Leadership Team | Pinderfields Hospital School

SENIOR LEADERSHIP TEAM

Mrs Jackson completed her initial teacher training, following working across mainstream and specialist settings as a teaching assistant/HLTA. She recognised the importance of supporting children with SEND in mainstream education and has worked in a range of mainstream secondary and specialist schools across the Wakefield district. She has held a number of leadership roles both in mainstream and specialist and has her NASENCO award. She has been Assistant Head for Secondary at PHPRU since September 2025. She has a passion and interest in advocating and supporting children and their parents/carers to ensure that every child has the opportunity to achieve and have the skills and confidence to move onto their next step in education.

Mr Boyer has been teaching now for 30 years. He held the position of Headteacher for 20 years and was also an Inspector of Schools. He has worked across both the Special School and Independent Sectors and has a passion for ensuring the relational approach to teaching is embedded across all schools. Adrian is a SENDCo and is also the School’s Designated Teacher for Children in Care.

SCHOOL LEADERS

Kelly enjoys making learning accessible and fun for our amazing pupils, ensuring they feel a sense of belonging and receive the fresh start and aspirational teaching they deserve. Unconditional positive regard is the golden thread running through her advocacy for trauma-informed, neuroaffirming care, with a strong focus on pupil voice, play and sensory regulation.

This ethos is backed by over 20 years of teaching experience spanning EYFS to KS4 and a robust academic foundation, including a Primary Education degree with English and IT specialisms, NASENCO status, and postgraduate-level study around Early Childhood and Law. She has actively contributed towards Trauma Informed Schools UK (TISUK) status, alongside accreditations in Communication, ADHD and Wellbeing.

Her whole-child approach is complemented by specialist training in PACE, Restorative Justice, PBS and therapeutic interventions. She is currently completing her NPQSL, which she feels supports her to assess and integrate research-informed practice.

Underpinned by a relational, whole-family approach and a commitment to staff wellbeing, she has driven positive curriculum change across multiple schools. She also volunteers as a governor in a SEMH secondary setting.

Outside of school, Kelly enjoys trying to train her dog to become a qualified school therapy animal, keeping up with the school guinea pigs’ demands for snacks, and supporting her own children’s university adventures.

Cathy has over 25 years’ experience in Early Years education, both in mainstream and specialist provision. Prior to working in education, Cathy worked for the NHS in Physiotherapy, in neurology and mental health. Whilst gaining her teaching degree, she specialised in Early Years and communication and language development, which is an area that she has always taken a particular interest in. During her employment in mainstream provision, she was the school lead on PSHE, P.E and the Foundation Stage Co-ordinator. Since joining the PRU, she has qualified as a SENCO and has her NPQEYFS. She was invited to take part in the DFE “catch-up” programme and was given the role of Early Years expert, which saw her advising other schools in developing communication and language in their Early Years settings. Cathy has a particular interest in children that have a diagnosis of Multi-Sensory Impairments (MSI) and to this end is a qualified intervenor. Her passion is working with children with complex presentations. She feels very privileged to be the Teacher in Charge at the Early Years Assessment Centre.

Hayley has been in education for 22 years, and has experience of Middle and Senior leadership in Special education. She has completed her NPQSL and DSL qualification and is currently undertaking the NPQSENCO qualification.

Hayley’s specialism is Advanced Early Years and she has experience of supporting a wide range of SEN needs such as complex medical needs, PMLD, SLD, SLCN, ADHD and children with Autism after teaching in specialist education for 19 years. Her experience also includes recently supporting the WISENDSS team in Wakefield as an Area SENCO where she provided specialist advice to Headteachers and Managers for both Private and School based Nurseries to ensure all children presenting with SEN were fully supported to thrive and develop in an inclusive setting.

Hayley is really interested in advocating and supporting both the children and their families to ensure that every child can achieve their potential and live life to the full as independently as is possible for the individual child.

With over a decade of experience in education, Chloe brings a wealth of expertise to her role as Teacher in Charge. After earning her degree in Early Childhood Studies and completing a PGCE with a 3–7 specialism, she developed a profound understanding of EYFS provision—a foundation that remains vital to her work in Social, Emotional, and Mental Health (SEMH).

Since transitioning to SEMH provision in 2019, Chloe has qualified as a SENCO and spent six years in middle leadership, driving inclusive practices. She is deeply committed to removing emotional barriers to learning, ensuring every pupil has the support needed to reach their full potential. Chloe is particularly passionate about literacy development and advocating for the best possible outcomes for every child.

Joanne joined Pinderfields Hospital PRU as Teacher in Charge at Forest Wood in 2020, following her teaching and leadership roles in four other schools across Wakefield and Bradford. She has been in teaching for almost twenty years, but credits her time as acting SENDCO in 2016-17 as developing her love for special education.

Over the last six years, Joanne has worked with the team at Forest Wood to develop a language rich, inclusive environment which supports the sensory needs and communication challenges of the pupils who attend. Joanne has a particular interest in how children learn language, and has developed greater understanding of Gestalt Language processing within the staff team.

As a member of the DSL team and a qualified SENDCo, Joanne uses her knowledge and skills to support the families with whom she works, and has developed a package of training and support which she and the teaching team at Forest Wood deliver annually.

Chantal originally trained in Theatre and Performance at the University of Leeds, before completing her PGCE. She worked as a SENCo in a mainstream primary school for multiple years before moving to specialist and opening two Speech and Language sites for Pinderfields Hospital PRU. Chantal is passionate about breaking down barriers to learning and takes pride in creating a safe, nurturing environment where every pupil feels valued and supported. She believes in helping young people build confidence both academically and personally. Outside of school, Chantal enjoys spending time with her husband and two children, as well as keeping active through Zumba, bringing energy and positivity to her work.