Headquarters:
38 Gonn Street, Barham, NSW 2732
Year founded:
1967
Number of employees:
40
Phone:
0354532322
Email:
barham-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au
Website:
barham-h.schools.nsw.gov.au
LinkedIn:
linkedin.com/company/barham-high-school
Brendan Yu
Principal
Martin Shevels
Deputy Principal
Tiffany McGowan
School Administration Manager
Leadership
Brendan Yu is principal of Barham High School, where he is also a proud former student. With 20 years of experience in public education, he has held the position of classroom teacher, head teacher, deputy principal and served as relieving principal for three years prior to being appointed as permanent principal in 2023.
Yu is passionate about ensuring every young person, regardless of where they live, has access to outstanding educational opportunities. He has led significant growth in enrolment, curriculum breadth and educational equity, underpinned by a commitment to high expectations evidence, informed leadership and strong community partnerships. He believes great schools are built by creating opportunity, inspiring confidence and putting students at the centre of decision-making.
Principal
Brendan Yu
Martin Shevels has been deputy principal at Barham High School since 2024. He has come to the school with extensive experience in inclusive education and leadership positions, arriving at Barham after being the deputy principal of inclusion and support at Lake Macquarie High School.
Shevels is enjoying the unique opportunities that being a deputy principal in a rural community provides and brings a passion for inclusion, engagement and meaningful outcomes for all students.
Deputy Principal
Martin Shevels
Tiffany McGowan serves as permanent school administration manager at Barham High School, providing exemplary leadership across financial management, human resources, student welfare, WHS compliance, records management and site maintenance. She goes beyond her core responsibilities to deliver valued support to the principal, staff, students and the broader community.
McGowan is a dedicated mentor to relieving school administration managers from other schools and has been identified as a Network Service Champion, enhancing and strengthening service practices across NSW Department of Education school networks. Her professionalism, expertise and commitment are integral to the continued success and positive environment of Barham High School.
School Administration Manager
Tiffany McGowan
Carmen Batty
Head Teacher - English
Carmen Batty has been head teacher of English since 2012. She was previously from Wade High School in Griffith, where she was an English teacher, Learning support teacher and head teacher.
At Barham High School, she leads the English, HSIE and CAPA faculties as well as the Aboriginal education team. Batty coordinates debating and public speaking programs at the school. She has an honours degree in English Literature and a Diploma of Education (Prep-12).
Head Teacher - English
Carmen Batty
Donald Taylor
Head Teacher - Mathematics
Don Taylor was appointed to Barham High School in 1979. In 1997, he was promoted to head teacher of the mathematics faculty. He is proud of the fact that BHS has adapted easily to curriculum changes, regularly developing processes to benefit the progress of its students. Classes in the junior school are regularly rearranged to suit the prior knowledge of the students in the upcoming topic.
Taylor is also proud that Barham High offers all levels of mathematics in the senior school, regularly delivering the highest-level course to classes of only one, two or three students
Head Teacher - Mathematics
Donald Taylor
Anthony Bradley
Head Teacher – Technological and Applied Studies (TAS)
Lyn Bond
Senior Psychologist - Education
Margaret Leau-Sulusi
Business Development Manager
Pam Chhabra
Manager – Residential Strata
Anthony Bradley has served as head teacher of TAS, agriculture and careers, as well as being the VET Coordinator at Barham High School since 2020, following 16 years of teaching at Deniliquin High School from 2004 to 2020. Passionate about preparing students for life beyond school, he is committed to providing authentic, real-world learning experiences that equip young people for employment, apprenticeships, TAFE and university pathways.
Bradley values the opportunities that rural education provides and believes strong partnerships between schools, families, industry and the wider community are essential to student success. He is dedicated to creating engaging learning environments that inspire students to achieve their personal best and confidently pursue their aspirations.
Head Teacher – Technological and Applied Studies (TAS)
Anthony Bradley
Lyn Bond has over 27 years of experience in public education, with the past eight years dedicated to a senior psychologist role within the NSW Department of Education. In this capacity, she provides expert psychological support to students, staff and families, addressing complex behavioural and emotional challenges. She also supervises a team of psychologists across the district, ensuring high-quality service delivery and professional development.
Bond takes a collaborative and inclusive approach, working closely with multidisciplinary teams to develop and implement strategies that promote wellbeing and learning success. She is a highly respected leader whose expertise is fundamental to fostering positive mental health, supporting inclusive education and enhancing outcomes across the department.
Senior Psychologist - Education
Lyn Bond
Margaret Leau-Sulusi brings over 20 years of banking experience to her role as business development manager, having started with Westpac in 2005. Her background includes lending support, senior lending roles and branch management. Leau-Sulusi partners closely with mortgage advisers, providing product expertise and strategic guidance to drive strong client outcomes. Known for her collaborative style and responsiveness, she is passionate about building trusted relationships and delivering customer-focused results.
