DESCRIBE YOUR CHARACTER:
Kim is the Pastoral Care teacher and also the Art teacher. She takes both of these roles very seriously. If the kids have any problems, at home or at school, she is there to help them and counsel them if they need it. She is very sympathetic to their individual needs and really tries to understand what they are going through. She is from a similar background to them. She feels very strongly about treating the kids as individuals as opposed to having a 'one hat fits all' method of teaching and discipline. She is not afraid of sticking up for herself or her kids.

DESCRIBE YOUR CHARACTER IN 3 WORDS:
Sympathetic, caring and opinionated.

WHAT DO YOU LIKE ABOUT KIM?
Apart from the fact that all the scenes for Kim are very interesting to play, what I most like about playing Kim is her sensitivity with the kids but not necessarily with the teachers. I usually play quite loud mouthed northern girls whereas Kim has quite a nice calming tone. I love her kindness, her patience and her ability to see the good and the potential in people. I don't know how many teachers there are like this in the school system.

WHAT DO YOU LEAST LIKE ABOUT KIM?
At the moment there is nothing that I don't like about her. Maybe her defensiveness of her pupils means she sometimes doesn't see what is really going on.

WOULD YOU LIKE YOUR CHARACTER IF YOU MET THEM?
If I ever met Kim I think I would like her - she's a genuinely good person.

WHAT ARE KIM'S LIFE VALUES AND DO THESE DIFFER FROM YOUR OWN?
Kim's values are based on giving everybody a chance and treating them individually, taking everything about their life into consideration. Although this theory seems to fall down slightly when it comes to Andrew. I'd like to think that I am as un-judgemental as Kim but sometimes you just can't help it. Kim is everything that I would aspire to be I suppose.

HOW ARE YOU SIMILAR OR DIFFERENT TO KIM?
I think I do tend to try and give people a chance, especially when they are from a rough background. Some days I have her patience level, most days I don't.

DOES YOUR CHARACTER HAVE A LOVE INTEREST?
Kim's love interest in the show is probably Andrew but I don't think she knows it yet. The two characters are very similar in their passions but complete polar opposites in their approaches and also their backgrounds. Opposites attract and all that.

WHICH CHARACTER DO YOU THINK KIM RELATES TO BEST?
Kim doesn't really have a special relationship with any of the teachers to start off with. She tends to get on with everybody, with no really special bond with any one particular teacher. She is more of a pupil teacher.

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN A VICTIM OF BULLYING?
I have been a victim of bullying but not any extreme cases. My older brothers taught me how to defend myself verbally and physically. My mum always used to tell me they picked on me because they were jealous, she used to say 'they all spend hundreds and hundreds of pounds to go to Spain to look like you' which I still find very funny because it was true. She also told me to smile because most people can't be mean to someone who is smiling.

ANY WORDS OF ADVICE TO KIDS WHO ARE VICTIMS OF BULLYING?
If people are being bullied then I think the first thing they need to do is to tell someone, a teacher, a parent, an auntie or uncle because they can be helped and they don't deserve to be bullied. As hard as it is they should also try and remember that bullying is about the bully being insecure and it doesn't mean you are a bad person.

IF YOU HAVE KIDS OF YOUR OWN, DO YOU TAKE A KEEN INTEREST IN THEIR EDUCATION?
Living in London, especially North London has meant that I have had to take a massive interest in my daughter's education even though she is only 18 months old. It is very competitive and places at good schools are scarce. Because of all the pressure though we may have to move out of London.

WHERE WERE YOU BORN AND BROUGHT UP?
I was born and brought up in Leeds.

WHERE DO YOU LIVE NOW?
I now live in North London.

WHAT WERE YOUR FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF ARRIVING AT WATERLOO ROAD SET?
Walking into the Waterloo Road set was very strange as I couldn't originally get my head around me being a teacher rather than a student. It wasn't until I was surrounded by the kids that I finally realised I'm not 15 anymore. Quite depressing really.

DESCRIBE THE STAFFROOM A WATERLOO ROAD?
The Staff Room is brilliant, I remember always wanting to get into it when I was at school and now finally I've made it. The first scene we had in there, props had put in boxes of chocolates as dressing. We just ate them all, none of them made it into an actual take.

DO YOU THINK WATERLOO ROAD IS A REALISTIC PORTRAYAL OF A SCHOOL?
I think that Waterloo Road is as realistic portrayal of a school, as much as TV will allow anyway. I think it is probably a bit grittier than other TV schools but that is the point.

WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST PROFESSIONAL ACTING ROLE?
My first professional acting role was in a children's programme called 'Under The Bedclothes' for ITV when I was 13.

WERE YOU A MEMBER OF A DRAMA CLUB?
I was a member of the Leeds Children's Theatre and the South Leeds Youth Theatre. Also Intake High had a drama course which I did.

WHAT ROLE ARE YOU BEST KNOWN FOR?
I am best known for my roles as Fiona Middleton in Coronation Street, Jasmine Hopkins in Holby City and more recently as Darcey Henshall in Cutting It.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE STORYLINE?
I'm very interested in the relationship between Andrew Treneman and Kim.

WHAT HAVE YOU ENJOYED MOST ABOUT RECORDING WATERLOO ROAD?
I had the most fantastic time. The crew were great and the cast fantastic. I especially loved working with Jamie Glover, who is very funny, but don't tell him I said that. The schedule was hard but somehow everyone stayed calm and there was no panic, we just get through it all. It was so exciting working on a new project and there was a real buzz about it. It was lots of laughs with lots of hard work.

HAVE YOU ANY LONG TERM GOALS OR AMBITIONS FOR THE FUTURE?
My long term goals are to just keep on working like I am doing now and to have more children.