Current Executive Committee Members

Rob Thomas (Chair and Midlands Region) – Rob.Thomas@walsall.gov.uk

Rob is the Chair of EBDOG, a position he has held for 3 years. Prior to becoming Chair, Rob had been an executive member for 15 years.

Pete Mumford (East Region) – pete.mumford@suffolk.gov.uk

Pete joined the executive committee in 2019 and is the Co-Chair of EBDOG and Chair of the South East Region group.  He has worked at Suffolk County Council since 2010, and in his current role as Head of Schools Infrastructure since 2022. In this role he oversees School Place Planning, the School Capital Programme, Estate Management and Academisation. His previous place planning role focussed on responses to numerous district authority local plans and the discussions with housing developers about the impact of new housing and the education infrastructure required. This is an expanding area for Suffolk with significant investment needed to meet the Council’s statutory duty for providing school places over the next 10 to 15 years. Alongside this, Pete has also been involved in the development of a new SEND capital programme to deliver approximately £45m+ of additional infrastructure across the county. Prior to working at Suffolk County Council, Pete worked at the Learning and Skills Council in a Partnership Manager role and overseeing post-16 funding and capital projects.

Isabel Horner (East Region) – isabel.horner@norfolk.gov.uk

Isabel joined the Exec Committee in 2022 and has been a member of the Eastern Region since 2014. Isabel has worked in Children’s Services and the public sector since 1988 in a variety of roles, mainly supporting education and schools.  She is currently Head of Schools’ Infrastructure for Norfolk County Council, overseeing capital delivery, school buildings, admissions, place planning and organisation, as well as a PFI project for 6 schools.  In this time, she has overseen the capital delivery of a number of new mainstream and special schools, expansion of existing schools and opening new specialist resource bases.

Rachael Pinion (East Region) – rachael.pinion@cambridgeshire.gov.uk

Rachael is the Strategic Manager for Place Planning and Education Capital at Cambridgeshire County Council. Rachael has been working for Cambridgeshire since 2016. She leads the strategic planning and delivery of school places across the County. She oversees the Early Years, mainstream and SEND pupil place planning team and is responsible for securing funding for education through mechanisms such as S106 and CIL. She also develops the Council’s five year education capital programme and leads the team responsible for school major works capital project delivery and the team delivering condition works in maintained schools. She is also responsible for school academy conversions.  

Robert Bollen (London Region)  – robert.bollen@bromley.gov.uk

Rob has been a EBDOG Executive Member since 2015, representing the London Region, where he is current Chair. He is Head of Sufficiency at the London of Bromley, a role that encompasses planning for school places, mainstream, SEN and AP commissioning, school organisation and capital delivery. Rob has 25 years’ experience working in the public sector encompassing policy and project delivery roles in education, regeneration, capital delivery, corporate strategy and economic development. Prior to Bromley Rob was responsible for the client side delivery of PFI projects including education and social care and spent a time working in the private sector on public private partnerships including Building Schools For The Future (BSF). Rob is also a governor of a local school Federation, has served on two school Interim Executive Boards and was previously a director of a community credit union.

Jane Lawley (London Region) – jane.lawley@royalgreenwich.gov.uk

Jane has been an EBDOG member representing the South-East London region for several years and joined the Executive Committee in December 2022. Jane is the Strategic Lead for Inclusion and Place Planning in the Royal Borough of Greenwich responsible for school admissions and appeals; place planning; capital projects; school organisation and academy conversions, as well as the music service; attendance; education other than at school (EOTAS); primary and secondary inclusion services, youth justice education and the Virtual School for children and young people in the local authority’s care. Jane’s role is becoming more place and environment focussed, including working with partners on strategic estate management. Jane has worked in local government since 1996, starting in education funding and placements, before taking on responsibility for school place sufficiency and school capital projects in 2016. In November 2022, Jane became a governor of a local SEMH secondary school.

