The PGCE Assessors (ID 1353)

• Steve Fox
  Mid Essex ITT Assistant Director and PGCE lead
  Steve Fox

  With over 24 years of experience in education, Steve is a highly respected senior leader who has worked across a number of Essex schools in a range of leadership roles.

  His passion lies in teacher training and supporting new entrants to the profession, helping shape the next generation of teachers and leaders. Steve has held key leadership positions including Head of History, Head of Humanities, Assistant Headteacher, and Deputy Headteacher. He is currently a valued member of the Bridge School Improvement Team, where he continues to contribute to school development and teacher excellence across the region.

  Steve holds a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Management from the Open University and has extensive expertise in Initial Teacher Training. He leads on the PGCE programme in collaboration with Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) and previously managed the successful delivery of the Level 7 PGCE programme at a local ITT provider. Steve’s deep knowledge of curriculum, pedagogy, and professional development makes him a trusted mentor and leader in the field of education.

• Holly Sutton
  Mid Essex ITT Course Tutor and PGCE Assessor
  Holly Sutton

  Holly Sutton has been teaching at Notley High School & Braintree Sixth Form since 2007. During this time, Holly has fulfilled a range of roles and responsibilities.

  In 2009, Holly became a Lead Teacher in English, which was then followed by a Head of Year role which would last for five years. In 2016, Holly became an Assistant Headteacher and the Head of Braintree Sixth Form. Holly is also a Specialist Leader of Education in English and completed her Masters in Educational Research at Cambridge University in 2014. In September 2020, Holly became a Course Tutor for Mid Essex ITT. She has recently received her Advanced Certificate in Safeguarding for Designated Safeguarding Leads (2022-23) NASBTT Instructional Coaching Level 2.

• Adam Selby
  PGCE Assessor
  Adam Selby

  Adam is currently Assistant Headteacher, responsible for Teaching, Learning and Staff Development at Chelmsford County High School for Girls. In addition to his responsibilities for Teaching and Learning, he also leads on the school’s provisions for Early Career Teachers and Initial Teacher Training.

  He has previously acted as the Lead Subject Tutor for Drama at Mid-Essex ITT, in addition to leading sessions on ‘Creating Presence in the Classroom’ and ‘How Pupils Learn’ for their CORE Practice Sessions.

  Prior to becoming Assistant Headteacher, Adam was Subject Leader for Drama and Theatre Studies and More-Able Coordinator at Chelmsford County High School for Girls. He can began teaching in Lincoln at a non-selective academy, prior to moving to Kent, where he was a pastoral leader in a large grammar school for a number of years.

  Adam’s undergraduate degree is in both Education and Applied Theatre. He also studied for a Post Graduate Certificate in Education, before completing an MSc in Teaching and Learning at the University of Kent. His research areas include: Meta-Cognition, Visual Mapping, The Thinking School’s Philosophy and Meta-Memory. Adam has worked as a PGCE Assessor for the University of Greenwich, in collaboration with Mid-Essex ITT, prior to taking up the same role with Anglia Ruskin University.  

• Zahra Tyler
  PGCE Assessor
  Zahra Tyler

  Zahra graduated from Sussex University with a Philosophy and Literature BA (hons). She has been teaching RE for over 10 years, and joined Hedingham School and Sixth Form in 2021 as Leader of RVE at Hedingham School and Sixth Form. Before joining Hedingham, she taught at St Mary’s Catholic School in Bishops Stortford. Teaching in both the faith and non-faith sector has given her a breath of knowledge of the various ways to RE is taught in school.

  Zahra loves teaching, and sharing her passion for learning with the students in her classroom and was really exhilarated to have the opportunity, when joining Hedingham to completely rewrite and develop the curriculum for KS3.

  Zahra is always interested in pedagogy and the art of teaching, and having had great tutors and mentors in her own early days, training teachers and mentoring has always been a keen interest of hers. She is the ECT mentor at Hedingham and she said: "ITTs and ECTs are the life blood for the future and a it is huge privilege to be part of their training.

• Gareth Bates
  Senior Lecturer in Education, Anglia Ruskin University
  Gareth Bates

  After completing his PhD in Chemistry, Gareth trained as a secondary school science teacher and went on to work in several secondary schools teaching science. Gareth moved into Higher Education in 2017 at the University of Bedfordshire, where he taught across a range of undergraduate and postgraduate courses and had leadership responsibility for the PGCE secondary science programme. More recently, he was the course lead for the PgCert in teaching in Higher Education.

  Gareth has developed his research interests through his experience with working with schools and teachers to develop their practice. More recently, he has gained interest in how school implement practice based on evidence from cognitive science.