#SJB heroes

Meet our New Head of Drama - Mr Scott Jenkins

When Scott turned 8, he started disco-dancing at the local village hall, which is where he got spotted by a stage school. He stayed with the school until the age of 13 and performed in numerous shows such as; Bugsy Malone, Grease, multiple cabarets and many more.

Later, he had the chance to perform with Bonnie Langford at the Royal Albert Hall ... pretty impressive! 

Because he always loved performing, he decided to do a degree at The Urdang Academy for 3 years.

During his career, he was lucky enough to have stints in Spamalot the Musical and Hairspray. Scott fell into teaching when a theatrical company needed a director and he jumped in...

The rest is now history as he LOVES everything about teaching!

What time do you get up?
I get up most mornings around 5.45 am to let my lovely chickens out whilst I sit and have a coffee before my crazy rabble of a family wakes up.

How do you get to school?
I drive from Reading which takes around 40 – 45 minutes and I usually listen to Talk Sport as I am a massive Spurs Fan! Yes, jokes are welcome.

What’s your favourite on Lynne’s lunch menu?
I’ve only been here a short time but have enjoyed ALL of the food.

When do you plan your lessons?
I usually plan in the holidays what I would like to cover, but when lessons need to be tweaked, I stay a little later after work to finalise in preparation for the following day.

How do you relax after a long school day?
A lovely pint of cold beer playing with my kids.

Do you have any hobbies?
My main hobby is spending time with my family, along with watching lots of sport: F1, Football and Cricket are my favourite ones to watch.

Tell us an interesting fact about you?
An interesting fact about me is that I used to dance with the Royal Ballet as I am also a professional dancer.

Welcome Mr Jenkins, we are excited to watch your productions during the coming terms!

Send a message to Mr Jenkins here.

Meet our resident Olympian and Head of Year 6 Miss Thornycroft.

Miss Thornycroft grew up on a tobacco and cattle farm in Zimbabwe spending most of her childhood outside fishing and exploring the farm which sparked her love of nature. Her school backed onto a game park and so most weekends were spent wondering the Park in search of animals or swimming in the dam.

She never really knew exactly what she wanted to be “when she grew up” so studied Ichthyology and Fisheries Science and Human Kinetics and Ergonomics at Rhodes University in South Africa after leaving school as they seemed like fun subjects. She enjoyed both, but her childhood dream of becoming an Olympic athlete would not go away and so decided to scrap the logic of ‘find and job and build a career' and chose to train for the Olympics.

Zimbabwe does not have the money to support its athletes and so for her first year of training the cheapest way to live was to get a scholarship to a university, and as she was so late in applying the only course still open for registration was teaching, and so she signed up and has never looked back.

What time do you get up?
When teaching from home I love to sleep in until 7 am as I have time to fit my exercise in between my lessons or in the lunch break, but when we are onsite I get up at 5 am some days to get a run in before leaving for school.

What do you do before your school day starts?
Feed my fish, clean and tidy the house, plan a few lessons/do some marking, and sometimes go for a run if I need to wake up or clear my head before a crazy day.

How long is your teaching day?
It usually starts around 8:10 am with a chat with my tutor class, and then lessons on and off until the day ends just before 5 pm. In between lessons I do some marking, some lesson prep and escape for walks to the river.

Where do you teach from?
At home, I put a chair on the kitchen table so I can teach standing up as for some reason I prefer that to sitting.

Do you have time for lunch? What would it be?
I always make time for lunch, some weeks I am good and make healthy colourful salads/roasted veggies, and some days I’m lazy and have peanut butter on toast or cereal. There is always space for chocolate at any point in the day, even breakfast!

When do you prepare for the next lessons?
It depends, sometimes weeks in advance, but mostly the week before with last-minute adjustments in between lessons. I have to have a plan for my day before I go to sleep so that I know what I am doing when I wake up, but I work best in the mornings and so if I am not ready for the day I just wake up earlier to get everything sorted.

What’s your most embarrassing online teaching moment? 
I am not sure but I always have the fear that I am unmuted or my video is on and I would be doing something I should not be, like getting some abdominal exercises done during assembly!

How do you relax?
Go running along the river, breathe in the fresh air and get lost in my thoughts, the beautiful scenery and the music on my iPod, then soak in a bubble bath. I also love a good movie or series.

Do you have any hobbies?
Running, hiking, exploring, paddle boarding, cycling, paint by numbers, DIY projects.

Tell us an interesting fact about you?
I came to work at SJB as by chance, the summer of my move to the UK I took part in a 900km rowing expedition down the length of the Kafue River to raise money for Village water, and this happened to be organised by Tim Cook, our SJB governor.

Going to the Olympics had always been a dream for me and I will forever be grateful for having the honour of representing Zimbabwe at the London and Rio Games in the single scull. 

