This week’s movers and shakers include a football expert, keen roller skater, board game designer and flag blogger.
This column is our fortnightly guide to who is moving where in the schools community.
We are keen to hear about appointments at a senior level. Please send submissions for this section to news@schoolsweek.co.uk with ‘Movers and shakers’ in the subject line.
Martin Simpson
Chief operations officer, E-ACT
Start date: December
Current role: Director of technology, Lift Schools
Interesting fact: Martin writes Wikipedia articles about obscure footballers (the kind that usually play five games for Grimsby before fading into obscurity). One was so grateful he wrote to him to say thank you.
Jess Pearce
Principal at St Ivo Academy, Astrea Academy Trust
Start date: January
Current role: Headteacher at Trumpington Community College
Interesting fact: Jess used to play roller derby and while fear of serious injury made her give it up, she now encourages her daughter to be confident on her roller skates.
Pete Bloomfield
Trust executive leader, education, Broad Horizons Education Trust
Start date: January
Current role: Head of standards, Evolution Academy Trust
Interesting fact: Pete’s education career started as a caretaker and then teaching assistant. He is also a long-time board game designer and play-tester – collaborating with groups across Europe.
Paul Smith
Chief executive, East Midlands Education Trust
Start date: April
Current role: Chief education officer, Northern Schools Trust
Interesting fact: Paul has a twin brother and is also the parent of twin boys.
Gareth Conyard
Chair, The School Library Association
Start date: November
Concurrent role: CEO, Teacher Development Trust
Interesting fact: Gareth is a big fan of flags and has written blogs about them.
He has a specially designed Conyard family flag hanging in his front room window.
Featured mover
The Church of England’s chief education officer, Reverend Nigel Genders, has been appointed by the government to lead the adjudicator that oversees school admissions across England.
The Office of the Schools Adjudicator makes decisions about objections and variations to school admissions, as well as ruling on appeals from schools directed to admit pupils and significant changes to schools.
It comes as the government’s children’s wellbeing and schools bill will give councils the power to direct academies to admit children.
And the schools adjudicator can set the published admission number (PAN) of a school, including academies, where an objection is upheld.
Genders replaces Dr Marisa Vallely and Mr Thomas Brooke, who have been acting as interim chief schools adjudicators since May 2024.
“High standards should be for every child, in every school, in every part of the country – opening up opportunity and breaking the link between background and success,” said education secretary Bridget Phillipson.
Genders has been appointed for three years and will start on February 16. He will step down as chief education officer at the Church of England and chief executive of the National Society for Education in the new year.
Genders said the role “carries a vital responsibility to ensure fairness, transparency, and integrity in decisions that affect children, families and communities across the country.
Genders has spent 30 years in ministry, as a parish priest, school chaplain, university governor, and director of education for the Diocese of Canterbury. He was made a canon of Canterbury Cathedral in 2020.
