Posted on: 25/01/2026
Posted on: December 19th 2025
Chair of Governors News
Thank you to Mr Khalil from Mr Beer:
Our Chair of Governors, Mr Amer Khalil is stepping down after eighteen years as a Governor and nine years as Chair. He has overseen a highly successful period of our school’s history, including significant expansion to student numbers and facilities, the retirement and replacement of a long-standing Headteacher and an Outstanding Ofsted inspection
Throughout his tenure, Mr Khalil has shown an unrelenting commitment to improving the quality of education for the students at Highworth but also, the safety and wellbeing of everyone in the school's community.
Mr Khalil has been a part of school life for some time as all of his children were students here. He volunteered to be a Parent Governor after a parents' evening in 2007, where the then Chair of Governors encouraged parents to get involved in the life of the school and he has been a Governor ever since, serving as Chair since February 2016.
In 2011, Highworth Grammar School was one of the first schools to apply for Academy status to allow it to continue to successfully manage its own affairs, and Mr Khalil was one of the founding Member signatories. I am pleased that he will maintain his contact with the school going forward in this important role, and will also keep his ties with the Sixth Form as he helps the students with references and advice for their next steps.
Mr Khalil was instrumental in helping the school meet the need to expand with the addition of the Vink Centre and Verena Holmes Building. He has always been visible around the school and is highly respected by all whom he comes into contact with, especially the Student Governors he has worked with in the past as they transitioned to university and the other phases of life.
Just like the Chair of Governors before him, Amer will forever be remembered at the school in the form of the Verena Holmes Building, the school's new Maths and Sixth Form block which was completed in 2024. It shows the regard with which he is held by those at the school that the Foundation stone bears his name.
I am so grateful for the continued support, confidence and care Mr Khalil has shown us during the nine years he has been Chair of Governors. He has made a tremendous difference to Highworth and I am grateful to have worked so closely and learned so much from him. He is always considered and measured in his decisions, and has shared so much of his knowledge and experience. On behalf of the Governing Body, Senior Leadership Team, staff and students, I would like to thank Mr Khalil for his exceptional contribution to the school and the difference he has made to the lives of so many.
Mr Khalil now hands over the reins of the Chair of Governors to Dr Sue Soan - who I am confident will continue his outstanding legacy and seek to uphold the inclusive and caring values which are so important to the Highworth Community.
Farewell from Mr Khalil:
My tenure as Chair of Governors to Highworth Grammar School comes to an end on 31 December, it has been a privilege to serve on the Board and to work with a school which I genuinely consider second to none. I have been a Governor since 2007 and Chair from 2016 and during this period I have seen the school progress and maintain its excellent academic standards and pastoral care under two successive Headteachers.
I have enjoyed working with the Senior Leadership Team, teachers and support staff, The Friends, my Governor colleagues past and present, and of course the interaction with students whose insights and abilities never cease to amaze me. A big thank you to our Clerk to Governors for her support and keeping me on the straight and narrow. I will miss my time with all of you, but it is a huge responsibility and now is the right time to pass the reins to a new Chair.
On that note, our new Chair from 1 January is Dr Sue Soan and I am so pleased we have managed to attract someone to the role who is immensely talented and will be an incredible asset to the Board and school. I am sure she will do her introductions in due course, but she already enjoys my complete confidence and will navigate Highworth through the challenges that lie ahead with aplomb.
It's been a wonderful journey and I am pleased to leave Highworth in a position of strength with a truly outstanding OFSTED report in 2025 which recognised the hard work of both staff and students in making Highworth the wonderful school that it is. There were testing times along the way, most notably the Covid 19 pandemic and all the unfamiliar pressures that it exposed the school to. It was a unique event that was managed with complete professionalism and dedication by the school who adapted and proactively dealt with all the difficulties the pandemic unleashed. The sense of community pulled us through. And for me that is Highworth's distinction, it is far more than a school, it is a community and you cannot help but feel that walking around the building.
I wish Highworth every success in its future endeavours and after such a long association, I will always retain a very keen interest in everything that the school does.
An Introduction to Dr Soan:
I am Dr Sue Soan and am thrilled to be stepping into the role of Chair of Governors at Highworth school at the beginning of January. I am looking forward to continuing Mr Khalil’s excellent work, by building strong partnerships with my fellow Governors, the staff and of course parents and carers. I have spent my whole career in education, first as a middle school teacher and Mathematics Lead, then as a Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo) and Senior School Leader in mainstream and specialist primary and secondary schools. I then moved into the university sector as a lecturer and as a Director of Special Educational Needs and Inclusion, providing postgraduate and doctoral training for teachers. I have also had Governing Board and Chair of Governors experience with local and national education charities and organisations.
I passionately believe that every young person should have the opportunity to receive a school education that ensures they not only achieve and thrive academically, but one which also provides them with the opportunities and experiences which can help them to become confident, happy and aspiring adults. I believe that Highworth is such a school, and I am keen to work with all members of the Highworth community to continue to achieve our strategic goals.
