Election addresses by nominees to the BATOD National Executive Council 2020 -2022

There were two candidates for President Elect: Martine Monksfield and Jane North.

Full members of BATOD are eligible to vote for one of these contacts.

Go to this Survey Monkey in order to vote. You will need to provide the email address with which you are registered as a member on the website.

Jill Bussien

For several years, I worked full time as a Specialist Teacher (HI) in Kent.   Presently, I work part-time at a college in Kent; however, I will be retiring shortly.

I continue to be interested in Post 16 education.

• I am concerned about the availability of quality support for the learners, the erosion of access to QToDs and other qualified staff
• I am worried about the access to examination arrangements for Post 16
• I am concerned that Communication Support Workers cannot access the training they require
• I am interested in the transition from school into Post 16 education, the availability of courses or training, and the general lack of opportunities for employment after education, for young deaf adults

Until recently, I was Chair of adept; I endeavoured to work with other professional bodies to improve the education of deaf learners.

By standing for election, I hope to continue to improve the opportunities and standards for the deaf children and young people.

Claire Jacks

By advocating for, and raising the profile of, deaf learners we can make a difference to their achievements. To achieve the very best outcomes families must invest time and effort which is substantially in excess of that demanded by a typically developing child. Part of my role as an Early Years Specialist, is to equip parents with strategies they can use in their everyday lives to develop speech, language and communication. I have a wide ranging experience within deaf education,. I currently work as a Peripatetic ToD in a variety of settings. I have also worked for several authorities both as an employee and as a consultant. I am an External Supervisor for students training to become Teachers of the Deaf with the University of Manchester and the University of Birmingham. I have a professional interest in all aspects of training Teachers of the Deaf. I have recently become Chair of the BATOD North Committee. I am therefore working towards providing a rich and well-balanced Annual Conference for BATOD Members. I am involved in the Mentoring Scheme being initiated by BATOD. I work collaboratively with many agencies locally, as well as wider afield such as NorthWest Early Years Music Group and nationally such as NatSIP, MESHGuides, NDCS, The Elizabeth Foundation and SENDCO Training courses. This collaborative approach ensures that we set priorities, focus our energies, resources and strengths to ensure that we are working towards a common goal, the improvement of academic and social outcomes for deaf learners.

Kim Davis

My introduction to working with severe and profoundly deaf children was in 2000.  It was immediately clear that I had awakened a passion for extending my communication and teaching skills in order to ensure full curriculum access for the deaf learners I encountered.

Having completed seventeen years as a teacher in mainstream environments, I made the decision to train as a Teacher of the Deaf. I have worked in four different settings in which I have developed and honed the skills and knowledge that I gained throughout the MA course. This resulted in my decision to lead the secondary resource base in Leeds where I am currently responsible for the planning, assessing, testing, teaching, delivery and progress tracking for all our deaf learners.

The delay in learning to read that faces so many of the deaf learners with whom I work creates a barrier to their progress and development,  as they prepare for adulthood and achieving their goal of long term employability. However, slower progression does not mean that all deaf learners are left at an impasse. I believe that the individual learner’s drive, commitment, enthusiasm and passion will without!

The deaf learners within the specialist resourced provision undertake a bespoke curriculum, ensuring comprehensive language input through both BSL and English language. Where monitoring and review have shown that interventions have been successful, I have implemented re-testing to ensure that new aspirational and developmental targets have been set. Student voice feedback has informed me that learning to read, being confident to try new and challenging texts and being able to make mistakes though daily, supported reading sessions is a significant factor in their progress.

As a highly qualified QToD and provision lead, I feel compelled to offer placement supervision and experiences for teachers studying for their ToD qualification. The role of the internal tutor is vital; as a conduit between theory and practise. I set high expectations, clearly model effective teaching and learning experiences and develop reflective practitioners that question outcomes and delivery. This is an exciting role as I have the prospect of ensuring that teacher standards are at their maximum in order for deaf pupils to achieve their best.

I also enjoy the challenge of acting as a mentor for colleagues undertaking the MQ PGDip course and as an external teaching placement supervisor for both the University of Manchester and the University of Birmingham.

I relish the opportunity to engage in a new and exciting practice-based research study with the potential to impact positively on young deaf learners. I am currently exploring my passion for extending ‘Deaf Awareness’ into the wider academic community by supporting an ex colleague in his PhD research project through Leeds Trinity University, ‘Telling stories through film: narrative methodology, and film as a medium for retelling the experiences of young deaf learners.’

My main areas of interest are; dealing with current educational matters relating to deaf children and young people including curriculum issues, Ofsted, GCSE and other national examinations. I am also passionate about maintaining and improving the quality of training for Teachers of the Deaf. I am interested in all areas related to deafness and education and I believe that I have the knowledge and experience to support the National Executive Committee to continue and build on the outstanding work already being undertaken.

Sibel Djemal

photo to come

Present post:

Manager, Sensory Support Team 0-25yrs, Cambridgeshire.

In my current post I provide strategic leadership on the development of policy and practice in Sensory Impairment, in particular, the areas of Hearing Loss, Visual Impairment & Multi-Sensory Impairment.  This includes the development of effective interventions and support for those children and young people who have additional needs in relation to Sensory Impairment.  I have a strategic lead for the research and development of effective interventions and provide expertise and support to schools, settings, families and other professionals.  I also advise and quality assure specialist enhanced provision in the county as well as responding to Freedom of Information requests.

