Fairfax Multi Academy Trust consists of four secondary schools, serving highly disadvantaged communities across the West Midlands. Around 50% of pupils are classified as disadvantaged, making the trust one of the most deprived in the country. With roughly 4,000 students and 450 staff, the trust’s schools range in size and context, including one with a primary phase and another with a high-performing post-16 provision.
Tell us about your career before becoming CEO
My route into teaching wasn’t straightforward. My parents were both teachers, and their advice was: “Don’t go into education.” I tried to follow that advice. I studied chemistry at university and worked briefly as a chemist before moving into finance. But I eventually realised I was more interested in people than profit. I wanted to make a tangible difference.
After travelling for a couple of years, I returned to the UK and started teaching science in the mid-1990s in Nottinghamshire. As soon as I began, I knew it was the right place for me. I loved it. That first moment when a student understands something for the first time, there’s nothing quite like it.
Throughout my early career, I took on every opportunity that came my way: deputy head of sixth form, head of examinations, assistant head. It was a time when you often did the job first, and then got the title, rather than the other way around. That shaped how I think about leadership even now.
After a few years, I made a conscious decision to work in the toughest school I could find. I wanted to see whether I could make an impact where it mattered most. That experience opened my eyes to the unspoken prejudice in education – the assumption that those working in struggling schools were somehow less capable. I learned quickly that great teachers and leaders exist everywhere, and that context never defines capability.
I went on to lead several schools through improvement journeys and worked across three trusts in a variety of leadership roles: headteacher, executive head, director of education, and eventually deputy CEO. I’ve seen the system from almost every angle, which has been invaluable for my current role as CEO.
