About us

Ajay joined SIL after a decade leading one of the country’s largest public sector education services providers, where he developed his skills, knowledge, and experience of the strategic and operational functions of early years, primary, secondary, 16-19 and HE settings.

He has occupied senior roles across the sector and provided leadership and management on national, regional, and local initiatives to increase participation, retention, attainment, and quality in education.

He is proud to be working at SIL, where staff are passionate in providing responsive services to support and enable educational settings to provide the very best education to their children and young people.

Jane is experienced in teaching, leadership, school improvement and school inspection across all the phases.

She is passionate about raising standards and supporting schools in challenging circumstances.

Alongside her current role, Jane undertakes excellence and improvement partner functions and has previously worked as Primary Improvement Lead for a multi-academy trust and a regional advisor for behaviour and attendance.

Karen is a CIPFA-qualified accountant with 40 years' experience in public sector finance. 

As Head of Finance at SIL, she is responsible for the effective financial management of the company, ensuring robust planning and control to support our strategic objectives. 

She leads a dedicated Finance Team, working collaboratively to deliver high standards of financial compliance, reporting and fulfilment of all statutory responsibilities.

Katie has been a HR professional for 25 years.  Starting her career in private business she moved to local government and spent 19 years providing HR support to schools leaders.

In 2023 she became a member of SIL’s senior team as Head of Operations and People and Company Secretary, turning her attentions to SIL’s internal procedures.

Katie’s remit within SIL encompasses workforce, IT, premises, policies, GDPR compliance, business support and SIL’s Workforce Solutions Supply agency.

Lisa is known for her innovative approaches and ability to drive positive change and improvements across the sector.

Recently appointed Director of Research, Development, and Innovation, she brings extensive expertise in early years, school leadership and school improvement.

Lisa was celebrated for her strategic leadership when she was recognised by the Leaders’ Club Award for Education. 

She continues to champion ethical leadership and support the development of research-driven training programs.
 

Jacquie has been the headteacher of two successful primary schools and has worked in three different authorities.

She has held a variety of LA roles including Key Skills Tutor for Numeracy, Consultant Headteacher and School Improvement Partner.

Jacquie enjoys working in schools in challenging circumstances and is passionate about providing the very best for children; she believes that to do this there must be strong leadership and effective systems across all aspects of school life.

She has a successful record of working with newly formed leadership teams and headteachers and is particularly effective at supporting schools on their journey to good and better.   

Sue Killen joined SIL in 2010, following a career as a teacher and leader in primary education.  

Joining as a Maths Consultant, Sue went on to lead the Curriculum and Assessment Team and now, as Director of Curriculum and Assessment, she leads a number of multi-phase teams across SIL. 

Sue works closely with Headteachers and other stakeholders in and beyond the Northwest ensuring that SIL provides a high-quality offer to schools, networks, SATs, MATs and local authorities.