Trust Leadership

Executive Team

The Executive Team is the executive arm of the Trust Board, focusing on operations and resources and supporting the educational performance of the Academies. It operates under the leadership and direction of the Chief Executive and Accounting Officer and includes the Deputy CEO and Director of Primary, Chief Finance and Operating Officer and Finance Specialist. The Executive Team works directly with staff in each Academy to ensure that the Trust’s strategic plan (incorporating the Academies’ development plans) are being implemented, and the required outcomes are achieved in accordance with the direction and vision of the Trust Board.

Tom Canning CBE

Chief Executive Officer

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Sarah Lack

Deputy CEO & Director of Primary

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Steven Lock

Chief Finance and Operating Officer

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Cross MAT Team

Edvinas (Ed) Pacevicius

Head of Estates and Facilities

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Lisa Daramola

Head of HR

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Timothy White

Head of Compliance

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Ladi Kelekun

Head of ICT and Data Security

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Teaching School Hub Team

Craig Lilleyman

Director – Teaching School Hub

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Jacqueline Buchan

Deputy Director

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Martin Redfern

NPQ & Appropriate Body Lead

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Sarah Bartley

Appropriate Body Coordinator

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Ruksara Choudhury

NPQ and Appropriate Body Administrator

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Rosetta Robinson

ITT Lead

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Laura Moss

ITT Coordinator

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School Leaders

Boleyn Trust Headteachers take the lead role on working with the CEO and wider Executive Team to develop a collaborative School vision, which embraces excellence, high standards and inclusion.  Our Headteachers secure excellent teaching to achieve high standards of learning and attainment across the primary phase, including preparation for secondary education.

Karen Symons

Clara Grant Primary

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Liza Christofides

Cleves Primary School

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Elizabeth Harris

Monega Primary

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Caroline Stone

New City Primary

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Simon Bond

Ravenscroft Primary

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Lindsay Bradbury

Rosetta Primary

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Geoff Hadlow

Shaftesbury Primary

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Emma O’Connor

Tollgate Primary

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Tom Canning CBE

Chief Executive

As Chief Executive and Accounting Officer, Tom develops and articulates the vision, values, and ethos of the Trust. He works in partnership with all stakeholders to inspire, motivate and deliver common purpose across our schools. Tom is accountable to the Trust Board and takes responsibility for the performance of all schools and the well-being of staff.

Tom works closely with the Department for Education and the Education and Skills Funding Agency to achieve the best possible educational outcomes through the economic, efficient and effective use of Trust funds.

  • 25 years of Primary Headship.
  • Executive Headship of schools in fragile and challenging circumstances.
  • City Challenge Schools Advisor.
  • Department for Education Advisory Board Member.
  • National Leader of Education.
  • Vast experience of school improvement across London.
  • 2010 OBE for services to Local and National Education.
  • 2012 Honorary Doctorate in Education from the University of East London.
  • Accounting Officer of SCITT.
  • Accounting Officer of Teaching School Hub.
  • Lead Ofsted Inspector.
  • 2022 CBE for services to Education.

Sarah Lack

Deputy CEO & Director of Primary

As Director of Primary, Sarah is responsible for the success of the Boleyn Trust’s primary phase in partnership with the CEO and as directed by the Board of Trustees.

Sarah has the delegated responsibility for management and day-to-day operations of the trust’s primary phase work with a focus on supporting academies on their journey from Good to Outstanding journey.

  • Leading a RI school from RI to outstanding in 2 years.
  • Headteacher of Academy with RP provision for PMLD.
  • Development of teaching school.
  • Development of Children’s Centre.
  • Teaching in Newham for 23 years.
  • Ofsted Inspector.

Sarah also serves as Deputy CEO, representing the CEO and Trust at all levels, both externally and within the organisation, including being part of Headteacher Performance Management Reviews, sitting on Headteacher Recruitment Panels and chairing Challenge Boards.

Steven Lock

Chief Finance & Operating Officer

As Chief Finance and Operating Officer, Steven supports the Chief Executive Officer in the strategic development and operation of the Trust, contributing to Board meetings and meetings with the DfE and other significant stakeholders.

Steven has day to day responsibility for monitoring all non-teaching and learning operational areas of the Trust including:

  • Financial Management.
  • Human Resources.
  • Legal Welfare.
  • Asset and Risk Management.
  • Marketing, Communications and Public Relations.
  • ICT and Data Security.
  • Governance and Compliance.
  • Contracts and Procurement.
  • Academy conversions and re-brokerages.

Steven comes to the Trust from the private sector having strong managerial background. He has cross-sector exposure with good strategic appreciation, vision, and ability to build and implement strategic plans with a proven track record explicitly supporting business needs.

