About us

Having graduated with a degree in English Literature in the early 1990s, Liz worked first as an English teacher and then for many years in educational publishing, before joining Ark Curriculum Plus in 2019. She is also Chair of Trustees of a small multi-academy trust in Oxford - CSAT - whose mission is to make sure every student is given the skills, knowledge and experiences to progress through education and achieve their potential.

Mathematics Mastery was founded by Dr Helen Drury – a pioneer of teaching and learning for mastery in UK schools.

Alongside 10 years of classroom experience, Helen began researching how maths education could be improved to break the UK’s cycle of underachievement. This research, evidence and best practice became the foundation for the Mathematics Mastery programme.

Helen now heads up the curriculum design team across all of the Ark Curriculum Plus programmes.

Madeleine was previously Director of Programme Delivery at Ambition Institute. She started her career at McKinsey and in small-cap UK private equity, before moving into the social purpose sector in 2008. Madeleine was Operations Director at the Institute for Teaching up until its merger with Ambition; Director of Social Enterprise and Innovation at Catch22; and the first CEO of an IFC-backed financial leasing institution investing in SMEs in East Africa. Her undergraduate degree was in Maths and Philosophy, and she enjoys being surrounded by people at AC+ who are passionate about maths and English.

Stephanie has headed up sales and marketing teams for three major educational publishing houses and worked in the international schools’ sector for 15 years. During this time, she has had the opportunity to visit hundreds of schools all over the world and speak to teachers from all settings and walks of life, to understand what they need in order to inspire students and help them progress. She is also a parent governor for a primary school in Oxfordshire in the UK.

Mathematics Mastery was founded by Dr Helen Drury – a pioneer of teaching and learning for mastery in UK schools. 

Alongside 10 years of classroom experience, Helen began researching how maths education could be improved to break the UK’s cycle of underachievement. This research, evidence and best practice became the foundation for the Mathematics Mastery programme.

Helen now heads up the curriculum design team across all of the Ark Curriculum Plus programmes.

Ed is the Head of Programme Design at Ark Curriculum Plus, working on the Mathematics Mastery programmes for both primary and secondary. 

Nick is the Head of Programme Design at Ark Curriculum Plus and started working on the English Mastery programme when the pilot launched in 2014. Since graduating with a degree in English, he has spent his career working in the public and charity sectors. He taught English in a challenging inner-London school, has also been a governor for a school in Hastings, and, unsurprisingly, loves to read.

Matt Gray is a Principal Design Lead at English Mastery. He has been a teacher since 2005, working in a variety of schools and as a National Curriculum Lead. Matt has a BA in English and an MA in Curriculum Design.

Shauna joined the Science Mastery team in November 2019 and leads on curriculum design. Having graduated from University with a degree in Biological Sciences with Chemistry, Shauna has spent her career teaching science in primarily inner-city schools, with a particular interest in improving opportunities for disadvantaged students.

Hannah is the principal design lead for geography mastery and teaches geography at Ark Elvin Academy. Her MEd research focused on how key concepts in geography can be useful for teachers and students. Her current favourite year group to teach is Y11.

Emma joined the Science Mastery team in September 2019 as an advisor whilst working as a Head of Department at an Ark school, and now leads on Professional Development.

Having graduated from the University of East Anglia with a degree in Environmental Science, Emma’s career spans over a decade of teaching and leading in schools across Essex, Dubai and London. Emma is an accredited Specialist Leader of Education and has an MA in Advanced Educational Practice from UCL: Institute of Education.

Emma splits her time between the Science Mastery team and continuing to teach and coach at an Ark school, as she strongly believes that education leaders should stay connected to the classroom.

David works as Design Lead on the Mathematics Mastery secondary programme. He began teaching in 2012 and worked at a number of schools in the Yorkshire and the North East of England. David has a BA in Education and an MA in Mathematics Education with a focus on task design.

Meghan joined as a Primary Design Lead in January 2020. She studied History at Sheffield Hallam University and completed a PGCE in 2013. Before joining AC+, she worked as a Primary Teacher for 6 years in Sheffield. During this time, Meghan specialised in P4C (Philosophy for Children) becoming SAPERE Level 3 trained and a Specialist Leader of Education. Alongside senior leaders, Meghan fully embedded the pedagogical approach of P4C within the curriculum and supported her school in becoming the first in Sheffield to attain the SAPERE Gold Award.

Jonelle joined Ark Curriculum Plus in May 2020 after a year of leading the design and delivery of the new Science, History & Geography Primary programmes within the Ark network. Prior to that, she worked at one of the Ark primaries where she taught Year 6 and held various Middle Leadership positions before her role as Vice Principal with responsibility for teaching and learning, teacher training, curriculum and assessment. Jonelle has a PGCE from Northumbria University.

Kate has worked with Ark since 2016. Before teaching, she studied Social Science at Monash University Melbourne then completed her postgraduate degree in Secondary Humanities education at Australian Catholic University. She has since taught in Alice Springs and London, gaining eleven years of classroom experience including several years as Head of Geography. In 2016 she completed an MSc in Violence, Conflict and Development at SOAS.

She now works at Ark helping to develop the Geography Mastery curriculum and leading the Geography network.

