Board of Directors

Tom recently retired as the Chief Executive of the Together Housing Group, after more than 20 years’ service. Together Housing was formed by the merger of three existing housing groups, and currently has over 35,000 properties, an annual turnover of in excess of £150m and employs over 1300 staff. One scheme established was a PFI regeneration in Salford, where Tom remains Chair of the Special Purpose Vehicle, which was set up to deliver this £100m+ project.

Michael is currently the CEO and Accounting Officer of Trinity MAT (and therefore also a member of the Audit Committee), having been its founding Principal in 2009. His tenure as Principal saw two outstanding Ofsted judgements and Trinity’s designations as a National Support School, a National Teaching School and a Maths Hub of Excellence. Michael achieved National Leader of Education (NLE) status in 2013.

Previously he was the Global Head of Corporate Affairs at the £2bn consultancy and construction company, Mace Group, and worked for a NYSE listed engineering company, for former Secretary of State for Health, Rt Hon Baroness Virginia Bottomley, and the Rt Hon Michael Gove MP when he was Secretary of State for Education. He has a degree and masters in Theoretical Physics from University College London and sits as a Magistrate in Greater Manchester.

David served as the Vice Chancellor of the University of St Mark & St John, Plymouth for six years, and is currently on the Board of Governors at the Universities of Northampton and South Wales. He has significant experience of senior leadership roles in HE, as well as major project and consultancy experience globally. More recently he has specialised in developing HE and FE institutions in terms of their strategic futures and their macro level quality assurance procedures.

Elaine has worked in the accountancy profession for 40 years and is a partner in a respected accountancy firm. She is a FCCA and an ACA. Elaine has experience in both audit and general accountancy practice. Elaine has served on the trust’s audit committee as an independent member bringing her wealth of experience to the group and she will now share this further with the Board of Directors.

Mike has an extensive corporate background having been the Regional Managing Director of Barclays Bank in the North of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland and a UK Board Member. Mike has also been the UK MD of a FTSE 250 Support Service business with a remit for £250m in revenue and 2000 staff. Mike brings significant commercial and leadership experience.

Andrew is an established Senior Business Adviser and accredited Executive Coach. Previously he was a Senior Partner in PA Consulting, an international firm of business advisors and consultants, and was responsible for its UK regional public sector business. He is a qualified accountant (CPFA) and was elected a Fellow in 2016. Andrew has significant experience of running major projects and advising boards on its strategic plans and programme delivery. More recently he has advised on business start-ups and providing transformational coaching to improve individuals’ performance.

Tracey is an exceptionally energetic, versatile and passionate commercial sales professional with extensive experience in FMCG Retail Grocery Market, Food Service and Food Manufacturing sectors. She has a proven track record in leading, developing and inspiring a team of people across a number of functions to help them achieve their potential and exceed their expectations in tough customer facing environments. Tracey has held previous senior and director positions within the food industry, before recently venturing out to run her own business. Currently, and in previous roles, Tracey’s strengths has been able to create and deliver strategy and business plans in alignment with customer’s strategic goals and business objectives.

Paul has been a qualified accountant for almost 30 years, he is a FCMA qualified. After being a CFO in a company for many years, he has since worked in many different commercial sectors with two global firms in senior positions. Paul has previous experience over many years as a school governor. He retired from full-time work in 2018 and now works in non-executive roles and advisory roles as well as now having time to pursue his other interests.

Helen is a qualified accountant (FCA) and former senior civil servant in the Department of Health where she focused on information strategy for NHS clinical projects, achieving value for money results. More recently working in the third sector, she is a Charity Trustee on the PCC of Christ Church, Sowerby Bridge, and has a wealth of skills to support local community groups in obtaining grant funding to deliver services in health & wellbeing, education and environment. She has many years’ experience as a primary school governor, and is an active volunteer for the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust.

Jeff’s career in recruitment spans over 27 years, commencing in central London then expanding across the wider UK, working for the world’s largest specialist recruiter, a FTSE 250 company. He is passionate about ensuring that the future world of work is one that is fully engaged so that younger learners are given the very best chance to gain a foothold onto the career ladder, and position themselves in a place to make the very most of their working lives. Having recently relocated to Yorkshire from the North West, Jeff was previously a Governor at Preston’s College and also undertook an Enterprise role with two schools in East Lancashire. He is an MD within the Hays Recruitment group, a UK&I Board Member of Hays, a member of the Regional Council of the Yorkshire & Humber CBI and a Director of the Hays Pension Scheme. Married with two girls (one having just entered the world of work, the other approaching College age) he co-locates between Leeds and Southport.