Introduction to the Governing Body at TCES National Online School

The Complete Education Solution (TCES) believes in the importance of governance and accountability, and we have created and built a very robust Governing Body over the past five years. The makeup and expertise of our Governing Body is a significant strength, and our Governors have a more enhanced role at TCES than at most other Multi Academy Trusts (MATs) or multi-site schools or services.

Effective governance in TCES provides strategic direction, oversight and accountability to our schools, and services.  This accountability is sought through a range of Governor annual activities including school visits and committee meetings. The Governors also have an escalation procedure for any concerns should they require this. All these processes help to strengthen the accountability within our schools and services. The National Online School is the newest school (September 2020) to avail of the full range of oversight provided by our Governing Body.

In summary, our Board of Governors create robust accountability, oversight and quality assurance for our National Online Schools’ educational, clinical, family support, safeguarding and financial performance and our governance is ambitious for all children and young people to achieve the very best outcomes.

Our Chair of Governors

Nick Pratt - Chair of Governors

Nick recently took over the role of Chair of the Governors, after being a member of TCES’ Governing body for the past 4 years. In that time he has led on the development of robust safeguarding practice throughout TCES and its National Online School and he has overseen delivery on the ground through Governance visits, Committee meetings and mentoring to staff. Nick has the highest expectations of the TCES Safeguarding team, ably led on a company-wide basis by the Head of Safeguarding and their team of Senior Social Workers, Designated Safeguarding Leads and FAST (Families and Schools working Together) Team of qualified Social Workers and Family Support Practitioners.  

Nick is a qualified Social Worker and has worked in statutory child protection for over 25 years. He has managed LADO Services across a number of Local Authorities and is a coordinator for the London Region and National LADO Networks. He is the co-founder and Director of the Independent Safeguarding Service, an innovative Community Interest Company leading in policy, training and consultancy across the UK. He works closely with a number of Safeguarding Partnerships and is a published lead reviewer for Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews.  

His extensive consultancy experience supporting Local Authority Education departments, School Trusts, Early Years Settings, the NHS, Faith Groups, Third Sector, Premier League football, England RFU and numerous private sector organisations brings numerous skills to his role as Chair of Governors for TCES and its National Online School, which he describes as the 'most innovative and inclusive education solution in the country'.  

Read more about how our Governing Board supports Quality Assurance here

Contact our Chair of Governors

Our Governing Board

David Young – Education governor
David Young has more than 30 years’ experience as a qualified teacher, working in secondary schools in London, Wiltshire and Luton. He also led a successful secondary school as headteacher for five years before moving on to the role of Head of School Improvement Services for a local authority. David combines a passion for ensuring that each individual student has equal access to the full breadth and depth of the school curriculum, together with opportunities to build teamwork and independence through outdoor activities including sports and camping. 

David trained as an Ofsted inspector while working for a local authority and has extensive experience of leading school inspections in maintained secondary schools and independent special schools. David took on leadership roles in managing educational projects for the DfE, including the oversight of Ofsted inspection services in independent special schools nationally, while working for Cambridge Education. His inspection work developed a particular emphasis on work with students with social, emotional, and mental health needs and/or an Autism Spectrum Condition. This work first brought David into contact with the inspirational and unique educational services of TCES. David has worked for the past ten years as an educational leadership consultant with individual special schools and national Groups providing education and care services for young people. 

Kirstie Harvey - Safeguarding Governor 

Kirstie is a Head of Inclusion and Safeguarding and has experience of strategic and operational, education safeguarding improvement. Kirstie has experience in the development of effective organisational cultures, systems, and processes and a wealth of consultancy experience. She is an experienced trainer for a variety of sectors including, Faith, Education, Private Organisations and Youth Services. 

Kirstie is passionate about delivering inclusive, progressive education and brings to TCES an intrinsic passion to ensure pupils thrive.

A Governor for safeguarding, who is an experienced head of safeguarding who has led teams within different educational sectors and an experienced safeguarding consultant and trainer. 

You can see what our Governors’ have been working on by clicking on the PDF below.