Joseph Pellett

Head of Junior School English

Hello, I am Joseph Pellett, and I have had the privilege of working at St Edmund’s for five years! I am currently the Head of English in the Junior School and a Form 6 tutor.

So who am I?

In 2008 I joined Canterbury Christ Church University to Study Primary Education (BA); I specialised in KS1 and KS2. My first teaching post was at Hamstreet Primary Academy, where I had the pleasure of teaching six different year groups in eight years; I became Head of Sport, Head of Key Stage two and Head of English.

While at Hamstreet, I also worked as a sessional lecturer at Christ Church University, and this year I returned to run guest lectures and seminars for trainee teachers. During these sessions, I specifically teach how children develop their physical literacy and how children develop in the early stages of reading.

As a junior, I was involved in a plethora of sporting clubs, but my passion was swimming! Originally, I am from Bexhill-on-sea in East Sussex, and I swam competitively for Bexhill Swimming Club for a number of years. Over the last decade, I have taken to the open seas and regularly swim, for many hours, around the coastal areas of Kent.

As a young teen, I began to row for Bexhill Rowing Club and travelled the south coast from Deal to Dartmouth and beyond, competing in coastal and river rowing competitions.

During this time, I began to play rugby socially; however, this became my primary sport when joining Christ Church University in 2008. This led me effortlessly to Canterbury Rugby Club, where I played a handful of 1st team games and Captained the reserve team for a couple of seasons.

Unfortunately, my last game for the club ended in disaster! In the 78th minute and leading by 65 points, the correct decision would have been to pass the ball – I did not! This resulted in a large gentleman barrelling into my knees and ending my rugby career. I suffered a snapped patella tendon, and I am just happy to be fit and healthy again (honestly, I was just glad they found my kneecap).

I couldn’t just step away from the club, and I now coach the Canterbury men’s 3rd, 4th and 5th teams on a Wednesday night. So if anyone wants to get back into the game, let me know!

I got married in 2017, and my wife, Frances, and I have a beautiful daughter named Evelyn, who has just turned 23 months old.

I still enjoy open-water swimming, golf, squash and weight training. My 2023 goal is to be stronger than Mr Comfort -I feel I’m almost there.