Panel Discussion

Rachel Beddoes

Rachel Beddoes received her BSc (Hons) Pure Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics from Exeter University in 1992, then after a few years as a statistician in the energy sector she gained her Post Graduate Certificate of Education from Bristol University in 1996 and began teaching mathematics in secondary schools.

Rachel has always tried to enthuse and encourage people with mathematics ever since she was a student herself so after a short time in the energy sector she followed her passion and became a maths teacher. She did this for just over 20 years until she secured the position of Girls’ Participation Coordinator with MEI which she started this September. For most of her teaching career she taught at The Castle School in Thornbury, South Gloucestershire. During the last 5 or so years of teaching she was also a STEM Coordinator, working with even more students and businesses convincing them of the utility of maths through its various applications and the different careers that studying STEM subjects could possibly lead to.  The highlights of this were two national awards.  In October 2015 Rachel won The Joan Sjøvoll Award for STEM Leadership (including a trip to CERN) and in March 2017 her school won the Young Engineers ‘Inspiring Futures through Engineering Engagement’. 

In her new role as Girls’ Participation Coordinator with MEI, Rachel will be using most of her expertise and enthusiasm encouraging girls to study maths post 16 and showing them where maths can take them through her work with the Advanced Maths Support Programme.