Ben Smith, Chair
In addition to being Chair of the AO-Forum, Ben is the Business Development Manager for Gordon Associates. His wide-ranging role includes strategic partnerships, liaison with regulators and fostering good business practice across vocational qualifications and apprenticeships.
Gordon Associates is the market-leading provider of Parnassus (AO management system), Talus (EPAO management system) and Monarch (compliance and governance). For further information please see: www.parnassusonline.com www.ga-talus.com www.ga-monarch.com
Carmel Grant, Delivery Director & Acting CEO, Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE)
Carmel Grant is Delivery Director at the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) – and Carmel is also the acting chief executive at IfATE over the coming months, prior to the launch of Skills England.
Skills England is a new body that will bring together key partners to meet the skills needs for England over the next decade. It is intended that the agency will replace IfATE during 2025.
Gavin O'Meara, CEO & Founder, FE News
Gavin O’Meara is the CEO and Founder of FE News, the largest online news site, thought leadership and blue sky thinking channel for the Further Education, Skills, Work Based Learning and Welfare to Work sectors. In one month recently, according to Google Analytics, FE News had 85,541 unique visitors and 1.36 Million Tweet impressions. FE News, and providing columnists, deliver expert opinion and insight from thought leaders in written word, podcasts, video to breaking news about the latest developments that impact the sector.
James Stockdale, CEO, International Dance Teachers’ Association (IDTA)
James is the CEO of the International Dance Teachers’ Association (IDTA) and has a wealth of experience having spent over 30 years in the field of assessment in the automotive, banking and retail industries, as well as being Director of Examinations for the Royal Academy of Dance.
With a number of years spent at Oxford, Cambridge and RSA (OCR) Examinations Board (part of the Cambridge University Assessment network) he also has held senior positions as Global Director of Learning for the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment, and as Director of Awarding and Policy at the Association of Business Executives.
Jonathan Ledger, International Education Team, Department for Business and Trade
As a key member of the International Education Team at the Department for Business and Trade, Jonathan has a wide-ranging role:
He is the Global Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) / Skills and Professional Bodies Specialist and the Lead for UK Skills Partnership and UK representative to SEAMEO TVET Council.
Jonathan helps to drive UK Skills exports, supporting inward investors with skills and talent and domestic skills brilliance – and is a specialist advisor for the UK Government’s International Education Strategy. He supports Government to Government strategic policy dialogue and TVET/skills systems development across the globe, enabling UK training providers and professional bodies to identify and access commercial international TVET / skills opportunities, developing UK TVET export capacity, and promoting the UK’s capabilities for TVET/ skills sector, enabling UK skills providers and professional bodies to win £860m+ contracts across global markets. He also leads trade missions for UK providers in multiple overseas markets.
A key aspect of his role is to support Embassies and High Commissions to develop commercial opportunities and help international colleagues, governments, NGOs and donor organisations to understand, articulate and engage the UK TVET skills offer.
Lesley Sharp, Director of Compliance, Innovate Awarding
Innovate Awarding is one of the country’s leading EPAOs, as well as processing vocational qualifications for work-based learning and transitioning to work, across 15 sectors and growing. Lesley is the Director of Compliance and is therefore the lead on all activity relating to Quality Assurance within Innovate Awarding ensuring compliance with Ofqual’s (and other regulators’) conditions of recognition.
Lucy Sydney, Director VTQ Stakeholder Relationships
Lucy Sydney is Director of Strategic Relationships for Vocational and Technical Qualifications at Ofqual. She brings experience from her previous role as Head of Strategic Relationships at the Cabinet Office and Head of Partnerships at the Crown Commercial Service. Through her responsibility for vocational and technical qualifications at Ofqual, Lucy is ideally placed to speak to us at the AO-Forum.