Our trustees and committee co-optees

Bev joined the college as Vice-Principal in 2011 and became Principal and Chief Executive of what is now Queen Alexandra Charity, Birmingham in 2018. She has worked in leadership roles for over 25 years in both mainstream and specialist education and is a qualified teacher.

Bev is a trustee and is invited to attend the meetings of the Audit Committee, Governance Committee, Resources Committee and Services Committee. She is a director of QAC Enterprises Limited.

Bev represents SEND at both AoC and CWM groups, is a member of the Leaders Council of GB and is a Board member for BRIB (Birmingham Royal Institute for the Blind). Bev has served as the Regional Director for the West Midlands on the board of Natspec (the association of specialist providers for students with learning difficulties and disabilities) from 2018-2023.  

Specialisms in leadership and management of multidisciplinary provision; strategic development to maximise income; organisational change and its impact on organisational behaviour; management coaching and ensuring a person centred approach is utilised to maximise opportunities and progression for young people with SEND.  Bev has a keen interest in educational management, with a Masters in Educational Leadership as well as an MBA.

Dave was born 24^th November 1957.  He is married to wife Debbie whom he whisked off to Gretna Green (a romantic at heart).  They have a hat trick of girls whom he is very proud of; also an important member of the family is his guide dog Seamus.

He was always known as a clumsy kid, never a day passed without cuts, bruises or a broken pair of glasses, until at around ten years of age all was revealed, he was diagnosed with an eye complaint called Retinitas Pigmentosa, just a slight problem, it meant he was going blind.  When first diagnosed he was quite a celebrity at school, “Wow Dave’s going blind”, no one else was so it was a case of “I’ve got something you haven’t got”.  He attended mainstream schools, Greets Green Junior and George Salter High School, his only claim to fame; he was the town champion at 1500 metres for five years.

The realisation of his eye complaint hit him with some force at the age of seventeen, his career in the army shattered and with all his friends taking driving tests made him realise the true implications of going blind, it was at this point he inwardly started feeling sorry for himself, “Why me”, but in life there are two paths to tread, negative or positive and as he will tell you he took the positive route.

Regardless of his sight problem, he’s had a varied working career, mainly office bound, other than his short stint on a fork lift truck, he admits he wasn’t always honest about his sight problem, he had his own company for around seven years, distributing suspended ceilings, partitions, dry lining and joinery, he loved the buying and selling but with bad luck, bad debt and bad eye sight, all good things come to an end.  After spending three years at the Queen Alexandra College for the Blind where he achieved skills in Braille, computers, carpentry and wood turning, it’s now easy for him to lose himself in his workshop where he loves to design and make all kinds of furniture.  He now even has a weekly radio slot on Insight radio called DIY with Blind Dave and still no fingers missing!

Dave tried hard over the years to conceal his blindness but with his eyesight gradually declining the accidents kept increasing until he had to admit defeat and resort to using the white stick, which made him feel incapable, vulnerable and extremely frustrated.  Suddenly overnight Dave’s life was changed when he was introduced to Peter his first Guide Dog. No longer the hunched figure trawling the footpath, but full of confidence, standing and walking tall, feeling very proud, striding out with a sure footed four legged friend, mobility assured, as for independence, the perfect recipe for adventure, with a social life, second to none, his only regret is not having a Guide Dog sooner.

For fun he’s up for most challenges, he’s had a go at most things, ski-ing, water ski-ing, horse riding, cliff jumping in Corfu, drove around Brands Hatch, rode motor bikes, drove a tank in the Highlands of Scotland, abseiled, was let loose in a speed boat, completed the Go Ape course in Grisedale forest, an Aerial assault course in the trees and he certainly enjoys his running. Competing in many half marathons, including the Great North and South runs along with the New York marathon and to date completing his 7th consecutive London marathon.  Oh! And of course completing 7 marathons in 7 days on 7 continents the ultimate challenge! Not forgetting he is now also the first blind person in the world to achieve this.

