The Staff

Mr Simon Scott
Principal
Ms Rebecca Speden
Deputy Principal
rebecca@gilberthorpe.school.nz
Penny Osborne
Executive Officer
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Wayne Aldridge
Caretaker
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Mrs Jayne Thomas
Learning Support Coordinator
jayne@gilberthorpe.school.nz
Miss Samantha Corry
Hub Leader and Teacher in Te Ara Whakatau - Kura Pounamu
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Miss Nicole Harris
Teacher in Te Ara Whakatau - Wawata
Miss Shelby Shaw
Teacher in Te Ara Whakatau - Whakaute
Mrs Kathleen Ryan
Teacher in Te Ara Whakatau - Maia
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Mrs Sarah McKeown
Teacher in Te Ara Whakatau - Auaha
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Dot Palmer
Learning Assistant in Te Ara Whakatau
dot@gilberthorpe.school.nz
Sue McMillan
Learning Assistant in Te Ara Whakatau
Ange Lovell
Learning Assistant in Te Ara Whakatau & Uniform Shop
Mrs Liana Prictor
Hub Leader and Teacher in Te Ara Takitini - Manawaroa
liana@gilberthorpe.school.nz
Mrs Vickie Theobald
Teacher in Te Ara Takitini - Ngākaunui
Miss Lucy Southorn
Teacher in Te Ara Takitini - Mangōpare
Mrs Lauren van Zyl
Teacher in Te Ara Takitini - Whakamanawa
Tash Bovey
Learning Assistant in Te Ara Takitini
Josiah Waho
Learning Assistant in Te Ara Takitini
Karen Thomas
Learning Support in Te Ara Takitini
Miss Lee-Anne Waho
Assistant Principal, Hub Leader and Teacher in Te Ara Angitu
leeanne@gilberthorpe.school.nz
Ms Mel Raisin
Teacher in Te Ara Angitu
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Mrs Donna Sellier
Release Teacher in Te Ara Angitu
Mrs Brenda Abernethy
Learning Assistant in Te Ara Angitu
brenda@gilberthorpe.school.nz
Mrs Janine Dawson
Learning Assistant in Te Ara Angitu
Hamish George
Regulation Groups Support
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Dal Williams
Regulation Groups Support
Mrs Joanne Park
Class Release Teacher
Mrs Dianna Hanne
Release Teacher
Tifah Asra
Learning Assistant in Te Ara Whakatau
Mrs Sheila Poff
Release Teacher
Samantha Corry
Te Rōpū Kura Pounamu Teacher New Entrants and Year 1

I love being at Gilberthorpe School because of the amazing children and their supportive whānau.

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Nicole Harris
Te Rōpū Wawata Teacher Years 1 and 2

I love being at Ara Tū Whakatā Gilberthorpe School because it is such a family-centred environment. Staff, students and whānau all care for each other and work together to make it a fun and positive place to be.

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Shelby Shaw
Te Rōpū Whakaute Teacher Year 1

I love working at Ara Tū Whakatā Gilberthorpe School! It's a fantastic place filled with fun, care, and constant support. The teamwork among staff, students, and Whānau creates a welcoming and safe environment where everyone can grow in their ways.

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Kathleen Ryan
Te Rōpū Māia Teacher Years 2 and 3

I love coming to Ara Tū Whakatā Gilberthorpe School each day because it is such a fun and warm environment. Each day is different and I’m so blessed to work with such amazing students, their families and staff.

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Sarah McKeown
Te Rōpū Auaha Teacher Year 2
I love coming to Gilberthorpe School and seeing the wonderful children, staff and families. We may be a small school but we are doing big things. No two days are ever the same and everyone has a place!
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Lauren van Zyl
Te Rōpū Whakamanawa Teacher Years 4 and 5

I thoroughly enjoy my time working at Ara Tū Whakatā Gilberthorpe. I get to spend my days with amazing tamariki, who make me smile every day, meeting their wonderful whānau, and working with a truly supportive team. 