I ensure the effectiveness of out county provision for children and young people who have an Education, Health and Care Plan for Hearing Loss, Visual Impairment & MSI.

I ensure that the SEND Countywide Specialist Sensory Service provides high quality and inclusive evidence based support and interventions to schools, families and other professionals. This is delivered through training, access to up to date information and research, feedback from service users and measures of impact.

I have line management responsibility and also provide professional supervision to ensure that Sensory Impairment practitioners are able to meet the requirements of external professional and regulatory bodies.  I also have responsibility for managing resources to make sure that the service delivers on its core and statutory duties consistently across the county.

Past experience:

Heathlands School for the Deaf: Science coordinator and form tutor 11-16

Lead coordinator of 3 Hearing Support Centres.

Assistant Manager Sensory Support Team Cambridgeshire.

Professional interests:

National Organisations and Government Departments.

Quality Assurance

Liaison with health Colleagues

Continuing Professional Development

Delivery of OLT training programmes

Offices held/professional affiliations:

Formally a board member of NATED (National Association for Tertiary Education of the Deaf) now “adept”

CRIDE committee member

NatSIP forum contributor and attend working days.

QToD mentor for newly qualified ToDs

CHSWG member

Martine Monksfield

This is Martine’s presidential statement:

I am currently working as a peripatetic teacher of the Deaf for Haringey and Enfield Council’s Deaf Services. I am the current Chair of d/Deaf Teachers of the Deaf group and have been representing this group at BATOD’s NEC and hope to continue in this role. I am Deaf myself; and am bilingual/bimodal having grown up with hearing aids before taking the plunge with a cochlear implant when I was 19.

We are in very trying times in education in general and my years of battling and campaigning in various areas from Deaf Sports to subtitles at the cinemas means I am not afraid to stand up for Deaf children in Education where it counts. I hope to bring this passion and drive to the President Elect role bringing in my knowledge and experience as an active member of the Deaf Community.

Conor Mervyn

I have been involved with the BATOD NEC as a co-opted member since 2018 after being invited to join by Steph Halder, current BATOD President.

Since being involved the NEC, I have enjoyed my time and would like to continue being involved with BATOD to have a position contribution to its future direction. As a professional, I am able to share my knowledge and experience of deafness first hand as a D/deaf teacher of the deaf. I have previously worked in N.Ireland as a teacher of the deaf (peri setting and deaf school) before moving to Scotland to work in East Renfrewshire as a peripatetic teacher of the deaf for a number of years. I have spent the last two years working in London as a Teacher in Charge of Hearing Support Centre and an Advisory Teacher of the Deaf in two boroughs. I am relocating back home to Belfast to take up a new role as a Teacher of the Deaf with the Education Authority Sensory Service. I am looking forward to this new adventure and contributing to deaf education as a professional. I will also representing BATOD NI locally as a committee member.

I am also involved with the D/deaf ToD group in order to share knowledge and support deaf teacher trainees or tod trainees. Alongside Rachel O’Neill from the University of Edinburgh, both of us initiated a Scottish D/deaf ToD forum which communities regularly online to discuss issues relevant to Scottish D/deaf teachers and tods. This has been a useful support group as we have seen an increase of deaf trainee teachers whom have secured employment. This group also meets with the GTC Scotland to ensure that the views of deaf teachers are taken into consideration.

My involvement with the NEC has enabled me to share the views of D/deaf ToD’s alongside other D/deaf colleagues on the NEC. Being involved with BATOD NEC has meant that D/deaf ToDs are being encouraged to be involved with their local BATOD committees.

Nicky Weightman

I have been an elected member of NEC since March 2018 and have thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience.

During my first year I was happy to absorb the information around me and probably contributed very little to NEC meetings or any follow up work that was required.

However, early in my second year I became the co-ordinator of the small team of BATOD Language Modifiers that work with the exam boards ensuring that examination papers are accessible for students with hearing loss. This role is gradually expanding as I gain more awareness and experience of the wider issues surrounding exam accessibility.

This year I was also successful in my application to become a trainer to train BATOD Mentors, now referred to as a Steering Group for the Mentorship programme. Mentoring is another area that I am very interested in and have enjoyed being part of the process so far, offering contributions and taking on work as required.

I continue to work on the BATOD North committee, the main focus of which is organising and running a Study Day each year.

I would like to remain on NEC, to offer what I can and to continue to learn from the other members.

Tina Wakefield

I have had over 30 years experience in teaching, 25 in teaching children with hearing impairment. My experience ranges from originally being a class teacher, a secondary school SENCo, and then a QToD working in a variety of integrated resources and peripatetic settings. I then managed a large service for Deaf and Hearing Impaired Children.

I am at present an educational consultant working mainly for NDCS and NatSIP. I deliver national training, complete reviews of services and am involved in writing national resources such as quality standards.

I am a governor of a primary school with a high level of SEND and social deprivation, and was previously a governor of a Teaching Hospitals Trust with particular interest in disability equality.

I have been involved in the development of testing and ensuring fair access for deaf children for many years working with the DfE and STA.

I have a deteriorating hearing loss and feel this has helped me to understand the personal challenges met every day by deaf children and young people. I have always been a keen member of BATOD and really appreciate the  hard work carried out by this organisation for the profession.