MEMBERS

Term of office 01/09/2016 - Present

Tony is one of four Members of Success Academy Trust. Previously he was the Chair of the Governing Board of Hallbrook Primary School. 

Tony served as a teacher in state schools for thirty years. A Community College Principal in Leicestershire for twenty years, he also worked in local authority administration and advisory services. He has undertaken university tutoring, international consultancies and worked for the Department for Education and the Cabinet Office, individual and groups of schools, local authorities and non-profit organisations. He is a published author on school leadership, pupil assessment and community education. He is an elected member of the Governing Board of a Leicestershire Special School that holds the leadership of a national Teaching School. He chairs a co-operative and friendly society promoting performing arts by and for young people.

Term of office 09/07/2012 - Present

I currently lead a small team of IT specialists for a large media company.  This role requires me to work with people from different disciplines and analyse and balance many different needs.  Recent and ongoing massive technical change in the industry, along with company mergers, acquisitions and reorganisations, man I am used to leading and delivering organisational change.

During my time as chair of governors at Thomas Estley the College has been through considerable change, including academy conversion and rapid development of the teaching school and now age-range change and appointment of a new principal, whilst maintaining high quality provision, progress and attainment for the students.  I’ve lead the governors through changes to be more engaged, more active and more effective.  Governance was highlighted as accurate and effective in a peer review in the autumn term.

I participated in an early cohort of National College Chairs of Governors Leadership Development programme and have since used principles from the programme to lead training and discussion groups for local governors.

I have a passionate belief in inclusive and comprehensive education.  The formation and development of the multi-academy trust offers opportunities t improve outcomes for young people, increase the rate and sustainability of those improvements and provide a strong organisation to ensure those improvements are sustained.

Term of office 16/11/2017 - Present

After eight years working in the third sector, Di created EmployabilityUK – a new education charity.  In her previous role, Di was responsible for developing Career Academies UK’s regional strategy and delivering the national programme. Having built a team of regional managers and taken the programme to all parts of the UK she then went on to become Director of Business Development.

Di has more than 25 years of corporate business experience from BT and O2, including delivering BT’s education and community programme in the Midlands. Di has held a number of volunteering roles including 6 years as a Special Constable with West Midlands Police.

Term of office 01/09/2016 - Present

John is an engineer and has worked in the NHS for 30 years during which time he was responsible for the control of major communication infrastructure projects both from engineering and finance aspects. He has been the pastor of Cosby Baptist Church (now Cosby Community Church) for the past 27 years and this brought him into contact with the Primary school which he served as a governor for 20 years including time as Chair and Vice Chair.

John is a Chair for the East Midlands Baptist Trust company and a Trustee of the Baptist Union organisation.

Term of office 04/07/2020  - Present

Tim was a Headteacher in Nottingham City before becoming Principal of Thomas Estley Community College in 2000.  He remained as Principal until his retirement in 2016.  During this period the College gained an "Outstanding" Ofsted judgement, became a founder member of the Thomas Estley Learning Alliance (TELA) and became an academy.  Tim is a National Leader of Education and has supported a number of schools, primary and secondary, nationally.  During recent years this work has included: supporting Primary and Secondary schools in South Yorkshire, developing leadership capabilities in senior and middle leaders and raising standards through lesson observation.  He is a CPD provider with particular focus on senior and middle leadership development, Governor training and strategies to improve the quality of teaching and learning.  In particular, Tim has facilitated NPQH, NPQSL and NPQML courses, writing and delivering the courses in Doncaster, Sheffield, Barnsley and Rotherham.  For several years Tim led subject leader training for Leicestershire schools.  Tim as been a contributor to national conferences and is the author of "The Big Questions Answered: A guide for New School Leaders".

Term of office 24/09/2016 - 23/09/2024

As Managing Director of Ace Cleaning Company, for over 30 years I am responsible for the employment of over 200 staff. During this time, I have developed skills that range from Business Development, Health & Safety, Human Resources and Finance. In addition, I have also developed a property management and development concern along with associated skills.

