Catherine Balfour-Roberts

Catherine Balfour-Roberts is a Senior Lecturer in Primary Professional Studies at St Mary's University, Twickenham. She serves as the Course Lead for the PGCE (Part-Time) program and contributes to the master's curriculum for the primary cohort. Her 22 years of prior school experience, including 15 years as a deputy headteacher, inform her teaching, which focuses on Key Stage 2 (KS2) education and leadership roles such as PE coordinator and head of Year 6.

• Senior Lecturer in Primary Professional Studies
• Course Lead for PGCE (Part-Time)
• Teaches on Master's programs for primary education

Her research interests include:

• Developing critical and creative thinking in classrooms
• Effective questioning strategies in teaching
• Inclusion of Looked After Children through collaborative partnerships
• Enquiry-based learning approaches
• Peer mentoring systems
• School leadership practices

Catherine led action research projects with Roehampton University and contributed to the Schools Direct initiative in the London Borough of Merton. She actively supports NQT development in primary settings.