Co-op Academies Trust

Russell Gill | Chair of the Trust Board

Current role: Head of Co-operative Relations, Co-op Group

Russell has worked for the co-operative movement since 1992 starting as a member relations officer in London and then fulfilling various management roles in Manchester with the Co-op Group. He was appointed Head of Membership in 2007, took on responsibility for Social Goals in 2013, before moving onto his current role as Head of Co-op & Local Engagement in 2018.

He is currently Chair of the Co-op Academies Trust Board and has been instrumental in the development of the Co-op’s Academies programme since its inception.

He was awarded a Masters in Management of Co-operatives & Credit Unions from Saint Mary’s University, Nova Scotia, in 2007. He is a member of the Board of Governors of The Co-operative College, a Trustee of the People’s History Museum and Chair of Eurocoop’s Co-operative Identity Working Group.

He is married with two children and lives in Todmorden, West Yorkshire.

Full Name	Russell Gill - Chair of Trust Board
Date of appointment	01/09/2022
Term of office	4 years
Date of resignation	N/A
Committee membership	Audit and Risk Committee; Finance and Resources Committee; People and Remuneration Committee
Link trustee role	West Yorkshire primary academies
Relevant business and pecuniary interests	Employee of the Co-op Group; Trustee of Co-op Group Northern Trustees Ltd
Attendance record 2022-2023	Trust Board 5/5; Audit & Risk Committee 6/6; Finance Committee 5/5; Growth & Development Committee 4/5; Outcomes Committee 4/4; Remuneration Committee 3/3; Chairs’ Committee 0/0

Arati Patel-Mistry

Current role: Schools Engagement Manager, Department for Education

Arati has been employed by the Department for Education since 2018, currently as Schools Engagement manager and previously in the role of Senior Case Officer for the Education and Skills Funding Agency. Prior to this, she undertook a number of roles for and within Multi-Academy Trusts, including as Community and Regeneration Manager, and Project Manager. She brings to the role of Trustee a passion for improving communities and the lives of children and young people through education.

Full Name	Arati Patel-Mistry
Date of appointment	01/09/2021
Term of office	4 years
Date of resignation	N/A
Committee membership	Audit and Risk Committee
Link trustee role	Merseyside academies
Relevant business and pecuniary interests	Chair of Governors at The Heys Primary School, Manchester, since 1 September 2003
Attendance record 2022-2023	Trust Board 4/5; Growth & Development Committee 5/5

Tim Cutting

Current role: Director of Corporate Development, Co-op Group

Tim has worked at the Co-op for over 10 years having previously been an Assistant Director in the Corporate Finance team at Deloitte where he completed his ACA accountancy qualifications. He has extensive experience operating at board level in large complex regulated organisations and a strong track record of leading businesses through critical transformational change, particularly as a result of strategic programmes, transactions or large scale commercial arrangements.
Tim is currently the Chair of the Finance and Resources Committee for the Co-op Academies Trust, as well as having a number of other non-executive roles.

Tim is married with two daughters and lives in the Ribble Valley, Lancashire.

Full Name	Tim Cutting
Date of appointment	01/09/2022
Term of office	4 years
Date of resignation	N/A
Committee membership	Audit and Risk Committee; Finance and Resources Committee (Chair)
Link trustee role	Greater Manchester academies
Relevant business and pecuniary interests	Employee of the Co-op Group since 1 September 2012; Spouse is an employee of Deloitte LLP since 1 June 2021
Attendance record 2022-2023	Trust Board 5/5; Audit & Risk Committee 6/6; Finance Committee 5/5; Remuneration Committee 2/3; Chairs’ Committee 0/0

Mahmood Ahmed

Current Role: Deputy Director of Education at the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) (Department for Education)

A highly experienced education funding professional, with eleven years of experience in senior funding allocations roles at the ESFA and Education Funding Agency (EFA). This has encompassed regional funding allocation roles in the North of England and national roles relating to post-16 funding. In his present role, he oversees the allocation of a schools’ budget in excess of £60 billion.

Prior to joining the ESFA/EFA, he held senior business roles at the Young People’s Learning Agency for England (the government department responsible for allocating post-16 funding prior to the creation of the EFA) and spent several years as a business manager at National Training Services, where his role centred around the delivery of apprenticeships.

Full Name	Mahmood Ahmed
Date of appointment	01/06/2023
Term of office	4 years
Date of resignation	N/A
Committee membership	Finance and Resources Committee
Link trustee role	West Yorkshire secondary academies; Post-16 academies
Relevant business and pecuniary interests	Civil servant employee of the Department for Education since 22 May 2023; Spouse is an employee of Cheadle Hulme High School since 1 July 2023
Attendance record 2022-2023	Trust Board 1/2

Ruth Welford

Current Role: Assistant Director with Barnardo’s

Ruth has 20 years’ service with Barnado’s, with significant knowledge and experience around safeguarding and inclusion. Ruth is also an experienced board and committee member, having sat both as a Chair and Vice Chair as well as Board/group member holding regulated positions, for example as Adoption Panel Chair.

