Board Members

Rachel joined the College in 2015 in the role of Vice Principal before becoming Deputy Principal in 2019. Prior to her appointment as Principal, Rachel was the strategic lead for the College’s ambitious £140m estates transformation project which successfully completed in 2022, delivering industry standard facilities. Rachel started her career at the FE Funding Council (FEFC) where she spent 9 years, including leading investigations into underperforming colleges and overseeing the smooth transition from the FEFC to the Learning and Skills Council for all 13 Lancashire colleges. She then moved to Blackburn College, where she progressed to become Deputy Principal.

A Mancunian by birth, Dame Ann describes herself these days as a ‘philanthropist, mover & Quaker’, trying to navigate her way through life by doing least harm to people and planet. 

Ann’s teaching career in Further Education began at Wythenshawe College in 1976, whilst she was undertaking her PhD at the University of Liverpool. She enjoyed a successful career in the sector in Manchester and Derbyshire before becoming a Principal & CEO – of Milton Keynes College in 1986 and then Cambridge Regional College in 1996. In 2001, Ann joined the civil service where she was responsible for the UK government’s flagship digital learning initiatives, learndirect, UK online and gov.uk. 

Ann is currently Pro Chancellor of the University of Surrey, Chair of the City & Guilds of London Institute and from 2015-2021 and was Chair of The Scouts, the UK’s largest youth engagement charity. She is the first openly gay woman to hold these roles.  Ann is also Chair of the UK Innovation Corridor, the country’s leading sci-tech region story from London to Cambridge, Chair of The Lloyds Bank Foundation, the charity arm in England & Wales of the Lloyds Banking Group, Deputy Chair of The Prince’s Foundation, a heritage-led regeneration charity founded by HM The King, and Vice President of the FE sector’s social justice charity, the Helena Kennedy Foundation which Ann herself set up in 1998,

In 2019, Ann was named #1 LGBTQ+ public sector role model in the OUTstanding List and one of the 50 most influential women born in the North of England in the Northern Power Women Power List.  In the 2011 Birthday Honours, Ann was awarded the OBE for services to education, in 2015 ‘upgraded’ to CBE for public service, and in Jubilee Honours 2022 ‘elevated’ to the rank of Dame Commander of the British Empire, DBE for services to young people, philanthropy and charity. 

Alison’s career in HE extends over 40 years. She has held a number of senior roles in UK universities, most recently as Registrar and Secretary at the University of Salford, as interim University Secretary at Durham University and as interim Deputy Secretary at the University of Leeds. She has worked with other higher education institutions and agencies nationally and internationally on project and consultancy work.

Her roles have encompassed Executive responsibility for Student Administration, Student Experience and Support, Quality and Enhancement, School Operations, the Library, Legal and Compliance functions and supporting, guiding and advising the Chair of Council (the University’s governing body) and the wider Council.

Alison is a member of the governing body at Hartpury University and is a long-standing Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) Reviewer. She has a Master’s Degree in Higher Education from the University of Manchester.

Cheryl was formally Vice Principal for HE and Student Enhancement at Blackpool and The Fylde College. As one of the country’s largest providers of college-based higher education, B&FC was recently awarded Gold for both student experience and student outcomes, and gold overall in TEF 2023. This followed a gold rating in the previous iteration in 2017.  The college also successfully applied for and was granted Foundation Degree Awarding Powers in 2016, which were made indefinite in 2021, together with time-limited Bachelors Degree Awarding Powers.

Cheryl has worked in further education for over 20 years, across teaching, management and executive roles in two FE colleges and the Open University, with an unstinting focus on high quality learning, teaching and support, leading to individual student and apprentice success, and generating positive impacts on place and communities.  She has been a QAA reviewer, was an academic member of the TEF panel 2023, and has recently been appointed to the Office for Students quality assessor pool.

Philip was previously a senior partner in the Deloitte UK firm, having retired in 2007 after being a partner for 30 years, specialising in audit, mergers and acquisitions.  He was an elected member of the Deloitte UK Board of Partners and the first chairman of the firm’s Audit Committee.

In 2002, Philip had primary responsibility for integrating the clients, partners and staff of Arthur Andersen UK into Deloitte. From 2003 he was head of Quality and Risk Management for the UK audit practice of Deloitte until his retirement from the firm.

Philip was the President of Accountancy Europe (formerly the Federation of European Accountants (FEE)) during 2011 and 2012. He was also a member of the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board Consultative Advisory Group (IAASB CAG) and the International Ethics Standards Board Consultative Advisory Group (IESBA CAG). From 2013 until 2019, Philip was a member of the Standing Advisory Group of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) in the US.

From May 2007 to April 2015, Philip was a non-executive director of Yorkshire Building Society, where he also chaired the Audit Committee. He was a seconded member of the Audit Committee of Wellcome Trust for 9 years from 2008 and is a non-executive director of Lakeland Limited, a retail kitchenware company based in the Lake District.

He also chairs the board of governors of Cheadle Hulme School, a large independent day school in Cheshire, is a member of the Council of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland, a trustee of the Rugby Football Foundation, the charitable arm of the Rugby Football Union, and a member of the RFU Audit Committee. 

Philip has recently been appointed as chairman of the Audit Quality Board at Grant Thornton. 

John joined us as CEO in 2012. His previous roles included director and CEO positions within BT Group.

John has also held a number of non-executive positions, most recently four years on the board at Manchester Metropolitan University.

He is a member of the Remuneration Committee. John leads LTE group, shaping the strategic and operational direction of the organisation, ensuring we deliver against national priorities, remain financially sound and do so in a way that aligns with the strong values and social mission of the organisation.

Ellen serves as the Student Governor, offering her perspective as a second-year Business Management student. She has taken on various roles at UCEN, including Student Representative and Student Ambassador, and was Student of the Year Runner-Up.

Beyond her college involvement, Ellen facilitates a peer support group at Manchester Mind, where she has developed her skills in active listening and fostering inclusive spaces for discussions.