Our Trust Board
Please meet our Trustees and Members
Members
DL FRSA (Visiting Professor in Education MMU)
David has over forty years’ experience in education in a variety of roles and settings across the UK as teacher, leader, Headteacher, Principal, Executive leader and CEO. He has been Chief Executive of one of the highest performing school groups in the country. David was also an Adviser to the Department for Education, served on Ministerial working groups, was a Board member of the ESFA, Chair of the IAA and a long-standing member of the APPG on Educational Leadership and Governance. He was awarded a CBE in the 2021 Queens New Year’s Honours List for Service to Education.
David is presently a consultant adviser working across the educational landscape with a focus on governance, strategy and leadership and writing, regularly speaking at events and conferences. He is a Life Fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts and a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Educators (City of London). David is involved in shaping the next generation of teachers and educational research as Visiting Professor in Education at Manchester Metropolitan University. David’s focus also includes community activities in Cheshire, working with charities and he is a Trustee of Cheshire Community Foundation and Chester Zoo and Chair of the largest schools Trust in Cheshire. He has recently been appointed as Deputy Lieutenant of the County of Cheshire.
Karen was appointed Member in January 2022.
Karen is currently Chief Executive of Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust and Chief Executive of Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, and is also an Executive Reviewer for the Care Quality Commission. Karen has previously held a number of Executive Board position in healthcare over a period of twelve years and has significant experience in managing large scale change across health economies and has been successful in the delivery of improvements in organisational performance.
As one of the largest employers in the borough of Tameside, Karen is passionate about developing relationships with schools and colleges to provide opportunities for students to learn and gain experience in a wealth of careers they could pursue within a health and social care setting.
Karen is also a Governor of Tameside College.
(Corporate Sponsor’s Authorised Representative)
Jackie has lived, studied and worked in Tameside and Greater Manchester all her life. She was a pupil at Fairfield High School from 1978 to 1982 and attended Tameside College between the ages of 16 and 19. She is now the Principal of Tameside College and Clarendon Sixth Form College. Jackie has worked within education for many years within Greater Manchester previously working at Salford City College and City College Manchester. She also works as an Ofsted inspector, inspecting other colleges and providers throughout England. With previous experience as a director of an Academy Trust in Salford and Vice Chair of Governors at a Salford primary school, Jackie was very keen to continue this work and is delighted to be Tameside College’s (the Corporate Sponsor’s) authorised representative at TRET Members’ meetings.
Geoff has lived in the North West since 2005. Following a PhD at the University of Manchester he moved into education and worked for 10 years in project management, programme delivery and partnerships in education charities.Geoff is currently Regional Director of Ada, the National College for Digital Skills, where he is establishing a new hub for the college in the North West. Ada’s mission is to educate and empower the next generation of diverse digital talent, and they deliver short courses and digital apprenticeships in the region. Before joining Ada he was Area Director for the Lancs and West Yorkshire region at Ambition Institute, a leading provider of teaching and leadership training in schools.
Geoff is also a school governor and a trustee for St. James and Emmanual multi-academy trust in south Manchester. He lives in south Manchester with his wife and two children and loves to get out for a run, walk or cycle.
Malcolm Bruce has held various management and senior management positions in further education. In these roles and through previous posts he has experience of quality and standards in further education, sixth form, work based and offender learning. Malcolm is currently contracted with Ofsted as an Ofsted Inspector and has led on inspecting leadership and management and teaching and learning. He originally qualified as a teacher for 11-18 year olds and has taught from L2 to degree level in the further education sector. Malcolm is also the Vice Chair of Governors at Tameside College.
Trustees
Leon became the Chair of Trustees at the Tame River Educational Trust when the Trust formed in January 2022. Prior to his role as Chair of Trustees, Leon was Chair of the Local Governing Body at Droylsden Academy. Throughout his 6-year tenure, he was heavily involved in the significant improvement journey the Academy has been on.
Leon’s academic and professional background is business quality management, and he holds a Masters degree in Strategic Leadership and Change. He is the Deputy Principal of Tameside College and Clarendon 6th Form, which is the Trust’s sponsor. Prior to joining Tameside College in 2016, Leon was a senior leader in a large, successful inner-city Further Education College.
Leon leads on people services and strategies at Tameside College, having responsibility for the student experience and human resources; this role means oversight of many areas of college life, including safeguarding, pastoral care and learning support. Leon also has responsibility for the College central service functions of customer services and marketing. As part of his quality remit, Leon works closely with the Deputy Principal (Curriculum) on quality assurance and improvement of curriculum performance.
Leon is actively involved in relevant national, regional and local partnership working. He also has extensive experience in school governance, having chaired governing bodies in both the primary and secondary phase.
Phil read Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Leeds. After completing his Post Graduate Certificate of Education (PGCE), he gained extensive teaching experience in schools across the North West before completing the nationally accredited Future Leaders programme in 2012. Since then Phil has held various senior leadership positions in urban schools in Greater Manchester, most recently as Headteacher at Droylsden Academy from 2015 – 2023. During this time the school moved from a 2014 Ofsted Inadequate judgment to two consecutive Good judgments. The Academy also celebrated year-on-year success with students securing very strong educational outcomes. Phil has worked closely with Mossley Hollins High School for many years and this close relationship led to the two schools co-founding the Tame River Educational Trust.
