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Staff Leavers and Joiners 

The end of the academic year always means saying goodbye to some members of staff who are leaving us for new opportunities and adventures. We thank them for their contribution to Wycombe Abbey during their time here and wish them well as they embark on a new chapter of their life.

Staff leaving Wycombe Abbey this Summer

Mrs Sophie Langdale, Director of Admissions, has been appointed as Director of Admissions and Communications at Radley College.

Mr Simon Johns, teacher or Classics, has been appointed as Head of Classics at Ardingly College.

Miss Marina Cassan-Ferrier, teacher of Modern Foreign Languages, will be moving to Madrid to teach French at Runnymede College.

Miss Susanna Michael will also be moving abroad to be an English Language Assistant for the British Council.

Miss Sarah Lafford leaves Wycombe Abbey for Bloxham School after completing her role of Head of Junior House for 1 year.

Both Mrs Sylvie Harris and Mrs Sophie Landsmann are retiring at the end of the academic year having contributed a great deal to the Modern Languages Department.

Mrs Sharon McGeehan will be stepping down from her role as Housemistress of Airlie but we are delighted that she will continue to teach Physics.

Other leavers include Dr Nick Harper (Teacher of Physics), Mr Jonathan Guy (Librarian), Miss Shelley Physick (Teacher of French), Mr Peter Gulian (Teacher of Science), Miss Wilson, Mr James Graham (Teacher of Mathematics) and Miss Niamh Logan (Assistant Housemistress – Butler).

We also bid farewell to staff in support roles, some of whom have been with the school for a number of years.  We wish all of the leaving staff every success in their new ventures.

Staff Stepping Down from their Current Roles but Remaining at Wycombe Abbey

Mr Sam Joyce has relinquished his role of Head of Fourth Form; he has done an excellent job and we are grateful to him. Mr Luke Wildgoose has now taken on this role.

Mr Matthew Whiteley will be stepping down as Head of Biology and Mrs Lizzie Wallace will take on this role from September.

Mr Neill George will be taking on the role of Second in charge of History on a permanent basis from September 2020.  

Miss Fania Weatherby has been appointed as Library Assistant alongside her teaching commitments as Teacher of History of Art in the new academic year.

Miss Katie Tyler and Miss Anna Wood join our Development and Communications team as Alumnae Relations Officer and Development Officer, respectively.

Miss Hooper will become the Senior RT.

Mr Tim Houston who was previously a Resident Tutor at Wycombe Abbey, will now take on the role of Assistant to the Chaplain from September 2020. He will assist Rev. Penny Nash with the development of Chaplaincy within the School.

Miss Rachel Franks, currently a Resident Tutor and maternity cover Teacher of Classics, will take on the role of Teacher of Classics on a full time basis from September 2020.

Staff Joining Wycombe Abbey This Year

I would like to take this opportunity to introduce the new staff who have been appointed for September 2020:

Mr Mark Mackenzie-Crooks has been appointed as Bursar from 1 September 2020. Mark joins us from St Helen’s School in Northwood (an all girls’ independent school of over 1150 pupils) where he is currently Business Director.

Mr Binit Shah has been appointed to the new role of Director of Digital Learning. Mr Shah will lead and manage the development plan for digital learning across the School ensuring a coherent and school-wide approach to fulfilling our digital learning strategy.

Rev. Penny Nash has been appointed to the newly created role of Deputy Head of Sixth Form (Clarence Housemistress) from 1 September 2020. Rev. Nash will be resident in Clarence where she will monitor and support the pastoral wellbeing of the girls throughout their final year at Wycombe. Rev. Nash will remain as Chaplain.

Mrs Alison Earnshaw-Punnett joins Wycombe Abbey in September 2020 as the new Head of Sport Performance. Mrs Earnshaw-Punnett joins us from St George’s Ascot where she is currently Director of Sport.

Miss Georgina Taylor, current Head of Geography, will be the new Housemistress of Shelburne from September 2020. Miss Taylor has been Assistant Housemistress in Shelburne for the past term and has thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the girls and parents in House.

Miss Lucy Crampton will join Wycombe Abbey in September 2020 as the new Head of Junior House. Miss Crampton joins us from Leicester Grammar School where she is currently a Teacher of Design Technology and Computer Science.

Miss Claire Flynn, currently Assistant Housemistress of Airlie, will be the new Housemistress of Airlie from September 2020. Miss Flynn has been Assistant Housemistress of Airlie since September 2018 and is very familiar with the pupils and parents of the House.

Dr Christina Tsaknaki joins us in September as Assistant Housemistress of Airlie. Dr Tsaknaki joins us from Brentwood School in Essex where she is currently a Teacher of Classics.

Miss Elena Gaioni will be the new Assistant Housemistress of Barry from September 2020. She joins us from St John’s School in Leatherhead where she is a Teacher of Modern Languages.

Miss Elizabeth Gardener joins Wycombe Abbey as the new Assistant Housemistress of Butler in September 2020. Miss Gardener joins us from Blessed George Napier Catholic School and Sixth Form in Banbury where she is currently a Teacher of Geography.

Ms Lucy Nott will be the new Head of French from September 2020. Ms Nott has been a Teacher of French at Dr Challoner’s Grammar School. Previously, she has been Head of French at Aylesbury High School and Radley College.

Miss Sophie Dubois joins us as a Teacher of French and Spanish from September 2020. Most recently, Sophie has been a Teacher of French and Spanish at Icknield Community College in Watlington.

Mrs Anna Roberts joins us from Wycombe High School as a Teacher of Chemistry.

Miss Krutika Sunil joins Wycombe Abbey as a Teacher of Chemistry from September 2020. Miss Sunil joins us from Coombe Boys School in Surrey.

Mrs Antonia McNeill joins us in September 2020 as Teacher of Science (Chemistry specialism). Mrs McNeill joins us from Swakeleys School for Girls in Uxbridge.

Ms Rachel Wilson will be a new Teacher of Science (Chemistry) from September 2020. Ms Wilson joins us from Whitmore High School in Harrow.

Mrs Joanne Sergeant joins Wycombe Abbey in September 2020 as the new Librarian. Mrs Sergeant joins us from New College Stamford in Lincolnshire.

Mr Ed Tourle joined us in May as the new American and International Universities Counsellor. He recently moved from Costa Rica where he was a University Counsellor.