Members, Trust Board and Committees
All three Academy Trusts in the Diocese of Lancaster have the same three members at the top of the organisation:
Bishop Paul Swarbrick, Father Michael Docherty, Canon Peter Hart.
The Mater Christi Board is made up of nine volunteer Directors, appointed by the Bishop. They meet as a Trust Board and in four committees:
- Standards and Intervention
- Finance, Staffing and Audit
- Vision and Development
- Growth
Each of the schools in our Academy Trust has a Local Governing Body made up of volunteer Foundation Governors appointed by the Bishop, as well as two parents, a staff member and the Headteacher.
Mater Christi Directors
The Trust has 7 Catholic Directors
Previous Directors
| Name | Appointment Date and Term of Office (All directors appointed by the Diocese) | Committees | Occupation | Profile Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Father Luiz Ruscillo | Term of office from 17 Mar 2025 to 16 Mar 2029 First appointed on 17 Mar 2021 | Vision and Development, Growth | Catholic Priest, Diocese of Lancaster | Fr. Ruscillo has served as a Parish Priest for 30 years in the Diocese of Lancaster and has held positions in the Diocese’s Education Service, working extensively with primary and secondary schools. |
| Professor Keith Hanley | Term of office from 12 Sep 2023 to 11 Sep 2027 First appointed on 12 Sep 2023 | Vision and Development | Professor Emeritus at Lancaster University | Prof. Hanley founded and directed two research centres, on Wordsworth and Ruskin, at Lancaster University, and he has held posts at a number of other universities, including Notre Dame, Indiana. He has been a governor of two independent Catholic schools, a trustee of the Catholic National Library, and Master of the Guild of NW Catholic Writers. He was a member of the executive board of the American organisaton, INCS, and researches and writes on Literature and Religion. |
| Elizabeth Mallinson (Chair) | Term of office from 25 Jul 2023 to 24 Jul 2027 First appointed on 25 Jul 2023 | Finance and Staffing, Audit, Growth | Former Local Councillor | Mrs Mallinson was a local councillor for many years, serving in key roles, including Chair of Cumbria County Council and Cabinet Member for Organisational Development. She is a champion for children in care. |
| Dr. Andy Johnson (Vice Chair) | Term of office from 15 Nov 2023 to 14 Nov 2027 First appointed on 15 Nov 2023 | Standards and Intervention | Part Time Educational Consultant | Dr. Johnson has 37 years of experience in education, including roles as Director of Children’s Services, an HMI with Ofsted, and a headteacher. He is a previous school governor |
| Simon Clarkson | Term of office from 3 Sep 2024 to 3 Sep 2025 First appointed on 3 Sep 2024 | Finance, Staffing and Audit, Pay | Counter Fraud Specialist | Mr. Clarkson has had a long career in fraud and crime management, including work as a police officer and involvement in national crime initiatives. He has expertise in risk management and equal opportunities. |
| Joan Hadley (Director of Safeguarding) | Term of office from 11 Sep 2024 to 10 Sep 2028 First appointed on 11 Sep 2024 | Standards and Intervention, Vision and Development, Pay | Retired | Joan has served as a school governor for many years, including as a Chair of Governors for the St Ninian Federation for over 18 years. | Robert Hannaford | Term of office from 18 Feb 2025 to 18 Feb 2028 First appointed on 18 Feb 2025 | Growth Vision and Development | Retired | Robert studied at Exeter University and graduated with a Bachelor of Education. After university he became the University Chaplain while teaching philosophy and theology. He later moved onto teach at a Seminary before moving to Oxford University to teach Christian Doctrine. After that he became a full time academic at Canterbury University and then moved on to become Head of Theology and RE at St Martin’s University. He was part of the team who founded the University of Cumbria and then developed his role to chair the Quality and Standards Committee to ensure the highest standards were achieved at a range of universities. He later became an Anglican Priest, and served in St John’s Church in Workington. He is an experienced school governor and until recently was the Chairman of the Board of Cumbria Christian Learning. |
