Chief Executive Officer
Dr Nic Crossley

Dr Nic Crossley has over 25 years’ experience in education which spans primary, secondary, mainstream and specialist provision and her research interests are in the factors which contribute to educational underachievement.  She is committed to working with schools in order to enhance the learning experience for all vulnerable learners; however, her specialist interest areas are Autism and Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH).  She has previous experience as a Consultant Principal to two Special Academies, as a School Inspector, and has written and led leadership development training for middle and senior leaders in Primary, Secondary and Special education in England, Wales and Jersey.  She is the co-author of Inclusion: A Principled Guide for School Leaders, published by Routledge, as part of the NASEN Spotlight series.

She is currently a Council member for ASCL (Association of School and College Leaders), a member of the Ethics, Inclusion and Equalities Committee, the national SEND representative, and Chair of the Women Leaders’ Network.  She is also a member of the Whole School SEND Steering Group and co-founder of the MAT SEND Leaders Group.

With a Masters in Educational Leadership and Management and a Masters in Practice-Based Educational Research, Nic is also an Associate Tutor at Leeds Beckett University delivering modules for undergraduates as part of the BSc Educational Psychology and PGCE Primary Education and is an Honorary Teaching fellow at the Centre for Teacher Education at the University of Warwick.

Chief Finance Officer
David Haydock

David is an experienced finance professional with 25+ years of experience working in roles in a number of areas in both the education and commercial sectors.  He has a proven and respected track record which includes the building and leadership of finance teams, and the setting, measuring and drive for delivery of organisational achievement.   

David has board level operational experience, as well as hands-on practical roles, where needed to drive performance improvement of finance teams.  He is known and respected for his ability to communicate and operate across the wider organisation, bringing life and meaning to numbers through effective business partnering, enabling leaders at all levels to better understand and act upon their financial responsibilities. 

David has been a foster carer for a number of years, and, along with his wife Jacqui, has looked after many children with a variety of challenging needs.  He is particularly keen to provide traumatised foster children with a safe and stable home, giving good lived examples of what normal family life looks like, and in doing so give the children hope for a brighter future.

David is also a Trustee (and chair of the Finance Committee) of another Multi Academy Trust, has a law degree from Warwick University, and is a Chartered Accountant having qualified with Ernst & Young.

Director of Governance and Compliance
Chris Rossiter

Chris is an experienced leader and organisational psychologist and has worked across the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. He is a leading consultant in organisation transformation, change, and leadership.

Prior to joining the education sector, Chris was the Chief Executive of a not-for-profit start-up leading on national policy and advocacy. He has experience of driving organisational strategy and improvement, including compliance, risk and assurance. Chris is familiar with both practical and strategic roles deploying his evidence led and values driven skills.

Chris is committed to strengthening the organisations he works with to ensure they can work effectively, deliver public benefit and enhance their role in civic society. He is a committed volunteer both within education, as a Trustee of a large MAT and primary school Governor, former army reservist and Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.

Director of Education
Jo Galloway

Jo has worked in the field of autism for 20 years. Her roles have included Principal, Executive Principal and the Head of Educational Standards. 

In her last role she worked with our schools carrying out quality and standards reviews, assisting them in delivering excellent provision through the Quality of Life Framework. She enjoys working collaboratively alongside our school teams to support them to continually raise standards.

She has been in SEND education for over 25 years and has worked with many partner schools supporting them through outreach, training and consultancy. She is an experienced educational leader with proven ability to lead specialist day schools, residential schools and children’s homes and has experience as Responsible Individual of large Children’s home.

She has a Master’s degree in Special Educational Needs and has completed the National Professional Qualification for Headship.

Jo is responsible for the quality of education across our three schools and provides coaching support to SENCOs.  She is also leading on teacher development and curriculum development across the Trust, with a particular focus on SEND-friendly pedagogical approaches that ensures access to learning for all.

Director of Safeguarding
Nic Law

Nic is the Safeguarding Lead for the Trust and an Intermediate Team Teach trainer as well as a PREVENT trainer.  Her experience spans primary, secondary and specialist provision.  Her specialist interest areas are Safeguarding and Child Protection.  She has previous experience as an SLE for Safeguarding and Attendance, as well as experience in working with young carers; particularly around supporting those where substance abuse and mental health are of a concern. 

Nic has written and led leadership development training for Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs), Attendance Leads and Family Support Workers, is a trained Parenting Practitioner and is a regular speaker at Safeguarding conferences.  Nic is the Parent Partnership Lead and is responsible for driving positive mental health in schools and trauma-informed approaches across the Trust.

Head of Executive Services & EA to the CEO
Harriet Mughal

Harriet has over 20 years’ experience in the administrative profession, the majority being within the legal sector and has supported executives in both the UK and Internationally.

Proven experience supporting a Board of Directors within the education / child care sector and has also previously managed a team of PAs.

Harriet’s degree in Applied Social Science also provides her with relevant background knowledge to bring to her role at Liberty.