Schools are at the heart of our communities and have enormous potential to increase life chances for the communities we serve. There are many agencies and funding opportunities available to schools. However, many schools are unaware of these and do not have the capacity to maximise them. My role is to facilitate this and support our schools by securing local and national investment and high quality partnerships that can positively impact our schools.

Learning does not begin or end in the classroom, nor when the school day ends. All our schools are available for community use during the evenings, weekends and school vacations. Part of my role is to ensure that community use is not a ‘bolt on,’ but one that has real value through optimising income and ensuring programming extends learning opportunities beyond the school day for our students and the wider community.

TGAT has worked with many partners including the Football Association, Lawn Tennis Association, England Hockey, Sport England, National Lottery and Youth Music, among others. We work proactively with local authorities to support them in making our communities the best they can be through supporting their strategies. We have helped address the deficits and opportunities that the Playing Pitch Strategies and Built Facilities Strategy highlight and helped mitigate the impact of new housing. Furthermore, we seek to forge exceptional partnerships with local businesses and community groups to support our schools and their communities, building valuable social capital.

TGAT is committed to ensuring our children lead happy, fulfilling lives and enjoy an outstanding education. We welcome new partnerships with agencies who share our values and determination to contribute to outstanding, outward looking schools at the heart of our communities.

Inspired by some exceptional teachers at school, I completed my degree in Sport and Recreation Studies and PGCE at The University of Birmingham. Since graduating, I have taught PE; and Leisure and Tourism related courses and led on community engagement. An experienced practitioner, I am the co-author of Heinemann’s GCSE Leisure and Tourism Tutor File and textbook and the “e presentation” interactive travel and tourism resource. I have moderated AQA GCSE PE and OCR GCSE Travel and Tourism qualifications and, in this role, saw best practice nationally that inspired me to provide an excellent learning environment for our school and community. On completion of my Middle Level Leaders award, I implemented Extended Services at my school and transformed the school facilities and community engagement through grants and partnerships.

I was a child on free school meals myself, with limited scope to take up opportunities outside of school. I was and am acutely aware of how important it is that schools provide the best opportunities they can, and this underpins everything I do. Progressing to leading on Partnerships and Wider Learning Opportunities for Tudor Grange Academies Trust has given me the opportunity to support more schools so they can best serve our students and the wider community.