After completing the epic challenge, which took him on a running journey around the world, as stated previously, running 7 marathons, in 7 days, over 7 continents, which began on 7^th April 2008 in the Falkland Islands (Antarctica), Rio, Brazil, (South America), Los Angeles, (North America), Sydney, (Australasia), Dubai, (Asia), Tunisia, (Africa), with the challenge ending in the Flora London marathon, (Europe), on 13^th April 2008.

The challenge launched Dave into a new career as a “Motivational Speaker” with a diverse audience i.e. After Dinner, Corporate, Colleges, Schools, Special needs etc.

A fitting end to 2008 was Blind Dave and his running guide being acknowledged at the BBC Midlands Sports Awards as the winners of the “Outstanding sporting achievement of 2008".

2009 sees Dave becoming the Physical Activities Champion for Sandwell Council and an Ambassador for the Birmingham Half Marathon.  He was also acknowledged with an award by the High Sheriff of the West Midlands.  Since the challenge he has been involved with many charities, including running the first Birmingham half marathon for the Kidney Kids appeal with “Team Blind Dave” and the last Flora London Marathon with a personal best time of 3 hours and 24 minutes.

2010 - Appointed to the Board of Governors at QAC, Patron of Ideal for All and Ambassador to West Bromwich Albion Football club.

2011 - Top2Toe challenge ten days of running/cycling from John O’Groats to Lands End for Macmilliam Cancer Support.  Received West Bromwich Albion Players award “Contribution to the Community”.  10^th consecutive Great North run.

In recognition of Dave’s charity work over the years he was invited to Buckingham Palace for a Christmas reception with the Queen, her summer garden party and also to a function at the House of Lords.   Honoured by the Wolverhampton University with an Honorary degree of Doctor of Letters.

2012 - 11^th consecutive London Marathon.  Changing our Lives charity 240 miles bike ride.  Received 2 awards “Justgiving Endurance Fundraiser” and “Griffin Trophy”.  11^th Honoury Freeman of the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell.  Took part in the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games 2012.

2013 events included:

• 12th consecutive London marathon in April.
• September - 7 in seven bike ride, 7 countries, in 7 days covering over 700 miles from Switzerland, into Germany, France, Luxemburg, Belgium, Holland and finally England and Birmingham New Street.

2014 - Wheels for Change 100k bike ride in aid of Unicef.  Aberdovey bike ride.  Coast to Coast Challenge East to West across England and through Ireland for Teenage Cancer.  13^th Great North Run.  50 mile Gower Coast Run.

2015 - Dave completes 6 gruelling days running over 160 miles across the Sahara Desert for the Albion Foundation.

2016 - New year, new challenge; Escape from Alcatraz! Considered by many the toughest annual triathlon in the world this event tested Dave to his limits.

Dave’s book “From Light To Dark” was launched at Waterstones flagship store in Birmingham and a book signing tour was organised.

2017 - There are 24 Great runs in the 2017 series, starting January in Edinburgh and finishing November in Ethiopia  with a variety of distances including 5k, 10k, 10 miles, half marathons and marathons. Fundraising for The Albion Foundation, Dave will aim to complete the whole series.

Please take a moment to have a look on his website, www.blinddaveheeley.co.uk

Elly Tobin joined Queen Alexandra Charity, Birmingham’s governing team as a co-opted (independent) member of the then Quality and Curriculum Com-mittee in May 2018 and remains a member of it under its newer name of Quality Committee.

Elly worked for over 25 years in international education. Between 2008 and 2019, she was Principal of Joseph Chamberlain College in Birmingham. She was also the director of the College for International Citizenship that of-fered short programmes in global studies and international relations. She continues to work as an international school accreditor with the Walsall Artis-tic Swimming Club (WASC) and the Council for International Schools (CIS) and is a Lead Improvement Practitioner for the Council of British International Schools (COBINS). She is one of the founder directors of the International Writing Project (IWP) that delivers teacher training to develop better writing skills.

Elly is a senior consultant for Consilium Education, operating world-wide. She coaches and mentors senior leaders and delivers middle man-agement training in UK colleges.

Elly is a workshop presenter and keynote speaker at conferences around the world. She has published two children’s books and continues to write chil-dren’s stories as a hobby. She was awarded an honorary doctorate by Aston University for her work in education.

