Meet the team

1. Josh Corlett – UK Education Manager. After two years teaching abroad and six months running the School of Hope in the Moria Refugee Camp in Greece, Josh moved back to the UK and worked as a secondary school teacher in Middlesbrough. He then worked at the Department for Education where he was responsible for the COVID-19 response and initial teacher training in the Minister for Schools private office. Josh joined the IRC to launch their first education programmes in the UK. 2. Freda Alrefaai – Senior Education Officer. Before working at the IRC, Freda taught English Literature and Language in a secondary school in England. After completing her MSc in International Development and Education and volunteering in Calais with asylum seekers, Freda moved to Greece and worked across several refugee camps, teaching English as an additional language, leading teams of volunteer teachers and supporting the facilitation of child-friendly spaces and women’s safe spaces across community centres and informal schools. She has also led educator professional development sessions for multiple NGOs in Greece and the UK to help organisations support their students to learn English and gain formal language qualifications to help them flourish in their new counties. At the IRC, Freda created the UK iteration of the Healing Classrooms Approach to trauma-informed teaching and runs training sessions for educators across the UK. 3. Wendy Ross – Education Officer. Wendy trained as a primary teacher in South Africa and moved to the UK in 2001. She became an EAL teacher in 2004 and took up the role of advisory teacher for students new to the UK for a Local Authority in 2007, supporting teachers in meeting the needs of their newly arrived students. Since 2012, Wendy has worked in various roles supporting schools with the admission and induction of children and families. Having joined the IRC in September 2022, she continues to share her expertise by creating educational resources and delivering training sessions to educators across the UK. 4. Jude Darwich – Education Officer. After moving from Syria in 2012, Jude pursued a bachelor’s degree in International Business and delivered leadership training sessions to young people in Lebanon. In 2020, Jude returned to work in Syria’s most conflict-affected regions managing education, child protection and capacity building projects. In 2022, Jude moved to the UK to pursue an MSc in Behavioural Science at the London School of Economics (LSE) and has worked for the UN’s behavioural science unit. After successfully completing his tenure with the IRC as a Bilingual Behavioural Research Consultant, he joined the education team in April 2024 to lead the Healing Spaces programme.