Amanda Phillips

Wife of Sir Jonathan Phillips, Warden 2010–2022

Unlike many in this exhibition, Amanda came to Keble later in life, and not in the role of a student or a member of staff. As wife of the demitting Warden, she has been part of the College community, living in the Lodgings, for Jonathan’s twelve years in post. In the early 1970s she read History at Cambridge, where she met and subsequently married him. And, together, they came in 2010 to explore the charms and challenges of Oxford.

After her degree, Amanda had a career in information technology, at start-ups, larger software companies and investment banks, working increasingly at the interface between technical experts and business users, and then in project management and governance. Her final job was in the Department of Health, helping to provide the project management skills underpinning the government’s drive to improve the performance of the health system some twenty years ago.

She says, unsurprisingly, that she came to Keble not knowing quite what to expect. Jonathan had been elected Warden. What role would there be for the Warden’s partner? What she found was an immediately welcoming place. She felt very much at ease in helping him to foster the warmth of the community, investing energy and time in engaging with ever-changing year groups of lively and talented students, with supportive alumni, the Chapel community and all the academic and non-academic staff who make Keble so special. The varied encounters, invigorating conversations, and above all the privilege of contact with young and enthusiastic people, have all contributed to one of the most stimulating and enjoyable periods in her life.