I joined the Governing Body of Cosby Primary School in 2002 as a Parent Governor, becoming Chair of Governors in 2007. Being re-elected on several occasions I became a co-opted Governor in 2014. During my time as a Governor I have been involved in all areas of Governance. Been responsible for a number of subject areas as well as specific roles such as Safeguarding Governor, Health and Safety and Chair of Finance.

Working closely with the Headteacher and Senior Leadership team I have been instrumental in taking Cosby Primary School from “special Measures” to the position of strength we currently enjoy, producing some really exciting results.

A prime concern over the years has been developing a proactive and involved Governing Body. Ensuring that Governors take an active role helps to secure their understanding of our schools position and really know what is going on within the school first hand and not just relying on reports and data analysis. The whole of the Governing Body as well as staff at Cosby can take ownership for our successes in all areas. Undertaking regular review of our own governance and carrying out a full SWOT analysis during the current year has helped to develop knowledge and provide useful input to the school development plan.

During the years as a Governor I have accessed numerous training opportunities that have helped me to develop my knowledge base to the benefit of the school. These include a number of courses on Safeguarding, Safer Recruitment, Head Teacher Performance Management, E Safety, several Ofsted courses, British Values and many more.

Other personal qualification includes a Business Studies degree and AAT diploma in accountancy. 

Term of office 25/08/2016 - Present

I have spent 27 years in the education sector, from Teacher of French to College Principal, in Leicestershire, Leicester City and Warwickshire, including working for two years in the School Improvement Sector as a school improvement consultant.

Although substantive posts have mainly been within the secondary phase, since 2013 I have also worked within the area of primary school improvement, often through Teaching School related opportunities within Leicestershire and surrounding counties.

I am currently Trust Principal, Head of Teaching School (Thomas Estley Learning Alliance, with over 40 primary and secondary member schools) and Principal of Thomas Estley Community College and Preschool.

Additional current system leadership roles include Teaching Schools representative for the Leicestershire Education and Excellence Partnership, member of the Leicestershire Secondary Heads steering group, lead for TELA National Professional Qualifications delivery (we are a nationally accredited provider) and programme/oversight lead for Leicestershire Leaders, which offers training and support for headteachers in Leicestershire and Leicester City . 

I am absolutely passionate about Building Leadership and Character Together while continuing to raise outcomes and improve provision within our Success Academy Trust schools.

Term of office 11/07/2018 - 10/07/2022

A pragmatic, strategic and commercially minded Chartered MCIPD Senior HR professional with a breadth of experience in HR and Learning & Development spanning 15 years, having worked across numerous industries and internationally.  Areas of expertise include organisational / talent & leadership development, coaching, mentoring, engagement & recognition, complex change management and project management.    

Born in Leicester, one of four children with an older son and eight nephews and nieces.  Interests include travel, learning, reading, live music, salsa dancing and spontaneous days out / weekends away.

Keen interest in supporting charities and giving back, i.e. right to read, interview techniques, graduate recruitment & programmes and National Citizen Service.

Term of office 11/07/2018 - 10/07-2022

John Horan has worked within the commercial property arena for twenty years; primary focus has been within facilities management, other roles and experience cover real estate management, property acquisition and disposal, construction and project management. During his career John has worked within client (end-user) companies and held senior positions within global service provider organisations, experienced with clients and services across the UK, Europe and Middle East. John is a Chartered member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and represents the International Facility Management Association at Board level within the UK.  

John lives in Leicestershire and is keen to apply his specific and wide-ranging business and commercial skills to support and progress the Success Academy Trust.

Term of office 07/01/2021 - 06/01/2025

Sally has extensive experience in finance and school business management gained over 29 years. She first began working with primaries, high schools and upper schools when Local Management in Schools (LMS) was first introduced.

