something of her love of science.  During this time she has held a number of promoted posts both as a subject leader and as pastoral leader.  Currently she work as a supply teacher to enable her to have the flexibility to carry out her union roles.'

Max also works as a course supervisor for Headstart, promoting engineering as a career choice for young people from throughout the UK and beyond.

She is also a local lay officer for the NUT in Warwickshire; National Executive member for Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Gloucestershire and Herefordshire; Vice Chair of the Strategy Finance & Communications Committee of the NUT, Chair of the NUT Genders Advisory Committee and member of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Working Party.

Max also works very closely with other trade unions and is a member of the TUC Woman’s Committee. She contributed to the 2008 TUC science paper ‘Hybrid Cars and Shooting Stars’ and is a member of their science group.

Declaration of interests

a) Posts held in the course of full and part time employment, self employment or practice, including partnerships and directorships.

• Course supervisor for Headstart (a Royal Academy of Engineering Charity)

b) Any unpaid office held in a professional or public body, including those which are associated with education. Offices include posts such as President, Chair, Chief Executive, Treasurer, Council Member or Secretary.

• Executive Member for National Union of Teachers
• Teacher Support Network Council
• Secondary teacher representative to Warwickshire County Council and member of the joint union negotiating committee in Warwickshire
• Trade Unions Congress Women’s Committee
• STEM (Science Technology Engineering & Maths) Equality & Diversity Group

c) Membership of professional bodies and trade or other associations which is unpaid, either educational or non-educational.

• National Union of Teachers
• British Association for Science
• Teacher Support Network subscriber and Member of Council

h) Any other interests

• Member of Amnesty International
• Medical foundation for victims of torture
• Palestinian Solidarity Campaign
• End Violence Against Women Coalition
  

Julie Davies - National Union of Teachers (NUT)

Julie is a member of the National executive of the National Union of Teachers, representing Outer London.  She is president and deputy secretary of Haringey NUT.  She has taught in both primary and secondary schools in London since 1985.  She has also taught for five years overseas, in the Middle and Far East.

Julie is currently seconded from her teaching post for full time union duties which include representing members in disciplinary, capability and grievance hearings.  She negotiates with the authority on employment issues, policies and procedures.  In her role as a member of the NUT National Executive, she serves on its Resource Management Committee, Salaries, Superannuation, Employment Conditions and Rights Committee, Legal and Professional Services Committee and Gender Advisory Committee. She is a member of the board of Stoke Rochford Hall, the union’s training centre in the Midlands. 

She lives in Tottenham, North London.  She is married with two children.  Both were educated at local schools.

Declarations of interests

a) Any unpaid office held in a professional or public body, including those which are associated with education. Offices include posts such as President, Chair, Chief Executive, Treasurer, Council Member or Secretary

• Member of the National Executive of the National Union of Teachers (NUT)

b) Membership of professional bodies and trade or other associations which is unpaid, either educational or non-educational

• Member of the NUT

David Whitewright - Voice

David was nominated onto the Council by Voice in April 2005 and 2008.  He sits on the Finance and General Purposes Committee.

David was born in Africa, moving to the United Kingdom to complete his secondary education. He then qualified as a mining engineer in 1972 and returned to Southern Africa to work in the copper and gold mining industry. Returning to Scotland in 1981 as an assistant Mine Manager of a glass sand mine and then a quarry Manager in Glasgow, in 1987 he retrained as a Design and Technology teacher. He started his teaching career in an EBD school before moving into the state sector. He is currently Head of Control Technology at Poynton High School in Cheshire.

For the last 15 years he has been an active member of Voice (Previously the Professional Association of Teachers), as the Voice representative within Cheshire LEA and is also Voice’s Honorary Secretary. At a local level, he has worked closely with both the LEA and other teaching unions to promote and protect his members’ views and interests.  On Voice’s Council he has worked to promote member services as well as pay and conditions.

'On the GTC Council I would hope to represent the views of the Professional Association of Teachers and promote the best interests of all teachers, working to raised and develop professional standards and the status of teaching as a profession.'

Declaration of interests

a) Posts held in the course of full and part time employment, self employment or practice, including partnerships and directorships.

• Part time teacher Cheshire LA

b) Any unpaid office held in a professional or public body, including those which are associated with education. Offices include posts such as President, Chair, Chief Executive, Treasurer, Council Member or Secretary.

• Honorary Secretary of Voice

Tony Neal - Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL)

Tony Neal is a former secondary school headteacher elected onto the Council by teachers in Spring 2000 nominated onto the Council in 2004 by the former Secondary Heads Association and re-nominated by ASCL in 2008.

Tony began his career as a maths teacher in Hertfordshire; he has a total of 40 years teaching experience including 26 years in Head and Deputy Head roles. He now works as a School Improvement Partner.

Tony has brought to the GTC his understanding of teaching and school leadership as well as his extensive experience over 15 years as county, and then national officer for the SHA.  Tony was national President of SHA in 2001/2.

He has published two books under the SHA imprimatur - "Managing Targets"   and "Managing Value-Added" - as well as numerous articles on educational matters.

Tony is proud to have been involved in the earliest years of the GTC.   He was Chair of the GTC’s former Policy and Research Committee, sits on the Executive Committee and is currently the Council’s observer on the Board of the Training and Development Agency. In all these roles he seeks to raise the profile of the Council in influencing national educational policy.

'It has been a privilege to be part of the inception and development of the body which has the professionalism and morale of teachers as its fundamental aim.'

Declaration of interests

a) Posts held in the course of full and part time employment, self employment or practice, including partnerships and directorships.

• School Improvement Partner, contracted on an annual basis by East Riding of Yorkshire Council

b) Any unpaid office held in a professional or public body, including those which are associated with education. Offices include posts such as President, Chair, Chief Executive, Treasurer, Council Member or Secretary.

• Association of School and College Leaders – National Council Member

c) Membership of professional bodies and trade or other associations which is unpaid, either educational or non-educational.

• Association of School and College Leaders - member

Gussie Andersen - National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT)

Gussie is a Head Teacher and was nominated onto the Council by NAHT in 2007 and re-nominated in 2008.

Gussie has been the headteacher of a two form entry primary school in inner London for 15 years. She has completed the LPSH programme and is trained as a Consultant Leader. She has also been a research associate for the NCSL; the focus of the research was an investigation into how schools provide for pupils who are in danger of falling through the net of provision.

As a practitioner she has worked in both primary and secondary phases for thirty three years in challenging urban areas. She welcomes her involvement with the GTC to promote the debate, which is supported by the NAHT concerning the burden of over assessment on pupils, teachers and school leadership. She is also very interested in succession planning and developing quality leaders of the future.

Declaration of interests

c) Membership of professional bodies and trade or other associations which is unpaid, either educational or non-educational.

• National Association of Headteachers