Local Advisory Board

What is a Local Advisory Board (LAB)?

The Cumbria Education Trust Board Directors delegate to the Local Advisory Board (LAB) members its responsibility and powers as the Governing Body of the school. These responsibilities are discharged by the LAB members in accordance with its constitution, any Cumbria Education Trust Policies and advice from the Department for Education (DFE) and Ofsted.

View the Trust Board members here.

View the Structure Of The Trust Board & LABs And Associated Information here.

The LAB is crucial to helping the school to raise standards.

Some of the roles of the LAB are to:

provide the information required by the Trust and not to withhold any information which the Trust reasonably requires;
refer certain decisions to the Trust for approval as set out in the Scheme of Delegation;
report to the Trust Board Directors on the outcomes and progress within a one-week period of each meeting;
act in accordance with the LAB Protocols.

If you have any queries for the LAB or would like to contact the Chair, please email governance@cumbriaeducationtrust.org or telephone 016977 45300.

Composition of Local Advisory Board (LAB) members:

Type of member	Number	Term of office	Elected by who
Chief Executive	1	Indefinite	N/A – by appointment as Chief Executive
Headteacher	1	Indefinite	Appointment as Headteacher by Chief Executive/Trust Board
Sponsor Board member (including Chair and Vice Chair)	Max 7	4 years	By the Cumbria Education Trust Board resolution
Parent Board member	2	3 years	Seconded parent volunteer -applications to be considered by Cumbria Education Trust Board Directors.* *If there are more than 2 applications, an election will take place with all parents eligible to vote
Staff Board member	1	3 years	Staff election If only one member of staff is nominated they are automatically elected

LAB Members

Kelly Pattison – Chair and Safeguarding Lead

Passionate about the power education has to change lives, Kelly has supported Cumbria’s educationalists and settings for many years.

She is a Communications Officer at University of Cumbria and, prior to this, enjoyed a long career in local journalism in the county. Kelly reported on a wide range of local, national and international issues, events and news affecting the area and its residents.

Kelly was an education reporter for over a decade and she is particularly proud during this period to have been involved in helping to establish and co-ordinate the annual Golden Apple Awards that recognise the county’s heroes of education, skills and learning.

In her spare time, Kelly helps theatre and community groups as a children’s chaperone.

Louise Lund – Vice Chair

Originally from West Yorkshire, Louise settled down in Carlisle over 20 years ago to embark on her career as an environmental professional. She is now proud to work for the Environment Agency as a Nuclear Regulator.

Louise is passionate about both the environment and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI). Believing that all children should be empowered to realise their potential, no matter how great or small, to making their communities and environment a better place to live in.

Louise’s son attends Newtown and she is really pleased to be able to support his school as it works to achieve the best outcomes for all pupils.

Matt Butler – Director of Primary Improvement and Professional Development

Matt has responsibility for all the primary schools in the Trust and for designing and implementing the School Improvement Framework across those schools. He also leads on the Professional Development across the Trust, specifically the overall blueprint for ensuring that professional development in CET is a sector-leading offer. Matt has a wealth of experience in the sector, having previously worked for two national trusts as a Regional Director and Director of Curriculum and Subject development.

In his spare time, Matt enjoys exploring the Lakes, either cycling or running. When he is not out and about, he is usually busy shuttling his two boys to their football and rugby matches or spending quality time with his wife.

Cate Floyd – Executive Principal

After 12 years in education, working across the country in a variety of settings and alongside national bodies such as the North West Maths Hub, Cate moved from Accrington to join the CET Leadership team to take on her first headship at Longtown Primary School in 2017. She believes that all children are entitled to the very best education and that it is important to work within a school improvement model to develop sustainable change, for the benefit of young people.

After successfully securing their first ‘Good’ judgement at Longtown Primary School, she then took on her second headship within the Trust. At Yanwath Primary School, she ensured that they, as a leadership team, continued to provide a sustainable school improvement model where the mental health and wellbeing of both children and staff were at the heart of all decisions being made.

Mhairi Roberts – Headteacher

Mhairi joined the teaching team at Yewdale Primary School, then became Assistant Headteacher, Deputy Headteacher and Interim Head of School, before becoming Headteacher at Newtown Primary School.

Mhairi works hard to ensure that children become confident, independent learners and believes that all children should be given the support they need to realise their potential.

Sadie Skivington – Staff LAB member

Since beginning her teaching career, Sadie has worked across a variety of primary schools in Cumbria. Sadie joined CET at Hensingham Primary School as a class teacher, moving to Newtown Primary School to become Assistant Headteacher in September 2023.

Sadie is passionate about ensuring that all children receive high-quality education and that they are given every opportunity to become confident learners with a versatile set of skills, allowing them to prosper as they transition to secondary school and beyond.

Lydia Hulme – LAB member

Lydia has worked for the NHS in Carlisle since 2019, both in corporate and patient facing roles. In her current role as a Social Prescriber, she is an advocate for improved health and wellbeing outcomes for all residents of Carlisle.

In her free time, Lydia volunteers for Guide Dogs for the Blind, as well as providing accessibility consulting services on a freelance basis.

Becoming a parent made her want to learn more about the education system and the governance that sits alongside the taught curriculum. She has a particular interest in the EYFS provision, as well as the leadership and development of the school’s staff.