A highlight from London was walking into the Olympic stadium at the opening ceremony, I can't quite do it justice with words but it is a feeling I will cherish forever. I had only just received my Zim kit, and of course, it didn't fit so it was duct-taped together, and was very similar to my high school uniform. The British people were the most incredible hosts, so helpful, supportive and organised! One of the best parts of the Olympics is as an athlete you can get free tickets to watch any event that you like, and so I spent the week after racing marvelling at the incredible athletes and across the diversity of sports. 

The rowing venue in Rio was amazing, sitting at the start line and looking up at Christ the Redeemer, and then being able to go for a swim at Copacabana beach post-session was just magical.

The South African team kindly 'adopted me' so I trained alongside their best athletes, some of whom have Olympic gold medals from London and are world record holders. Was a dream come true to have my heroes as training buddies and teammates.

I often describe my life as a full-time athlete as 'living the dream' as we got to travel and compete in so many different countries, and lived in a bubble of eat, train, eat, physio, train, eat, nap, train, eat, sleep and then repeat. To some, this sounds awful, but to me, there was nothing better. Every morning we woke up with such purpose of becoming the best athlete we could possibly be, squeezing every effort of energy out of ourselves and pushing our bodies to their limits. In our big training blocks, we would do over 200km of rowing a week with 2/3 gym sessions, 2-hour "recovery" mountain bike rides, and a 10km run. 

Send a message to Miss Thornycroft.

Our wonderful Head of Art, Mrs Beckwith, joined St John's back in September with a wealth of experience and ideas.

Mrs Beckwith graduated from University in 1995, and went on a year’s working holiday in Australia and then travelled around Bali, on the way home.  She then completed her PGCE in Art and Design in Brighton.

For the last 22 years, she has worked in the private and state sector at a Primary, Secondary and Sixth Form level in various schools in Hampshire, East and West Sussex.  

What time do you get up?
I get up at 4.30 am when I travel to school on a Monday, and 6 am when I stay overnight at the school.

What do you do before your school day starts?
I love pottering around my Art room early in the morning. I get all the resources I need ready for the day, mark books, reply to emails and make examples that are needed for the day.

How long is your teaching day?
Lessons start at either 8.40 am or 9.40 am as well as Mass which starts at 8.20 am. The day ends at about 5 pm but I sometimes have meetings until about 6.30 pm.

Where do you teach from?
During the lockdown, I have been teaching from the Art studio and then from home for the last few weeks of lockdown. 

Do you have time for lunch? What would it be?
I tend to have my lunch, then keep working. The school meals are delicious and my guilty pleasures are the puddings!

When do you prepare for the next lessons?
I prepare for the morning lessons very early, then for the afternoon lessons, in the break times before.

What’s your most embarrassing online teaching moment?
When I could not connect properly to my Magis guest speaker. 

How do you relax?
Watching a movie with my kids, snuggled under blankets and eating popcorn. Going for walk on the beach. We are lucky as we live a 1-minute walk to the beach.   

Do you have any hobbies?
Painting, sculpture, swimming, baking, beach walks collecting driftwood.

Tell us an interesting fact about you? 
I play the cello and I used to be a film extra. I am also a makeup artist. 

I am also a bit of a mad cat lady! I have 4 cats (and 2 rabbits!) Please don’t judge….

I feel very lucky that I am able to teach a subject that I feel very passionate about.

There is nothing more rewarding than knowing a pupil when they are young and watching them grow on an artistic and creative level over the years. 

As much as I loved drawing when I was at school and I have always felt that drawing is the most important technique to master, I did not have the opportunity to work with any other mixed media materials.

I really enjoy teaching a very wide range of 2D and 3D skills and techniques as I feel that it can really expand and develop an individual’s artistic creativity, confidence and skills.

Send a message to Mrs Beckwith

Dr Mollison is our very humble and multi-talented SJB Director of Music.

With a passion for music from a very early age, she was delighted when she was awarded a Music Exhibition at the Royal Academy of Music at the age of 13 and studied there until she was 21, when she won the Else Cross Prize for pianoforte. She then moved to UCLA and to Middlesex University where she received her PhD in music. 

Dr Mollison has enjoyed a long and successful career in music before taking up teaching. She achieved fame writing scores for films and television programmes, even being nominated for a BAFTA (East is East). Her styles are very versatile, including songs, jazz, rock and orchestral works, composing commissions from the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Britten Sinfonia.

Her parents, sisters and brother are/were all teachers. They have always shared notes and tips on teaching. Dr Mollison has combined her teaching and composing career and feels blessed to be able to do both of the things she loves.

It still feels that being a mum ranks up there with my best achievements.

What time do you get up?
In lockdown at 7 am.  Normally 5 am as I live in North London.  I have been catching up on dreams in lockdown as I do not dream when I get up at 5 am.

