The Department for Education has revealed the full list of candidates running in regional advisory board elections as polls open this week.
A total of 164 trust and academy leaders have thrown their hat in the ring for 32 elected roles advising their regional schools commissioners on local academy oversight.
Academy leaders are being urged to vote in the elections, which mark the first time trust chief executives without headteacher experience have been eligible to stand. Covid saw the elections delayed last year.
Four elected candidates will advise and challenge each of England’s eight RSCs, alongside up to four individuals appointed or co-opted by the government-chosen RSCs themselves.
The number of candidates in each region varies from 15 in Lancashire in West Yorkshire to 29 in the West Midlands. The East Midlands and the Humber had the second lowest interest at 17, and the North West London and South Central England the second highest at 27.
None of the 10 biggest trusts have candidates standing while E-ACT was the only trust with candidates standing in more than one region.
But some large trusts outside the top 10 have fielded candidates, including Tim Coulson, a former RSC now leading the Unity Schools Partnership, Diocese of Ely MAT chief executive Adrian Ball, and Hamwic Education chief executive Robert Farmer.
More than 9,700 academies can each vote for four candidates in their region, potentially giving candidates from trusts with large clusters of schools an advantage. Academy heads, senior leaders or senior trust officials must “agree amongst themselves” who casts the ballot, according to DfE guidance.
“It is important that you get involved,” one RSC office tweeted today. All academies were due to receive election packs from Monday, with online voting now open until Friday 10 December and results due late January.
A DfE spokesperson said on Monday that candidates’ election statements were “for those who are eligible to vote only” and “not in the public domain”, in contrast to the 2017 election.
Schools Week then asked for an explanation and began contacting every candidate requesting their statement. By Tuesday afternoon, the DfE had U-turned – with statements to be made public via the voting website “shortly”.
Officials told candidates via email: “We have generated a lot of interest in these current elections, and we are receiving many requests, including from other candidates, for sight of candidate statements.”
Scroll for the full lists of candidates in each region below:
East Midlands and the Humber
| Candidate | Trust | Academy |
| Rowena Hackwood | Astrea Academy Trust | NA |
| Chris Wheatley | Flying High Trust | NA |
| Kerrie Henton | Stone Soup Learns | Stone Soup Academy |
| Sian Hampton | Archway Learning Trust | NA |
| Sean Kelly | Raleigh Learning Trust | NA |
| Neil Lockyer | St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Multi-Academy Trust | NA |
| Tim Sutcliffe | Symphony Learning Trust | NA |
| Paul Heery | The White Hills Park Trust | NA |
| Julian Scholefield | Esteem Mult-Academy Trust | NA |
| Gareth Nelmes | Bradgate Education Partnership | NA |
| Sue Bridges | Cascade Multi Academy Trust | NA |
| Simon Alexander Witham | Venn Academy Trust | NA |
| Tom Banham | HCAT | NA |
| Mark Mallender | Derby Diocesan Academy Trust (DDAT) | NA |
| Jonny Uttley | The Education Alliance | NA |
| Angela Spencer | St Margaret Clitherow Catholic Academy Trust | Our Lady and St Peter Catholic Academy |
| John Morrison | Lincoln UTC | Lincoln UTC |
East of England and North-East London
| Trust | Academy | |
| Brian Conway | St John the Baptist Catholic MAT | NA |
| Darren Woollard | Learning in Harmony Trust | Blenheim Primary School |
| James Biddulph | UTS Cambridge | University of Cambridge Primary School |
| Lawrence Chapman | SENDAT (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Academies Trust) | NA |
| Paul Harris | The Tapscott Learning Trust | Curwen Primary School |
| Gareth Stevens | The Inspiration Trust | NA |
| Mark Greatrex | Bellevue Place Education Trust | NA |
