Working at YCL

I am a graduate in German with International Studies. The company also funded me to undertake the Market Research Society (MRS) advanced certificate in Market and Social Research.I originally worked for a consultancy specialising in European funded initiatives and project evaluations. Since joining York Consulting my knowledge and interest of mainstream education and those marginalised from it; groups accessing non-traditional forms of learning; the widening participation agenda and Skills for Life policy arena has greatly increased.

I am currently working on a high profile evaluation for the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) looking at the New Relationship with Schools, which has introduced a range of policy changes to reduce the bureaucracy on schools and improve school self-evaluation.I am also working on an evaluation of the Functional Skills Support Programme which aims to train practitioners across a range of schools and learning providers to develop functional skills provision as part of ICT, Maths and English.

My favourite assignment so far has been to research the prevalence of and reasons for Home Education in England, which brought me into contact with a wide range of people including the gypsy / traveller community. I have also enjoyed both evaluations connected to the Student Associates Scheme which have involved consultations with young people, school staff and Universities. The main challenges in my role can be juggling several projects at once for different clients. However this also means that each week is different and ensures that my knowledge of different policy areas in education is ever increasing.

I enjoy the way York Consulting encourages consultants to develop skills in all areas of research from proposal writing to client meetings to report presentations.Working in consultancy gives me an insight into how education policy works as well as research opportunities to help shape its future development.

I am a former diplomat with an MBA from Manchester Business School.I left government service after ten years because I did not feel suited to working in a large organisation.York Consulting has provided me with a way of pursuing my passion for improved public sector performance within a relatively smaller, more flexible team.

Variety at work is essential for me, and working here provides it.At the moment, I am evaluating a rural development programme in Yorkshire, a Local Area Agreement in Walsall, and Neighbourhood Renewal in Bristol.I am also helping to develop new projects in the East Midlands to help tackle poor rural productivity and access to key services. Other recent work in regeneration has taken me to the North West to investigate discrimination in the construction sector, the North East to evaluate over £500m of Single Regeneration Budget activity, and the West Midlands to run workshops on sustainable development.

Although my focus is Regeneration, I still get involved in the work of other teams.I am currently interviewing higher education students to understand the motivations of those who might be described as ‘non-traditional’, such as those with few or no previous qualifications, mature students and people from disadvantaged backgrounds. I am also visiting schools across the country to assess the impact of government policy on school performance.