Knowsley appoints new education director

Knowsley Council has appointed Jill Albertina as its new assistant executive director (Education).

Jill, who is currently a primary school headteacher in Knowsley, will take up the newly created position from January 2018.

The new role will be instrumental in driving forward Knowsley’s education strategy and Jill will be working in partnership with Knowsley’s education commission and the borough’s school community to improve outcomes for young people.

Jill said: “I am absolutely thrilled and excited to have been appointed to this position and am looking forward to working with colleagues at the council and school leaders to secure the best possible outcomes for all of Knowsley’s children and young people.  I want to encourage a culture which celebrates success, generates a collective focus, and in turn creates the innovation to tackle areas for improvement.

“I relish the opportunity to use the hands-on skills and experience which I have built up throughout my career in taking on a broader leadership role across the area.”

Jill has worked in Knowsley for 11 years, formerly as headteacher of Mosscroft Primary School and more recently at Stockbridge Village Primary School.  On each of the five occasions when her schools have been inspected by Ofsted, her leadership has been singled out for praise, with inspectors describing it as “outstanding”, “exceptional”, “successful” and “dynamic”.

Her schools have been recognised by the National College as leadership development schools, by the Department for Education for pupil progress, and by other local authorities as models of good practice.

As headteacher at Stockbridge Village Primary, she has overseen strong outcomes for pupils, making the school one of the highest performing schools in Knowsley in the Early Years Foundation Stage and at Key Stage 2. In fact in the last academic year, the school’s results were above local and national averages at every indicator at Key Stage 2.

Councillor Andy Moorhead, leader of Knowsley Council said: “Not only was Jill a credible and experienced candidate, but it was also very clear when we met her just how committed and passionate she was about education and young people.  She very much shares the council’s vision for the future of education here and will be a fantastic asset for Knowsley.”