| Ruth Brock | SECAT (SOUTHEND EAST COMMUNITY ACADEMY TRUST) | NA |
| Adrian Ball | Diocese of Ely Multi-Academy Trust | NA |
| Sarah Skinner | South Suffolk Learning Trust (SSLT) | NA |
| Nikos Savvas | Suffolk Academies Trust | NA |
| Susannah Edom-Baker | Attain Academy Partnership | NA |
| Mark Farmer | Bridge Academy Trust | NA |
| Lynsey Holzer | Evolution Academy Trust | NA |
| Tim Coulson | Unity Schools Partnership | NA |
| Clare Flintoff | ASSET Education | NA |
| Neil Gallagher | The Sigma Trust | Clacton County High School |
| Lucy Scott | Eastern Learning Alliance | NA |
| Anita Johnson | Loxford School Trust | NA |
| Tony Parfett | Catalyst Academies Trust | NA |
| Richard Potter | Alpha Trust | Home Farm Primary School |
| Simon Elliott | Community Schools Trust | NA |
| Jeremy Rowe | Waveney Valley Academies Trust | NA |
Lancashire and West Yorkshire
| Tania Lewyckyj | The Bishop Fraser Trust | NA |
| Neville Beischer | Flagship Learning Trust | NA |
| Carol McLachlan | Vision Trust | NA |
| Richard Charles Ronksley | Altus Education Partnership | NA |
| Mark Wilson | Wellspring Academy Trust | NA |
| John Tarbox | The Pennine Trust | NA |
| John McNally | SHARE Multi-Academy Trust | NA |
| Carol Dewhurst OBE | Bradford Diocesan Academies Trust | NA |
| Brendan Loughran | Great Academies Education Trust | NA |
| Kash Rafiq | South Pennine Academies | Moor End Academy |
| Michael Gosling | Trinity Multi-Academy Trust | NA |
| Adrian Kneeshaw | Carlton Academy Trust | NA |
| James Keulemans | Clitheroe Royal Grammar School Trust | Clitheroe Royal Grammar School |
| Nicola Beaumont | Lindley Church of England Infant School | Lindley CE Infant School |
| Karen Burns | Victorious Academies Trust | NA |
North of England
| Kelvin Simpson | Advance Learning Partnership | NA |
| Maura Regan | Bishop Hogarth Catholic Education Trust | NA |
| Jo Heaton OBE | Northern Lights Learning Trust | NA |
| Paul Rickeard | Durham and Newcastle Diocesan Learning Trust | NA |
| Julia Armstrong | Prince Regent Street Trust | NA |
| Joanna Bailey | Tees Valley Collaborative Trust | NA |
| Colin Lofthouse | Smart Multi-academy Trust | NA |
| Jonathan Johnson | West Lakes Multi-Academy Trust | NA |
| Christina Jones | River Tees Multi-Academy Trust | NA |
| Nigel Ashley | Elevate MAT | NA |
| Andy Brown OBE | Ad Astra Academy Trust | NA |
| Anita Bath | Bishop Bewick Catholic Education Trust | NA |
| Alex Hook | North East Learning Trust – NELT | Shotton Hall Academy |
| Debi Bailey | NEAT Academy Trust | NA |
| Dame Nicola Stephenson DBE | Valour Multi Academy Trust | NA |
| Jenn Plews | Northern Star Academies Trust | NA |
| Nick Blackburn | Lingfield Education Trust | NA |
North West London and South Central England
| Marino Charalambous | North Star Community Trust | NA |
| Dr Andrew Campbell | Brooke Weston Trust | NA |
| Matthew Kleiner-Mann | Ivy Learning Trust | NA |
| Susan Douglas CBE | Eden Academy Trust | NA |
| Alice Hudson | Twyford Church of England Academies Trust | NA |
| Mark Thomas | Woodland View Primary School | Woodland View Primary School |
| Richard Evans | Vale Academy Trust | NA |
| Rozalyn Thomson | Great Learners Trust | NA |
| Jamie Clarke | Tove Learning Trust | NA |
| Annabel Kay | The Warriner Multi Academy Trust | NA |
| Joshua Coleman | East Midlands Academy Trust | NA |
| Sandra Appleby | David Ross Education Trust | Greenfields Primary School and Nursery |
| Dr Alan Lee | Bedfordshire Schools Trust | NA |
| Cath Kitchen | The Skylark Partnership | NA |
| Sue Collings | Ridgeway Learning Partnership | NA |
| Sarah Turner | ELT Partnership (formerly Enfield Learning Trust) | NA |
| Ann Marie Mulkerins | Middlesex Learning Trust | The Compton School |
| Sarah Bennett | Inspiring Futures through Learning | NA |
| Ginny Rhodes | The Circle Trust | NA |
| Chris Hill | Nene Education Trust | NA |
| Josephine Valentine | Danes Educational Trust | NA |
| Matthew Gauthier | Scholars’ Education Trust | Samuel Ryder Academy |
| Dr Penny Barratt OBE | The Bridge London Trust | NA |