Phil has visited the leading schools in the UK and the United States to research pedagogy and school culture. He has also coached Headteachers and delivered the National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) to aspiring school leaders. After 8 years of Headship, Phil was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Tame River Educational Trust in 2023.
Away from school life, Phil is kept busy, spending time with his family. He has two daughters who are both school age.
John has been a local resident in Tameside for over 38 years. He has recently retired from the NHS after 42 years of service, where he worked in Sheffield, Tameside Hospital, Manchester Royal Infirmary, Bury PCT, Bury CCG and General Practice. John spent the last 15 years f his career in General Practice management in Bury and Tameside. His career has been predominantly focussed on finance and management, including financial accounting, management accounting, capital accounting, charity accounting, governance, performance management, risk management and change management. He has worked on various workstreams for the NHS at local, regional and national level.
John has been a Governor at Tameside College for many years. He is currently the chair and safeguarding link, he also sits on finance and curriculum quality committees, presiding over the £100 developments across Tameside including Clarendon Sixth Form, Tameside One and the project to upgrade the Beaufort Road site.
John was a founder member and sponsor representative of Droylsden Academy for many years, bringing together two single sex schools into a co-educational academy. This work saw the subsequent building of a state-of-the-art school. John Later become a Member and Trustee of the Tame River Educational Trust.
John was recently appointed as Vice Chair to an Interim Executive Board of a local high school by the Local Authority and DfE.
Paul is a Supplier Relationship Manager with BUPA having previously worked for over 20 years with British Gas. His skills include negotiation, budget preparation, financial governance and reporting, team management, risk management, key performance indicators, procurement and conflict resolution, amongst others.
Paul is also the Chair of Governors and Safeguarding link at Alder Community High School
Jean is a retired secondary Deputy Headteacher with extensive teaching experience. Many years of her career were spent as a senior leader at Mossley Hollins High School, with the school celebrating year-on-year success. Jean has expertise in pastoral care and safeguarding, teaching and learning, school culture and staff development.
Since retiring, Jean has been working with Everyone Learning as a Secondary Professional Programme Lead, guiding and supporting Early Career Teachers and those entering the profession.
David is a qualified accountant and has been a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants for over 10 years. He brings extensive public sector finance and management skills to the board having been employed in several Finance Director roles within the NHS. Having worked at Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care Trust for over five years, he is passionate about the offer to the population of Tameside.
David currently works in the NHS as a Programme Director of Finance, supporting GM providers and commissioners in maximising value, standardising best practice, and ensuring assets are deployed as effectively as possible. This includes providing oversight of GM Capital spend c£150m, developing financial governance and driving productivity across providers.
David has been a Trustee with the Trust since its inception.
Bernadette worked in public service for Tameside Council for over 41 years, after joining the organisation from school as a Junior Entrant. The most part of her career specialised in human resource and change management, progressing to a senior leadership level. Her knowledge and experience also lies in corporate governance, financial management, performance management, risk management, business planning and continuity. Following her retirement from public service.
Bernadette is keen to continue working with public sector organisations and is excited to be working with the Tame River Educational Trust.
Idu is a local Tameside resident living and working in Mossley for most of his life. He is a town councillor in Mossley, a freelance accountant and sub-postmaster, owning a local sub post office. Idu has previously been a Director and Charity Trustee of the Tameside Racial Equality Council.
Idu has been a Trustee with the Trust since its inception, bringing significant small business and finance skills as well as extensive local knowledge to the board.
Dominic is a member of the Chartered Institute of Builders and Association of Project Managers. He is currently a Director of a company, offering technical and advisory services. In addition, Dominic is also an independent consultant with particular expertise around PFI schemes in the public sector.
Dominic has been employed for a significant part of his career in project delivery, both with major contractors and management consultants; gaining considerable experience in residential, education, health, retail, communications, stadia and the arts. He has developed a strong commercial aptitude and sound leadership skills coupled with a broad-based construction knowledge.
Over the last 20 years Dominic has gained a growing reputation within the PFI/PPP sector for providing both public and private sector claims management, strategic advice and hands on project management, particularly in respect of underperforming contracts or projects requiring fresh impetus. He has provided technical representation in negotiation, dispute resolution, adjudication and the High Courts.
Dominic has been a Trustee with the Trust since its inception.
Nils has significant governance expertise. He is Clerk to the Tame River Educational Trust Board of Trustees. He has also been the Clerk to the Local Governing Body at Droylsden Academy since 2009 and is Clerk to the Corporation at Tameside College, the Trust’s principal sponsor. Nils has lived in Tameside since 2005 and is pleased to be working in his local community. Nils was brought up and educated in New Zealand. Outside of work Nils is active with a local club and enjoys various outdoor pursuits, including hiking and rock climbing.
Manor Road, Droylsden,
Tameside M43 6QD