I have a passion for and a deep understanding of the education sector, and I will use my experience to help Herts for Learning achieve their vision of providing schools, settings and trusts with high-quality products, services, and training to support them to deliver a great education.

For the past 12 years, I have been the Principal and Chief Executive at Royal Holloway, University of London and have served in other senior roles at the universities of Sussex, Manchester and UMIST.  With expertise in information technology, I developed early video-based and computer-based training techniques and products and worked on experiments in distributed group-based working using technology.

I am an experienced Chair and Board member, having chaired the Boards of London Higher, representing London’s higher education institutions, and AQA, the UK’s largest exam board for GCSE and A-level qualifications.

Carole has overall responsibility for HFL Education and is accountable to the Directors of the company.

Carole has over 30 years’ experience working in the education sector, leading and delivering educational development, teaching and learning and school business support services.  Having worked in LAs and school improvement services for many years, she was involved in the creation of HFL Education in 2013 and led the development of new services to support schools and academies.   Most recently, she was the CEO of a Multi Academy Trust serving Lower, Primary and Secondary schools across four Local Authority areas, before returning to HFL Education as CEO in 2023.

I am the Director of Finance & Business Support at Hertfordshire County Council (HCC), supporting Children’s Services, Environment & Transport, and Sustainable Growth.

I provide the bridge between the departmental directors and the Corporate Finance team, supporting service strategy formation and financial modelling, linking in corporate financial expectations. I support the service with the corporate process, and challenge to service strategy and financial direction. Equally, I ensure the service strategy is understood by the corporate centre, addresses their likely areas of challenge, and consider how it supports the Council wider vision.

My career started in audit, then progressed through various private sector financial roles, firstly in corporate finance, moving into commercial financial and operations roles. Most recently I moved into the public sector on joining HCC.

I am very much looking forward to bringing my knowledge and experience to support the great work of HFL Education through my role on the HFL Board.

I am a social impact consultant and coach, supporting companies and charities to address societal challenges and drive positive outcomes for people and planet.  Prior to that I held marketing leadership roles in commercial and not for profit organisations including TUI, British Airways and the BBC.  Supporting young people has been a theme of my career.  I was Marketing and Fundraising Director of BBC Children in Need and Founder CEO of Global’s Make Some Noise, a grant making charity which supports projects for children and adults across physical and mental health, shelter and safety, loneliness and life skills.  I was instrumental in setting up Global Academy UTC and served as a governor for 8 years, firstly as Safeguarding link and then as Chair.  I am also a Trustee of YHA (Youth Hostel Association). I am a qualified coach and member of the ICF.

I have been a primary school teacher in Hertfordshire since 2002.  During this time I have had the pleasure of teaching across all primary phases and working with many inspirational teachers.   Teaching has always been my passion and I believe that as educationalists we have a very privileged position of being able to help shape the future.  I have now been in senior leadership for 15 years and have had the privilege of being a primary school headteacher for the past 8 years.  I was elected as a Non-Executive Director of HfL Education in November 2023 and it is an honour to have been voted into this position by primary phase schools.

Marcus joined Spiral Partnership Trust as CEO in October 2022.  He brings with him many years of experience of school leadership and school improvement in Hertfordshire, Guernsey and beyond; most recently in London as the Assistant Director of Education for Southwark Diocesan Board of Education (SDBE) and CEO of the SBDE Multi-Academy Trust.  Prior to this role Marcus was the Senior Education Manager for Hertfordshire.

Marcus is a Fellow of the Chartered College of Teaching and has The Freedom of the City of London. 

Formerly Group HR Director for Tesco and Genus, I have had a career in retail and technology, both in the UK and internationally. My work was focused on talent and succession planning, management and leadership development. I have a degree in English from Durham University. Having left full-time work, I now work as a Non-Executive Director. I felt that, by joining the Herts for Learning Board, I can use my business skills to contribute to my home county’s schools and pupils. I feel passionately that, to have the best opportunity to succeed in life, a good education is a foundation stone.

I am an education technology founder and CEO with experience as a non-executive director, trustee, school governor and Chair.  Like HFL Education, I've focussed my career on trying to make sure every student can achieve their full potential.  

I co-founded Firefly Learning to solve my own frustrations as a GCSE student; it creates software for schools to drive better learning outcomes through effective engagement of parents and students.  At first, I built the business as a sideline throughout my Computer Science degrees at Oxford and Cambridge and a stint on the trading floor at Goldman Sachs.  I helped it grow to a team of 75 experts supporting around 900 schools across the UK and in 50 countries worldwide.  As CEO, I led it through two rounds of venture capital and the acquisition and integration of two other startups to a successful exit to a US-based edtech company, where I now help lead the combined European business.  I have also volunteered as a governor and Chair at several schools and trusts across London.

I am the Headteacher at Marriotts School in Stevenage and I was elected to the role of secondary phase non-executive director in March 2019.

With over 14 years of senior leadership experience, including being founding Deputy Headteacher at the Oasis Academy in Enfield, I am motivated to help provide strategic leadership and accountability for HfL, to ensure schools’ needs are met and outcomes for all Hertfordshire’s young people continue to improve.

I am a solicitor specialising in corporate & commercial law, a mother of two, and Chair of Governors at Sheredes Primary School. Having grown up and been educated in the local area before embarking on a career in law, I am passionate about ensuring excellence in education for children. Much of my work as a solicitor has education elements, including negotiating contracts for educational software, advising on group reorganisations for student unions and refinancing a further education college.

I have been in education for 35 years and have had the privilege of working within local authority and private sector primary, secondary, SEN schools and alternative provisions.  I am the Headteacher at Southfield SEN school and I have a proven track record of leading, managing and stabilising schools in difficult and challenging circumstances.  I am passionate about ensuring that all pupils have the best opportunities possible through aspirational targets and I look forward to supporting Hertfordshire schools in my role as special phase/alternative provision Non-Executive Director on the HFL Board.

I am the Director of Inclusion and Skills at Hertfordshire County Council, overseeing the Integrated Services for Learning (ISL – SEND and Inclusion), the Virtual School, the Youth Services and a new Improvement and Transformation Service focused on the improvements to inclusion across the local area. This portfolio really brings together the most vulnerable of our children, driving forward inclusion and subsequent pathways into adulthood, which I am really passionate about. Being originally a primary school teacher, I have held senior leader roles within schools and have worked directly for local authorities. It is a privilege to become part of the HFL Board of Directors.