| Stuart Lock | Advantage Schools | NA |
| Andy Squires | The Denbigh Alliance Multi Academy Trust | NA |
| Andrew Wilcock | Veritas Educational Trust | Bishop Ramsey Church of England School |
| Antony Witheyman | Innovate Multi Academy Trust | NA |
South East England and South London
| Andrew Carter | South Farnham Educational Trust | NA |
| Cassie Buchanan | The Charter Schools Educational Trust | NA |
| Jack Mayhew | Athena-GEP | NA |
| John Prior | Orchard Hill College Academy Trust (OHCAT) | NA |
| Nick Osborne | Maritime Academy Trust | NA |
| Matthew Wright | Character Education Trust | NA |
| Marie Sweetlove | Fortis Trust | NA |
| Jonathan Morris | Sussex Learning Trust | NA |
| Tracey Savage | Sandwich Technology School | NA |
| Sue Samson | University of Chichester Multi-Academy Trust | NA |
| Emma Bradshaw | Alternative Learning Trust | NA |
| David Harris | Engage Enrich Excel Academies | NA |
| David Boyle | Dunraven Educational Trust | NA |
| Rebecca Plaskitt | Tandridge Learning Trust | NA |
| Su Whelan | HISP | NA |
| Jane Fletcher | Aldridge Education | NA |
| Brett Freeman | Woking College | NA |
| Claire Lowe | Inspire Learning Partnership | NA |
South West England
| Craig Jones | Cabot Learning Federation | Haywood Village Academy |
| Stewart Biddles | Riviera Education Trust | NA |
| Steve Savory | Gloucestershire Learning Alliance | NA |
| Dean Ashton | Reach South Academy Trust | NA |
| Dan Morrow | Dartmoor Multi Academy trust | NA |
| Simon Hague | Crofty Multi Academy Trust | NA |
| Les Hall | Leading Edge Academies Partnership | Mounts Bay Academy |
| Neil Blundell | Cathedral Schools Trust | NA |
| Kate Langley | Gotherington Primary School | Gotherington Primary School |
| Mark Davies | Trust in Learning (academies) | NA |
| Jackie Smith | Brunel SEN Multi Academy Trust | NA |
| Emma Kerr | Launceston College Multi Academy Trust | Launceston College Trust |
| Robert Gasson | Wave Multi academy Trust | NA |
| Andrea Arlidge | Futura Learning Partnership | NA |
| Jennifer Blunden OBE | Truro and Penwith Academy Trust | NA |
| Robert Farmer | Hamwic Education Trust | NA |
| John Abbott | Richard Huish Trust | NA |
| Rachel Howie | Diocese of Gloucester Academies Trust | NA |
West Midlands
| Sinead Smith | Holy Spirit Multi Academy Company | NA |
| Daniel Adam Thomas | The Learning for Life Partnership | NA |
| Jayne Bartlett | E-ACT | Shenley Academy EACT |
| Sarah Finch | Marches Academy Trust | NA |
| Mark Kent | Potteries Educational Trust | NA |
| Annette Williams | Weaver Trust | NA |
| Nicola Jane Raggett | Kings Norton Girls’ School | Kings Norton Girls’ School |
| Margaret Yates | All Saints Catholic Collegiate Multi-Academy Company | NA |
| Michael Thomas Donoghue | John Taylor Multi-Academy Trust | NA |
| Charlene Gethin | The Staffordshire Schools Multi Academy Trust. | NA |
| Kate Tague | WMG Academy for Young Engineers Trust | NA |
| Michael Cowland | The Diocese of Coventry Multi Academy Trust | NA |
| Neil Wallace | Stratford upon Avon School | NA |
| Jared Eccles | The Moorlands Primary Federation | St. Werburgh’s C E Primary School |
| Martin Murphy | Arden Multi-Academy Trust | NA |
| Rubina Darr | Cromwell Learning Community Multi Academy Trust | Cromwell Junior and Infant School |
| Matthew Snelson | The Sir John Brunner Foundation | The County High School Letfwich |
| Sharron Philpot | Victoria Academies Trust | NA |
| Ian Nurser | Empower Trust | NA |
| Dafydd Lawday | Mercian Educational Trust | NA |
| David Coaché | Bengeworth Multi Academy Trust | NA |
| Susan Wedgwood | St Chad’s Academies Trust | NA |
| Sarah Findlay-Cobb | Landau Forte Charitable Trust | NA |
| Dame Mo Brennan | Matrix Academy Trust | NA |
| Julie Greenwood | Leigh Trust | NA |
| Ian Beardmore | Newman Catholic Collegiate | Our Lady of Grace Catholic Academy |
| Guy Shears | Central Region Schools Trust | NA |
| Jennifer Clegg | E-ACT | Heartlands Academy |
| Nic Brindle | Youth Engagement Schools Trust | NA |
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