Jack Cutler (London Region) – jack.cutler@sutton.gov.uk

To follow  

Zahid Mahmood (Midlands Region) – zahid.mahmood@birmingham.gov.uk

To follow

Matt Clayton (Midlands Region) – matthew.clayton@lincolnshire.gov.uk

Matt joined the Executive Committee in 2019 to represent the East Midlands region. Matt has worked for Lincolnshire County Council for the last 20 years in various roles within Children’s Services and Corporate Property in information management, admissions, school place planning and capital programme management, and is currently Head of Service for Education Support. He is responsible for ensuring that Lincolnshire County Council meet their statutory duty for providing sufficient school places through planning and commissioning the delivery of capital projects across one of the largest counties in the country. This has recently included significant involvement in the development and implementation of a new special school strategy resulting in a five year £100m capital programme alongside multiple new build and expanded mainstream schools.

Chloe Webb (Midlands Region) – chloe.webb@coventry.gov.uk

Chloe is the Education Capital Strategy Manager at Coventry City Council, overseeing School Admissions, School Place Planning, PFI, and Childcare Sufficiency and Business Team. In her current role, Chloe is responsible for the strategic planning of education sufficiency in the city, and the education capital programme. Chloe joined the EBDOG executive committee in 2024 and has worked in education strategic planning roles for over 15 years.  

Deborah Taylor (North East Region) – debbie.tyler@newcastle.gov.uk

To follow

Vacancy (North East Region)

To follow

Vacancy (North East Region)

To follow  

Paula Durrant (North West Region) – paula.durrant@lancashire.gov.uk

Paula joined the Executive Committee in 2023 and is now the secretary for the North West Region. She works for Lancashire County Council as the School Place Planning Manager, overseeing Mainstream and SEND sufficiency as well as holding responsibility for Academy Conversions, delivery of the councils Basic Need and SEND Capital Programmes and oversight of community infrastructure including representation to Local Plans and seeking of developer contributions to mitigate the impact of housing growth.  Partnership is key to any service delivery, whether with local schools, district partners and or neighbouring local authorities. Paula and her team work closely with local education providers, contractors and other key players with the aim of creating sustainable school structures and new school places that enhance pupil outcomes as well as establishing Lancashire as a good place to live. Paula has over 35 years’ experience in the public sector, starting her career as a Nursery Nurse in a Special Needs School, and thereafter working in Social Care before progressing into regulatory work as an Early Years Ofsted Inspector and then working as a Senior Early Years Adviser for Cambridge County Council before commencing a role in School Place Planning as a 0-19 Place Planning and Sufficiency Officer in 2016 and taking a Senior Place Planning position in Hertfordshire before becoming a School Planning Manager for Lancashire in 2023.

Angela Birch (North West Region) – angela.birch@liverpool.gov.uk

Angela Birch is a co-chair of the Northwest region of EBDOG and joined the Executive Committee in 2023. Angela is a Capital Project Manager in the Capital Projects Team within City Development directorate leading on the development, governance arrangements and delivery of projects within the School Condition Allocation (SCA) programme for Liverpool City Council, with additional responsibilities for ensuring school compliance with premises Health & Safety regulations and managing the schools condition survey programme. She also works closely with Children’s Services to provide information on the schools’ estate to inform pupil planning strategies. Angela has worked at Liverpool City Council since 2008 and prior to that worked in St Helens Council, Wyre Borough Council and Somerset County Council in a variety of estates, asset management and project management roles.

Mark Sarjent (North West Region) – mark.sarjent@warrington.gov.uk

To follow  

Ben Wright (South East Region) – ben.wright@achievingforchildren.org.uk

Ben Wright is the Chair of the South East region of EBDOG, and joined the Executive Committee in 2024.  He is the School Place Planning and Capital Programme Manager at the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead (where Children’s Services are provided by Achieving for Children).  He has worked at Windsor and Maidenhead as a school place planner since 2001, following several years at Hertfordshire County Council in home to school transport, school admissions and place planning. Ben’s current role oversees pupil place planning (including mainstream and SEND pupil projections, pupil yields and school organisation), management of the Children’s Services capital programme (condition, Basic Need, early years and High Needs), school academisations and term dates.

