Andrew Wright
Chair

Andrew is the Head Teacher of Dudley Virtual School for Children In Care supporting over 600 young people in their educational settings.

Andrew has over 40 years of teaching experience, including over 10 years as Head Teacher/Principal, in a range of secondary school across the West Midlands. A clear strategic thinker, Andrew has an expertise in school improvement within challenging settings, transforming the ethos of schools, the behaviour, attendance and attainment of young people. He has been recognised by Ofsted as a leader who sets ‘a clear direction and vision focusing on raising aspirations and achievements’.

Andrew has a keen understanding of developing an inclusive curriculum both within and across schools. He has influenced innovation in curriculum design through a range of strategic roles including chair of a collaborative network of schools, regional and national strategy groups and has directly integrated partners from the world of work into the learning experiences.

As the Head Teacher of the Virtual School, Andrew is committed to developing a sustainable system of support to enable all children to develop into independent and successful adults. He recognises the importance of strong partnerships across services, businesses and agencies and has developed a menu of support and opportunities in a ‘Learning Tool Kit’ for children in care.

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Dr Anne-Marie McBlain
Trustee

Anne-Marie originally trained and worked in the field of the Biological Sciences before re-training and working as a science teacher in a mainstream 11-18 secondary school. She then undertook further training to gain a Masters degree in psychology and worked in a diverse range of environments including: special education, mental health and the Prison Service before completing her professional training as an Educational Psychologist.

Anne-Marie currently works as a Specialist Senior Educational Psychologist for Stoke Virtual School supporting educational and other settings to meet the needs of children and young people in care. This involves dealing with complex case work carried out within a multi-agency context; leading the delivery of attachment aware training for all schools and settings in the authority and beyond; supporting settings to conduct action research to develop cutting edge practice both in the authority and nationally and making sure schools and settings can confidently and effectively support the children and young people in care to achieve their potential.

Anne-Marie is also a trained counsellor and works with both adult and child clients.

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Kate Brooks
Trustee

Kate is an Associate Lecturer in Education History and a Doctoral researcher at Bath Spa University, researching late nineteenth century education in a Victorian orphanage (where her great grandfather was ‘orphan no. 458’). She lectures on education history, and works with NAVSH, on the Bath Spa Postgraduate course for carers and professionals working with care experienced children.

In addition to her PhD research, Kate has also written articles on aspects of the student experience, including carrying out a city-wide project on secondary school students’ attitudes to attendance, which informed Bristol City Council’s Attendance and Inclusion strategies. She has also published on students’ experiences of teaching and learning in Higher Education, on the Prevent Duty programme, and on widening participation in Higher Education.

Kate has also worked as a SEN teaching assistant, and as a foster carer with Bristol City Council, fostering young asylum seekers. She now fosters with Compass, as well as volunteering with Reconstruct, as a mentor for care-experienced young people. In 2019, she collaborated with Bristol City Council on an arts project engaging young people in care with the history of ‘looked after children’, which resulted in an exhibition at City Hall.

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Nick Mort
Trustee

Nick originally trained as a secondary History teacher in mainstream 11-18 schools. He has worked as a Middle and Senior Leader in a diverse range of schools, including several inner city 11-18 mainstream schools, gaining the National Professional Qualification for Headship in the process.

Nick currently works as Teaching School Director with President Kennedy TSA in Coventry and works in strategic school improvement within The Futures Trust, a MAT of seven schools in Coventry and Leicestershire.

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Richard Parker
Trustee

Richard Parker has been a youth worker, a researcher, and a secondary school teacher in Inner London. He worked for many years in local government within education and children’s services, in a number of different authorities.

In 2010 he joined Bath Spa University as Director of the Centre for Education Policy in Practice (EPIP), which aimed use the research strengths of the university to promote improvement in education support for vulnerable groups. Richard has a particular interest in the education of children in care and has been involved in a range of activities to promote emotion coaching and attachment awareness in schools and initial teacher education, at both local and national level. Since retiring from teaching at Bath Spa he has concentrated on his research into the effectiveness of attachment aware school approaches, and on supporting ARC. He was a founder trustee of the charity, and coordinates the ARC HE and ITE network.

Richard is also working with NAVSH in delivering a new Postgraduate Certificate for carers and professionals working with care experienced children, as part of the Bath Spa University MA Programme in Professional Practice.

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Peter Cox
Head of Governance

Peter has 40 years experience as a financial director and consultant in the private, charity and not for profit sectors.

He also has experience as a non executive director in the NHS and private sector and 20 years service as a primary and secondary school governor.

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Michelle Salter
Trustee

Michelle Salter is the Virtual School Head Teacher at Telford & Wrekin Council where in January 2020 the outcome of the Childrens Services ILAC Ofsted was graded as Outstanding. Through the practices developed Michelle also utilises some of her time supporting other colleagues and local authorities including undertaking Peer Reviews with NAVSH where she is currently on the board of trustees. 

