Members & Trustees

Andy is KPMG’s Head of Midlands Devolved Government and Infrastructure. He leads KPMG’s regional engagement with the West Midlands Combined Authority.

Andy is a member of the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce Council informing its decisions around skills, transport infrastructure and its relationship with the LEP. A fluent German speaker he previously led KPMG’s Transaction Services business in the Midlands and has extensive experience of heading up large complex projects such as KPMG’s work for Ford on the disposal of Aston Martin and Jaguar Land Rover.

Andy also heads KPMG’s Midlands CSR activity with a focus on social mobility and access to careers in the professional services sector.

Monder is the Director of Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship (CREME), Co-Director of the Enterprise and Diversity Alliance (EDA) and Director of the Enterprise and Diversity Cluster based in the Business School at the University of Birmingham. Monder has extensive experience of working in, researching and acting as a consultant to small and ethnic minority businesses. Monder is a leading authority on small business and ethnic minority entrepreneurship research and has published widely on the subject. Monder regularly speaks at conferences across the world on the importance and value of ethnic minority businesses and has also advised Government on this. Monder is responsible for initiating the annual Ethnic Minority Business Conference in 1998, which has developed into the most important event in the calendar for disseminating policy and research on ethnic minority firms. Monder has held visiting positions at the Industrial Relations Research Unit at Warwick University, and the Herbert Felix Visiting Professor at Lund University in Sweden. Monder was named as one of the country’s most influential Asians by the Institute of Asian Professionals and was awarded an OBE in the 2004 New Year Honours List for his services to black and ethnic minority businesses.

Adrian was appointed Executive Principal of Park View Educational Trust, now CORE Education Trust, in 2014. He became the CEO in 2016 and the Group CEO in 2022.

Prior to this, from 2012, Adrian was the founding Principal of Everton Alternative Provision Free School and 6th Form College.

From 2010, Adrian was part of the founding team of Birmingham Ormiston Academy (BOA), an arts academy set up in partnership with The BRIT School where Adrian was the Director of Musical Theatre from 1999.

Adrian set up the CORE & Co Foundation in 2020, a charitable organisation which supports children, young people and families through collaborative partnership initiatives.

Adrian is an independent Councillor for the LTA and an Honorary Fellow at the University of Birmingham.

Tom is currently the Head of Children, Young People and Education at the Lawn Tennis Association and Tennis Foundation. He is also a serving governor at a primary school in the Midlands.

He has extensive experience of partnership working with a range of providers including the DfE. Tom also has a background in business development and event management and has spent the last ten years working in a range of Education roles within the Tennis Foundation and Lawn Tennis Association.

Tom is passionate about the four core values of CORE Education Trust and hopes he will be able to utilise the experience he has gained in his professional career to help the trust, its schools and its pupils to be successful.

Laura is an FCA-authorised Independent Financial Adviser at Mazars LLP. Laura is responsible for Midlands-based clients and has experience advising a wide range of private clients, from senior partners, directors and business owners through to independently wealthy individuals.

As Birmingham Young Professional of the Year 2018, Laura acted as a national ambassador for Birmingham and is committed to improving the financial literacy of the city, in particular working alongside schools to develop key skills and self-development opportunities. Alongside studying her Executive MBA at Aston Business School, Laura participates in numerous initiatives to support young people, all contributing towards the goal of creating a supportive environment in which all who live and work in the region can thrive.

Dr Lynne Morris CBE has spent 40 years in education, 30 of them in Senior Leadership. During her career she has served in seven schools; secondary modern, grammar, comprehensives and sixth form colleges. In 1988, after Deputy Headship in a large 11-18 comprehensive school in Walsall, she became Headteacher of Aston Manor School, and in 1997 she was appointed as Principal of Joseph Chamberlain Sixth Form College in Highgate. Under her leadership the college achieved a Grade 1 Ofsted, and won the Queens Anniversary Prize for exceptional contribution to Further and Higher Education.

Lynne is a Life Fellow of the RSA. During her career she served on the National Council of the LSC and was a Board Member of Partnership for Schools. In 2005 she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Birmingham, and in 2006 she received a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for outstanding services to education. She project managed the building of the new £40m campus for Joseph Chamberlain College which won the Prime Minister’s Prize for the Best Public Building in 2009.

In retirement, Lynne has continued with local school governorship and is a long standing Trustee of Birmingham Ethnic and Education Advisory Service (BEEAS).

