Professor Elizabeth Barnes

Professor Elizabeth Barnes is the Chair of Members for the Trust, she is highly experienced in education and leadership. Liz retired from a long career in Higher Education at the end of 2021, having served most recently as Vice Chancellor and Chief Executive at Staffordshire University. She previously was Deputy Vice-Chancellor at Sheffield Hallam University and Derby University after a long career at Teesside University.

Elizabeth is committed to young people and education; she believes it is important education and employers are seen to be working jointly in endeavours to improve the life chances of young people.

In her role at Staffordshire University, Elizabeth built connections with employers and industry, working with them to provide vocational courses to upskill the future workforce. Her career has been built around leading learning and teaching and the student experience. She is a Governor of two Universities, and a non-executive Director in Housing and with a NHS Trust.