National Leader of Education
Diana is a Trustee and Chief Executive of the L.E.A.D. Academy Trust. Diana established the Trust in 2011 and has grown the organisation to 27 schools based in the Midlands, South Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. Previously, Diana was a headteacher for 14 years and, during this time, she successfully led a school from ‘Special Measures’ through to two consecutive ‘Outstanding’ Ofsted judgements.
Diana has a wealth of experience having worked in a number of different schools. She has been an executive headteacher and has supported other schools as a National Leader of Education, a Primary Strategy Consultant Leader, coach and mentor. Through this work she has supported school leadership teams nationally and has met with ministers on a number of occasions to help steer government agendas.
Diana has been involved in a number of national leadership groups and research projects and has delivered presentations to audiences nationally and internationally. Diana has also lived and worked in San Francisco and Hong Kong.
In June 2015, Diana was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for her services to education.
School Improvement & Quality Assurance Strategies
National Leader of Education
Neil became the Deputy Chief Executive of the L.E.A.D. Academy Trust in September 2020. He is responsible for leading on school improvement and quality assurance strategies across the academies. He plays an integral role within the Trust, and leads the delivery – both strategically and operationally – of the support, advice and guidance that enables our academies to succeed. Neil is also responsible for ensuring the consistent delivery of the Trust’s principles and values.
Prior to this, Neil worked in Lincolnshire schools, gaining significant experience through a range of leadership roles, including over 11 years of headship in two contrasting schools. During his first headship at Spitalgate Primary School, the school was recognised for its rapid improvement and was judged to be one of the 100 most improved schools in the country. Neil’s second headship involved establishing a new school, Witham St. Hughs Academy. This academy was judged ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted across all aspects of its work. The academy also received accreditation as a National Support School and National Teaching School under Neil’s leadership.
Using a range of coaching and mentoring strategies, Neil has led school-to-school support since 2007, working with colleagues in many varied settings and contexts. He became a National Leader of Education in 2013, primarily working with leadership teams of schools judged as ‘Inadequate’ or ‘Requiring Improvement’. Neil has also undertaken the Additional Inspector role during Ofsted inspections.
Strategic Financial Management, Systems & Operations
Bobby became Deputy Chief Executive of the L.E.A.D. Academy Trust in February 2016, after joining as Business Director in January 2013. He is responsible for strategic financial management, systems, operations, and the commercial aspects of the organisation.
His background includes consultancy and senior management, where he has overseen large-scale projects, led on business transformation, and implemented effective systems to support sustainable development.
He has also held senior finance roles with the Audit Commission, Derbyshire Police Authority, and several non-executive positions.
Professor Toby Salt has worked as a teacher, headteacher, senior civil servant, deputy CEO of the National College for School Leadership, CEO of one of the biggest multi academy trusts and as CEO of AQA the largest exam board.
He has worked with government ministers as well as some of the most challenging pupils in our system.
His book ‘The Juggling Act’ explores the dilemmas of juggling complex leadership with family life and the unexpected.
Anne was a senior civil servant until 2020. Her civil service career included working in regional Government Offices and running a college for Fire Service personnel. She held a range of posts at the Department for Education, many of which involved support for disadvantaged pupils; she was also the department’s lead for further education.
Before joining the civil service, Anne was an officer in the Royal Air Force, for which she was stationed in both the UK and Hong Kong.
Anne chairs Lincoln Bishop University and The Sandwell Colleges. She is also Trustee of an awarding body, AQA, and NACRO, a national social justice charity.
Deryn joined the Learning Partnership as a non-executive director in August 2009. From 2002 to 2009 as director of the Innovation Unit, Deryn supported hundreds of schools, colleges and local authorities in their quest for solutions to the biggest challenges facing the system. In her former position of senior civil servant at the DfES, she and the Innovation Unit team had direct access to ministers and policymakers, helping to bridge the gap between practitioners and policy formulation.
Formerly, Deryn was the Headteacher of Willow Tree Primary School in the London Borough of Ealing. One of the largest primary schools in England, Willow Tree was the result of an amalgamation of three schools undertaken by Deryn in 1993. She has had 17 years of headship experience.
During her time as a management consultant with Cap Gemini Ernst & Young, Deryn worked with a variety of government departments, including the then Department for Children, Schools and Families.
Currently, Deryn is leading on the National College New Models of Leadership Programme, where she and her team are ‘out there’ with practitioners, finding out what is happening on the ground and, in turn, advising practitioners, local authorities and policymakers on possible ways forward and implications for leadership.
Author, speaker, former headteacher and director at National College, founder of Leadership Matters, creator of the BASIC coaching method and founder of Cadogan Press.
A geography teacher by trade, Andy went on to become a headteacher for thirteen years at two schools in east London. In his second headship, his school was judged outstanding and he was designated a National Leader of Education.
In 2009, he was appointed as a director at the National College for School Leadership and in 2012 was made Managing Director at one of the largest academy groups in the UK. Andy has subsequently founded Leadership Matters which aims to improve the educational outcomes for pupils by supporting great leadership development.
He has written seven books on leadership and coaching, including the best-selling ‘Leadership Matters’. In 2018, Andy was invited to become a Founding Fellow of the College of Teaching and in 2019 he established a small independent publishing company, Cadogan Press.
Committees
Performance & Standards – Chair
Maggie has worked in London and Birmingham in senior leadership positions in schools and local authorities. She was the director for leadership development, research and succession planning at the National College for School Leadership in England, and interim chief executive.
