Meet the OCL Board

 

Caroline Taylor OBE, Chair of the Board 

Caroline joined the board of OCL in October 2021, having previously servd on the boards of the Oasis Charitable Trust and Oasis Inernational, and as Chair of Stop the Traffik, a charity which is pioneering intelligence-led prevention of human trafficking and modern slavery. 

Caroline is a senior business executive who has spent more than 30 years leading large, complex organisations in the technology sector. She retired from IBM in 2020, where she was the Chief Marketing Officer for IBM’s international business operations, gaining deep experience of transforming organisations and developing teams across the globe. 

In the January 2017 New Year Honours, Caroline was awarded an OBE in recognition of her business achievements, as well as her work on diversity and inclusion, and contributing to the prevention of human trafficking.  

 

 Andrew Simmonds, Vice Chair of the Board

Andy is a member of the OCL Board and chairs our Audit and Risk Committee. He is a qualified chartered accountant and was, until 2013, a partner in Deliotte. In addition to monitoring the executive risk management programme, the Audit and Risk Committee maintains its own Trustee-orientated risk register which drives specific monitoring actions at OCL Board meetings.  

Andy is also a Trustee of OCL’s subsidiary company, Oasis IT Services.

N.B The Chair of the A&R Committee is the link Trustee for Whistleblowing and this responsibility is managed via the Board governance calendar which informs the agendas.

 

 

Stan Chan, Chair of the Finance Committee 

Stan is a chartered accountant and has held senior finance roles in listed companies and their subsidiaries: he now provides freelance consulting on strategic and financial matters in the for-purpose sector. Stan is an experienced board trustee and chair of finance, audit and risk committees in organisations reflecting his interests in building communities to create better places. Stan is on the board of CBF Funds, a National Investing Body (NIB) of the Church of England, overseeing c.£3bn of investments for Anglican churches and charities. He is also on the board of Better Society Capital, the UK’s leading social impact investor and market builder. 

 

 

Jayne Keller, Chair of Curriculum & Learning Committee and Careers Link Trustee

Jayne joined the board in May 2024 and has been working in education for more than twenty years, with over half of that time spent in school leadership roles. Previously a headteacher and executive headteacher, Jayne is currently a Director of a Multi-Academy Trust in the South West. With extensive experience as an Ofsted Inspector and school improvement leader, Jayne has a deep understanding of educational standards and excellence. Passionate about the power of collaboration and schools working together, Jayne has worked with numerous local and national networks of schools. This work included chairing the education advisory group of a partnership of more than 400 schools across the country. 

 

Andy Blundell, MBE

Andy is a retired primary headteacher. He is married with two children and five grandchildren. During his 37 years in education, he was head of three Kent primary schools. He was also briefly an executive head in Tunbridge Wells and spent some time as an Ofsted inspector. 

Andy was a volunteer with the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award for 40 years and ran the Tonbridge Gold Open Award Centre.  A keen mountaineer, he specialised in preparing young people for their gold expeditions in wild country.  He was awarded an MBE in 2015 for services to young people. 

 

 

Ann Holt, OBE, OCL Trustee

Ann was the Director of Education for the Diocese of Chichester. She was previously Director of External Relations for the Bible Society. She has spent all her working life involved with education, starting her careers as a history teacher and has also worked at the Department for Education (DfE). Throughout this time she has been a governor of several schools, primary, secondary and nursery. 

Ann has been a national trainer and consultant to Local Education Authorities, the DfE, and independent schools, Adamson Books have published her book ‘Joined-up Governance,’ co-authored with Jane Martin. 

                                                  Ann is also a Trustee of Oasis Restore.

 

Dave Rasmussen, OCL and Health & Safety Link Trustee

Dave joined the Board in March 2020 and has over 30 years’ experience of the public sector. He has led teams in the Home Office, Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) and Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC). He leads work at local, regional, national and international level: and at operational, policy and strategy level. Since 2017, Dave has worked as Head of Agents and Insight, Customer Compliance at HMRC. Between 2013-2017 Dave worked as Head of Crime Strategy and External Relations at HMRC. 

 

Rachel Arthur, OCL Trustee & Safeguarding Link Trustee 

Rachel Arthur joined the OCL Board in March 2023. She previously worked at OA Oldham and she was Head of Computing at Teach First, where she was responsible for the initial teacher training programme in computing. Before teaching, she worked at PwC in cyber security and she has a strong interest in the way that education technology can support all pupils. She joined Raspberry Pi Foundation as Chief Learning Officer in 2024.