Full Name	Ruth Welford
Date of appointment	01/05/2023
Term of office	4 years
Date of resignation	N/A
Committee membership	Finance and Resources Committee; People and Remuneration Committee
Link trustee role	Safeguarding; Greater Manchester academies
Relevant business and pecuniary interests	Governor at Bradshaw Hall Primary School, Cheadle Hulme, since 1 November 2020
Attendance record 2022-2023	Trust Board 2/2

Gill Gardner

Current Role: Head of Legal, Co-op Group

Currently, Gill is Head of Legal at Co-op Group leading a team of in-house lawyers, across key legal disciplines, who support all Co-op’s businesses. This follows her appointment in 2015 as Co-op’s first Council Secretary heading up the secretariat for the National Members’ Council.

Before this, Gill’s legal career was as a partner in private practice as a company and commercial lawyer.

Full Name	Gillian Gardner
Date of appointment	13/09/2023
Term of office	4 years
Date of resignation	N/A
Committee membership	Audit & Risk Committee (Chair)
Link trustee role	N/A
Relevant business and pecuniary interests	Employee of the Co-op Group since 28 September 2015; Director of The Grocery Girls (a not for profit organisation) since 16 August 2021.
Attendance record 2022-2023	N/A

Sarah Baker

Current Role: CEO (and founder) of TEAM Education Trust (comprising two primary schools and a special school)

A former secondary school geography teacher who then specialised in supporting children with special educational needs (SEN). As well as her CEO role, Sarah currently holds various advisory roles around SEN including being involved with the SEND National Network that advises the Department for Education on SEND policy.

Full Name	Sarah Baker
Date of appointment	01/05/2023
Term of office	4 years
Date of resignation	N/A
Committee membership	N/A
Link trustee role	Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND); West Yorkshire special academies
Relevant business and pecuniary interests	Governor at Rufford Primary School, Nottingham, since 1 December 2017; CEO of TEAM Education Trust since 1 June 2020; Executive on the AP SEND Executive Group since 1 September 2021
Attendance record 2022-2023	Trust Board 1/2

Claire Costello

Current Role: Chief People and Inclusion Officer, Co-op Group

Claire was formerly Chief Procurement Officer for the Co-op Group, and covered responsibilities relating to both Procurement and People on an interim basis until September 2023.

Claire was previously employed by Asda for 22 years with roles including Head of Procurement, Head of New Business Projects and General Manager.

Full Name	Claire Costello
Date of appointment	01/09/2023
Term of office	4 years
Date of resignation	N/A
Committee membership	People and Remuneration Committee (Chair)
Link trustee role	People; West Yorkshire primary academies
Relevant business and pecuniary interests	Nothing to declare
Attendance record 2022-2023	N/A

Sarah Findlay-Cobb

Current Role: CEO Landau Forte Charitable Trust (two primary schools, three secondary school and a sixth form college)

Sarah started her career as a primary school teacher and went on to be a leading teacher for the local authority, then a primary headteacher and then the head of an all-through school (ages 4-16). She then became a Regional Director in REAch2 Academies Trust, taking on her current role in 2018.

Full Name	Sarah Findlay-Cobb
Date of appointment	01/05/2023
Term of office	4 years
Date of resignation	N/A
Committee membership	People and Remuneration Committee
Link trustee role	Staffordshire academies
Relevant business and pecuniary interests	CEO of Landau Forte Charitable Trust
Attendance record 2022-2023	Trust Board 1/2

Melanie Wicks

Current Role: Executive Principal / Director of Education at Stamford Park Trust

Melanie is a qualified science teacher with over 25 years’ of experience in education, including over 15 years in senior leadership. She is currently an Executive Principal / Director of Education in a small multi-academy trust. Melanie has worked in several secondary schools across Greater Manchester and has gained considerable experience as a senior leader, including as a headteacher, a system leader supporting other local schools, and as a Chair of Governors for a pupil referral unit and medical education service. Melanie is a current Ofsted inspector and member of Tameside Education Attainment Improvement Board.

Full Name	Melanie Wicks
Date of appointment	15/03/2024
Term of office	4 years
Date of resignation	N/A
Committee membership	N/A
Link trustee role	N/A
Relevant business and pecuniary interests	Employee of Stamford Park Trust since 18 April 2021
Attendance record 2022-2023	N/A

Previous Trust Board Directors

Shaheen Myers | Date of resignation - 18/10/2022

Gill Robinson OBE | Date of resignation - 30/11/2022

Mags Bradbury | Date of resignation - 31/08/2023

Jane Cowell | Date of resignation - 31/08/2023

Patsy Kane | Date of resignation - 26/06/2023

Dave Robertson | Date of resignation - 16/08/2023

Sarah Barton | Date of resignation - 12/09/2023

Our Committees

The Trust Board has three committees. You can check out the terms of reference for each one below.

Audit and Risk Committee

Finance and Resources Committee

People and Remuneration Committee

Scheme of Delegation

Trust Board

The Trust Board is made up of experienced professionals who make strategic decisions for the Trust.