Edvinas (Ed) Pacevicius

Estate Compliance Officer

Edvinas is equipped with a decade of robust management experience, including seven years dedicated to estates and facilities management, and occupies a pivotal role in shaping and leading the execution of the estates strategy for the Boleyn Trust. In close collaboration with the Chief Finance and Operating Officer and School Leaders, Edvinas assumes comprehensive responsibility for overseeing and managing every facet of the Trust’s real estate portfolio. This multifaceted role encompasses total facilities management responsibility including both hard and soft services throughout the trust.

Lisa Daramola

HR Manager

Lisa manages and maintains an efficient, effective and professional HR function for over 700 employees of the Boleyn Trust.

Lisa provides a professional recruitment and employee relations support service to our school leaders, facilitating the achievement of educational objectives whilst managing risk and ensuring statutory compliance.

Lisa comes to us with both public and private sector exposure. Previous to this, Lisa served as a School Business Manager at Primary Schools in Newham and Waltham Forest and has wide experience of finance, HR, H&S and estate management.

Timothy White

Head of Compliance

Timothy is responsibility for supporting schools to achieve compliance across all areas. Timothy has extensive management experience across compliance, sales and marketing within the private sector.

Ladi Kelekun

Head of ICT and Data Security

As Head of ICT and Data Security, Ladi is an accomplished professional with over 20 years of experience in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Data Security. With a proven track record of implementing innovative solutions to protect sensitive information and ensure the integrity of digital systems.

Ladi’s expertise lies in developing robust cybersecurity strategies, managing complex IT infrastructures, large-scale IT projects, including network upgrades, system migrations, and cloud integrations, while ensuring adherence to security best practices and leading cross-functional teams to achieve organizational objectives.

Craig Lilleyman

Craig leads the London District East Teaching School Hub, which is part of the Boleyn Trust. Designated by the DfE as one of the 87 Teaching School Hubs nationally – we work across all schools in Barking & Dagenham, Havering and Newham, as well as beyond.

We lead on the delivery of the Ambition Early Career Teacher Programme and reformed National Professional Qualifications. We have over 1500 teachers and leaders on our programmes in 2021-2022.

We also have a SCITT, now called London District East Teaching School Hub (Ofsted: Outstanding 2017). We train up to 50 primary teachers and, from September 2022, secondary teachers in shortage subjects.

We also run the local statutory Appropriate Body which assesses ECTs at the end of their induction, across our whole hub area.

Craig is a former Boleyn Trust Deputy Head Teacher and Head Teacher and leads on the ECT programme and NPQH for the Teaching School Hub.

Jacqueline Buchan, MEng(Hons), CIMA Dip MA, CertRP

Deputy Director of London District East Teaching School Hub

Jacqueline holds a Masters of Engineering in Ship Science from the University of Southampton and qualified as a Chartered Engineer. She holds a Diploma in Management Accounting (CIMA), Diploma in Finance Business Partnering (CIPFA), Certificate in School Business Management (Serco) and Certificate in Recruitment Practice (REC). Jacqueline is Deputy Director of the London District East Teaching School Hub and the Business Manager for LDE SCITT.

Martin Redfern

Director – Secondary

As Director Of Secondary, Martin works closely with school leaders on delivering the new Reformed National Professional Qualifications across London District East Teaching School Hub. He also works to support the Director of the LDE SCITT where ITTs are Secondary Based, and to support Secondary Early Career Teachers.

Martin comes from a secondary background having spent 25 years in middle and senior leadership,  both pastoral and teaching and learning, and lately as Deputy Head of a large Comprehensive school.

Sarah Bartley BSc (Hons), PGCE

Appropriate Body Advisor (Secondment)

Sarah holds a BSc (Hons) in Psychology, a PGCE in Primary Education from Goldsmiths, University of London. 

Sarah has been seconded as an Appropriate Body Advisor. 

Primary Content – Primary Content Goes Here.

Ruksara Choudhury BSc (Hons)

Appropriate Body Administrator

Ruksara holds a BSc (Hons) in Psychology with Criminology from Middlesex University. She is our NPQ and Appropriate Body Administrator.

Rosetta Robinson BA (Hons), PGCE, MA, NPQSL

ITT Lead

Rosetta holds a BA (Hons) in Music, a PGCE in Primary Education and a Masters in Education from the UCL Institute of Education. She is Co-Lead of the London District East SCITT.

Laura Moss BA (Hons), QTS

SCITT Co-ordinator

Laura holds a BA (Hons) degree and gained QTS from our SCITT in 2015. Laura is an experienced senior teacher at Tollgate Primary School and our SCITT Co-ordinator.