 

 

 

Dr Gordon Carver, OCL Trustee 

Gordon joined the Board in March 2023 and has worked for the past sixteen years in the education sector as a management consultant and senior leader, including PwC, GEMS Education, and Capita. Gordon’s past ventures include establishing a girls’ education charity in Ghana, and a primary school chain in Tanzania (Silverleaf Academy). Gordon is also a Trustee of Lively Minds, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA). 

 

 

 

Yvette Hutchinson, OCL and Inclusion Link Trustee

Yvette is the Research Engagement Lead for the British Council’s Education and School Education team. Yvette spent the first years of her career teaching English. After graduate studies in the US, she returned to the UK to lead a Supplementary School and then lecture in Education Studies and Teacher Training. Yvette has worked for Local Authorities as a School Improvement Adviser and led the programme for Early Career Teachers in Oxfordshire.

 

Dr Grace Healy, OCL Trustee

Grace joined the OCL Board in May 2024. In her role as Director of Education at the Chartered College of Teaching, Grace holds strategic leadership of the Education and Research directorate, spanning membership, publishing, research, Chartered status, and professional learning and accreditation. Grace has held various teaching and leadership roles, including as Education Director for a large MAT. Grace completed her PhD at UCL Institute of Education and holds a National Professional Qualification in Executive Leadership. She is an Honorary Associate Professor at UCL and Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Oxford. 

 

Robert Allen, OCL Trustee

Rob joined the OCL Board in March 2023 and has spent his career working in and with the public sector in roles spanning performance improvement, transformation and policy and strategy. Rob is Deloitte’s lead for performance and delivery across government and has led improvements in risk management and governance across a wide range of public sector organisations, typically in the context of reform and change. Rob is past Chair of the Board of Carers Network, a charity supporting unpaid carers across London, and is actively involved in a number of community development initiatives in his hometown of Scunthorpe.  

 

        

Micheál Griffiths , OCL Trustee

Micheál has over 14 years of experience working across education, inclusion, SEND, and with children and young people labelled NEET, with a particular focus on those most at risk of being overlooked by the systems designed to support them. Her career spans senior SEND leadership in local authority settings, her current role at SHiFT, where she works at the intersection of education and youth justice, and her consultancy Baselaos, where she supports organisations and systems to think and work differently for children and young people. Micheál is committed to the idea that every child deserves to be properly seen, supported, and given the conditions to belong, and she joins the OCL board as SEND Link Trustee to help ensure that commitment is reflected in strategy, governance, and practice.

 

 

                                                                                                                   

                                                                                                                                                                       

                                                    Richard Quirk, OCL Trustee

Richard is a General Practitioner and Board Director in the NHS. He has been a governor at schools in London and Sussex for over 20 years and has a passion for education unlocking the potential of every young person to achieve their God given potential. He is particularly interested in how health and education interact in serving our communities.

Richard is married with two children and supports the ministry of the church in his home town of Crawley.

                                                   

 

                                                                                                                                                                           

                                                        Mark Orrell, OCL Trustee

Mark is a now retired Chartered Accountant and has held roles in practice, industry as well as being one of the founder members of staff of Oasis Community Learning, supporting the development of the trust to its current shape and size. He has extensive experience in the financial aspects of the academies sector working alongside the CFOs of the largest academies trusts. Mark and his wife have (at present count) 7 grandchildren.

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                             

                                                    Jo Southby, OCL Trustee

Jo is CEO of Illuminate Minds Trust.  She was previously Director of Education for an SEND/ AP specialist trust and has substantial experience in executive leadership spanning SEND, alternative provision and the secure estate.  As an NLE and executive coach, she is committed to aspirational school improvement, professional growth and widening experiences for under-served and vulnerable individuals.

Jo’s lifelong interest in social justice and the power of holistic education to transform live has been the catalyst for her interest in becoming an OCL trustee.  Jo has three children and lives in Kent.

 

 

                                                                                                                                                      

                                                     Richard James, OCL Trustee

Richard brings over 25 years of senior leadership experience within the youth, community, housing, and education sectors. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, with a Masters in Youth, Education and Applied Theology, he has devoted his career to empowering young people and building stronger communities.

Richard currently serves as Chief Executive at YMCA St Paul’s Group, working in a highly regulated sector, overseeing supported housing, youth, and community services across London and South East. He also plays a key part in shaping and implementing YMCA’s strategic initiatives throughout England and Wales. Previously, Richard was Chief Executive at YMCA London South West, following nine years as Director at the Christian youth charity Oxygen.

 

 

Claudia Cusack (née Hardy), Governance Professional & Company Secretary