What do you do before your school day starts?
Feed the dogs, some household chores, then drive to work or begin to work.

How long is your teaching day?
It varies, depending on if I teach at school or teach from home in lockdown. My days average out at 9 hours mostly, with lesson planning and meetings to add on. I have breaks in my timetable, and I use these to run the music department.

Where do you teach from at the moment?
At home, from my music studio as it has a big desk. The dogs wait outside my studio whilst I work, sometimes they snore a lot!

Do you have time for lunch?
Lunch is quick and easy.  Usually, Vegetarian during the week.

What’s your most embarrassing online teaching moment?
In a recent online lesson, the connection disappeared, I was then finding it very hard to get back into my own lesson! A nightmare.

How do you relax?
Walking the dogs with my husband.  I also taught myself from YouTube how to groom the dogs. I do love to do this, to relieve stress and sometimes my teenage daughter and I do it together.

Do you have any hobbies?
I enjoy looking after my garden pond, which now has many frogs and I have called the biggest frog Cal. 

Tell us an interesting fact about you?
I also compose a lot, for myself and for commissions.  I composed a Bereavement Album for my father two years ago, just after he died, its called Bereavement and is on Amazon, Spotify etc. I am currently composing a chamber piece for my lovely mother and it is based on the writings of Pope Francis. 

I also watch a lot of films as I am a BAFTA judge. 

Get in touch with Dr Mollison 

Meet our resident rock-star, now Head of English - Mr Gibbons!

In his former life, Mr  Gibbons was the lead singer of The Famous Men. A band formed in Herne Bay, Kent in 1978.

They blended catchy pop/punk tunes with funky dance rhythms. The famous Men played gigs in theatres, colleges and university concert halls – audiences ranged from 100 to 500.

After university the band went their separate ways - however, they released a compilation album in February 2020 and were due to play gigs in London and Windsor last spring. They still hope to do so whenever ‘normality’ returns.

An old friend, Peter Kablean, SJB’s celebrated drum teacher, can be seen on the front cover of Bored Teenagers Volume 12. 

Mr Gibbons looked at careers in journalism and law before settling on teaching. He grew up in north-east England and, after grammar school, went to university in Kent and in Leeds.

He chose to teach because it seemed to fit the way he sees life – people, communication, relationships and creativity, are all important to him.

My teaching gives me the opportunity to enable young people to develop these skills and experiences.

What time do you get up?
Too early! But not as bad as ’normal’ times…for decades I have got up before the crack of dawn to do school runs or to undertake commutes to central London to do my bit in our nation’s inner-city senior schools. So, yes, a luxurious lie in till 6.15 am at present!

What do you do before your school day starts?
Listen to the Today programme, check my lesson plans/Assembly/Animal Meeting plans, depending on what day it is. I try not to wake up my sleeping family too early….

How long is your teaching day?
All-day is a teaching day and usually, it’s me who is doing plenty of learning as well as some teaching! Lessons can be four hours a day but that is the tip of the iceberg – planning, marking, pre-reading, discussions with colleagues are also frequent and time-consuming.

Where do you teach from at the moment?
My outhouse AKA ‘man-cave’ at home. A bespoke, purpose-built teaching hub!

Do you have time for lunch?
Not really, I try to stretch, get some fresh air and read one of my cricket books.

What’s your most embarrassing online teaching moment? 
Too many to mention... Getting to know how to use TEAMS for me is rather like showing electricity to Stone Age Man.

How do you relax?
What is this ‘relax’? In normal times, I used to fall asleep whilst taking my family to the cinema. 

I write for my wife’s theatre company and am still trying to find time to get writing my best seller – respect to the boys of LF2 who have already started designing the cover!

Do you have any hobbies?
Reading, writing and music.

There is nothing better for me, in the heart of winter, than to be transported by exquisite, lyrical writing to an English summer watching or playing cricket in my imagination.

Tell us an interesting fact about you?
No interesting ones…and a lot of the boring ones already covered I think.
(Yeah, right, Mr Rock-Star Gibbons!)

Get in touch with Mr Gibbons

Mrs Walker is a Cape Townian and moved to England 2 ½ years ago with her family (her husband Luke, son Noah and Jack Russell, Coco). 

She completed a Bachelor Degree in Education at Cape Peninsula University of Technology and then went on to complete an Honours Degree part-time at the University of Cape Town.  She studied as a “mature” student at the age of 24. 

Mrs Walker initially completed a foundation course in Art and Design and, as much as she loved the idea of completing a fine-arts or textile degree (perhaps when she retires), she decided that she wanted to make more of a difference in the world.   

