MEET OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM
JOANNE HARPER
CEO ALET
Jo is passionate about the power of education to transform lives, and combines 30 years of teaching experience with strong leadership skills developed over 20 years into her role as CEO of ALET, creating a Trust where the mission of Transforming Lives Through Learning comes alive every day. She believes firmly that educators have both the privilege and responsibility to prepare young people for fulfilling, ambitious lives, and that every day, in every classroom, in every lesson, high-quality teaching is the priority and sets this as the priority in her schools.
Her background in mathematics teaching led her to Principal of a West London school, then to setting up UTC Reading, and was instrumental in setting up ALET, its mission, vision and values. Jo sets a great example in personal growth and development to ALET staff and students, having added a masters degree in education, leadership and management to her qualifications and being previously recognised as a National Leader in Education by the DfE. She has applied her skills and experience to support many other schools over the years, and enjoys working closely with employers to bring theirs into the classroom.
Read more
Joanne has a teaching career spanning over 20 years, which begun as a mathematics teacher in London, progressing to Principal of a school in West London which she took to an Outstanding OFSTED grade, then to UTC Reading as the school was created. She worked closely with lead sponsors Activate Learning and lead multi-national partners including Microsoft and Cisco, taking a crucial role in setting up Activate Learning Education Trust in 2015.
Jo is a strong believer in personal growth and development, and has added an NPQH and a masters degree in education, leadership and management to her qualifications. She has been recognised by the Department of Education as a National Leader in Education. She is incredibly proud to be CEO of ALET, driving it in its mission to Transform Lives Through Learning.
RACHEL CAVE
Chief Education Officer (CEdO)
Rachel brings more than 30 years of teaching experience and expertise in education leadership to her role as Chief Education Officer (CedO) and Deputy CEO. She is ‘passionate about making a positive difference to young people’s lives’.
As a former Trustee of ALET, Rachel fully understands our vision, values, Learning Philosophy and attributes well, which she says are ‘are wholly aligned with mine’.
Before joining ALET Rachel was Headteacher at Highdown School and Sixth Form in Reading for 11 years where she oversaw the growth of the school by more than 450 young people. The school is known for its pastoral care and commitment to academic excellence, and for staff as providing the best professional learning possible.
Read more
Rachel has always had a passion for STEM. She studied Chemistry at university and has promoted STEM subjects for young women through her career. Teaching A Level Chemistry to those that have gone on in the subject beyond school has been a particular joy for her.
She began her teaching career in the science department at George Abbot in Guildford in 1992, before progressing to Head of Chemistry, Head of Science and Assistant Headteacher (Head of Sixth Form) at various Surrey and South London schools. She then moved to The Heathland School in Hounslow as Deputy, rotating in different areas of school leadership, before taking on the headship at Highdown.
She has played a key part in the local school-to-school support structure and has worked with a number of schools to support their improvement journey. Most recently, Rachel has supported another multi-academy trust as Director of Education.
Rachel joined ALET as Chief Education Officer (CedO) in September 2024. She is responsible for the quality of education across the Trust, ensuring an outstanding educational experience for all students. As Deputy CEO to Jo Harper, she also provides strategic leadership and will be pivotal in developing and delivering ALET’s vision, ethos and strategy.
With a proven track record of leadership and a deep commitment to educational excellence, Rachel will play a key role in shaping the direction of ALET as it moves into its next phase.
WAYNE EDWARDS
Executive Director of School Improvement (EDSIP)
Read more
Wayne started his journey with STEM focused education in 2013, helping to found UTC Reading with Jo Harper, our Trust’s CEO. He moved on sabbatical to what would become UTC Heathrow as Vice Principal in 2017, becoming its Principal when it became UTC Heathrow in 2018 and joined the Trust. Prior to this, Wayne worked in other education settings since he started teaching in 1998 as an Advanced Skills Teacher, Head of Faculty and Head of Department.
Wayne returned to UTC Reading in March 2023 as Executive Principal: the school has a special place in his heart and is part of his community, having lived locally for over 26 years.
From September 2024, Wayne took on the role of Executive Director of School Improvement (EDSIP) within the ALET leadeship team and is responsible for key pillars of the ALET strategic plan, whilst supporting ALET schools to deliver their vision of Transforming Lives Through Learning.
SAM KNOWLTON
Executive Director of School Improvement (EDSIP)
Read more
Sam has hugely varied experience, having worked in the communications industry, where she used her knowledge of geophysics and satellites on the analogue and digital phone networks, been Managing Director of a manufacturing company and even trained for the Olympics, all before becoming a Headteacher. She became Principal of UTC Oxfordshire in 2020, and Executive Principal in 2022 of both UTC Oxfordshire and UTC Swindon.
From September 2024, Sam took on the role of Executive Director of School Improvement (EDSIP) within the ALET leadeship team and is responsible for key pillars of the ALET strategic plan, whilst supporting ALET schools to deliver their vision of Transforming Lives Through Learning. Sam is very passionate about the power of lifelong learning, and has a definite thirst for knowledge and a love of research.
WORK FOR US
JOIN OUR TRUST