| Name | Resignation Date | Committee | Occupation | Profile Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mrs Ann Marie Pinguey | Term of office from 17 Mar 2021 to 16 Mar 2025 First appointed on 17 Mar 2021 | Finance and Staffing, Audit | Management Accountant | Mrs. Pinguey is an experienced management accountant who has worked in various sectors, including education. She has four years of experience as a school bursar and recent experience working for an Academy Trust. | Mr John Murray | Term of office from 17 Mar 2021 to 16 Mar 2025 First appointed on 17 Mar 2021 | Standards and Intervention, Growth, Pay | Headteacher (Retired), The Catholic High School, Chester | Mr. Murray led a secondary school for over 15 years and helped set up a Multi Academy Trust. He has also served as a Governor and Chair of a hospital school. An active member of the Mountain Rescue Team in Cumbria and a recently elected local councillor for Westmorland and Furness. | Paul Douglas Lovell | First appointed on 17 Mar 2021 Resignation 01/10/2024 | Development and Ethos | School Buildings Surveyor, Diocese of Lancaster | Mr. Lovell oversees school estates and trustees' interests in the Diocese of Lancaster. He also has experience in Finance, Premises, HR, and H&S and serves as a primary school governor. |
| Mrs Bernadette Barnes | First appointed on 17 Mar 2021 Resignation 30/09/2024 | Standards and Intervention | Headteacher (Retired), Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, Barrow | Mrs. Barnes was the headteacher for 9 years and worked in various roles at Sacred Heart for 26 years. |
| Leigh Baumber | First appointed on 21 Mar 2025 Resignation 02/06/2025 | Finance, Staffing and Audit | Srategy Director | Leigh is Strategy Director for a firm in Germany. |
Director's Attendance 2024-2025
| Name | Oct 2nd | 4th Dec | 5th Feb | 2nd April | 4th June | 2nd July |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Murray | Y | Y | Y | End of Term of Office | ||
| Ann Pinguey | Apologies | Y | Y | End of Term of Office | ||
| Fr Luiz Ruscillo | Y | Y | Y | Y | Apologies | |
| Elizabeth Anne Mallinson ( Chair) | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | |
| Keith Hanley | Y | Y | Y | Y | YY | |
| Andrew Johnson ( Vice Chair) | Y | Y | Y | YY | Y | |
| Joan Hadley | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | |
| Robert Hannaford | Not yet in post | Y | Y |
Finance, Staffing, and Audit
| Name | 27th Sept | 4th Nov | 29th Nov | 24th Jan | 7th Feb | 28th Feb | 21st March | 4th July | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ann Pinguey | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Y | Term of Office ended | |||
| Simon Clarkson(Chair) | Y | Y | Y | Y | Apologies | Y | Y | |||
| Elizabeth Anne Mallinson | Y | Y | Apologies | Y | Y | Y | Y | |||
| Andy Johnson | Not yet in post | Y | ||||||||
| Leigh Baumber | Not yet in post |
Curriculum and Standards
| Name | 9th Sept | 2nd Oct | 22nd Jan | 10th April | May 21st | 9th July |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Murray | Y | Y | Y | rEnd of Term of Office | ||
| Joan Hadley | Not yet in post | Y | Y | Apologies | Apologies | |
| Andrew Johnson(Chair) | Apologies | Y | Y | Y | Y | |
| Liz Mallinson | Y | Y | Apologies | Y | Y | |
| Simon Clarkson | Y |
Catholic Life Committee
| Name | 10th Oct | 9th Jan | 12th June |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joan Hadley | Not yet in post | Y | |
| Fr Luiz Ruscillo (Chair) | Y | Y | |
| Keith Hanley | Y | Y | |
| John Murray | Y | N | |
| Robert Hannaford | Not yet in post | Not yet in post |
Growth Committee
| Name | 5th Feb | 3rd July> |
|---|---|---|
| John Murray (Chair) | Y | |
| Fr Luiz Ruscillo | Y | |
| Elizabeth Mallinson | Y | |
| Keith Hanley | Y | |
| Robert Hannaford | Not yet in post |