Newcastle Grammar School is delighted to announce the appointment of Mrs Belinda Nichols as our ongoing and permanent Head of Primary.
Mrs Nichols has led the Primary School for the past twelve months, bringing warmth, clarity and purpose to the role and building on her significant leadership experience at NGS. Her appointment follows a comprehensive recruitment process that attracted a strong field of candidates from across Australia and overseas.
Throughout the process, Mrs Nichols’ educational expertise, deep understanding of Newcastle Grammar School and compelling vision for the future of Primary were strongly evident. Equally important was the relational approach to leadership that has characterised her time at NGS.
For Mrs Nichols, strong relationships are fundamental to educational excellence. She describes leadership as being built not only through strategic decisions, but through the everyday interactions that create trust – conversations with families, time spent alongside staff and a visible presence in classrooms, playgrounds and across the life of the School.
It is an approach our Primary community has experienced firsthand. Over the past year, Mrs Nichols has worked deliberately to strengthen collaboration among staff, deepen relationships with families and ensure students are known as individuals. Her leadership is thoughtful and people-centred, combining empathy and careful listening with clarity, consistency and a strong ethical framework.
An educator at heart
At the centre of Mrs Nichols’ leadership is her identity as an educator.
She brings deep expertise in contemporary learning and teaching and a strong belief in education’s capacity to nurture curiosity, build capability and help every child realise their potential. Importantly, she has maintained an active connection to classroom teaching throughout her leadership career – something she believes is essential to remaining authentic and credible when supporting teachers to develop their practice.
Mrs Nichols holds a Master of Teaching – Primary with Distinction, from the University of Newcastle, as well as First Class Honours in Fine Arts and a Bachelor of Creative Arts in Theatre Design. Her professional journey has included classroom teaching and leadership positions spanning curriculum, learning and teaching, student wellbeing and school operations.
Before becoming Head of Primary, Mrs Nichols served NGS as Head of Wellbeing K–6, Deputy Head of Primary, and Deputy Head of Primary and Head of Learning and Teaching K–6. Prior to joining NGS in 2021, she held teaching and leadership positions including Director of Studies K–6, elsewhere.
Her professional expertise extends across curriculum and pedagogy, teacher development, wellbeing and character education, data-informed improvement and the operational leadership of a Primary School. During her time in Primary leadership at NGS, she has steered significant curriculum reform, strengthened professional learning and established a stage-based Curriculum Coordinator structure designed to build teacher capability, curriculum coherence and consistency of practice.
Mrs Nichols also brings considerable experience in student wellbeing. As Head of Wellbeing K–6, she led work focused on students’ intellectual, social, emotional and physical development and on strengthening the partnerships between students, families and the School.
Her expertise is increasingly recognised beyond NGS. In 2025, she was invited to contribute to a panel on whole-school approaches to effective differentiation at the Differentiation in Learning and Teaching Conference in Sydney, and in 2026 she was appointed to an External Advisory Group with the University of Newcastle’s School of Education.
Looking to the future
Mrs Nichols’ vision for the next chapter of NGS Primary is grounded in the strengths already present at Park Campus: high-quality teaching, high expectations, strong relationships and a genuine sense of joy and belonging. This direction for NGS Primary brings together excellence in teaching and learning with the development of character, curiosity, responsibility and empathy. Central to this goal is preserving what makes the Primary years distinctive – the energy and warmth of the campus and the opportunity for children to feel deeply known and connected to their school.
Mrs Nichols has been instrumental in strengthening traditions and community experiences at Park Campus, reflecting her belief that a strong school is built through shared experiences that bring students, families and staff together and create a genuine sense of belonging.
Her appointment provides wonderful continuity for our students, families and staff while recognising the exceptional leadership she has already demonstrated.
At the heart of Mrs Nichols’ approach is a simple but powerful understanding of the responsibility of education: that families entrust schools not only with their children’s learning, but with their hopes for the people their children will become. She believes leading a Primary School therefore requires more than educational and operational expertise; it requires judgement, presence and an enduring commitment to developing both character and intellect.
We warmly congratulate Mrs Nichols on her appointment and look forward with great confidence and optimism to the next chapter of Newcastle Grammar School Primary under her leadership.