Kim has over 30 years’ experience in secondary education and fully took over as CEO of the Achieve and Learn Trust in January 2024. She has the highest aspirations for all students across our Trust and a belief that all our children and young people deserve a sound educational springboard from which to leap into the most fulfilling next stages of their lives. These guiding principles inform all her work in securing school improvement through collaboration with and across schools. Kim has completed the ASCL Trust Executive Leaders Programme: a twelve-month course where she collaborated with CEOs and Trust Execs from over 20 other MATs.

Kim has been a senior leader in a range of large mixed ability settings across the north west, including 11-16 and 11-18 schools, an all-through 3-18 academy where the school was moved from Good to Outstanding in two years, and as Headteacher of an 11-18 academy graded Good in all areas. In all of these settings she has secured swift improvement at whole school level and supported students and staff in reaching their full potential.

Kim also has substantial experience as a school improvement consultant, working for seven years at Local Authority level across 25 secondary, primary and special schools to support Quality of Education and curriculum provision.

Kim has been part of two DfE Steering Groups, has written two Art education books for teachers of SEND and more able students, is formerly a Primary School Governor and Director of the Bluecoat Display Centre in Liverpool. She is an active volunteer for the One Day Project on the Wirral and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

Danielle has over 20 years’ experience in the educational finance sector, having worked both at Local Authority and school level. Danielle was appointed as CFO for our Trust in 2012 and has led exemplary audit practice and internal assurance at the highest level ever since.

Danielle also led the Trafford Primary Schools financial management service for the local authority and once employed at Altrincham College, subsequently ran the Trafford Primary Financial Service for 25 primary schools in the borough.

Danielle is a SLE for Business and Finance and has supported other local secondary schools: refining systems, supporting schools in financial restructures and improving the leadership and management of school business managers.

Margaret Lloyd’s long career in education began as a PE teacher and progressed through middle and senior leadership before being appointed as Headteacher at Altrincham College.  Here she led the school for over 20 years until her retirement in 2004.  A significant achievement of her headship resulted in securing 'Specialist School Status' (arts specialism) for the school, following a challenging process of having to raise £50,000 in private sector sponsorship – equivalent to £150,000 today. This status enabled the school to expand its extracurricular offer, providing students with opportunities to display their work at The Lowry, Manchester Airport and the National Gallery in London.  Margaret is a strong advocate for the creative arts, believing that they are an integral part of students' personal development.

Since her retirement, Margaret has been Chair of a Housing Association and a Community Project Leader, where she led a team of 28 volunteers.  The impact of Margaret’s voluntary work led to her nomination in BBC Radio Manchester’s ‘Make a Difference’ 2025 campaign.  Margaret was a finalist in the competition in recognition of her charitable events work in the local community

Robert is a retired Chartered Engineer, formerly management consultant/chief executive of an engineering company. He has been a member of the Trust since it was established and was previously Chair of Governors at Altrincham College.

Richard is a career civil servant, having started in Department of Transport in London in 1989, following graduation from the University of Sheffield. He has worked at regional level, working in the Government Offices for Merseyside and the North West on a range of policies and programmes covering transport, community regeneration, housing, devolution and crime and community safety.

Richard is now the Department’s Head of Northern Engagement, managing a team of staff that works with local transport authorities, including Mayors, across the North of England. Richard ensures Ministerial objectives are understood and delivered locally and that local experience informs national policy development. He was awarded an OBE for services to northern transport in the King’s Birthday Honours in 2025.

Richard’s career and experience has given him a good understanding of how public sector policy and delivery works as well as how good governance can help with both. Richard has acted as a Trustee for a local voluntary and community sector organisation and was a Parent Governor at the SEN secondary school that his son attended.

He is committed to the vision and values of AALT and the ambition for every young person to benefit from a great education.

Rachel was a secondary headteacher in three north-west high schools. In all three, she led and managed the school communities either towards or through conversion to academy status. She enjoyed bringing about transformational change in schools in challenging circumstances through redefining the ethos, vision and values and improving outcomes in all the schools she led.

Rachel has extensive leadership skills in creating strategic plans to further improve the successful trajectory of schools. In two local authorities, she represented headteachers on the In- Year Fair Access Panels and was instrumental in devising improved protocols which were adopted and are still being used by these LAs when discussing and deciding where permanently excluded students should be placed. 

Since leaving a full-time role as a headteacher, she has retrained as an executive coach and has also worked as an educational consultant training senior school leaders in resilience in the workplace. She is passionate about education and seeing young people achieve their full and deserved potential. She volunteers with two charities, Smartworks and Queen Bee Coaching, both of which support women into work and leadership positions respectively.

Hailey is an experienced organisational improvement and workforce transformation leader with a career spanning voluntary and public sectors. She began her professional journey working with voluntary organisations including Mencap and Citizens Advice, developing a strong foundation in community impact, advocacy, and values‑driven service delivery.

Hailey later transitioned into the public sector through the Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust Fast-track Management Scheme, gaining deep operational and project management experience across secondary care. During this time, she contributed to large‑scale transformation programmes such as the acquisition of North Manchester General Hospital into the MFT group, and built insight into system‑level change, complexity management, and stakeholder engagement.

Her subsequent roles as Business Manager and later Business Lead to the Executive Director of Workforce and Corporate Business during the COVID‑19 pandemic provided rapid exposure to executive‑level decision‑making, governance structures, and workforce challenges at scale. She went on to lead major workforce transformation initiatives, including establishing a Workforce Programme Management Office, to introduce Robotic Process Automation, deliver turnaround in the Apprenticeships Department raising Ofsted outcomes from Requires Improvement to Good and delivering complex improvements to Mandatory Training provision. Hailey then went on to serve as Head of Learning and Education, where she reshaped the careers provision, the Trusts Apprenticeships offer and learning and development provision for over 30,000 staff.