Justin Eniola is the founder of Coborn Coffee Co, a coffee roaster dedicated to redressing the gender imbalance in the coffee industry. Justin is a former experienced senior school leader. He holds a firm belief that children should be taught by professionals of the highest quality within the framework of an engaging and stimulating curriculum. With this in mind, Justin’s own involvement in ensuring that this takes place has led to him overseeing the induction process of Early Career Teachers; the Initial Teacher Training of student teachers; and the development of qualified teachers.

Justin has been involved with the governing of inner city schools both primary and secondary for a number of years. His unwavering commitment to making a difference in communities  has gone some way to improve the lives of children and young people. Justin is keen to bring his educational experience and oversight of complex safeguarding issues in his role as a governor to the CORE Education Trust.  

Adrian was appointed Executive Principal of Park View Educational Trust, now CORE Education Trust, in 2014. He became the CEO in 2016 and the Group CEO in 2022.

Prior to this, from 2012, Adrian was the founding Principal of Everton Alternative Provision Free School and 6th Form College.

From 2010, Adrian was part of the founding team of Birmingham Ormiston Academy (BOA), an arts academy set up in partnership with The BRIT School where Adrian was the Director of Musical Theatre from 1999.

Adrian set up the CORE & Co Foundation in 2020, a charitable organisation which supports children, young people and families through collaborative partnership initiatives.

Adrian is an independent Councillor for the LTA and an Honorary Fellow at the University of Birmingham.

Jo is a co-founder of CORE Education Trust. In 2022, she was appointed as the CEO, having previously served as the Chief Operating Officer and Deputy CEO. Prior to this, Jo had worked as a senior leader at school and trust level, gaining considerable experience working as a Director of Business and Finance in many varied and challenging circumstances. Before working in the education sector, Jo had a successful career as a contract manager within the private sector.

Jo mentors and coaches other leaders and works with national organisations to inform best practice. Her areas of expertise range from governance to people development; change management to complex project delivery. She has a particular interest in curriculum design and resource management.

Jo completed her MBA in Education Management in 2023. She writes articles for education publications and regularly contributes to government policy making.

Jo’s contributions to the education of children in the West Midlands was acknowledged in 2022 when she was awarded the honour of baton bearer for the Birmingham Commonwealth Games.

Abby Morris started her teaching career as an English teacher sixteen years ago. In this time, Abby has undertaken middle and senior leader roles in schools in the West Midlands. Abby’s last senior leadership post was as Vice Principal in charge of Leadership and Management and Quality of Education at Bristnall Hall Academy, the highest performing secondary provider within its local authority and trust.

Most recently, Abby has worked as an Executive Leader in two large Multi Academy Trusts where she led the establishment of two professional development institutes and supported a number of academies out of category and into good or outstanding judgments. Abby has also undertaken the role of Expert Advisor for the Teacher Development Trust, writing and quality assuring content for the National Professional Qualifications.

Abby’s leadership philosophy is, to be the best we can be for the young people we serve, we must forever be on our own learning journey. In addition to her responsibilities for the professional development of others, Abby has completed a master’s in education degree and an MBA in Education Management.

At CORE, Abby is responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of the education strategy and its impact on educational outcomes and standards in CORE schools.  Abby firmly believes it is through the development of colleagues that we unlock improvement. Thus, she is also responsible for CORE’s people-powered professional development strategy

Rula Kanona is a Civil Engineering graduate with 13 years’ experience in education. After qualifying as a maths teacher, and developing through a series of roles within schools in Birmingham, she was appointed Assistant Headteacher at King Edwards VI Handsworth Wood Girls’ Academy. Throughout her career, she has taken great pleasure in supporting young people from challenging backgrounds to secure places on competitive STEM courses at some of the country’s leading universities.

Rula is an advocate of research-informed practice and is committed to ensuring that all young people within Birmingham receive the highest quality learning experience. She has led many Initial Teacher Trainees (ITTs) and Early Career Teachers (ECTs) through their learning journeys and is proud of the subsequent success they have gone on to achieve. As a senior leader of a school within a large Birmingham trust, she successfully developed and implemented a unique professional learning programme for a wide range of colleagues. Her work in maths education has also extended to supporting partner schools as both a Specialist Leader of Education (SLE) and a Local Leader of Mathematics Education (LLME) for the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics (NCETM).

She is studying for an MA in Educational Leadership, through which she will continue to develop her knowledge and relationships with sector leads for the benefit of the students she serves.

At CORE, Rula will use her knowledge and experience to codify teaching and learning, and deliver high-quality professional development to support colleagues across all four schools to develop excellence in their teaching practice.