Business Development Manager
Margaret Leau-Sulusi
Stephen McMillan first entered the financial services Industry when he joined GE Capital as a finance analyst in 2008, from which he progressed through roles working both onshore and offshore. From there, he moved into Pacific Premium Funding as a financial planning and analysis leader in 2012 and was a key resource in the evolution of the business, first with the successful sale to Macquarie Pacific Funding and then the following progression into IQumulate Premium Funding, where he is now the commercial manager.
As commercial manager, McMillan leads a team that is responsible for commercial analysis and business support, identifying and reporting improvement initiatives, and the securitization and treasury functions of the business.
Commercial Manager
Stephen McMillan
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BARHAM HIGH SCHOOL
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Adam Basaldella
Manager – Claims
Stephen McMillan first entered the financial services Industry when he joined GE Capital as a finance analyst in 2008, from which he progressed through roles working both onshore and offshore. From there, he moved into Pacific Premium Funding as a financial planning and analysis leader in 2012 and was a key resource in the evolution of the business, first with the successful sale to Macquarie Pacific Funding and then the following progression into IQumulate Premium Funding, where he is now the commercial manager.
As commercial manager, McMillan leads a team that is responsible for commercial analysis and business support, identifying and reporting improvement initiatives, and the securitization and treasury functions of the business.
Product Manager
Claire Watson
Stephen McMillan first entered the financial services Industry when he joined GE Capital as a finance analyst in 2008, from which he progressed through roles working both onshore and offshore. From there, he moved into Pacific Premium Funding as a financial planning and analysis leader in 2012 and was a key resource in the evolution of the business, first with the successful sale to Macquarie Pacific Funding and then the following progression into IQumulate Premium Funding, where he is now the commercial manager.
As commercial manager, McMillan leads a team that is responsible for commercial analysis and business support, identifying and reporting improvement initiatives, and the securitization and treasury functions of the business.
Commercial Manager
Stephen McMillan
“We believe what makes Barham stand out is not simply what we offer, but the underlying philosophy: rural students should not have to compromise on opportunity”
Brendan Yu,
Barham High School
A student’s postcode should describe where they live, not the opportunities they receive. This conviction drives Barham High School, a rural high school in Barham, NSW, that has spent recent years systematically dismantling the barriers that geography, school size and financial disadvantage can place in front of young people.
By 2026, the school reports having grown to 174% of its 2022 enrolment, reflecting renewed community confidence in what it offers.
Barham has progressively removed school and subject fees, and poured funding for uniforms, curriculum experiences and extracurricular activities. This means participation is determined by student interest rather than family finances. For a rural community where financial pressure can quietly determine who participates, this structural commitment changes what school looks like in practice.
Principal Brendan Yu leads a distributed leadership team that has reoriented the school around a single question: what barriers are preventing students from succeeding, and what can we do to remove them?
The answer has produced an expanded curriculum, broad VET provision, the BHS Aspire Credential with La Trobe University from Year 9, university and industry partnerships, dedicated Literacy and Numeracy Focus Time, and an academic extension program called Extend and Exceed. Students can pursue academic, vocational, practical or creative pathways, or combinations of these, with no single definition of success imposed on them.
The school reports that its 2026 NAPLAN results show Year 7 to 9 value-added growth above the NSW state average across all five assessed domains, with particularly strong results in Numeracy and Writing.
Technology investment complements those outcomes. Students have access to virtual welding equipment, laser cutting and engraving, 3D printing and modern workshop resources, alongside podcasting equipment through which they have published content on the BHS Spotify account.
“Ultimately, comprehensive support at Barham means considering the whole student: how they are learning, whether they belong, what barriers they face, what they aspire to and what we can reasonably do as a school to help them succeed”
Brendan Yu,
Barham High School
Extracurricular life is deliberately broad and accessible, spanning sporting, agricultural, cultural, leadership and community-based activities. The school’s rural location is treated as a strength, with agriculture, industry and community connections creating authentic learning opportunities that a metropolitan setting cannot replicate.
In 2026, Barham won in the Australian Rural Education Awards in both the Vocational Education and Innovative Project categories. Leaders from other schools have also met directly with the principal to examine the school's approach and consider how aspects could be adapted to their own contexts.
Barham does not claim to have a model that can be transplanted wholesale into other communities. What it offers is evidence of what becomes possible when a rural school identifies the barriers facing its students and uses its resources, partnerships and professional expertise to address them – refusing to accept that rurality should place a ceiling on aspiration.