‘I was born in North London and my parents were both immigrants from Pakistan. Growing up, there was always a culture of learning in our house and continued self-development. Dad had had little formal education but taught himself English and had a good job with the London Underground and mum became a teaching assistant when I was about 11, and she’s been one ever since.
‘When I was at school, I really loved science and I read natural sciences at Cambridge University. I knew by the end of my course that although I would always love science, I didn’t want to pursue it as a career and accountancy seemed like a good fit for me with the skill set I had developed during my degree. I joined an accountancy firm and started off doing small accounts before I built up to bigger audit jobs.
‘I got married two years after I graduated and moved up to Bradford. I worked for Deloitte, in Leeds, before moving to Hallmark Cards as a Senior Business Analyst. I had a fantastic time there for nine years; I had my children and worked part time for a while, and eventually I took on the role of Group Company Secretary. There was a lot to learn, but I loved learning, especially about the intellectual property side of the business and the world of commercial law.
‘When I saw the job advertised for Finance Manager at BGS, it struck a chord. I’ve always had an interest in education, driven mainly by the power that I know a good education has in transforming lives. I joined BGS as Finance Manager in 2018. In this role, I was quite involved in the bursary applications which was hugely rewarding. I’ve done home visits over the last couple of years, some of which are in deprived parts of Bradford. To be able to offer a place to a child from a deprived area, knowing that they’re going to access an outstanding education, is a wonderful thing. You know it will literally transform their lives.
‘I was delighted to be made Acting Bursar and then Bursar at the end of November 2020. There is no ‘average day’ as a bursar but being one during a pandemic has been an interesting time! I look after estates, catering, HR, IT, the library and the admin and finance teams and any one of them who has an issue comes to me. I may have to deal with a leaky roof, or I can be looking at a hardship issue from finance. Then I’ve got the clerking role where I play an important role to keep the Governors informed of all matters concerning the school through regular meetings. With Covid, I’ve been coordinating all the lateral flow testing which I could never have imagined pre pandemic!
‘I always look for ways I can contribute to wider BGS life and one of the things I really enjoy is doing mock interviews with the Oxbridge candidates. I always felt I was unprepared when I went to Cambridge, coming from a state school. I had no idea what it would be like and I don’t think I was equipped to make full use of all the opportunities there. At BGS, we help all our students in their preparations for Oxbridge, so they know what to expect, and it’s great to play a small part in that. Working at BGS is so varied, but that’s what I love about it. There’s never a dull day!
‘After being involved with the Beckfoot Trust for a few years, I’ve recently been offered a position as trustee and it’s something which means a great deal to me. I feel very passionate about trying to help this organisation raise the bar in Bradford. When I was growing up, the North/South divide was always really apparent to me, particularly the difference between educational opportunities in the North compared with the South. The Beckfoot Trust is making big strides to change that.
‘Overall, education really suits me. I really feel like I’ve found my niche.’
“To be able to offer a place to a child from a deprived area, knowing that they’re going to access an outstanding education, is a wonderful thing. You know it will literally transform their lives.”
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