ByAnonymous, Anonymous
Morasha Jewish Primary acting head Hayley Gross has been given the job on a permanent basis.
Mrs Gross, 40, has taught at the school since its opening in 2008, having given up a legal career to enter the teaching profession in the late 1990s. She has previously worked in Hong Kong and at Rosh Pinah Primary.
Her appointment as head follows the granting of planning permission for a new site near Finchley Synagogue and a record fundraising dinner for the school, which has grown to 56 pupils.
Governors' chair Ian Kamiel said Mrs Gross had been "a very skilled leader, manager and a brilliant teacher, all proven by the 'outstanding' report received from Ofsted last year. Hayley has demonstrated a unique ability to realise the school's ethos of a modern Orthodox Jewish environment for our children that demonstrates a commitment to Torah values with a strong, positive attitude towards Israel."
Mrs Gross was "thrilled to be part of the success story of Morasha. It is a school where high standards are sought in both secular and Jewish studies. A school where every child is valued and feels they belong. I look forward to leading the new exciting phase of Morasha with its purpose-built state-of-the-art premises."
She is a Bushey Synagogue member and has three children of her own.