Our People

We are proud to be a world class centre of excellence for the training and education of classical ballet dancers where graduating students are prepared to secure contracts with national and international ballet companies. Teachers come from successful professional dance backgrounds and teach with passion and commitment.

Jessica Ward

Principal

Jessica trained as a contemporary dancer and choreographer at Trinity Laban and went on to perform with their resident company, Transitions, among other freelance projects. Having sustained an injury during her dance career, she took the opportunity to pursue her other passion – teaching. She taught dance in a number of schools and colleges as well as holding senior appointments in London Secondary Schools before joining Elmhurst Ballet School as Principal in 2010.

Jessica has always had a passion and interest in choreography and has enjoyed creating work for a number of youth companies including the award winning team at The Grange Opera.

In her role as Principal, Jessica is the Chair of the national Music and Dance Scheme school’s head teachers group and is involved in a number of other networks to support the development of Elmhurst. Jessica is a Team Inspector for the Independent Schools Inspectorate. Ofsted have described her as a ‘highly effective leader’.

Select a Team

Select a Team
Governors
President, Vice Presidents and Artistic Advisors
Senior Leadership Team
Middle Leadership Team
Artistic Team
Elmhurst Young Dancers Team
Academic Team
Music Team
Boarding Team
Health and Wellbeing Team
Development Team
Support Team

Please click the above arrow to choose the team you would like to view.

Alison Matthews

Dan Howard

Chair

James Harris

Lynn Wallis OBE

Pearl Chesterman

Prof John Bryson

Prof Matt Wyon

Sarah Evans OBE

Sue Butler

Tim Abbotts

Carlos Acosta CBE

Vice President

Dame Merle Park

Vice President

Desmond Kelly

Artistic Advisor

Maina Gielgud

Vice President

Prof Sir David Eastwood

President

Sir David Bintley CBE

Artistic Advisor

Sir Peter Wright

Vice President

Wayne McGregor CBE

Vice President

Annelli Peavot

Assistant Principal (Health, Wellbeing and Safeguarding)

Denise Whiteman

Director of Dance Training

Lucy Caddick

Director of Finance and Operations

Manpreet Sambhi

Assistant Principal- Academics

Robert Parker

Artistic Director

Sara Wells

Vice Principal

Dudley Ray

Director of Music

Jeanette Mould

Cleaning Supervisor and Receptionist; Birmingham Young Dancers

Jennifer MacNamara

Head of Contemporary, Jazz and related dance styles

Kieran Grinnel

Facilities Manager

Lesley-Anne Tulley

Head of Pastoral Care (lower school) and Houseparent - Fischer House

Liz Innis

HR Officer

Michelle Lester

Teacher in charge of English and Progress Leader

Natalie Barge

School Finance Manager

Sabina Storrod

Head of Development and Engagement

Silvia Jimenez

Head of Elmhurst Ballet Company and Ballet Teacher

Simon Housley

Teacher in charge of Science, Head of Data and Assessment

William Deeley

Houseparent - Mortimer House and Progress Leader (Key Stage 3)

Ana Garcia

Flamenco Teacher

Andrea Tredinnick

Ballet Teacher

Angela Towler

Contemporary Teacher

Denise Whiteman

Director of Dance Training

Gloria Grigolato

Ballet Teacher

James Grundy

Ballet Teacher

Jennifer MacNamara

Head of Contemporary, Jazz and related dance styles

Judith Rowann

Ballet Teacher/Body Conditioning Coach

Laetitia Lo Sardo

Ballet Teacher

Lee Robinson

Ballet Teacher

Lei Zhao

Ballet Teacher

Nicky Linzie

Ballet Teacher

Robert Parker

Artistic Director

Sander Blommaert

Ballet Teacher

Sarah-Jayne Blackwell

Jazz Teacher (Maternity Cover)

