Corporate

Gemma leads on the College’s communications, PR, marketing, admissions, sales and stakeholder engagement strategies. Having worked in the further education sector for over 12 years she is experienced in business transformation including business growth and customer experience improvement as well as in lobbying and shaping government policies. Gemma has studied at Warwick University, Said Business School – Oxford University, Babson College in the USA and is shortly starting her MBA with Arden University. She has a real passion for the learner experience and the transformative power of education.

Sue is an enthusiastic and experienced Board member and qualified Coach, having had a variety of roles in the NHS, the private sector and as a Trustee in charities.

Sue now holds a number of roles – she is a qualified Coach, with her own business focussed on career and executive coaching. She is also Chair of the National Ambulance Staff Charity based in Coventry. Sue is currently a Non-Executive Director at Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Trust too, where she Chairs the Finance and Resources Committee.

She recently held the role of Chief Executive of the East Midlands Ambulance Service for two and a half years, where she drove a major organisational improvement programme, with a major focus on improving staff wellbeing. A Chartered Accountant by background, she was also a Finance Director for over ten years in a number of different NHS organisations. Including a number of mergers and reorganisations.

A former footballer with Coventry City FC, Dave is now manager for Coventry City in the Community, and runs the club’s community programme. Dave was a governor at Henley College Coventry ahead of merger.

Tony is Managing Director at Foleshill Metal Finishing, an established manufacturing company in Coventry. He is also a magistrate for Coventry and Warwickshire Magistrates’ Court. Tony chairs our Resources’ Committee, and was on Henley College’s Corporation and City College/Henley College Shadow Board ahead of merger.

Anne works at Coventry City Council within Education and Skills as a Senior Adviser for Education Improvement 11-19(25) and also has a part-time role at Warwickshire County Council. Anne’s background is in education, teaching and lecturing in schools, FE and HE; within an awarding organisation developing and managing qualifications; and for the last 12 years education roles within local authorities.

Anne was previously a governor at Henley College Coventry prior to merger and currently chairs the Education and Standards Committee.

Experienced chief executive who worked in colleges for over thirty years.George has been a Principal in two large colleges. Trained originally as a chef then became a lecturer and senior manager. Passionate about how colleges can transform lives and create opportunities. Enjoys travelling and good food.

Rebecca is a barrister practising in Birmingham. Originally from a village in Cambridgeshire, Rebecca moved to Coventry in 2005 to attend university where she completed a BA(Hons) in History and Psychology. Rebecca thereafter attended the College of Law (now the University of Law) and completed the Graduate Diploma in Law and the Bar Vocational Course whilst working at a local financial institution. After being called to the Bar in 2010, Rebecca has held a number of positions in the law, both self-employed and employed, and completed an LL.M in Legal Professional Practice (specialising in Commercial Law) and an MSc in Law, Business and Finance together with the Legal Practice Course and Higher Rights of Audience in both civil and criminal law. Rebecca was the first generation in her family to attend university and has faced various challenges along the way that resulted in her taking an unusual route to the bar, seeing her qualify as a Fellow of CILEx and a solicitor as well as a barrister. As well as her day-to-day work, Rebecca is involved with various universities and schools to assist with mentoring students and providing advice to anyone who is considering a career in the law.

I was born and raised in Coventry, not far from the City site. I live in Coventry and have three children and three grandsons.
I have worked at Coventry College (previously City College) since 2005. For most of that period, I have delivered functional skills English, mathematics and ICT as part of vocational apprenticeships. At present I am delivering functional mathematics to full time students. This has given me the opportunity to engage with staff and students from most of the schools across the college.
For the 10 years previous to being employed by the college, I worked with the Retail Motor Industry (ReMIT), co-ordinating apprenticeships within the motor trade across the West Midlands. Some of this involved dealing with the college from a ‘customer’ point of view, as many apprenticeships were sent by ReMIT to City College for their off the job training.
My first career was as a police officer in the West Midlands Police Force and I served the whole time in Coventry, both at Stoney Stanton Road and Little Park Street stations.
I have always given 100% when helping students achieve their goals and believe that this also reflects the efforts of the great majority of existing teaching staff at the college. I believe close links between teaching staff, governors and management are not only desirable but are absolute necessities where the future of the college is concerned.
I am delighted to able to get involved in the development of any future college strategies which establish not only a growth in student numbers and popularity, but also confirms Coventry College’s reputation as a deliverer of quality education within the sector.

Henry has worked in the Education & Training arena in the Midlands for forty years, and is currently Head of Education & Employability and member of the senior management team at the English Football League Trust. Previously, Henry spent nine years with government agencies, first the Learning & Skills Council, as its Director of Learning in the Black Country, and then with the Skills Funding Agency as its lead for the £400m West Midlands ESF Skills programme, and for Quality & Intervention, serving on national ESF, 14-19, NEET, and Quality groups. Before joining the LSC, Henry spent twenty-five years teaching and managing in further education colleges with roles including deputy principal, director of quality & standards, higher education manager, and A Level manager, and taught English to a wide range of students, foundation through to post grad. Henry trained as an Adult Learning/OfSTED inspector.

Thomas Crane is the General Counsel of Coventry Building Society, the UK’s second largest society. He had responsibility for legal, data protection, corporate governance and procurement matters at Coventry. Thomas is a member of the Audit Committee.

Sarfraz Nawaz is the Finance Director for Ofwat, the regulator for the water industry in England and Wales. He has held a number of financial leadership roles across the public sector including the NHS and Coventry City Council where he led on a number of transformation projects.

A qualified Accountant with the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA), he is currently a member of the CIPFA Governments Board.

With over 25 years’ experience in HR, Jemma joined SSP Limited in March 2017 and is responsible for global human resources. Jemma previously worked for the Royal Institution for Chartered Surveyors as Head of HR for six years, where she was key in leading change to support the organisation in becoming one of the Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For. In her early career, Jemma worked with Domestic & General Insurance to set up a 24/7 contact centre service for its Domestic Appliance insurance product and spent 10 years with TUI Travel (Lunn Poly, Thomson Holidays, First Choice), leading the HR support for its retail outlets and contact centres.

Anthony is an independent consultant and interim senior manager working in the Education and Skills Sector. He has over 20 years of experience in leadership and management in Further Education, and specialises in strategic planning, information management and the use of digital technologies. Anthony is a member of the Finance and Resources Committee.

Donna Kendell is the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Student Journey) at Coventry University responsible for strategic developments and high-level programme and project planning across the University Group.

This includes line management of the Strategic Transformation Office, oversight of appraisal evaluation and control measures, provision of infrastructure and resources, as well as planned programmes of activity for key strategic developments.

Donna was previously Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Continuous Improvement) and Director of Human Resources at Coventry University. Prior to joining Coventry, Donna was director of Human Resources and Organisational Development for a London-based NHS organisation and has held a number of senior positions in the field of human resource management.

I have worked in the FE sector for the past 20 years in various roles- training co-coordinator, NVQ assessor, tutor and more recently as a placement coordinator; concentrating on the vocational/ practical elements of a study programme. I started my vocational career in Early Years and have always considered a ‘child/ student first’ approach to be best, and believe our students deserve the right support to be able to achieve their full potential whilst they are with us.