EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP TEAM
Mr A McClusky
Mr McClusky was appointed Executive Headteacher of Hasmonean High School in June 2015 and is now CEO of Hasmonean Multi-Academy Trust. Prior to this, he was Headteacher for five years, enabling the school to gain Outstanding Ofsted and Pikuach judgements in all of the areas inspected. He joined the school in 2003, and has held positions as Deputy Headteacher, Assistant Headteacher and Director of English. He has, in the past, had responsibility for the school’s Business and Enterprise specialist status and its role as a Leadership Partner School. He has supported a number of schools in challenging circumstances.
Mrs K Brice
Mrs Brice took up her position as Head of Girls’ School in January 2019. She holds an MA (Hons) in History and a PGCE from the University of Cambridge. She has worked as a History teacher at Aylesbury High School and at The Haberdashers’ Aske’s School. In 1992 she joined City of London School for Girls and has occupied the roles of Assistant Head of Senior School, Head of History, Head of Lower School and Deputy Head Pastoral.
Rabbi J Golker
Rabbi Golker is a graduate of Hasmonean High School. After attending Hasmonean, Rabbi Golker learned in Yeshivat Kerem B’Yavneh and Mir. He then took a law degree at UCL, qualifying as a solicitor at a City law firm but left law to pursue a career in teaching. Rabbi Golker has been a popular and longstanding member of the Beis faculty and, before his appointment to the Head of Kodesh at the Girls’ school, was Head of Midrasha, the outstanding 6th Form Kodesh Programme at Hasmonean Girls. Rabbi Golker is now Head of Kodesh at the boys’ and girls’ school and is overseeing exciting new improvements to Kodesh at both sites. Rabbi Golker is also a popular lecturer, giving shiurim in the wider community.
Mrs L Oskis
Mrs Oskis has been an employee of Hasmonean since 1994. As well as being an Assistant to the CEO, she was also Director of Personnel & Human Resources for five years. In 2012, she became Head of Operations, overseeing several departments which include Administration, Information Technology, Bromcom (the school’s data base), Exams as well as Catering. Mrs Oskis played a leading role in the team who received accreditation for ‘Investors In People’ and has enabled Hasmonean to be awarded with ‘Customer Services Excellence’ status for three consecutive years.
Poonam Mehta
I am a Chartered Certified Accountant with over 10 years of experience across public, private and charitable sectors and have delivered improvements in value, information, processes and reporting. I am proficient in academy finance and charity accounting, and enjoy working with the aim of giving students the very best possible education.
I am lead the finance department to improve processes, ensure compliance, maximise income streams and cut costs. My responsibilities include preparing annual budgets, year-end financial statements and dealing with finance audits and statutory reporting. I also work with premises manager to ensure that the MAT complies with Health and Safety standards.
I am very much enjoying working at Hasmonean MAT, and am committed to supporting its schools to be the best that they can be by providing strong financial leadership and management.
SENIOR LEADERSHIP TEAM
Mr N Heddle
Mr Heddle was born and raised in Western Australia and moved to London in August 2006. He graduated from the University of Western Australia with a Bachelor’s Degree and Deakin University with a Master’s Degree, Mr Heddle then completed his Graduate Diploma of Education in Australia. He later obtained his QTS whilst working at Gravesend Grammar School in Kent, where he worked for 4 years, 3 of which as Head of Government and Politics. Subsequent to that Mr Heddle took on the role of teaching History and Politics at Mill Hill School. Mr Heddle joined Hasmonean in October 2011 as a History teacher. He then went on to be the Head of Government and Politics before merging the role and becoming Head of History and Government and Politics in July 2014. He subsequently joined the Senior Leadership Team as an Associate in September 2015 for Teaching and Learning, working with Gifted and Talented and new staff. He teaches History and Government and Politics to KS4 and 5 and is passionate about his subject and its implications in today’s world. In June 2016, he was appointed Assistant Headteacher in charge of Teaching and Learning.
Mrs M Langdon
After graduating from Cambridge University, Mrs Langdon completed her PGCE at the Institute of Education. She worked for 4 years at Kingsbury High School before taking on a role as KS3 coordinator in King Solomon High. During her 9 years there, she took on several roles including Head of Science. Mrs Langdon joined Hasmonean in September 2007 as a Science teacher. She then went on to be the Head of Sixth Form at the girls’ school before becoming Director of Learning for Science in May 2014. She subsequently took on the additional role of Director of Learning for Maths. She teaches Biology to KS4 and 5 and is passionate about her subject. In May 2016, she was appointed Assistant Headteacher in charge of Data and Curriculum as well as retaining the position as Director of Maths. She is also responsible for helping students who want to gain University entrance for Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Science.
Mrs L Waugh
Mrs Waugh was appointed as Assistant Headteacher of Pastoral Strategy and Student Progress in September 2016. Mrs Waugh studied History at DeMontfort University and undertook a PGCE in Secondary History Education at Edgehill University. She began a career in education, teaching History at New College, Leicester and after three years helping the school progress from ‘special measures’ to ‘good’ she relocated to London. She joined Hasmonean in January 2008 as a History teacher, quickly undertaking roles within the pastoral element of the school, leading PSHE and Citizenship from April 2008. In this role she acquired the school Healthy Schools’ Status by working with the local education authority and obtained the DCFS PSHE certification. Mrs Waugh was successfully appointed as Head of Year 7 in June 2009, where she has worked closely with our primary feeder schools. She is fully involved in the life and ethos of the school and completed the first Hasmonean Yad Vashem Programme in February 2012 and has since been involved in teaching Holocaust education at annual school events. She has also progressed to an Associate SLT positon, creating a special transition programme for Year 5 students known as the Step Up Programme which has been run across both schools since 2012. As well as in school achievements, Mrs Waugh is an accomplished Edexcel History examiner in GCSE and A-Level, she has been rated as the highest level of expert examiner for the eighth year.
KODESH LEADERSHIP TEAM
Miss P Simonsson
Miss Simonsson joined Hasmonean in January 2013 and was appointed as Director of Learning for Girls’ Jewish Studies in September 2014. She studied at various seminaries, including Neve and Shearim, and gained QTS whilst teaching Kodesh at Yavneh College. She holds an MPhil in Developmental Biology from UCL and a BSC in Neuroscience and Psychology from the University of Leeds. Her work has been published in the PLoS ONE Scientific Journal and in ‘The Resilience of Hope’. In the wider Jewish community, Miss Simonsson delivers Torah learning programmes for adults, with a particular passion for teaching Tanach and Hashkafa from texts of the Ramchal. At Hasmonean, Miss Simonsson’s vision is high quality Torah education with students who are inspired by the beauty of Torah speaking for itself. She is leading the department in offering tailored tracks that employ a range of methodologies to empower students by learning how to learn, think and integrate Torah values.