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Trust Executive Group
Trust Executive Group (TEG)
The Trust Executive Group (TEG) brings together the senior leaders who drive educational improvement across ACT Multi Academy Trust. This group includes all headteachers, selected deputy headteachers, and the central executive team.
TEG exists to ensure that leadership across the Trust is collegiate, connected, and grounded in the lived experience of our schools. It provides a space for school and Trust leaders to come together to inform and shape educational priorities, contribute to the strategic direction of the Trust, and support the consistent implementation of high-quality provision across all settings.
While the Board of Trustees holds responsibility for overall governance and accountability, we believe the strength of ACT lies in the professional expertise and insight of its school leaders. TEG reflects our commitment to shared leadership, mutual challenge, and a culture of high expectations and moral purpose.
Together, our leaders bring a depth of experience, contextual knowledge, and ambition that helps ensure every decision we make is informed by what works best for our pupils, staff and communities.
Trust Executive Group
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Mike Harrison
Executive Headteacher
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David Sandford
Headteacher
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View ProfileMichelle Heather
Headteacher
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Mike Harrison
Executive HeadteacherMike Harrison is an experienced and highly impactful school leader, with over 20 years in primary education and a decade as a Headteacher in Cambridgeshire. He currently serves as Executive Headteacher across both St Michael’s Church School and All Saints Inter-Church Academy.
Mike has a proven track record of rapidly improving outcomes in all the schools he has led. His leadership is characterised by clarity, moral purpose and a relentless focus on inclusion and ambition for every child.
Beyond his own settings, Mike has played a significant role in supporting wider school improvement across the region. As Lead for the EDRA programme (Ely Diocesan Regional Advisors), he was instrumental in enhancing provision for vulnerable pupils across diocesan schools. He continues to contribute to the development of inclusive and strategic practice across a range of educational settings.
Mike is passionate about building supportive, values-led environments where all children can thrive – and about working in partnership with others to achieve sustained and meaningful improvement.
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David Sandford
HeadteacherDavid Sandford has worked in education since 1994 and is currently the Headteacher at Burrough Green C of E Primary Academy. Leading a small school, David combines his headship with responsibility for SEND and a 0.6 teaching commitment. Prior to this role, he served as a teaching Deputy Head in four diverse settings.
With a longstanding background in Year 6 teaching, David also worked in middle schools as a Lead Practitioner, during which he was seconded to support a range of schools across different phases. From September 2025, he will take on the role of Executive Headteacher.
David’s leadership is driven by the belief that every child should have the chance to do their best and access the widest possible opportunities. He is especially passionate about cultural capital and the effective use of pupil premium funding. Beyond school, he has two children aged 20 and 14, and enjoys keeping fit as well as playing Scrabble and chess to a high standard.
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Michelle Heather
HeadteacherAs Headteacher of Buckden CE Primary Academy, Michelle Heather brings over nearly 30 years of experience in education. Beginning her career as a teaching assistant, she then progressed to become a higher-level teaching assistant before taking a year out to do her PGCE so she could return to education as a fully qualified teacher. She worked in a local school before moving to Buckden CE Primary 18 years ago. She was a leading literacy teacher for the local authority and supported schools in promoting the quality of teaching in Literacy. She progressed to Key Stage leader and became a Deputy Headteacher IN 2014 before becoming the Headteacher in 2023, when the school became the Sponsor School for the ACT Multi-academy Trust. She is passionate about ensuring that the quality of education is at the highest standard for all children. As a school leader, she continually looks for ways to improve the educational offer for all of her pupils through continuous learning and engaging with a network of professional colleagues. Michelle holds a Post Graduate in Primary Specialist Mathematics and has been awarded ATS Accredited Teacher status with the British Dyslexia Association.