Prior to August 2020 she fulfilled the roles of Trust Business Manager for Success Academy Trust and Business Manager for Cosby Primary school. During this time, she was able to make a major contribution to the strategic development of Cosby and be part of the forming of Success Academy Trust. She worked closely with the Trust Chief Finance Officer on areas including due diligence, centralisation of services and consolidation of accounts.

Sally is a Specialist Leader in Education (SLE) for TELA providing School to School support and is Co-Chair for the TELA Business Mangers/Leaders Network, supporting and working on collaboration with peers. She was also granted Fellowship status with the Institute of School Business Leaders (ISBL) in 2019 and has gained qualifications in school business management and accounting to level 7.

This knowledge and expertise along with her current role as Director of Finance and Operations at Wigston Academies Trust will, she hopes, allow her to make a valued contribution as Trustee to the life of Success Academy Trust.

Term of office 07/12/2018 - 06/12/2022

Chris has taught secondary English for over twenty years in a variety of settings. She has been a senior leader for over eight years and is Executive Headteacher of John Ferneley College: a very successful 11-16 school. Additionally, she is currently CEO of Mowbray Education Trust: a vibrant and very high performing trust in Melton Mowbray. 

She has successfully led her school through age range change, taking it from 11-14 to 11-16 and has supported other schools through this process. In her role as an LLE, she has experience of high impact school improvement and has undertaken a range of school to school support roles in recent years. 

In her current role, she has restructured her trust to focus on school improvement and has gained significant experience in successfully leading Headteacher teams in the primary sector.

Chris is passionate about school improvement and has very high expectations of what young people can achieve, both as a classroom teacher and in her leadership roles. 

Term of office 23/09/2019 - 22/09/2023

Born in West London and attended the local Comprehensive School where I achieved 5 grade A ‘Levels and A Levels in Pure Maths Chemistry and Physics before going to Reading University where I obtained B.Sc. Hons (First Class); Food Technology and later an MBA (With Distinction) from Warwick Business School ; I maintain my Chartered Scientist (C.Sci) and am a Fellow of the Institute of Food Science and Technology (FIFST)

After graduating I have worked in the food industry for 40 years first in food technical roles then process and product development / innovation and latterly in business development and commercial roles. Institute of Food Science and Technology, Board Member And Hon Secretary 2002 – 2012.s

After growing up in London my jobs have taken me to Ashby, Warwick / Stratford upon Avon, Oxfordshire, South Yorkshire and final Northampton. Married for almost 40 years with 2 Children, a daughter 32 and a son 28.

I am a member of the Rotary Club of Northampton and sit on West Hunsbury Parish Council

In business terms I would describe myself as 

A creative and innovative leader with deep strategic and operational insight and a track record of driving margins and turnover, effective customer interface management and business development with key strengths in:

Strategy • Business Development • Commercial & Customer Management • Process Improvement • Change

A passionate food industry expert with analytical and project management skills and proven aptitude in delivering turnarounds for challenged teams and organisations.  An open, approachable and flexible manager, who drives outcomes through team and individual development, building consensus, constructive challenge, analysis and creative solutions. 

Term of office 01/07/2020 - 30/06/2024

Chris Southwell MBA, BEng (Hons), MIET

Chris is an experienced business professional with passion for UK products and services and a legacy of delivering business development and change programmes across marketing, product development, manufacturing, distribution, IT systems and customer service functions. Presently working with an automation and systems integration specialist in Food & Drink and Parcel Distribution sectors, Chris recognises the apparent skills shortage and the need for business leaders to take up direct action to resolve. He is active in promoting deeper links between commerce and the education sector through close contact with apprenticeship programmes at local FE providers, involvement in local government Careers & Enterprise initiatives and more broadly through his role as regional and branch Chair for a prominent national trade association. 

Coventry born and educated, Chris has lived in Leicestershire for the past 20-years and developed a strong sense of belonging to his local community. A father of four near grown-ups, he is these days an ever-enthusiastic cyclist, touring the county's quieter lanes to discover the many pleasant towns and villages in the area with ambitions to tour more widely in Europe.