Our brilliant Year 7 team is on hand to support you as you settle into life here at North Liverpool Academy. 

Here’s a short introduction to the Year 7 team members who you will meet during your time at NLA…

Mrs Johnston has worked at North Liverpool Academy for the last fourteen years. Her hobbies include reading, going to the gym and spoiling her three children. She has previously worked as the Head of Modern Foreign Languages but she is now Lower School Senior Leader and leads on our strategic priority, the NLA Scholars Programme. Mrs Johnston also focuses on the transition from primary to secondary as well as tracking the progress in Key Stage 3 in preparation for Key Stage 4. She is very excited to meet the new Year 7 students and is looking forward to working together with you in becoming the best Year 7 that the Academy has ever seen.

Mr King is a Teacher of PE and joined NLA in 2022. Mr King teaches PE, is a qualified SENDCo and has been a senior leader for over 12 years. He has held positions within the pastoral, Inclusion and SEND areas of school life, both here in the UK and also overseas. He is now leading Key Stage 3 (Years 7, 8 and 9) to ensure that the students are ready and prepared for the rigours of Key Stage 4 and beyond.

Mr Gillibrand has been a Science teacher at NLA for just over a year now. When he is not looking for new ways to amaze his pupils during lessons, he is normally sat at home being miserable over Everton. He is extremely competitive and won’t accept 2^nd place in any of the house competitions, as team Pattern needs to knock McGough off their perch! He is excited to meet his new form and help them settle into their journey at North Liverpool Academy.

Miss McGuinness is an English teacher at NLA and has been for the last nine years. Whilst she likes her lessons to be as fun as possible, she maintains high standards and will expect you to reach these standards; being the best form, means being the best. She is very much looking forward to meeting her new form, after nurturing and supporting her last form for the past 4 years. One thing Miss McGuinness would like you to know about NLA before you arrive is that we are a family and she will be there to support you throughout your whole experience here.

Mr. Neville is an English and Media Studies teacher at North Liverpool Academy. Having been with his previous form for the past three years, he is very excited for the chance to meet and get to know another fantastic group of students, and to mould you all into respectful, determined and confident members of our NLA community. He loves teaching both of his subjects and is happy to chat anytime about films, music, video games or anything media related – and he LOVES Disney Pixar and Studio Ghibli.

Miss Smylie is a Computer Science teacher at North Liverpool Academy and is thrilled to meet her new Year 7 form. Her favourite computer scientist is Allison Farris who is both a software developer at Microsoft and takes part in beauty pageants. She breaks the mould of what a “typical” computer scientist might look like. Like Miss Smylie she shares a passion in making computing accessible to all students including women!

Mr Egan is an English teacher at North Liverpool Academy and will be a Year 7 form tutor next year. His favourite author is George Orwell with his favourite books being ‘Animal Farm’ and ‘1984’. Mr Egan also loves the theatre and acting and enjoys adapting novels into drama activities to perform. He is very much looking forward to meeting you all in September!

¡Hola! Miss Yorke is a Spanish teacher at NLA and this will be her fourth year at the academy. She is passionate about learning languages and finding out about different cultures. She is looking forward to meeting some fellow linguists and is really excited to welcome you to the NLA family. Outside of school, Miss Yorke loves being outdoors and her favourite thing in the whole world is spending time with her two dogs.

Mr Dakanalis is an English teacher at North Liverpool Academy, who specialises in the study of literature. He is approachable and always enjoys speaking to his students. In his free time, he likes to read, write short stories and poems, and has a passion for the outdoors. One of his favourite things about NLA is the diverse community of students and staff; many of whom have their roots in a variety of different cultures. He himself is both Greek and English, and is looking forward to learning about you and all your unique backgrounds.

Mr Brewerton has been a maths teacher at North Liverpool Academy for the last three years. He loves maths because maths always has a right answer! Mr Brewerton also loves football; his favourite team is Arsenal! He is really looking forward to being part of your Year 7 journey at NLA.

Mr. Slane is a Computer Science teacher at NLA who brings a wealth of expertise to Year 7.  In a previous school he has worked at Leadership level to support Year 6 to Year 7 transition and has worked as a head of year within Key Stage 3.  He is very excited to be working with a Year 7 form to support and guide them as they begin their journey at NLA.  He has previously taught abroad in Doha, Qatar and has previously worked at a school on the Wirral.  He is an avid sports fan and plays Gaelic football at a regional level.  He would happily hold any conversation about sports, even considering he supports Man United (we all have our downsides).  He is passionate about making education engaging and enjoyable for all, and is looking forward to supporting his form in competition and participation as part of the wider school house system.

Mr Tierney is a Humanities teacher at NLA and is enthusiastic to welcome a new Year 7 cohort. His main subject is Geography, and he has been at NLA for the past year. He is looking forward to meeting each of you and finding out about your hobbies and interests. His hobbies include sports and reading. He holds a strong belief that every child should have the same chances available to them regardless of circumstance. He will endeavour to help you on your academic journey.