I love young children and feel that we can learn so much through their eyes.  I am passionate about finding new ways to make our lessons fun, exciting and meaningful.  If your son is or has been in my class, he will tell you how much I value and emphasise kindness.  It goes a long way!

What time do you get up?
6 am.  I am fortunate to live very near to the school.  I also am a very guilty snoozer!  I am more of a night owl and then always regret not getting to bed earlier. 

What do you do before your school day starts?
I make coffee for the grown-ups and Noah’s porridge.  I do a 15-minute pilates session every morning.  Sometimes, my son, Noah joins me too! (Those are the best starts to my day). We both get ourselves ready and drive down the hill to school.  (My son Noah is in Reception at SJB.  I feel so blessed to have him at school where I teach).

How long is your teaching day?
I start teaching at 8:15 and finish our teaching day at about 3.00 each day. I mostly prepare for the next lessons in the afternoons and the evenings once Noah has gone to bed.  

Where do you teach from at the moment?
I am currently teaching from school in my classroom.  In Pre-Prep, there is a lot of printing and preparation that is needed, so being at school makes it so much easier!

Our boys in the Pre-Prep have a pack delivered each Friday which includes worksheets, books and resources for the lessons for the following week. 

Do you have time for lunch?
I eat my lunch behind my laptop.  I must say that Lynne’s food is always such a treat and feels like eating at a restaurant on a daily basis!  Guilty pleasures are chocolate and coffee! 

What’s your most embarrassing online teaching moment? 
Hmm… I think I embarrass myself on a regular basis.  I am forever doing star jumps and strange exercises to get the boys moving.  I am also guilty of occasionally making mistakes in lessons.  When I first started teaching online I was so worried about doing everything perfectly and as much as I give my heart and soul into our lessons, I am also human and I think it is good for the boys to see that side of us as teachers.  Both adults and children make mistakes. 

How do you relax?
Family time! I love going for walks and runs in the Great Park with my husband, son and dog.  Noah and I quite enjoy baking, gardening and doing arts and crafts together in our spare time.  I also do love a good glass of wine (South African of course!) and sitting by the fire or in the garden.

Do you have any hobbies?
I love sewing, making ceramics, reading, cooking, gardening, making jewellery, painting and other arts and crafts. 

Tell us an interesting fact about you?
I was a whole school Art teacher and Pre-Prep Art teacher for 4 years in Cape Town. 

I am passionate about saving the environment and always looking for new ways to make a small difference. 

Otherwise, I am a working mom who is trying very hard to look cool calm and collected 

Get in touch with Mrs Walker

This is Miss Mulcahy's third year at St John’s Beaumont and she has loved her time here so far.

She previously worked in Year 2 at Englefield Green Infant School. Miss Mulcahy studied Primary Education at Roehampton University and originally trained in Early Years/Key Stage 1 but absolutely loves teaching in Year 3.

She always knew she wanted to be a teacher, when she was younger she even used to pretend to be a teacher and made her grandparents be her students!

What time do you get up? 
I’m not a morning person. Now that I’m working from home, I leave it as late as possible before getting up! I get up between 7 and 7.30 am, depending on how sleepy I feel and get my computer set up with assignments and power points for the day. I always start my day with a huge coffee and a healthy smoothie.

What does your home teaching day look like? 
Working from home involves a lot of staring at a screen, drinking a lot of coffee, eating lots of snacks, dealing with technical issues and laughing lots with my hilarious class.

Where do you teach from? 
I teach from my breakfast bar.

Do you have time for lunch? What would it be? 
I tend to make quick lunches like bacon sandwiches or pitta bread and hummus. I miss Lynn’s fab lunches at school.

When do you prepare for the next lessons? 
I LOVE being organised so I try to plan out the week’s lessons in advance. I spend time preparing when the boys have lessons with other subject teachers, after school or occasionally at the weekend.

What’s your most embarrassing online teaching moment? 
It has to be when you forget that your camera is on in a meeting and you forget to control your facial expressions!

Do you have any hobbies? 
To help me relax I love watching films, going for a walk, reading a book or catching up with family and friends over Zoom or Facetime. I try to keep active by doing Zumba and miss doing my dance club with the fabulous Middle School boys! I have also been learning to cook new recipes!

What time do you finish work and get to have downtime? 
The time I finish work depends on the day! Sometimes I get everything done during the day and can log off at 4 pm. Other days, I take a break from the screen and then come back to do any marking or prep. Sometimes I get marking done straight after 4 pm and carry on until I’m done.

Tell us an interesting fact about you? 
When I was younger I loved dancing, especially ballet and performed in some shows at my local theatre.
Despite everything bad that happened in 2020, I managed to become a homeowner and I’m super proud of doing it all by myself.
I’m a big Marvel fan (which most of the boys already know) and got to see Infinity War before it was released in the cinema.

Send a message to Miss Mulcahy.