Liana Prictor
Te Rōpū Manawaroa Teacher Years 3 and 4
Ara Tū Whakatā Gilberthorpe is a warm and caring place where all students can feel included, respected, and celebrated. I feel privileged to be a new kaiako at Gilberthorpe and be able to support our tamariki to become successful lifelong learners. With 3 beautiful boys of my own, I value whānau and community and am thrilled to get to know you all as my year progresses.
Vickie Theobald
Te Rōpū Ngākaunui Teacher Years 3 and 4

As a new teacher at Ara Tū Whakatā Gilberthorpe, I have loved how kind, compassionate, and supportive everyone is.  As a mum I truly value whānau and as a kaiako, I am passionate about children's learning.  I enjoy seeing the relationships being built here at Gilberthorpe and the academic progress being made because of this.

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Ara Tū Whakatā Gilberthorpe is a kind and respectful environment, I feel privileged to begin my teaching journey here surrounded by a wonderful community and supportive staff. I am looking forward to further getting to know the students and families.

Miss Lee-Anne Waho
Te Rōpū Eke Tangaroa Teacher Year 6

Throughout my time at Ara Tū Whakatā, I have had many memorable moments and met some great people. Our community make us who we are and I am grateful to be part of it. 

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Mel Raisin
Te Rōpū Eke Panuku Teacher Year 5
I'm passionate about striving to hook kids in to being passionate about their own learning and finding their niche in the world. Here at Gilberthorpe, there's a fantastic "how can we..." approach that puts the learner at the forefront and drives everything we do.
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Donna Sellier
Release Teacher in Angitu

I’m thrilled to be joining the team at Gilberthorpe, which has a great community feel with a supportive and welcoming atmosphere. I’m looking forward to getting to know the learners in Te Ara Angitu.

Joanne Park
Class Release Teacher

I am grateful for being part of the Gilberthorpe team. One of the reasons I truly enjoy working at Gilberthope is that the people have big hearts and always make you feel supported. It is a caring and inclusive environment. Our students and the whānau make our school unique and teach me valuable lessons.

Dianna Hanne
Release Teacher
Sheila Poff
Te Ara Whakatau Release Teacher
Penny Osborne
Executive Officer

I love the feeling of connectedness here, whether you are staff, students, whanau or visitors.  Together we work to make this a place people want to come. 

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Wayne Aldridge
Caretaker

I'm an outdoors type of guy so really love being about to take care of our school environment. Putting up flat packs...not so much.

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Dot Palmer
Te Ara Whakatau Learning Assistant

I love being at Gilberthorpe School because of the children.  I love the kids.

dot@gilberthorpe.school.nz
Angela Lovell
Te Ara Whakatau Learning Assistant

It’s great being part of the Gilberthorpe School community. The kids make me smile each day.

Sue McMillan
Te Ara Whakatau Learning Assistant

The children at Gilberthorpe are what makes me love my days at school. We have such a supportive community.

Tash Bovey
Te Ara Takitini Learning Support
Hamish George
Regulation Groups Support

Great to be here, working with some amazing children. I also enjoy the enthusiastic staff. It is a pleasure to be contributing to the Gilberthorpe School experience.

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Dallas Williams
Regulation Groups Support

Gilberthorpe School is a great place to work. Awesome kids and great staff make every day unique and enjoyable.

Mrs Brenda Abernethy
Te Ara Angitu Learning Assistant

I enjoy the happy family atmosphere at Gilberthorpe School. The new buildings we have, have helped the children and staff feel like we are a team working together.

brenda@gilberthorpe.school.nz
Janine Dawson
Te Ara Angitu Learning Assistant
Gilberthorpe School has an amazing, friendly community feel that spreads over the entire school. The teachers work hard to provide fantastic learning opportunities for every child.
I am passionate about helping each student reach their full potential, alongside the awesome teachers in Te Ara Angitu.
Jayne Thomas
Learning Coordinator

I am the Learning Support Coordinator for Gilberthorpe School. The role is a relatively new position and has been created to provide support to children and their families that have learning or social needs. I am an experienced teacher and have previously worked as a Special Educational Coordinator. I enjoy being part of the Gilberthorpe School team and am looking forward to meeting and working alongside families in our school community.