Zoe Snow (South East Region) – zoe.snow@southampton.gov.uk

To follow

Graham Olway (South East Region) – graham.olway@westsussex.gov.uk

Graham is the Head of Service for Organisation & Planning at West Sussex County Council and his role covers pupil projections, capital planning, school organisation, place planning of mainstream and SEND, admissions, home to school transport, academisations, children missing education, elective home education, pupil employment licences, SENDIAS, Schools Forum and business enterprise and communications.  He has been involved with EBDOG since 2000 and has served as the National Chairman in two periods from 2007-13 and 2019-2023 and was awarded the MBE for his services to Education in 2013. Graham is passionate about close working with the DfE to ensure the views and advice of local authorities feed into the DfE.  He has organised two National EBDOG Conferences in West Sussex and has also visited France and the Netherlands to review education building designs that led to some of those designs being introduced in West Sussex.  Graham has also been a Trustee at academy trusts since 2014.  

Emily Heaton (South West Region) – eheaton@swindon.gov.uk

Emily Heaton is the Service Lead for Access and Provision at Swindon borough Council, overseeing School Admissions, Education Place Planning, Free School Meals Eligibility Service, SENDIAS and Mainstream Home to School Transport Policy. Emily has been working for Swindon Borough Council for 19 years in total, with 14 of those in Education. In her current role, Emily is responsible for the strategic planning of Education sufficiency for the Borough, and the Education Capital Programme. With Swindon as one of the fastest growing Towns in the Country, the Council has been successful over the last 5 years in securing Free School bids, with 20 % of all the free schools in the South West being in the local area. In all her roles, Emily has been heavily involved in influencing and shaping policy, lobbying Government and then implementing changes locally, with a wealth of experience of working across the South West with all Local Authorities through various networks, along with working in the political arena of Local Government for many years.

Gareth Vine (South West Region) – gareth.vine@gloucestershire.gov.uk

To follow  

Sally Smout (nee Lowe) (Yorkshire and Humber Region) – sally.smout@leeds.gov.uk

Sally has over 25 years of experience in the education sector. She joined Leeds City Council in 2010 from the Learning and Skills Council and led a range of initiatives to improve engagement and attainment for children and young people, including the successful implementation of the Raising of the Participation Age. In October 2024, after leading the Built Environment Team since 2018, Sally became the Head of Learning Infrastructure at Leeds City Council. Her portfolio now includes responsibility for the School Maintenance Programme, the Children and Families Asset Management & Capital Strategy, School Organisation and sufficiency place planning across early years, primary, secondary and SEND learning places, academy conversions, education transport, and business relationships and traded services. A member of the EBDOG Executive Committee since 2019, Sally hosted the 2023 National EBDOG Conference in Leeds. She is also a co-chair of the Yorkshire & Humber Regional EBDOG Group.

Steven Jenks (Yorkshire and Humber Region) – steve.jenks@bradford.gov.uk

To follow

David Martin (Yorkshire and Humber Region) – david.martin@kirklees.gov.uk

David is the Head of Property at Kirklees Council, which covers all land and property held by the Council excluding Housing and Highways. Schools related teams within the Property Service include the Schools Asset Management Team, the Public Private Partnership 1 and 2 Schools Contracts team and technical disciplines dealing with school repairs, the Schools Condition programme and major capital remodelling and new build schemes. David joined the Education Service at Kirklees Council in 1998 from the Funding Agency for Schools, where he dealt with school place planning issues for grant-maintained schools in the North of England. He spent 12 years in the Education Service before moving into the Council’s corporate centre when all asset management was reorganised to a centralised Corporate Landlord model. David retained responsibility for school buildings/land, as well as adding responsibility for the Council’s corporate estate. David is passionate about SEND, being autistic himself and having a child that has been through the SEND system, which was difficult and challenging. Sitting on the National EBDOG committee for over decade now, David has been involved in EBDOG since 1998 and is a representative for the Regional Yorkshire and Humberside EBDOG.