Welcome to Changing Lives Learning Trust
David Dennis
Interim Chief Executive Officer
I am delighted to become Interim Chief Executive Officer of Changing Lives Learning Trust.
I have been supporting CLLT as both Headteacher and Improvement partner for the past 18 months.
My whole journey is underpinned by a fundamental belief borne of my own personal experience that education can and must have a transformative effect on life chances of our children.
Prior to taking on this role, I was the Chief Executive Officer of a nine-school, mixed phase multi academy trust serving 8,500 learners in Sheffield. I retired from this role in August 2024. I was previously Headteacher of a large, outstanding, 11-19 secondary school with sustained high levels of attainment and progress for all groups of learners. I am experienced in growing and developing leaders across a wide range of contexts, both inside and outside of my own Trust, as a National Leader of Education. I drove the improvement and development of the Trust over seven years as CEO, with a key emphasis on securing strong governance and resilient distributed leadership. I was fortunate to contribute to international collaborations with Singapore with British Council and helped to found a national collaborative network of Trusts for Impact. Prior to Headship and CEO roles, I had extensive experience in curriculum and teacher development and assessment, and for many years to present day as principal examiner for GCSE Physics.
My whole journey is underpinned by a fundamental belief borne of my own personal experience that education can and must have a transformative effect on life chances of our children
I always begin my work with the perspective of valuing everyone as a unique individual, caring for each member of our community and that it is essential no child is held back and no child is left behind to enable each learner to achieve their own excellence.
I believe that the Trust should:
- Provide a safe place
- Provide great teaching and learning
- Create an environment where all opportunities are within reach
To achieve these things, we need to:
- Have a focus on nurture as well as achievement
- Involve the family and wider community in everything we do
- Make visible those who feel invisible through disability, poverty, ethnic or cultural disadvantage
I believe that equity is at the heart of our work. This needs a conscious deployment of resources on the basis of need, to ensure that all learners have an equal chance of success.
Changing Lives Learning Trust is a Multi-Academy Trust with Sponsor Status and is a not for profit charity which sponsors primary and secondary academies. Our Sponsors are The University of Lancashire, The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and Sellafield Ltd.