Karen Symons

Clara Grant Primary

I completed my 4-year BEd Biology and Education Honours degree at Exeter University St. Luke’s College in 1988 and started my career as a teacher in Ilea Division 5 in the same year.

I have worked in a range of primary schools across Tower Hamlets and taught across the primary age ranges from Nursery to Year 6. I have also held a range of responsibilities including Literacy Lead, Early Years Lead, Assistant and Deputy Head as well as being used to support failing schools both in and outside of the borough of Tower hamlets.

As the Head Teacher it is my responsibility to ensure our school is a very special place to belong to. A vibrant, inclusive and family-orientated school with a strong community ethos and rich history.

The lovely, warm, positive energy which comes from our children and adults alike is important to maintain. We are dedicated to nurturing every young person in our care, and we understand that the best way to learn is through a creative, interesting and enjoyable curriculum delivered in a kind, respectful and safe environment.

My role as a leader is to ensure every child has the opportunity to be successful and leave us ready for the next stage of their education. I believe in our children, have high expectations and aspirations for them and encourage them to believe in themselves and in their own abilities and skills.

Liza Christofides

Cleves Primary School

Liza began her teaching career in 2004 in a large secondary school in Johannesburg, South Africa. Following a short trip to London, Liza decided to move to the UK where she took up a Head of Department role in a grammar school in Kent. Eleven years ago Liza began working at Tollgate Primary School, and it was here that she cemented her love for primary-age teaching and improving standards and outcomes for disadvantaged children. Liza has been fortunate enough to have worked in a variety of roles which has included supporting other schools in the capacity of SLE, SCITT Trainer, Deputy Headteacher and Designated Safeguard Lead. 

Liza become Headteacher of Cleves Primary School on 1 January 2023.

Elizabeth Harris

Monega Primary

I qualified as a teacher twenty-one years ago and for the majority of this time I have worked in Newham. I have taught across the primary age ranges and developed a specialism in inclusive education.  I have had the privilege of working in a variety of schools, as an advisory teacher for central services and as an SLE for Inclusion and SEND.

Prior to becoming the Headteacher of Monega Primary School, I spent time covering headships in both Havering and Newham.  Before headship I was a Deputy Headteacher at Tollgate Primary School, this is an outstanding school that I worked in for 18 years. 

As a leader, I ensure that Monega Primary school is a happy, inclusive, caring school, where every child matters.  I believe it is of the utmost importance that all children become enthusiastic lifelong learners. I have high expectations of all pupils and ensure that every child is a successful learner.  The exceptional staff team are determined and committed that this happens through the delivery of an excellent education in an outstanding environment.

Caroline Stone

New City Primary

I qualified as a teacher thirty-two  years ago and for most of my career I have worked in Newham. I have held a range of roles during my career including Head of Science, Deputy Head Teacher and Local Authority (LA) Adviser for the Primary and Secondary National Strategy and the lead on assessment across the LA. I worked across all the schools in Newham to embed the practices detailed by the Government. This enabled me to form good communication systems with head teachers and other senior staff and link with the local counsellors and LA officers at the time.

In 2012 I took up the position as the Deputy Head teacher at Tollgate Primary School leading on the Tollgate Teaching School Alliance and the School Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) centre at Tollgate. The SCITT later went onto achieve an outstanding Ofsted inspection. This role offered me the opportunity to utilise the skills and networks I had established at LA level to effectively lead and grow both organisations. 

In October 2016 I took up the position of the Head Teacher at New City Primary School, which at the time had received its second Requires Improvement outcome from an Ofsted inspection in May 2016.  The school has rapidly improved with exceptional teaching, learning and outcomes for all children. I passionately believe in developing a team approach to enable everyone to work well together whilst supporting the mental and physical well-being of all. New City has since become part of the Boleyn Trust in April 2018.

Simon Bond

Ravenscroft Primary

I have worked in the London Borough of Newham for over twenty years across five different settings with a number of different leadership responsibilities. In addition to my school leadership, I have also worked as the local authority Key Stage 2 Moderation Manager for two years running writing moderation for all primary settings within the borough.

I joined Ravenscroft Primary School as Deputy Head Teacher in 2007 and have been privileged to be part of a school which has developed hugely over time – growing from two to three forms of entry and establishing a highly effective and successful provision for autistic children, whilst maintaining high academic standards and enriching the lives of the children and families within our community. Since taking over the Headship of the school in 2017, I have been proud to lead the school as it continues to provide the best outcomes for our children and support for our families and community.

