Ruth has spent her career in the NHS, initially as a nurse supporting children and young people, and for the last 20 years in senior leadership positions at both regional and national level developing strategic services and policy. She is currently the Regional Director of Commissioning for the East of England. She is particularly passionate about supporting children and young people to start well and to get the best from their education.

With over 20 years experience in marketing across several private sector companies, Laura specialises in customer experience, business intelligence and research. Her personal journey as a parent to a Larwood School student gives Laura unique insights into the school’s positive impact on families.

Linda has recently retired from Middlesex University having worked within the Library and Student Support service for almost 30 years. Her experience is in administration, organisation, financial and staff management. Having started as a part-time Administration Assistant her final role was Head of Planning and Organisation.

Jo has worked with school leaders in Hertfordshire for over five years and is employed by Hertfordshire County Council as a School’s Financial Sustainability Manager. She has been a school governor for over ten years and is currently also on two primary boards. Jo believes equity in education is paramount and all children should receive support to succeed. As a parent of a neurodivergent child Jo understands how this can be both challenging and highly rewarding, and how significant the impact their school can have on their future is.

Louise is a qualified Chartered Accountant and an Audit Principal at a Top 50 accountancy firm, with over 15 years of experience in audit and assurance. She specialises in the education and not-for-profit sectors and has extensive experience auditing academy trusts and schools. Her professional experience gives her a detailed understanding of the challenges faced by education providers, including financial management, accountability for public funds and effective governance arrangements. As the parent of a child with a neurodiversity diagnosis, Louise also has first-hand experience of the challenges and opportunities faced by children with additional needs and the positive impact that the right educational support can provide

Dr Michael Hymans has over 40 years of experience as a psychologist, latterly as Principal Educational Psychologist in a local authority Children’s Services Department. He has also taught in schools and pupil referral units whose intake often included children with attachment disorders, social, emotional, and behavioural disorders and children on the child protection register. Dr Hymans is a member of a multidisciplinary London Autism Assessment Practice (LAAP), based in central London and an Honorary Research Associate at University College London (UCL) Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology.

Alpesh is a qualified accountant with over 35 years working globally in Senior positions managing large IT organisations in the banking industry. Alpesh has lived and worked in over 7 countries over a 25-year period which helps him bring diverse perspectives. With his experience Alpesh will bring experience in Finance, Risk and Technology.

Coming soon…

Louise is a real estate solicitor that advises on energy projects across the UK. She has worked at two international law firms over her career and regularly advises FTSE 100 companies, as well as other leading energy investors and developers. As a mother of two neurodivergent children, Louise is passionate about ensuring equal access to education and is a member of the neurodiversity network at her current law firm. She will use her legal and senior management experience to promote the values of the Trust, drive effective leadership and, in turn, support children to reach their full potential