Silvia Jimenez

Head of Elmhurst Ballet Company and Ballet Teacher

Denise Whiteman	Ballet Teacher - Birmingham
Ann Atkinson	Ballet Teacher - Sunderland
Sarah-Jayne Blackwell	Jazz Teacher - Birmingham
Lara Cook	Jazz Teacher - Birmingham
Rachel Hester	Ballet Teacher- Birmingham
Alexandra Howarth	Ballet Teacher - Birmingham
Marion Lindsay	Ballet Teacher - Plymouth
Nicky Linzie	Ballet Teacher - Birmingham
Alexandra Sherman	Ballet Teacher- Birmingham
Andrea Tredinnick	Ballet Teacher - Birmingham

Helen Beddows	Teacher in charge of Art
Jane Bradbury	English Teacher

Suzanne Gardner	Maths Teacher
Eira Kodurand	EAL Teacher
Claire Hardemen	Geography Teacher
Simon Housley	Teacher in charge of Science, Head of Data and Assessment
Katharine Perl	Teacher in charge of Drama
Rozalyn McComish	Teacher in charge of History and RE, Health and Wellbeing Teacher
Joseph Roberts	Teacher in charge of Languages
Michelle Lester	Teacher in charge of English and Progress Leader
Manpreet Sambhi	Assistant Principal- Academics
Jenny Watson	SEND Lead
Lucy Wensley	Teacher in charge of Geography

Dudley Ray	Director of Music
Asty Allen	Pianist
Peter Allsopp	Accompanist for the Sunderland Young Dancers Programme
Stephen Crewes	Pianist and Accompanist for the Birmingham Young Dancers Programme
Yijiao Feng	Pianist
Peter Flower	Pianist - Music Resources Co-ordinator
Margaret Green	Accompanist for the Plymouth Young Dancers Programme
Elaine Li	Pianist
Dominic Mason	Pianist
Mikael Petersson	Pianist - Music Planning Co-ordinator
Bogdan Suciu	Pianist

Ana Wheeler Nina Wertz	Pianist Pianist
Yen Lee Chia-Yuan Kuo	Pianist Pianist and Accompanist for the Manchester Young Dancers Programme

Gemma Amphlett	Deputy Houseparent- Mortimer
Claire Allen	Deputy Houseparent- The Elms
Diane Fox	Deputy Houseparent - The Elms (Part-Time)
Janet Summers Jade Wallace	Pastoral Assistant - Bank Pastoral Assistant- Bank
Jessica Mariani	Houseparent - Hetherington
Amy Nock	Deputy Houseparent- Hetherington
Kadine Patterson	Deputy Houseparent - across all houses
Katie Lister	Deputy Houseparent - Park
Lesley-Anne Tulley	Head of Pastoral Care and Boarding (lower school) and Houseparent - Fischer House
Sue Barbour	Houseparent - Park House
Tori Amelia Roberts	Deputy Houseparent - Fischer House
Tracy Cowper	Acting Houseparent - The Elms
William Deeley	Houseparent - Mortimer House and Progress Leader (Key Stage 3)

Annelli Peavot	Assistant Principal (Health, Wellbeing and Safeguarding)
Judith Coe	Physiotherapist
Hayley James	Registered Mental Health Nurse
Kirsty Haywood	Healthcare Assistant
Nico Kolokythas	Strength and Conditioning coach
Kate Liptrot	Nurse
Hayley O’Hara	Healthcare Assistant
Rachel Orton	Health and Wellbeing Centre Administrator
Julia Sawkings	Physiotherapist
Dr Parveen Bangher	GP
Dr Wakeel Jamil	GP
Emma-Louise Hodgson	Independent Student Advocate
John Needham	Independent Student Advocate
Elise Scotford	Clerk to the Governors

Sabina Storrod	Head of Development and Engagement
Zoe Baxter	Fundraising Officer
Alice Gibbins	Development Assistant
Louise Gale	Graphic Designer
Simon Harper	PR Advisor

Rosemary Griffiths	PA to the Principal
Liz Innis	HR Officer
Kirsty Graham	School Receptionist/Administrator
Renata Ratajova	School Receptionist/Administrator
Rachel Tittley	Finance & Lettings Administrator
Rachal Torrance	Registrar
Ashley Whitehouse	Head of Catering and Hospitality - Holroyd Howe

@ElmhurstBallet Excited to be a part of @birminghamcg22 ! #UnitedByB2022 twitter.com/birminghamcg22… Read More

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