Appointment of inaugural Director for “The Leigh Institute”.
You’ll be aware that Stuart Russell is retiring this autumn after a hugely successful and long tenure as Senior Director of Kent and Medway Training. Over the past few months we have been reviewing the best way to replace Stuart and to solidify the manner in which various entities within Leigh Academies Trust (LAT), focussed on professional training and development, can work even more successfully together.
After detailed discussion with a range of stakeholders, we have decided that the following organisations should come under a single point of leadership going forward so that we can maximise the benefits of collaboration and teamwork:
- Kent and Medway Training (KMT);
- Thames Gateway Teaching School Hub (TGTSH);
- Kent and Medway Maths Hub (KMMH); and
- LAT Apprenticeships.
There are a multitude of important reasons that we should forge even closer working protocols between these various entities within LAT for the benefit of the wider sector and to provide extra career development opportunities for the many talented staff that work within them. For that reason we are pleased to report that we have now appointed a single leader to take overall responsibility for these four entities on behalf of the Trust from no later than September this year.
In forging closer collaboration, we are keen to preserve the existing unique high quality characteristics of each component part whilst delivering on the wider Trust vision of being “stronger than the sum of our parts”. For that reason, we are in the process of creating “The Leigh Institute” which will contain each of the above from September. Following interviews this week, I am pleased to report that Esther Cook (currently Director of TGTSH and KMMH, see image above) has been appointed as its inaugural Director.
Esther will report to Will Monk as Academies Director. In turn each of the Heads of KMT, TGTSH, KMMH and LAT Apprenticeships will report to her. The Heads of the latter two are already in place, but Stuart’s retirement and Esther’s promotion mean that we now need to appoint new Heads of KMT and TGTSH, which we will do in the coming weeks.
I am sure you will want to join me in congratulating Esther on her appointment. This new way forward, which builds on much of what we have been doing in recent years to provide professional training and development services for teachers and support staff throughout the South East, is very exciting. We look forward to updating you on these exciting plans later in the summer term.
With my best wishes,
Simon Beamish
Chief Executive, Leigh Academies Trust
Chairman, Kent and Medway Training
Chairman, Thames Gateway Teaching School Hub
