Exploring Choices

​Heather Rushton: Director of Exploring Choices Ltd. ​Heather has been a teacher, adviser, senior officer with national and international experience. She has extensive experience of working in Children’s Services within the public sector, particularly in Education but also in, partnership working and integrated services. Heather has held very senior positions in schools, local authorities and nationally. Starting working life as a teacher, Heather became a head teacher, adviser, senior adviser and Director for School Improvement. Heather has worked with and for children in areas of high social deprivation, she has a sincere desire to give children the very best start in life. She has worked in large Local Authorities, metropolitan areas and across regions as a Children’s Services Adviser. Her experience includes improving departmental performance, Health, Children’s Social care, Youth and Education. ​ Heather is curious about what is happening in children’s lives and exploring why it has happened. Her skills to evaluate lead to pertinent identification of changes that need to be made to help them easily benefit from education, care or health programmes. Heather has significant experience with SEN, Literacy and Early Years, Prior to becoming an independent consultant Heather lead the national improvement programme with the Centre for Excellence and Outcomes working with 152 Local Authorities, and 64 voluntary agencies, SCIE, RIP, NfER and RIP. As an independent consultant. Heather inspires confidence in individuals, supports staff to see new ways of working and improve outcomes. Picture David Connor has extensive experience of working in Children’s Services within the public sector, particularly in Education but also in commissioning, partnership working and integrated services. David's experience includes over twenty years in teaching including Headships in three schools, university lecturing with a specialism in Early Years education and work in Eastern Europe developing systems and structures for the delivery of effective education. ​Following his work in schools, David joined a Local Authority advisory service, initially as an adviser for primary education and then as a senior adviser with responsibility for a team of forty advisers and consultants before eventually becoming Chief Adviser for a large Local Authority with over 430 schools. ​After a spell as Deputy Director of Education, he was promoted to the post of Strategic Deputy Director of Children’s Services with responsibility for departmental planning, evaluation and quality assurance (Education and Social Care), information and data, external partnerships, commissioning – public, private and voluntary sectors, oversight of schools and workforce development. Since 2010, David has worked as an Independent Consultant undertaking commissions for the Centre for Excellence, National Children’s Bureau, National College and Children’s Improvement Board. This has included evaluations of Local Authority structures and services and assessment against the Test of Assurance, support to Local Authorities to develop new systems and structures for Children’s services and school improvement systems, a scoping study for the development of a Knowledge Transfer Centre in Northern Ireland and the provision of support to aspiring leaders in Children’s Services.