Our Committee members

Our current committee is made up of past and present parents of STJTG.  These 5 parents organise and run the events with the much-needed help and commitment of fellow parent volunteers.

Our Chairman, Jenny:

Jenny joined the Friends Association as Chairman in 2021.

She has two boys at St James the Great, in Years 1 and 3. She enjoys crafting, gardening, cooking and the outdoors, and has recently taken up indoor cycling to combat the effects of her baking.

Jenny feels privileged to Chair the Friends Association and is committed to building on the great work that has already been done by the committee and introducing new initiatives which will continue to benefit parents, teachers and children. 

Our Co-Vice Chairs, Sarah & Manuela:

Sarah left St James the Great back in 1990, returned as an Aunt in 1998 and then as a parent in 2002. Apart from one year in between her eldest and middle child, she has been part of the school since then. Her youngest left last year and is now at Bishop Thomas Grant Secondary School.

Sarah has been running the 26th Croydon Cub Scouts (St Andrew’s) which has met at STJTG every Thursday evening since 2007.

She has been a Driving Instructor since 2003 and currently runs her own driving school since 2005. Having taught many ex-pupils from SJTG. But can always be found helping around the school in different roles. She currently works full-time in Reception as a TA one-to-one support for R1 

Sarah has been part of the friends for around 7 years and runs our bar and has been Co-Vice Chairman for the last two years.

Manuela is a former pupil of St James the Great and has now returned as a parent to a daughter who started in reception in September 2022. 

After leaving STJTG, Manuela returned to complete her Year 10 work experience in the nursery.  Manuela decided to pursue a career in Early Years and throughout her training, returned to complete her placements.  Manuela has a BA in Early Years and Leadership and also holds her EYTS. She has worked in the Early Years sector for over 16 years. 

Manuela enjoys spending her time with her family and friends, and runs termly parenting courses with EPEC within the Croydon borough.  Before joining the Friends Association as Co-Vice Chair, Manuela volunteered her spare time to helping at events and fundraisers run by the Association.  She became Co-Vice Chair in 2022.

Our Treasurer, Billie:

Billie is a mum of two and has been a parent at St James the Great since her son joined reception in 2014.  Billie’s daughter is currently in Year 6.

After completing her BSc in Mathematics and MSc in Computational Methods for Aeronautics, Billie trained and worked as an auditor in Central London.  You may recognise her if you have visited the school office in recent months as she is the newest member of the STJTG Admin Team having joined back in March 2023.

In her spare time, Billie practises yoga and, as a trained pastry chef, enjoys sharing her baked goods and cooking with friends and family.  Billie joined the Friends Association as Treasurer in 2021 and acts as custodian of the Association’s finances.  She uses her accountancy and audit training to provide financial information that supports the committee’s planning, budgeting and decision-making.

Our Secretary, Tom:

Tom is the proud father of 2 kids at St James the Great. Molly is in Year 3 and Oliver is in Year 1. Tom decided to go travelling after university and ended up living and working in Argentina where he met his better-half Victoria. At home they speak Spanish and try to convince the kids to do the same. He also speaks a bit of Polish which he learned from his mother growing up.

After his travels, the travel bug took hold and he ended working as a tour leader taking groups of tourists all round Central and South America. Tom has been a Head of Operations for travel companies for many years before recently taking on a Head of Technology role for a company called Travelopia. He has been lucky enough to visit many exotic places including both Antarctica and the Artic (hence the photo). 

When he is not being a taxi driver for the kids or looking after them, he likes to play golf, tennis and football. He also enjoys good food, getting to the gym when he can and loves a bit of Netflix! He joined the Friends of St James the Great in 2019, is the token male, and the persuasive ladies managed to convince him to take on role as secretary in 2021!

If you would like to join the Friends Association, or would like to help out at one of our events then please get in touch by emailing us at: friendssjtg@gmail.com