We are pleased to welcome five new appointments to the charity’s Board of Trustees. This includes a new Chair of Trustees, Michele Sutton CBE who takes over the position from the charity’s interim chair Dr Chris Wilson. Michele, a former President of the Association of Colleges, brings extensive experience from the further education sector to the role, having previously held Chief Executive positions at Bournville College Birmingham and the Bradford College Group.
Also appointed to the Board are:
- Fiona Forbes, founder of Off the Fence Marketing. Fiona brings 20 years of marketing experience to the charity and her skills in communication and fundraising strategy will help to serve the Get Further mission.
- Chioma Etienne, Chief of Staff at Ark. Chioma is a former Engagement Manager with McKinsey & Company, and Director of Programmes for youth-employment charity, Generation, bringing a wealth of strategy experience to the Board.
- John Peel, Study Coach at Abingdon and Witney College. As well as frontline experience of working in the further education sector, John has successfully managed sales and marketing teams in the UK and the US, including for Pearson Education.
- Laura Roberts, Head of Brand & Marketing Insight EMEA, Google. Laura plays a central role in strategy development for Google marketing priority campaigns, including Grow with Google, a digital skills training programme. Prior to this, she ran the brand and insight consultancy, Sparkler.
The new trustees join the three founding trustees, Dr Chris Wilson, Natasha Porter and Jack Davidson, to form the Get Further Board.
CEO Sarah Waite said:
“We are delighted to welcome Michele, Fiona, Chioma, John and Laura to Get Further’s Board of Trustees. Their experience and ideas, from working in further education to marketing, fundraising, and leadership, will benefit the charity significantly, as we prepare to extend our reach to help more students to get back on track. Alongside their knowledge and skillsets, each of the trustees is extremely passionate about ensuring that young people from disadvantaged backgrounds in further education are supported to overcome barriers and unlock opportunities for future study and work.”