Working together to deliver our purpose and shared values
Leading the way
Utilising experience and expertise to help us achieve our goals
Our Senior Leadership Team (SLT) is made up of the CEOs and other senior colleagues from across the Group. They work closely to share best practice and expertise, ultimately driving the best service possible for our customers.
As a team, they are always looking for new and innovative ways to achieve our goals, whilst empowering their teams to deliver a standard of education and training which is second to none.
Our Senior Leadership Team
Jayne Worthington
CEO
Prior to joining The Progress Group, Jayne gained over 14 years’ experience of working in senior management roles for the likes of The Growth Company: Education and Skills and City of Liverpool College Group. She has a wealth of experience relating to pre-apprenticeships, apprenticeship training and higher education. Jayne also has experience of adult skills training. Jayne’s primary role is to drive out the company’s key strategic objectives, whilst supporting the continued growth of the Group.
Eammon Price
Chief Financial Officer
Eammon is a a widely recognised, strategic and financially-astute senior executive, with a strong commitment to building and leading top performing teams leveraging in-depth commercial, finance, operations and sales experience. Past roles have seen great accomplishments throughout the UK, US and Canada. With over 15 years of experience in finance, Eammon brings a wealth of knowledge to his role.
Sarah Keenan
Director of Marketing and Communications
Sarah is a full-stack marketer who leads on the marketing and communications across The Progress Group and subsidiaries within it. She has a wealth of experience working within the education and training sector, supporting companies to achieve their commercial objectives. Before joining The Progress Group, she worked for colleges and charitable organisations. Her particular area of expertise lies in marketing strategy and digital marketing. She also leads on our internal communications and CSR activities.
Charlotte Barton
Managing Director - Progress Schools
Charlotte has an extensive background in education and training with many years' experience as a strategic leader in alternative provision. Her previous experience has focused on SEND, safeguarding and teaching and learning. Charlotte's role is to manage, lead and drive complex change across the subsidiaries to improve outcomes and the services we offer through innovative teaching, training and learning.
Ian Green
Managing Director - Complete Skills Solutions
Ian boasts a vast amount of experience within the education and training industry, having worked in senior roles for over 20 years. His role across our Workforce Development Division sees him draw on his vast strategic leadership experience to drive these businesses forward. This experience has included operations, business development, and product development, making him well placed to grow and enhance the divisional offer in order to meet the national adult skills agenda.
Sumita Chopra
Transformation & Innovation Director
Sumita began her career as an IT Professional, developing and deploying custom-built applications for Marketing and PR, FMCG, and financial institutions. Before joining The Progress Group, she was the Director of Operations and Innovation for the International Baccalaureate.
Her role will see her operate across all six of the Group’s subsidiaries, with the responsibility of establishing the structure, framework, and governance for the management of a portfolio of tech-focused, and business-critical projects.
Paula Thompson
Managing Director - Progress Careers
Paula joins the team with a portfolio of experience from both the Business and Education sectors with a drive and commitment to raising the profile of exceptional CEIAG in all markets for Progress Careers. She operates a person-centric business which thrives on high-quality execution and relationship management. Her vision for the business includes ethical practice, innovative thinking and intelligence led decision making.
Tom Whitlock
Business Development Director
Tom leads on business development across The Progress Group and each of its subsidiaries. Having worked in various operational and business development roles in the past throughout England, he has played a pivotal role in supporting businesses to exceed their commercial targets. Tom has a strong understanding of the education and training sector, and uses this combined knowledge and experience to drive forward the strategic growth of the group.
Phil Hitchcox
Strategic Development Director - Flourish
Phil has over 20 years’ experience successfully leading sales, business development and account management teams, working mostly in the skills and education sector. Phil has a wealth of experience growing businesses through effective sales and marketing, product innovation and strategic account management.
He has worked for some for the UK’s largest national training providers, the Education & Skills Funding Agency and supported large corporate companies to develop workforce development and skills programmes.
Rachel Houlden
Managing Director - Flourish
Prior to joining AC Education, Rachel qualified as a Chartered Accountant with KPMG, managing the audit department alongside running client teams. Since joining AC Education, she has used her commercial experience to completely restructure the business, launching into new markets, developing innovative models of delivery and re-designing all existing online content.
She is also a Trustee of a Domestic Abuse charity and in the past 15 years has held several Governor roles in both the primary and secondary sector.
Jamie Basnett
Group Financial Controller
Jamie joined The Progress Group after twelve years of financial work which included his position as the Operation Finance Business Partner of Reed in partnership and additional employment across both the public and private sectors. Jamie’s skills at financial management, leadership and predictive business economics are a welcome addition to the team and help aid the prosperity and success of The Progress Group as a whole.
To learn more about The Progress Group and our strategic objectives, please contact our team today.
