Principal – Miss Louisa Pritchard
Miss Pritchard is responsible for the strategic direction of the academy, focused on ensuring that all students reach their full potential both academically and personally. Miss Pritchard is also an outstanding teacher of English.
Vice Principal – Mr Jamie Grainger
Quality of Education
Mr Grainger is responsible for securing excellent Outcomes for all students at Bristnall Hall Academy. He oversees the interventions and support that have led to so many students making outstanding levels of progress, as well as our Options programme. He is also responsible for assessment recording and reporting at the academy. Mr Grainger is an outstanding teacher of Science.
Vice Principal – Mrs Kelly Carroll
Quality of Education
Mrs Carroll oversees the curriculum. She is responsible for ensuring that all students receive a curriculum that is broad, balanced, ambitious and knowledge-rich. Mrs Carroll is also an outstanding teacher of English.
Assistant Principal – Mr Luke Smith
Personal Development
Mr Smith is responsible for ensuring the academy curriculum extends beyond the academic allowing for learners to develop and discover their interests and talents through an extensive enrichment programme. He is also an outstanding teacher of Physical Education.
Assistant Principal – Mr Ian Jones
Behaviour and Attitudes
Mr Jones oversees behaviour and attitudes in the academy and has overseen the significant improvements made in these areas in recent years. He is also responsible for the promotion outstanding attendance, which has also seen continuing improvements each year. Mr Jones is an outstanding teacher of PE and Mathematics.
Assistant Principal – Mrs Sarah Herchak
Mrs Herchak is responsible for leading teaching and learning at the academy. She uses research informed practice to design effective professional development. Our staff are highly skilled and effective practitioners, but we all constantly strive to improve our practice further in order to provide the very best teaching in every lesson and in every classroom. Mrs Herchak is also an outstanding science teacher.
Assistant Principal/Designated Safeguarding Lead – Mrs Lindsay Mason
Mrs Mason is the Designated Safeguarding Lead and Designated Teacher for Looked After Children. She co-leads on Mental Health and Well-being. The Safeguarding and Pastoral team give an outstanding level of care and support to students. The PSHE curriculum is designed to ensure pupils have the knowledge and skills needed to keep themselves safe and well.
SENCO – Miss Nicola Wilkinson
Miss Wilkinson has joint responsibility for coordinating the SEND provision across the academy (SENCO). Her passion for inclusivity ensures that SEND students are fully supported throughout all aspects of academy life. Miss Wilkinson is also an outstanding teacher of Maths.
SENCO – Miss Debra Jones
Miss Jones has joint responsibility for co-ordinating SEND provision across the academy. She has a passion for ensuring that SEND pupils are able to access the curriculum effectively and achieve their full potential. Her development of staff training ensures all teachers are ‘teachers of SEND’ in accordance with the SEND Code of Practice (2015). Miss Jones is also an outstanding teacher of English.
Academy Transformation Trust CEO – Sir Nick Weller
Sir Nick joined us as CEO in November 2022. He was formerly the founding CEO of the Dixons Academies Trust in West Yorkshire and the North West, having spent most of his early career in London. Sir Nick was designated a National Leader of Education in 2009. His report to HM Treasury and DfE on schools in the Northern Powerhouse region was published in November 2016. He has an MBA from Cranfield School of Management, he was awarded a knighthood for services to education in 2015 and an honorary Doctorate from Bradford University in 2019.
Deputy CEO for Education – Mr Derek Trimmer
Derek joined us in December 2020 as Regional Education Director for Secondary West, bringing to the Trust a wealth of experience in school improvement. Most recently he was Director of Secondary for Swale Academies Trust in Kent and East Sussex where he oversaw the expansion of the Trust and supporting a number of academies out of category and into good or outstanding judgments. Before this Derek was Headteacher of Hove Park secondary school in Brighton and Hove, where he transformed the school into being one of the top 1% most improved schools nationally and was spotlighted for a highly successful one-to-one deployment of iPads across the school. Derek’s first headship was at Mayfield school in Portsmouth, where he led a large secondary school out of special measures. This was also something he did as a deputy in Croydon. Derek’s route through into school leadership was as a highly passionate head of English and Drama. He is still known to launch into iambic pentameter, at every available opportunity, as he walks the corridors of our academies at ATT!
Director of Secondary Education – Mr Garry Trott
Garry has worked in education since 1995,in a wide range of secondary schools. He enjoys the challenge and satisfaction of helping children achieve and ensuring that all pupils get the very best opportunities from their education.
Garry started as an English teacher and has a passion for the integral role literacy and reading play in opening doors for disadvantaged pupils. In 2004, he was a secondary English consultant, working across Service Children’s Education.
From 2007, Garry was headteacher of King’s School, Germany, an 11-18 comprehensive for service children. This school achieved good and good with outstanding features in two inspections under his leadership.
In 2014, Garry undertook a very different kind of leadership role as Principal of Westbourne Academy, an 11-16 mixed comprehensive in Ipswich. He guided this academy from RI to Good, with a significant improvement in outcomes.
In 2020, he became Executive Principal for three ATT secondary academies. Then in 2021, he became Director of Secondary Education. Garry holds the NPQEL qualification and also works with Ofsted.
Garry feels privileged in his role as Director of Secondary Education, as he gets to support and challenge improvement in our academies, ensuring that pupils and staff can achieve their ambitions.
Chair of Trustees – Mrs Pat Beanland
Pat is a retired head teacher with nearly 40 years’ experience in education. Pat has also worked as an educational consultant with a particular focus on providing support to new head teachers. As part of her role on The Trust board, Pat is the link for curriculum whist also being a member of the ATT audit committee. Pat was attracted to ATT through her passion for school improvement and The Trust transformational ethos.
