Kim Harwood - Business Manager BWPS & NPS

Kim joined Leigh Trust in January 2024 in a new role to support new schools joining the Trust and will be supporting Bentley West Primary School in Walsall.

Her career began in the private sector, working for Nationwide Building Society where she progressed to Assistant Branch Manager, gaining the accredited Building Society qualifications and being FSA trained to approve mortgage applications.

After a career break to begin a family, she changed careers to the Education Sector and now has 25 years’ experience in the finance, HR and premises management of schools. She has worked across a genre of schools from Infant / Primary / SEN and Middle Schools across various Local Authorities in the U.K. She has worked closely with all Governing Boards in her roles, focusing on the strategic aims of the schools and in supporting the better life chances of the students, which she is passionate about.

During her career she has attained qualifications and research projects to support her role, gaining a Foundation Degree in Business Administration and BA (Hons) Degree in School Business Management from Manchester University.

Her specialism is having a keen eye for seeing how things work together and supporting the Senior Leadership Teams to develop systems. She is very much looking forward to the challenges the new role will present.