Michelle started her career initially as a Mental Health Nurse and shortly became a Nurse Manager in a variety of settings including secure hospitals, assessment and treatment units. She then retrained as a Primary Teacher.  Michelle has held a variety of leadership roles in primary schools in deprived areas of Leicester and Warwickshire before becoming Head of Primary at a new independent SEMH school.  She was also a Specialist Leader in Education with a Teaching School providing school to school support.  Which in turn led to Michelle becoming a consultant in School Improvement. 

Since then Michelle has held Regional and National leadership roles with a large Multi Academy Trust (primary and secondary schools) where all the schools were in areas of high social deprivation.   Her role encompassed school improvement, safeguarding and Inclusion, which included undertaking a variety of audits/ inspections and working closely with Ofsted and the DFE. 

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Lizzie Watt
Trustee

Lizzie Watt is Assistant Headteacher leading on Innovation, Pedagogy and Learning for Derbyshire’s Virtual School. Lizzie designed Derbyshire’s highly successful  Attachment Aware Schools: A Safe Space, A Nurturing Learning Environment and leads on the delivery of this transformational programme, embedding relational practice and action research at the heart of school development. She has taught at primary and secondary level as well as being a Senior Lecturer at three Midlands Universities. Much of her career in education has focussed on designing professional development programmes on teacher pedagogy, re-modelling curriculum delivery and improving whole school ethos. She spent many years as a Creative Consultant and has a particular passion for improving the enjoyment, engagement and attainment of vulnerable learners- and as a consequence for the benefit of the whole school community. Lizzie has a Masters in Education, specialising in Attachment, Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing within school settings.

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Janice Cahill OBE
Trustee

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Gareth Brenton
Trustee

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Jackie Brooks
Trustee

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Dr Adele Thacker
Trustee

Educational Psychologist for Telford Educational Psychology Service and Specialist Practitioner for Telford Virtual School.

Prior to her Doctorate training in Educational Psychology, Adele developed and managed a provision for primary aged children at risk of exclusion based upon nurturing principles.

Adele currently works as an Educational Psychologist in Telford where part of her time is spent as Specialist Practitioner for the Virtual School. As part of her role with the Virtual School Adele utilises creative and collaborative processes to support those around CiC to understand presenting needs and to effectively provide the support required. Adele also supports educational settings to embed trauma informed and attachment aware cultures and plays a role in developing strategic practices within the authority to further support and promote this ‘way of being’. To further support colleagues across the Midlands, Adele also facilitates the Midlands Emotion Coaching Interest group as well as being a long standing member of the ARC EP advisory group.

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Amy Howe
Trustee

Amy is the Virtual School Assistant Head for North Yorkshire.  She is also a Family Seeing Coach for NY Children’s Social Work practitioners.

Following four years of working in the commercial and the health sectors, Amy trained as a Primary School Teacher.  Having had experience teaching classes from Reception to year 6, in various schools Amy joined the Virtual School to work directly with Care-experienced children between the ages of 4 and 16 to identifying and supporting their social, emotional and academic needs and recommending, to teaching colleagues, the most appropriate, holistic approaches to use to meet these young people’s needs.

As part of her Charity work, Amy has worked with a charity local to her, supporting children and young adults between the ages of three and 21 years old with complex disabilities and additional needs on a 1:1, 2:1 and group basis.  

Amy is a Specialist Teacher in identifying and teaching children with Specific Learning Differences, including Dyslexia, with a focus on care-experienced children.  She has also recently achieved a Distinction in the level 7 Post-Graduate Diploma in the Education of Care-experienced Children with NAVSH / Bath Spa University, under the guidance of Richard Parker, Michael Gorman, Kate Brooks and other experts in their fields.  

Within her current role, Amy leads the project for all Children with a Social Worker, delivering training, advice and support to colleagues in schools and children’s social care across North Yorkshire, to promote understanding and awareness of the role that Attachment plays in education including the use of Trauma Responsive practice to improve socio-emotional wellbeing, engagement, attendance and attainment.  This work is linked to her role as a Senior leader within Children’s Social Care and as a Family Seeing coach where she works closely with the model authors to promoting Family Reunification – helping children to remain with their birth families. See Family Seeing

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Jon Hickman
Trustee

Jon Hickman is an Assistant Head Teacher of a large secondary school in Birmingham with responsibility for behaviour. In November 2021 they became the first secondary school nationally to be awarded the status of a Thrive school of excellence.
Jon is part of a consortium of schools in the North of Birmingham that are developing their trauma informed practice to reduce exclusions and promote inclusivity.

Jon started his career as a NQT for science in Dorset and was an assistant head of house for Pastoral. Then moved to Hull as a TLR holder in the science department and also undertook studying for the national SENCO qualification. He then relocated to Birmingham and took up the post of SENCO in a North Birmingham school which went on to be awarded the Alex Timpson ARC attachment award in the secondary school category.

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