Parent governor election letter – Notice of ballot

The closing date for nominations for our parent governor vacancy has passed. 7 nominations have been received and the governing board is delighted by the response to the parent governor election.

As there are numerous nominations a secret ballot must now take place. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes will secure the role of parent governor for a four-year term of office.

All votes must be received by Midday on Thursday, 18th September 2025.

Each candidate has been asked to provide a statement in support of their nomination. Please remember that you are voting for the person that you consider to have the skills and experience to undertake the role successfully – it does not matter if you do not personally know the candidate whom you consider would be the right parent for the role.

  • As a former pupil myself, and as a parent of a current year 10 pupil, Honley High school plays an important part in the life of my family.  

    I work for Kirklees Council’s Learning & Development Team (Adults and Children’s social care services) and lead on training, which includes; the SEND Transformation, Neurodiversity, Learning Disabilities and Autism training. I co-deliver the Council’s mandatory Safeguarding Adults Basic Awareness training and co-produce training in childhood trauma and de-escalation for Foster Carers and Family Early Support teams.  

    My background is in teaching and learning in Further Education. I designed an Employability and Personal Effectiveness curriculum for students aged 16-19 who were in the NEET (not in employment, education or training) group of young people.  

    I have 4 years’ experience working on Supported Internships, helping young autistic people (18-24 with EHCPs) gain their first paid employment opportunities. I hope to be able to support the work and vision of Honley High in providing a good quality Resourced Provision.   

    In my spare time I lead a small group of volunteers within Honley, who are part of the Friends of Honley Community group. We commit to spending a couple of hours once per month on Saturday mornings to undertake tasks in the village, such as litter picking and gardening.  

    I will seek to act in the best interest of Honley High’s pupils whilst representing the voice of parents and carers and in doing so, hope to support the SLT’s strategic decision making alongside other school governors. 

  • I am applying to become a governor at Honley High School because I am passionate about education and the vital role schools play in shaping young people’s futures. I live in Netherton and have a strong connection to the local community. As a parent, I have both of my sons attending the school, and I am keen to contribute to its continued success and positive environment. 

    Professionally, I am a Detective Inspector with West Yorkshire Police, with over 21 years of service, the majority of which has been spent investigating major and complex crime. My role involves leadership, critical decision-making, safeguarding, and partnership working with other public services, including education and social care. I believe these skills and experiences are directly transferable to the responsibilities of a school governor. 

    I am committed to ensuring that every child receives the support and opportunity they need to thrive, academically, socially, and emotionally. High school is a crucial stage in a young person’s life, and I want to help ensure that Honley High continues to provide a safe, ambitious, and inspiring environment for all students. 

    I am ready to give the time, energy, and commitment that the role requires, and I see this as an opportunity to give back to both the school and wider community. I would welcome the chance to support the school’s leadership and make a meaningful contribution. 

    Thank you for considering my nomination. 

    12 years GP Partner, Elmwood Family Doctors, Holmfirth

    • deliver services to 15000 patients, leading 70 employees across two sites

    • led practice strategy for estates and finances working with our managers and accountants to maximise £3m budget

    • led HR including delivering coaching, performance management, recruitment and redundancy

    • designed and implemented modernised leadership structure of the business through 5 year transition

    • interaction with local and national agencies, including securing Outstanding CQC rating

    • website design and creation

    • Chair meetings up to 55 participants

    • managed merger of small GP practice preventing its closure, working directly with Kirklees, NHS England and Meltham community - successfully integrating staff and processes

    • safeguarding lead role including regular interactions with 0-19 team

    • support families with LAC and those with additional needs

    • adolescent mental health clinical work

    PGCert Medical Education (Leeds University), Honorary Lecturer (Sheffield University)

    With 15 teachers in our family my inevitable passion for education has led to me training both undergrad and professionals in healthcare.

    Greater Huddersfield CCG Governing Body

    In this previous role I helped coordinate the early pandemic response in Kirklees, gaining experience of multi-agency strategic work at a very high level.

  • I would like to apply for the role of parent governor as I have a daughter who attends additionally resourced provision at Honley and therefore, I’m keen to ‘give back’ where possible. I also have two younger children with additional needs. As such, I have excellent SEND knowledge. 

    As an experienced, self-employed financial planner specialising in the teaching sector, I am motivated to succeed, and I am used to working in a high-pressure environment. Finance and financial services have always been a key interest of mine, and this is something I have done since leaving education. In addition to the financial planning qualifications, I am also working towards being chartered, as I always look to excel. 