Karen Thomas
Learning Assistant in Takitini
I am looking forward to getting to know the students and whānau of Gilberthorpe School, and working alongside the great team they have here.
Josiah Waho
Learning Assistant in Te Ara Takitini

As an ex student of Gilberthorpe, it is good to be back at my old primary school and seeing how things have changed. The kids are great to be around and I am learning a lot from them and the awesome team I work with.

Tifah Asra
Learning Assistant in Te Ara Whakatau
Simon Scott
Principal
Rebecca Speden
Deputy Principal

Being a part of this wonderful school and community means a lot to me. I love working with such a supportive staff, children and community, who know who they are and work together to make this a great place to learn and grow.

rebecca@gilberthorpe.school.nz
Lee-Anne Waho
Assistant Principal and Te Ara Angitu Hub Leader

It is a privilege to be part of our school community because the ākonga and their whānau are so good to work with. 

leeanne@gilberthorpe.school.nz
Samantha Corry
Te Ara Whakatau Hub Leader

I love being at Gilberthorpe School because of the amazing children and their supportive whanau. 

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Liana Prictor
Te Ara Takitini Hub Leader

Ara Tū Whakatā Gilberthorpe is a warm and caring place where all students can feel included, respected, and celebrated. I feel privileged to be a new kaiako at Gilberthorpe and be able to support our tamariki to become successful lifelong learners. With 3 beautiful boys of my own, I value whānau and community and am thrilled to get to know you all as my year progresses.

Jayne Thomas
Learning Support Coordinator

On our Board of Trustees, we have our principal, a staff representative and five parent representatives. 

Scott Hancock
Board of Trustees Chairperson & Health and Safety Representative
Being on the Board at Gilberthorpe School gives me great satisfaction that I am making a contribution to not just my children's learning but to the children of the whole community. I am looking forward to the journey our school is on with the rebuild, the different teaching strategies being undertaken, technology in the classroom and being both a part of it and contributing to it
Erin Corcoran
Board of Trustees Parent Representative
Being a part of the Board of Trustees at Gilberthorpe School is very important to me. 
Supporting the leadership team, wider teaching team while upholding the values within the school helps the growth, direction and learning journey of the tamariki.
I have an education and health background working mostly for community organisations and that is where my passion lies, within the community.
Mesbahuddin Chowdury
Board of Trustees Finance Representative

It is my immense pleasure to be a part of Board of Trustee at Gilberthorpe School. It is a great opportunity to contribute to this fantastic school community and staff members who play a critical role in enriching children’s learning process. As an academic at UC Business School, University of Canterbury, I am interested to contribute in this learning process.

Chrissie Tait
Parent Representative

I appreciate being on the Board of Trustees as I believe student achievement to be beneficial to the wider community. Having the opportunity to have an input to our school whānau’s future achievements academically and structurally is extremely valuable. 

Shona Robertson
Parent Representative
There are a few reasons why I joined the Board of Trustees. I’m mum to a student who attends Gilberthorpe and it’s exciting to have the opportunity to contribute to this wonderful school community and support the staff to continue the amazing mahi that is so important during our children’s primary school years. On a professional front, I lead marketing for an industry training organisation, therefore I can bring corporate insight into the complexities of our education system and feel that this knowledge, combined with my passion for nurturing our children to be the best they can be, will be of benefit to the board.
Lee-Anne Waho
Board of Trustees Staff Representative
Being the staff representative on the Board has helped me to further my understanding of governance and management. I enjoy being part of the decision making that is based around the needs and aspirations of our tamariki and whānau.
Simon Scott
Principal