The network is led by the Chair, Mark Vickers MBE (CEO of Olive Academies Trust) who has held the position since 2020. Mark is supported by an Executive Group made up of 5 CEOs from across the regions.
The Executive Group is further supported by Eleanor Bernardes, who provides strategic support and additional capacity to the APSEND network.
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Executive Group
Mark Vickers MBE
Mark has held the role of Chair of the APSEND CEO Network since 2020. As the external face of the organisation, he is dedicated to ensuring effective representation for members through being a strong collective voice for the specialist sector. He works closely with the Executive Group to set the strategic direction of the network, ensuring that members feel supported and represented. Mark also plays a key role in ensuring that the network continues to work in partnership with national bodies such as the Department for Education, Ofsted and the ESFA.
Mark is the founding CEO of Olive Academies, a trust of five alternative provision academies in London and the South East that provides education to children and young people aged between 7 and 16 and is a member of the REACh (Reaching Excellence and Ambition for all Children) consortium which is the DfE’s delivery partner for its Change Programme. His work in education is rooted in his belief that schools have the potential to break historic cycles of social disadvantage and to prevent the marginalisation of vulnerable young people. Mark has been a headteacher of a secondary school, an Ofsted inspector, a school leadership consultant and was a founding trustee of the PSHE Association. His current main area of interest is how local continuums of provision can be developed to support students to be successful. Mark is also a member of the DfE’s National SEND and Alternative Provision Implementation Board.
In his spare time he loves spending time with his family as well as experiencing the highs and lows of life as a Crystal Palace fan.
Sarah Baker
Sarah has been part of the Executive Group for the APSEND CEO Network since 2020 and she is currently the Executive member with responsibility for the membership and onboarding new members. Sarah is passionate about her involvement with the network because of her belief in the power of having a collective voice for the sector, and using it to support and influence the national agenda for young people with SEND and in AP, with the aim of ultimately ensuring that these children and young people have the same opportunities as their mainstream peers.
Sarah is the founding CEO of TEAM Education Trust based in Derbyshire, which was set up in June 2019 and consists of a large special school, two Primary schools, and currently acts as the sponsor of another large special school in Rotherham. On behalf of the trust, Sarah carries out school improvement work for other specialist settings, and offers wider support to the system, including providing services covering SEND, Behaviour, Early Help, IT and school improvement across a further six schools..
Sarah’s career and ambition for young people has been shaped by her sister, who has Global Learning Delay. As a result of their shared experiences, Sarah is committed to working towards a future where education is a ‘child-first’ offer.
Christina Jones
Christina joined the APSEND Executive Group to represent the North East, and to link the network into regional APSEND groups. She is also a Trustee of Schools North East, a network of schools that work together across the region. As a member of the APSEND Executive Group, Christina leads on developing the network’s offer for members, especially in terms of building peer support networks and influencing external views of the APSEND sector.
Christina has been the CEO of River Tees Multi-Academy Trust since 2018. The Trust currently comprises of a Hospital School, a Special Free School and three Alternative Provision Academies in the North East of England. She is experienced in school improvement and has an unwavering commitment to improving the life chances of the most vulnerable learners.
Christina's main areas of interest are Attendance, Careers Education and Guidance, Measures of Performance within the specialist sector, understanding and embracing risk in specialist settings and improving quality through peer to peer support. She is a practicing Ofsted Inspector and a member of the AP Stakeholder Group.
Julian Scholefield
Julian has been part of the Executive Group for the APSEND CEO Network since 2020.
Julian is the CEO of Esteem Multi-Academy Trust, which is based in the East and West Midlands and consists mainly of special and alternative provision schools. He is also a member of the Advisory Board to the regional directors of the DfE in the East Midlands as well as being a trustee of Oasis Community Learning.
Previously, Julian was a headteacher of two special schools in Derbyshire and worked as a school improvement advisor.
Jayne Foster
Jayne joined the Executive Group in January 2023, and led the work to complete the legal structure of the network. As a member, Jayne was impressed by the quality of the event and presentations, in particular the opportunity to engage in robust dialogue with key strategic leaders from the DfE and Ofsted. She also finds the opportunity to network and share experiences and practice with colleagues in equivalent roles extremely beneficial.
Jayne is the Founding CEO of Ethos Academy Trust, which comprises five AP academies and one Special Free School and operates across three Local Authorities in West and South Yorkshire: Kirklees, Wakefield and Rotherham.
Jayne’s main areas of interest are in the development of MAT self-evaluation and peer review, and the development of coaching cultures within Trusts – a journey that she is currently on within Ethos Academy Trust!
Jim Bowyer
Jim joined the APSEND Executive Group in April 2023 because he is passionate about ensuring that AP and SEND have a voice in national education strategy discussions and decision making, and he believes that will only be possible if there is an effective partnership vehicle for enabling the sector’s voices to be heard.
Jim is the CEO of The Skylark Partnership, which specialises in hospital education. Currently, the main focus of his role is to establish and embed trust operations and persuade other Hospital Education providers to join the trust.
Jim’s main professional areas of interest are: challenging the concept that there is only one path to adulthood; helping to build organisations that hold the knowledge and expertise to help children, young people and adults learn about themselves and develop the skills to take the opportunities they get and be happy in their futures.