Executive Headteacher Introduction

An introduction to our CEO and Executive Headteacher, Peter Gillett.

Peter was the founding Headteacher of the Hertswood Academy Trust in 2013 and has led our academy through an era of significant, positive transformation. Under his leadership, the school successfully transitioned from a split site with outdated facilities to our state-of-the-art £34 million academy buildings, which opened in 2019.

In 2024, Peter also led the enhancement of our new build, securing the delivery of a further £2.5 million expansion, including new basketball courts and community facilities.

Most recently in 2025, Peter also led our school community to a ‘Good in all areas’ OFSTED inspection.

As CEO and Executive Headteacher, Peter works closely with our Headteacher, Governing Board, and stakeholders, to ensure the trust is the first choice school for local families, and that it remains financially secure, highly collaborative, and at the cutting edge of technology. Peter is a founding trustee of the WD6 Beyond Learning Partnership, driving strong ties with local primary and secondary schools. Peter also remains deeply rooted in the classroom, maintaining an active teaching timetable delivering A-Level Mathematics and Further Mathematics to our fantastic Sixth Form students.

Leading By Example : Charity - Fitness - Creativity

Beyond educational leadership, Peter models the Academy's core values of ambition, resilience and aiming high to achieve excellence. Through an extraordinary series of creative and athletic endurance challenges, Peter has helped raise tens of thousands of pounds for local and international charities.

In 2025, showing a remarkable display of physical endurance, Peter and an eleven person team smashed the indoor non-stop rowing world record over 36 hours, which raised funds for ‘The Good Life Orphanage’, providing essential care for children in Mombasa, Kenya. The following year, Peter joined a team at London's Wellnergy Festival to break the SkiErg world record with a 36 hour endurance challenge, which raised thousands for Hattie's House (part of The Good Life Orphanage), which funds education, physiotherapy, and learning support for families with additional needs in Kenya.

Musically, Peter (known creatively as 'Headmaster') championed a mission to use music as a force for good, realising a 40 year songwriting journey and releasing his 'Seasons Tetralogy' music project. With over a million streams/views across Spotify, Instagram and YouTube, the fundraising musical releases raised thousands of pounds for local mental and physical health charities, including the Hertfordshire Mind Network and Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice. The success of the Seasons Tetralogy release also currently funds a music scholarship programme at our academy, halving the cost of music tuition for Hertswood students.

“Hertswood Academy provides a world-class educational environment for our young people and the wider community. Indeed, community and individual wellbeing are at the heart of what our Academy stands for. Whether in the classroom, on the sports field, in the sciences, the arts and through charitable endeavours, we are committed that all members of our community aim high and achieve excellence in being the best that they can be.” -Peter Gillett, CEO & Executive Headteacher

Learn more about our most recent Ofsted inspection here.