‘Inspirational’ head Jo Shuter is awarded a CBE

Published: 18 June 2010
by JAMIE WELHAM

THE Queen’s Birthday Honours List has showered accolades on a number of figures in Westminster noted for their contribution to education, the arts and medicine.

Jo Shuter, headteacher at Quintin Kynaston School in St John’s Wood, has been awarded a CBE for services to education. 

Ms Shuter, who is regularly bestowed with the “inspirational” tag, was one of the youngest heads in the country when she was appointed to the post in 2002, transforming QK from an underachieving comprehensive beset with problems, to one of the country’s most improved schools. 

She has a reputation for being a maverick, and it was this no-nonsense approach, which  in 2007 won her the job of interim head at Pimlico School, which she would successfully steer out of special measures before it became an academy. 

Ms Shuter, who is also a former headteacher of the year and sits on the Youth Justice Task Force, said: “I feel honoured and humbled. This is an award which recognises the significance of public service. 

“It is an award not only for me but for all of the wonderful colleagues that I have had the pleasure of working with and all of the students that continue to inspire, motivate and challenge us on a daily basis. 

“Being a headteacher really is the best job in the world.”

City of Westminster College chairwoman of governors Jude Boardman has been awarded an MBE for services to ­further education. Ms Boardman was appointed to the college’s board in 1991 and has overseen a £102million project to build a new campus on Paddington Green that will open next year.

She said: “It’s a great honour to accept this award on behalf of the college and its students. 

“Next year our new campus will make our long-held dream of creating an inspirational ­teaching and learning environment into a marvelous reality.”

Cake-maker Michelle Turner has been awarded an MBE for services to the catering industry. The Little Venice Cake Company, which she founded and runs from an upmarket store in Marylebone, has created treats for the likes of Madonna, David Beckham and even the Queen.

Maida Vale-based composer George Benjamin has been awarded a CBE for services to music. 

Mr Benjamin has taught at the Royal College of Music for 16 years, and has conducted some of the world’s most prestigious orchestras, including the London Sinfonietta and the Berlin Philharmonic.

Honours – Westminster list

Knight’s Bachelor:

• Professor Marc Feldmann. Professor of Cellular Immunology, Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology, London. For services to Medicine. (W2)

DBE

• Ms Amelia Chilcott Fawcett, CBE. Chair, Pensions First Group LLP and Guardian Media Group. For services to the Financial Services Industry. (WC2)
• Professor Barbara Monroe. Chief executive, St Christopher’s Hospice. Services to Palliative Care. (SW1)
• Ms Paula Figueiroa Rego. Artist. For services to Art. (W1)

CBE

• George William John Benjamin. Composer. For services to Music. (W9)
• Professor Timothy John Besley. Kuwait Professor of Economics and Political Science, London School of Economics. For services to Social Science. (WC2)
• Miss Catherine Zeta Jones. Actor. For services to the Film Industry and to Charity. (W1)
• Lady Barbara Judge. Chair, UK Atomic Energy Authority. For services to the Nuclear and Financial Services Industries. (SW1)
• Professor Linda Maitland Luxon. Professor of Audiological Medicine, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. For services to Medicine. (W1)
• Professor Barry McCormick. Chief Economist and chief Analyst, Department of Health. (SW1)
• Ms Jo Shuter. Headteacher, Quintin Kynaston Community School, City of Westminster, London. For services to local and national Education. (NW10)

OBE

• Ms Eileen Gallagher. Chief executive, Shed Productions. For services to Broadcasting. (WC1)
• Ms Bonnie Greer. Playwright, Author and Critic. For services to the Arts. (W1)
• Lady Catherine The Guthrie. For voluntary service to SSAFA Forces Help. (SW1)
• Mrs Ursula Jones. For services to Music. (NW8)
• Ms Ruth Stanier. Deputy director, Preventing Repossessions and Homelessness, Department for Communities and Local Government. (SW1)
• Ms Margaret Turner. Chief executive, Diana Award. For services to Young People. (WC2)

MBE

• Miss Oku Anwan Ekpenyon. For voluntary service to the History of Black British People. (W1)
• Mrs Jo Hansford. For services to the Hairdressing Industry. (W1)
• Ms Anne Reid. Actor. For services to Drama. (WC1)
• Mrs Michelle Turner. Founder, Little Venice Cake Company. For services to the Catering Industry. (W1)