Alice O’Neill is the Primary Design Lead for English Mastery and has worked for the team since September 2019. Alongside her role with AC+, Alice works as a Primary English Specialist Leader of Education which involves supporting a number of different schools in and around South Yorkshire. Prior to this, Alice was a Y6 Teacher at St Thomas of Canterbury School in Sheffield, having completed a PGCE in 2008.

Over the past 20 years, Emily has taught Maths on three continents, been a Head of Maths, and leader of Teaching and Learning. She joined Maths Mastery as a designer for Secondary Schools in 2020. She has a degree in Maths from Imperial College and PGCE, MSc and DPhil in Mathematics Education from the University of Oxford.

Jo has been the Design Lead for Science Mastery since April 2020, working on the design of the KS3 Science Mastery Curriculum. She has taught Science for a number of years between East London and Johannesburg and has a degree in Neuroscience from the University of St Andrews and a Masters in Leadership from University College London.

Sara has worked at Mathematics Mastery since its launch in 2012 and leads the team of Primary Development Leads working directly with schools. Prior to working at Mathematics Mastery, Sara was Deputy Head of a primary school in East London and has also completed further studies in Mathematics Education at UCL: The Institute of Education. 

Evie taught English for ten years, embarking on her career in Nottinghamshire before moving to London to pursue a career in English leadership, including Head of English at a north London school and Network Lead Teacher for English for Ark schools. Evie read American Studies at the University of Nottingham with a year of study at the University of Illinois.

Alice joined the English Mastery in September 2018. She embarked on the Teach First development programme in 2015 and since worked as a teacher and Head of KS3 in south London. Alice read Art History at the University of Nottingham, has a PGCE in Secondary English and a Masters in Leadership and Education from UCL: The Institute of Education.

Anthony has been a part of the Mathematics Mastery team since 2017 and is a Principal Delivery Lead. This involves supporting external development leads, school-based maths leads and their teams to have a sustained impact on maths teaching in their schools. Most recently, he headed up the Oak National Academy as maths curriculum lead. Prior to working at Mathematics Mastery, Anthony was an Assistant Headteacher and maths lead in central London, Brazil and Vietnam. He is an accredited Lead Practitioner and coach.

Clare has worked at Mathematics Mastery since June 2020  and works directly with schools on the delivery of the secondary Mathematics Mastery programme. Prior to working at Mathematics Mastery, Clare was an Assistant Headteacher in Dorset and completed her Masters in Mathematics Education, focused on dialogic teaching, with Plymouth University.

Laura has worked at Mathematics Mastery since 2016 and is a Principal Development Lead, working directly with schools to support programme implementation as well as leading a team of external school development leads. Prior to working at Mathematics Mastery, Laura held various middle leadership roles within schools in Tower Hamlets and Hounslow and has also completed further studies in coaching and mentoring at the Chartered Management Institute.

Roisin has worked at English Mastery since April 2019. Previously, Roisin worked in London schools as an English teacher, Head or English, Advanced Skills Teacher and senior leader for 22 years. She studied English and Ancient History at Queen’s University Belfast before moving to London to complete an MA in Education at the University of North London and a PGCE in English at the University of London King’s College. She is also a proud mother of two teenage daughters.

Hannah is a School Development Lead at English Mastery. She studied English Literature and Language at UCL before completing her PGCE at Oxford University. Before joining English Mastery, Hannah taught English for seven years, holding various leadership roles within the departments she has worked in.

James is a School Development Lead, supporting school leaders and teachers to develop their mathematics teaching since 2017. Prior to joining Mathematics Mastery, James held various middle leadership roles within Bedford, teaching across Key Stage 1 and 2 and studied the subject further to become a Mathematics Specialist Teacher and a Senior Leader in Mathematics Education for Bedford Borough.

Michlyn joined as a School Development Lead in January 2020 and supports teachers and school leaders to develop their teaching of English. Prior to joining English Mastery, Michlyn taught secondary English for 12 years in West London and South London schools, holding various middle leadership roles across Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4.

Prior to joining Ark Curriculum Plus, Jade spent several years in the education sector working across primary, secondary and post-16, specialising in assessment and supporting school and academy trust leaders. Jade is privileged in her role to be able to learn from a range of partners, to then help spotlight activities proven to have the greatest impact and learning that help others to avoid common pitfalls.

Suzanne joined the team in 2018 and looks after schools and trusts in the East of England, the North West, the South East and the West Midlands. What she loves most about her job is talking to teachers and school leaders every day, learning more about what makes each school unique and helping to provide impactful solutions that will improve outcomes for children across the UK.

Natalie has been working in the education sector since 2015 and joined the team in 2019. She is renowned in the office for loving a quiz and is a member of the office book club. Natalie is the Ark Curriculum Plus link for London, the North East, Yorkshire, the East Midlands and the South West. Her favourite things about working in education sector partnerships are the opportunities to meet passionate people who drive positive change in their settings and being able to travel around the country.

Courtney joined the team in September 2019 after making a leap to the UK from New Zealand to start her overseas experience. Her role involves supporting the Partnership Managers in their work and being the frontline for customer queries. What Courtney loves most about her job is supporting customers through the onboarding phase of the partnership.