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Sponsor department
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Department for Education
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Body
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Skills England
27 May 2025
Andy Westwood, Anthony Impey, Brian Holliday, Fazal Dad, Fiona Aldridge, Fiona Kendrick, Helen Woodward Davies, Nichola Hay, Sara Todd, Sian Elliott and Zoe Lewis are appointed as non-executive board members to serve on the Skills England board.
Remuneration is £15,000 per annum for a time commitment of 20 days a year.
Anthony Impey, Fiona Kendrick, Sara Todd, and Zoe Lewis will serve from May 2025 for a period of 2 years. Andy Westwood, Brian Holliday, Fazal Dad, Fiona Aldridge, Helen Woodward Davies, Nichola Hay, and Sian Elliott will serve from May 2025 for a period of 3 years.
Andy Westwood has declared the following interests:
Paid Roles
Professor of Public Policy, Government and Business, University of Manchester
Policy Director, Productivity Institute, University of Manchester
Independent Governor, University of Wolverhampton (2023 to 2025)
Expert adviser, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Policy Fellow, Labour Together (November 2023 to May 2024)
Special Adviser to Secretary of State, Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills and Senior Policy Adviser to Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (2007 to 2010)
Senior Policy Adviser, His Majesty’s Treasury (2005 to 2007)
Policy Adviser, Department for Education & Employment (2000 to 2002)
Unpaid Roles
Trustee, Architectural Heritage Fund
Governor, National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR)
Advisory Board Member, Bennett Institute for Public Policy, University of Cambridge
Policy Fellow, Post 18 Project
Anthony Impey has declared the following interests:
Financial Interests
Anthony has declared his financial interest in Optimity Holdings Ltd, IT Services, as a shareholder.
Paid Roles
Chief Executive, Be the Business
Director, Optimity Holdings Ltd
Unpaid Roles
Director, V&A Impey Ltd
Director and Company Secretary, 78 Meadow Road Management Ltd
Chair, Industry Skills Board, City and Guilds
Chair, DfE Apprenticeship Ambassador Network
Chair, UCL International Advisory Board
Brian Holliday has declared the following interests:
Financial Interests
Brian has declared his financial interest in Siemens AG. Engineering Company as an employee share scheme beneficiary.
Paid Roles
Managing Director for Digital Industries Division, UK and Ireland, Siemens plc.
Chairman of the Board, Siemens Industry Software (2009 to 2025)
Board member of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult (2014 to 2022)
Unpaid Roles
Co-Chair of Made Smarter Commission
Chair of Make UK, Strategic Policy Group
Committee Member, The Royal Society (2016 to 2022)
Main Board Member, Make UK (2015 to 2024)
Dr Fazal Dad has declared the following interests:
Paid Roles
Principal and CEO of Blackburn College
Part-time Inspector, Ofsted
Unpaid Roles
Trustee, The Peel Foundation Scholarship Fund
Trustee, The Agnes Eccles Art Award Fund
Director and Board Member, The Bury Grammar Schools Trustee Limited
Director, The Lancashire Colleges Limited
Non-Executive Director, The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education
Dr Fiona Aldridge has declared the following interests:
Paid Roles
Chief Executive, Skills Federation
Head of Insight and Intelligence, West Midlands Combined Authority (2021 to 2024)
Director of Policy and Research, Learning and Work Institute (1997 to 2021)
Unpaid Roles
Member, Mayor of the West Midlands’ Council of Experts
Member, Advisory Board, DWP Employment DataLab
Member, Advisory Board, Lifelong Education Institute
Member, External Advisory Group Unit for Future Skills (2022 to 2024)
Dame Fiona Kendrick has declared the following interests:
Paid Roles
Member, PWC Advisory Council
Senior Advisor, Newton Europe
Deputy Chair, the Institute for Apprenticeship and Technical Education Board (2017 to 2025)
Helen Woodward Davies has declared the following interests:
Paid Roles
Resource Programme Director, EDF Nuclear New Build at Hinkley Point C
Unpaid Roles
Trustee, Engineering Construction Industry Training Board
Volunteer, Youth Justice and Exploitation Service
Nicki Hay has declared the following interests:
Financial Interests
Nicki has declared her financial interest in BPP Education Group as a shareholder.
Paid Roles
Director of Strategy and Policy, BPP Education Group
Unpaid Roles
Board Director and Chair, Association of Employment and Learning Providers
Trustee, WorldSkills UK
Sara Todd has declared the following interests:
Paid Roles
Chief Executive, Trafford Council
Place Lead, Health and Care Integration, NHS Greater Manchester
Unpaid Roles
Chief Executive Portfolio Holder for Technical Education, Work and Skills, Greater Manchester Combined Authority
Trustee, Trafford Community Collective
Trustee, City in the Community Foundation
Sian Elliott has declared the following interests:
Paid Roles
Director of Organising, Public Services and Skills, The Trades Union Congress (TUC)
Unpaid Roles
Expert Advisor, Solace Women’s Aid
Zoe Lewis has declared the following interests:
Paid Roles
CEO and Board member, Middlesbrough College and its subsidiaries.
Unpaid Roles
Trustee, Education Endowment Foundation
Regional Trust member, Outwood Academy (Northern region)
Member, FE Commissioner’s Principals Reference Group
Chair, the Accountability and Funding Group, Association of Colleges (AoC)
Member, the 2030 group, AoC
None of the appointees have declared any political activity.
Skills England is an executive agency in the Department for Education. For full details please see
Appointments made: April 2025 to March 2026 - GOV.UK