Maggie has been instrumental in the development of a school-led self-improvement system in England and has led the design and development of leadership programmes that support the growth of system leadership and the development of collaborative approaches to school improvement.
Maggie has worked with over 2,500 leaders and teachers on supporting their own wellbeing and that of others. This has included fostering practices that reduce stress, and overwhelm and increase effectiveness. Her current work focuses on the cultivation of compassionate leadership. She is the author of ‘Leading with Presence; it’s an inside job’; Cadogan Press 2023.
As well we working with L.E.A.D. Academy Trust, she is a Trustee of one other Multi-academy Trust and the Chair of the School of Contemplative Life.
She was awarded the CBE for services to education in 2014.
Committees
L.E.A.D. Services Board – Vice Chair
Finance & Resources – Chair
Paul became a non-executive director with L.E.A.D. Academy Trust in 2018.
He is a chartered management accountant who has spent 28 years working for Rolls-Royce in a number of finance and commercial roles, culminating in his current role as director of commercial and strategy.
Paul has served as a primary and secondary school governor for many years and holds an Institute of Directors Diploma in Company Direction.
National Leader of Education
Diana is a Trustee and Chief Executive of the L.E.A.D. Academy Trust. Diana established the Trust in 2011 and has grown the organisation to 27 schools based in the Midlands, South Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. Previously, Diana was a headteacher for 14 years and, during this time, she successfully led a school from ‘Special Measures’ through to two consecutive ‘Outstanding’ Ofsted judgements.
Diana has a wealth of experience having worked in a number of different schools. She has been an executive headteacher and has supported other schools as a National Leader of Education, a Primary Strategy Consultant Leader, coach and mentor. Through this work she has supported school leadership teams nationally and has met with ministers on a number of occasions to help steer government agendas.
Diana has been involved in a number of national leadership groups and research projects and has delivered presentations to audiences nationally and internationally. Diana has also lived and worked in San Francisco and Hong Kong.
In June 2015, Diana was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for her services to education.
Committees
Pay – Chair
Finance & Resources – Vice Chair
Helen became a non-executive director with the L.E.A.D. Academy Trust in December 2019. Helen started her career as an HR professional within the construction industry, including global roles with AMEC and Davis Langdon PLC, before moving into the public sector. For the last 11 years, Helen has worked for the Care Quality Commission, the regulator of health and social care, and currently leads CQC’s organisational development.
Helen’s role, which was created in 2010, has developed alongside our organisation, and she has played a core role in leading the continuous development of our values and behaviours. More specifically, she leads programmes for leadership and management development, wellbeing, performance management, inclusion, reward and recognition. As a keen HR professional, Helen is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development.
Committees
Audit & Risk – Chair
Teaching School Hub – Chair
Mark is a Partner & the Founder of the Education practice at Browne Jacobson, the market leading law firm in the schools and academies sector. Mark personally has almost thirty years’ experience as an education lawyer and in 2022 he was named in The Lawyer’s ‘Hot 100’ listing which each year identifies 100 legal professionals selected as having met criteria for excellence and relevance and playing a critical role in shaping the profession.
Mark has over 25 years’ experience of serving in governance roles in the school, academy, FE, charity and NDPB sectors. In particular, from 2011 Mark served for ten years as the Chair of L.E.A.D. Academy Trust, followed by two years as Vice Chair before now serving as a L.E.A.D. trustee during which time he was designated a DfE National Leader of Governance (NLG), including in the reformed NLG programme.
Mark has made equality of opportunity and diversity & inclusion a driving force in his career and on two occasion he has been named in the ‘Disability Power 100’, the annual list recognising the 100 most influential disabled people in the UK.
Most recently Mark was recognised in the Enable Role Model List 2025, which highlights 50 business leaders worldwide who are role models using their personal experiences of disability, neurodiversity or mental health to advance inclusion in the workplace.
Committees
Audit & Risk – Vice Chair
Nick has been chair of the local governing body at L.E.A.D.’s Glapton Academy since it gained academy status in October 2013. He is a chartered accountant by profession, having trained with Ernst and Young, and has worked in various financial roles across the Boots Company for the past 23 years, culminating in his current role as senior financial manager for Boots Opticians.
Chris is a chartered management accountant and currently heads the finance function for one of the UK’s largest offshore windfarms. He has extensive experience in the energy sector both in the UK and internationally.
Prior to his current role, he held a number of senior finance positions across National Grid and has previously worked for one of Europe’s leading energy exchanges.
Shaheen is a former Deputy Director of Education for Leeds City Council, founder of Balance:ed, and a keynote speaker on wellbeing, culture, and leadership.
With 25 years’ experience including headship, she has transformed education systems, supported leaders to thrive, and champions inclusion and care as the foundation for flourishing schools and communities.
Chris began his career as a teacher and secondary headteacher in the UK. He led a large successful secondary school for 8 years before moving on to work in the UK national Government, initially as a policy adviser on school improvement and as an associate in the Education Team in the Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit in the Westminster Government’s Cabinet Office. After this, Chris became a Senior Civil Servant in England working on school improvement policy, curriculum and qualifications reform and later became Schools Director in Wales, where he was the lead civil servant advising Ministers on all aspects of schools’ policy in the devolved government based in Cardiff.
Moving back to England in 2013, Chris has been the Chief Executive of three Multi Academy Trusts. He has undertaken international assignments on teaching and learning, school leadership, school improvement and education system leadership in Algeria, China, India, Lebanon, Nepal, Sudan, Taiwan, Estonia and Lithuania. Chris also specialises in the leadership and governance of educational organisations and system wide policy reform undertaking project work for a number of multi academy trusts in England.