Having worked in close collaboration with local schools in the past, Ravenscroft joined the Boleyn Trust in April 2017 in order to cement those positive relationships and further develop opportunities for our pupils, staff and leaders. Being part of The Boleyn Trust allows us to work alongside schools who all have a drive to ensure that standards are as high as they can be and it provides us with the challenge and support in order to ensure that those high expectations are met. Crucially, the Boleyn Trust encourages our schools to maintain their unique characteristics, and this allows us to reflect and support our pupils, families and communities in the most personal and sensitive way that we can.

Lindsay Bradbury

Rosetta Primary

I have been very lucky to have worked at Rosetta Primary School for over twenty years. I am passionate about providing the very best educational experiences for the children at our school as well as supporting their families and our community. I became Deputy Head Teacher here in 2007 and Head Teacher in 2017. In addition to my responsibilities as a school leader I worked as the local authority Key Stage 2 Moderation Manager for two years leading on writing moderation for all primary schools across Newham. I am also a Lead NQT Induction Tutor for Newham providing support to NQTs, their mentors and schools across the borough.

At Rosetta we are all committed to providing an engaging, exciting and relevant education for all of our children and our children love coming to school. I am very proud of the school’s many achievements and believe this is because we work in partnership with our children, families, staff and the local and wider communities. Rosetta was recently placed in the top 1% of schools in the country for the progress the children make whilst with us. This is a fantastic achievement and one that I am extremely proud of. Although we understand the importance of academic achievement, and have high expectations for this, we also place great importance on our children’s happiness and well-being and have a brilliant pastoral provision; we are a happy school!    

In 2017 Rosetta joined the Boleyn Trust. This seemed like a natural progression for the school as we already worked very closely with the other Trust schools. Being part of the Trust allows us to work alongside like-minded schools to continue to ensure the very best educational experiences for our children as well as learning from and supporting each other.

Geoff Hadlow

Shaftesbury Primary

After a decade landscape gardening and then university, I qualified as a teacher in 1992 when I joined Kensington Primary School, in Manor Park, Newham. In the five years I was at Kensington, I held the roles of music coordinator, science coordinator and SENDCo.

In 1997 I joined St Stephen’s Primary School in Upton Park, Newham to teach in Year 6, to be computing coordinator and member of the senior leadership team. St Stephen’s at the time was led by the inspirational, Jane Johnson and Tom Canning who had a marked positive impact on my philosophy towards teaching. In 2000 I became the deputy head at St Stephen’s Primary and helped lead the school to continued success.

In 2003, I became the head teacher at Rosetta Primary School, which at the time was a school for concern to the local authority. In 2006 I led Rosetta to an ‘outstanding’ Ofsted judgment and in 2007 Rosetta was awarded the accolade of (out of 68 Schools) School Of The Year, in Newham.

In September 2003, I took on a considerable challenge when I became the head teacher of Shaftesbury Primary School: at the time also a school identified as a concern to the local authority. School improvement at Shaftesbury was steady, despite systemic, environmental and pedagogic issues; as well an inspection set back because of a failed hostile academy takeover. In 2016 however, Shaftesbury was judged to be ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted. In 2016, I was also part of a head teacher delegation, which visited China. Shaftesbury has taught mandarin ever since in partnership with the Confucius Institute.

In 2018 I lead Shaftesbury Primary through the academisation process when the school joined the Boleyn Trust.

In recent years Shaftesbury has been involved in much school to school support. For my part I’ve been a head teacher mentor, a school improvement advisor at Dersingham Primary, Newham and an acting executive head teacher, when I also led Winston Way Academy in Ilford, Redbridge for most of an academic year, while the school was transferring from being a Silver Birch school to a United Learning school. Currently I’m a local leader of education for the Boleyn Trust and am supporting an orthodox Jewish MAT in Stamford Hill, Hackney.

I’ve written for the Parliamentary Review and also written a couple of books for primary children.

For me getting behaviour, expectation, the curriculum and environment right, are the four of the five key elements of leading successful schools. Developing exceptional staff teams that sign up to these aspirations, is the fifth.

Emma O’Connor

Tollgate Primary

Emma qualified as a teacher nineteen years ago and for the majority of this time has worked in Newham. Emma has taught across the primary age ranges in and has developed a specialism in Mathematics.  I have had the privilege of working in a variety of schools, nationally as an SLE supporting with pedagogy and maintaining standards.

Prior to becoming the Headteacher of Tollgate Primary, I was seconded to Monega Primary as Head of School which had just been judged as serious weaknesses by Ofsted and worked alongside other trust employees raise attainment of Teaching and Learning across all subject areas.

As the Headteacher of Tollgate I want to ensure that all children regardless of ability and socioeconomic background achieve their full potential.  I feel privileged leading such a talented and driven team of teachers who ensure that Tollgate remains in the top 3% nationally for outcomes and standards.