    I am used to working as part of a team and take a diplomatic approach to all elements of business. I approach all situations with an open mind. 

    Being self-employed allows me to be flexible with my time. Therefore, any commitments which the school require should be easily facilitated around my work schedule. I am also more than happy to visit the school when required to fulfil my role. 

    In my spare time, I enjoy providing opportunities for all children to get involved with football. I am a committee member for Linthwaite FC and as such, I am DBS checked and have passed all my safeguarding courses to allow me to coach children. I have an under 9s girls’ team which I coach, and I also coach the pan-disability sessions. 

  • My name is Tim Szoradi and I attended Honley High School a few years ago, ahem!, and have had 3 of our children attend since then, with one moving into year 8 this year and one transitioning from Juniors to Honley also in September. I was a Parent Governor at their Junior school for 9 years and have been redundant from the role for almost two now. I now feel with our youngest two now attending Honley, I’d like to give back to the Secondary School now and offer myself as a Parent Governor. 

    I am a business owner in Slaithwaite, where I have owned and run my Barbers/Salon for 16 years. I do a lot to help in the local community and feel it very important to give back into it whenever possible. As a previous Governor, I found it very informative and seeing what goes on behind the scenes provides valuable knowledge. I was the Health and Safety Governor and also had input on the Premises side also.  

    I’d be very happy to offer myself up for ballot and I look forward to hearing the results. 

  • As a parent with an interest in Honley High School’s continued success, I am keen to offer my skills and experience as a Parent Governor. My professional background as a Public Health Improvement Practitioner at Kirklees Council, coupled with my strong academic foundation (PhD in English, MSc in Sport and Exercise Science), provides an applicable and relevant skillset for this role.  

    I bring experience in project and programme management, including commissioning the Healthy Child Programme (0-19 service), which involves close collaboration with children’s health and education services and a deep understanding of children’s wellbeing. My work with initiatives like the school-focused programme “Beat the Street Sheffield” and sports coordination work with the gender equity SME Totally Runable demonstrates my ability to engage with schools and diverse communities to promote physical activity and address inequalities, directly contributing to student health and development. 

    I am skilled in strategic thinking, effective communication and confident in understanding meaningful data, essential for robust governance and oversight. My experience in partnership building, problem-solving, and navigating complex public sector environments will enable me to contribute constructively to school policy and decision-making. I am passionate about fostering an inclusive environment and ensuring every student thrives. I am committed to safeguarding, and I work with the Kirklees Safeguarding Children’s Partnership in my current role. 

    I am confident my dedication and professional experience will be a valuable asset to the Governing Body, supporting Honley High School in achieving its strategic goals and ensuring the best outcomes for all its pupils. 

  • I am a father of eight children and a former anti-narcotics judge in Afghanistan. I am currently studying English at Kirklees college. 

    As a parent and nominee, I care deeply about children’s education and wellbeing. I want to represent other parents, listen to their concerns and support the school in giving every child a better future. 

  • I have 2 daughters, in year 9 and 7. I bring 20+ years’ experience working in a corporate environment within a multi-national food company. As part of the senior leadership team, I was directly involved in the setting and execution of strategies and the monitoring, review and evaluation of these. I have worked extensively with the internal promotion of the company’s mission and values, which I would apply to the governor role and believe strongly in the importance of not only embedding CREATE through sharing tangible, relatable examples but creatively celebrating these on an ongoing basis. 

    I volunteer as a publicity and fundraising officer on the committee of our local village carnival. I bring experience in working collaboratively with others and operating within a collective decision-making forum. 

    I have been a governor at my daughters’ previous school, which I thoroughly enjoyed and would bring this passion for ensuring a positive, challenging, safe and nurturing learning environment for all Honley students, which will go hand in hand with a commitment to ensuring their education is inspiring, inclusive and of the highest quality. It is also very important to me that there continues to be ongoing opportunities for personal, as well as academic, growth. 

    I value the importance of accountability and will not hesitate to ask challenging questions. I will seek a thorough understanding of any proposals being out forward for consideration, ensuring that the interests of the pupils and staff are at the very heart of any decisions made. Similarly, I will campaign for a continual strive for excellence and improvement along with regular evidence of progress against targets. 

Parent Governor Ballot