Our Executive Team
Interim CEO and Executive Lead for Secondaries - Carl Elder
Following a brief career in banking, Carl has been involved in teaching and school leadership for almost 20 years.
Often serving challenging communities, Carl became the Principal of a previously failing school in Nottingham and led it to sustained and significant improvement. Carl has witnessed first-hand the incredible impact that improving schools by improving leadership undoubtedly has; a profound impact on children and communities.
Carl has significant experience of Trust development and growth. Carl progressed from Middle Leadership to become the Director of Education in parallel with the growth of a Nottinghamshire Trust from a single academy to one with multiple schools spanning the full 3-18 age range.
Most recently, Carl has worked as an Education Consultant, providing School and Trust Improvement guidance alongside coaching and professional development for experienced leaders and those new to the teaching profession. Carl has worked with Teaching School Hubs and national providers to deliver National Professional Qualifications (NPQs) for Executive Leadership, Headship, Leading Teaching and Leading Behaviour and Culture.
Carl has a sound knowledge of the education sector, a track record of successful leadership, and a genuine interest in self-development regarding leadership theory and practice.
BSc (Hons) Mathematics, PGCE Secondary Maths, MEd Educational Leadership and Management, NPQH
Interim Deputy CEO and Executive Lead for Primaries - Ian Toon
Ian is a graduate of Nottingham Trent University and has spent 29 years in the education sector currently holding the National Professional Qualification for Headship. He began his teaching career in Nottinghamshire, working with all year groups across the Primary range. He moved into leadership as a deputy headteacher in Rutland; eventually becoming the acting headteacher of the school and proudly taking the school out of special measures to good in all areas.
Ian joined the Mowbray Education Trust as the Headteacher of Ab Kettleby School when the Trust was formed in 2014. In 2017 he took on the partner school at Somerby, to work as an executive head, and brought two governing bodies and staff teams together to work as primary partners.
In 2020 Ian took over the Headship at Brownlow School in Melton Mowbray developing a leadership team and then taking on the Executive leadership of the primaries in 2022.
Ian now works centrally as the Executive Leader for Primaries alongside his colleague for the secondaries, and together they run the school improvement team and quality assurance within the Trust Schools. Ian is also a qualified lead Ofsted Inspector within the East Midlands region.
Outside of school he enjoys playing the piano, reading, travelling and occasionally found in a gym!
Chief Finance Officer - Michael Lilley
Mike is a Chartered Accountant with a broad range of financial experience across education including Higher Education, local authority school education, and roles in both large and small Multi-Academy Trusts. Mike has previous experience as a school governor as well as holding two Trusteeships, once at Embrace Multi-Academy Trust and the other at Aspire Learning Partnership. At the latter Mike currently holds the position of Chair of Audit, Finance and Risk Committee.
He previously was in post at Soke Education Trust as CFO from August 2022 to August 2024. Mike had previously gained school finance experience in roles at Leicestershire County Council and as Finance Business Partner at St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Multi-Academy Trust.
Mike is also an accredited School Resource Management Advisor (SRMA) where he has worked with Trusts on their financial planning and governance and also taken on the role of mentor if the CFO mentoring programme.
Prior to that, Mike worked at Loughborough University, which he joined in October 2013 as a Pensions Assistant. Mike worked his way through a number of roles, including management accounting, research finance bid preparation and latterly research post-award administration.
Mike is a keen cricketer and Leicester Tigers fan.
Executive Lead for People and Development - Anna Butler
Anna studied at Liverpool University before completing her teacher training in 2002. She spent the first half of her career teaching in Manchester, progressing from secondary maths teacher to subject leadership before moving into senior leadership. With a passion for working in urban settings, Anna completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Urban Education. Anna then relocated to Leicestershire and was Vice Principal at a school in Nottingham before leading secondary maths for a Multi Academy Trust.
Anna moved to Mowbray Education Trust as Maths Lead across the primary and secondary schools over five years ago and secured SLE status and became a PD Lead with the NCETM. Her role has evolved in response to Trust priorities and now, as Executive Lead for People and Development, she oversees the professional development offer across the Trust from ITT and ECTs through to leadership and leads on recruitment and retention. Anna has recently completed an MEd in School Based Leadership and Management and a Senior Leader Level 7 Apprenticeship.
Anna is also a Visiting Fellow for Ambition Institute, facilitating on the NPQSL and ECF and is Chair of Governors for two local primary schools.
Executive Lead for Stakeholders & Partnerships - Matt Parrott
Matt graduated from the University of York with a First Class degree in Politics. After a brief career as an Estate Agent, he saw the light and completed his PGCE at The University of Manchester.
Matt has now been in schools for over 25 years having started his teaching career as a Business and ICT teacher at St John Fisher in Harrogate before joining St Aidan's as Head of Business and ICT. He went on to join the senior leadership team at George Spencer in
Nottingham, where he obtained his NPQH and where, as Vice Principal, he was part of the team that secured their outstanding OFSTED inspection and was one of the first academy conversions to take place nationally.
After Spencer, Matt was the Head of School at John Ferneley College in Melton arriving during the area age-range change and overseeing their academy conversion. He was appointed Headteacher of Shepshed High School and Hind Leys College in 2013 where he, once again, steered the schools through age-range change, school reorganisation and deficit recovery, with the emergent Iveshead School joining the Mowbray Education Trust in 2022.
Matt is currently seconded to the MET Executive Team. Matt is a life-long supporter of Leicester City and, when not in schools, can be found with his labrador, Cooper.
Executive Lead for Governance and Compliance - Sue Beasley
Following 25 years of running her own service-led business Susan changed career path to pursue a Governance professional role. Susan has worked with the Local Authority, maintained schools, federations, single and Multi-Academy Trust Governance.
As Executive Lead for Governance and Compliance at Mowbray Education Trust she oversees governance strategy and implementation and is responsible for risk related compliance processes and
accountabilities for the Trust and its schools. Susan also sits on the Nottinghamshire County Council Education Trust Board, is a chair of governors at a Nottinghamshire Primary School and chair of the Executive Board of the Nottinghamshire Association of Governors.