Hailey is currently Head of Organisational Improvement at Health Innovation Manchester, where she plays a critical role in equipping the workforce with the confidence, capability, and skills needed to enable the organisation to deliver its strategic ambitions. Her work spans organisational development, transformation delivery, cultural improvement, capability building, and embedding innovative practices into the everyday fabric of teams.

She brings a strong grounding in governance, system thinking, people‑centred design, and strategic workforce development alongside a deep commitment to equitable, collaborative, and community‑focused practice. Hailey is passionate about using her skills and experience to contribute to organisations that share these values and are committed to improving outcomes for the communities they serve.

Alison is the Deputy Director of System Improvement in Greater Manchester. She has worked with health and care systems nationally.

Alison came to work in healthcare in 2012, moving away from large-scale public sector commissioning at the Northwest Regional Development Agency where, as Director of Finance and Procurement working with multiple stakeholders from public, private and third sectors across a wide range of businesses, she was annually accountable for the stewardship of £600m of Central Government and European programme funding streams.

Alison was formerly Chief Finance Officer for the Northwest Commissioning Support Unit serving Greater Manchester, Cheshire and Merseyside CCGs.  She is a qualified chartered management accountant and has worked for KPMG, spending seven years in their consulting arm, delivering transformation and Enterprise Improvement Programmes across the UK, with specialist expertise in Value Based Improvement, BPI and Logistics solutions in a range of blue chip and SME businesses and sectors. 

Reflecting her continuing passion for lifelong learning and inclusive opportunities, Alison is a Governor and Vice Chair of the Resources Committee at Stockport and Trafford College and a Trustee of the Achieve and Learn Trust where she is also on the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee.

Nikki is a Parent Trustee and relishes the opportunity to represent the parent body at board level.

She is the Deputy CEO and School Improvement Director at a Primary Multi Academy Trust in Greater Manchester. She is currently a fellow on the inaugural cohort with the National Institute of Teaching on their CEO Programme. She has also completed the National Qualification of Executive Leaders (NPQEL) and has had experience of being deployed to improve standards as a Specialist Leader of Education (SLE) at another school.

The vision of Achieve and Learn Trust is aligned to Nikki’s philosophy of education. Nikki believes that children should be given the opportunity to be the best they can be and for everyone to achieve their true potential. At Achieve and Learn Trust, children and young people are encouraged to believe in who they are and what they can achieve in the future and Nikki looks forward to supporting the Trust in continuing to deliver its vision.

Suzanne is a Parent Trustee and is keen to take on this role on the Trust Board that supports schools to raise standards and challenges school and governance decisions which ultimately affect the educational outcomes and life chances of young people.

Suzanne is a former chief sub-editor with a background in consumer and B2B publishing. With a keen interest in education, she has worked at a number of Trafford primary and secondary schools; her current position is Admissions Officer at a local small MAT, which gives her an insight into educational, admissions and safeguarding issues.

Cara is a Programme Director for Digital and Data working within Health and Care at Health Innovation Manchester, which is part of the Health Innovation Networks, bringing NHS, academic, and Industry partners together to transform the health and well-being of Greater Manchester’s citizens.

Cara's past roles have been within the NHS, academic, and local government sectors on large–scale research and innovative transformation programmes. Cara has an interest in health and the power of digital innovations to enhance health and care. Cara is a keen advocate of lifelong learning, having witnessed the transformative power of continuous learning, not just in acquiring knowledge but fostering personal and professional growth. She sees education as a journey of perpetual discovery and empowerment.

Sam is an early career academic, as well as a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA), specialising in Mathematical Engineering at the University of Liverpool. Prior to this role, Sam was a Mathematics teacher, gaining his PGCE with the University of Buckingham, and was an Outreach Fellow at the University of Melbourne, Australia.

Sam's pedagogical research focuses on improving the student transition from school to university as well as incorporating the latest digital tools into Education. His recent experience includes integrating A.I. techniques into his teaching, which was a collaboration with the Department of Education and the Royal Society.

AALT’s commitment to aspiration, inclusion, and community resonates strongly with Sam's values, particularly his belief that every young person deserves access to an ambitious, supportive, and enriching high-quality educational experience.

Connor Rand was elected as the first Labour Member of Parliament for Altrincham and Sale West in July 2024. In his maiden speech in the House of Commons, he listed his priorities as cutting NHS waiting times locally in Trafford and tackling crime and antisocial behaviour in our communities.

Before becoming an MP, Connor worked for the retail workers union Usdaw where he led a campaign against the violence and intimidation shopworkers face.

Connor has lived with his partner Catherine in south Manchester for the best part of a decade and they have two young boys together. He was born in Norfolk and supports Norwich City football team.

Priyanka is a Director at Deloitte, the world’s largest professional services network. Originally from India, she came to the UK to complete master’s degrees in marketing and HR. She began her career in HR before moving to recruitment in the banking sector. Before joining Deloitte, Pri spent five years in a senior role at Siemens, where she led and managed global HR services. 

In her current role at Deloitte, Pri manages a global team spread across multiple continents.  Her extensive experience in HR, spanning 15 years, has afforded her an excellent familiarity and knowledge of employment law. She has also led transformation programmes and managed multi-million-pound budgets, including the implementation and maintenance of several technologies, such as AI. 

Pri believes her knowledge of finance, HR, technology and experience of leadership will support the Achieve and Learn Trust and promises to contribute, challenge and support wherever she can to ensure the best possible outcomes for our young people.