Jasbir Hayer joined the Board of Trustees in 2025.  She sits on the Audit Committee and is the Lead Trustee for Curriculum: English and Mathematics. 

Jasbir is a qualified accountant with over 25 years in the profession.  

As a parent trustee, Jasbir brings first-hand understanding of the opportunities and challenges faced by students and their families, contributing a practical and informed perspective to the board 

Jasbir maintains an active lifestyle and enjoys running as well as team sports such as netball.

John Campbell joined the Board of Trustees in 2025.  He sits on the Audit Committee and is the Lead Trustee for Residential and Independence Plus.

John has over 20 years experience with Supply Chain. He is the Northern European Supply Chain Director for a mining company, where he leads with clarity, accountability, and a strong bias for simplification. He is passionate about building aligned, high-performing teams and creating operating rhythms that drive both commercial and operational results. John combines strategic perspective with hands-on engagement, investing time with teams to understand reality on the ground and remove complexity. He is committed to continuous improvement - in business and personally - with a focus on long-term performance and sustainable success.

John enjoys a challenge, and is currently training for ultra marathons and is working to get back to triathlon in 2027.

Kimberly Tierney joined the Board of Trustees in July 2020, sits on the Services Committee and is the Lead Trustee for Therapies.

After volunteering at Queen Alexandra Charity, Birmingham through Mencap, Km joined the workforce in 2012 as a Residential Co-ordinator before becoming Residential Services Manager. She is the ‘nominated individual’ responsible for supervising the management of the charity’s activity that is regulated by the Care Quality Commission. Kim is also a member of the charity’s Safeguarding Team and of the Skills for Care local manager network. She is a Dignity in Care cham-pion, promoting dignity and care within care services.

Kim has a degree in psychology and a master’s degree in clinical psy-chology from the University of Birmingham.

In her free time, Kim enjoys walking, reading and gardening.

Mark Abrams joined the Board of Trustees when he became Chair of Trustees in 2024. He sits on the Governance Committee, the Remuneration Committee and the Resources Committee and is the Lead Trustee for Curriculum: Learning, Employment and Progression (LEAP) and for supported internships.

With over 40 years of experience as a leader, Mark has a career that includes founding, and building, an IT business that was listed on London’s Alternative Investment Market.

He served as Partnerships Director at Advantage West Midlands, where he played a key role in delivering the Regional Economic Strategy for Stafford-shire, Coventry and Warwickshire. Following this, Mark held the position of Director of the Business Development Support Office at Coventry University, overseeing the administration of non-teaching income projects.

Mark’s interest in learning saw him serve as a governor at Hagley Primary School for 12 years, including eight of these as Chair, when he facilitated the creation of HPS Care Limited that provided comprehensive childcare services and generated income for the school. Looking to his own development, he completed the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Programme, designed to support leaders of high-growth businesses and he holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Management.

As Chief Executive of Auriga Services Limited, a charity-owned public bene-fit company, Mark led initiatives to assist around 1,800 people daily who were experiencing financial hardship. In 2023, he co-founded Make Life Better Limited, a company with the ambitious goal of creating £1 billion of social re-turn by 2035, focusing on helping individuals in financial need.

Mark enjoys sailing and is a qualified coastal skipper with the Royal Yachting Association.

Naresh Kumar joined the Board of Trustees in October 2021. He sits on the Resources Committee and is the Lead Trustee for Curriculum: Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance.

Naresh has worked in the charity’s college since 2014. He has been a residential support worker, a senior residential support worker and a learning support assistant and has been a student support officer since 2018 and, in 2021, Naresh joined the safeguarding team. He is a mental health first aider.

Naresh holds a BA(Hons) degree in Religious Studies and Philoso-phy and is certified by NCFE (formerly, the ‘Northern Council for Fur-ther Education’) as a skilled helper using counselling skills and has qualified as a coach and Neuro-Linguistics Programming Practitioner to better meet the needs of those around him in a more diverse and robust manner.

In his spare time, Naresh enjoys walking, reading and photography.

Nic joined Queen Alexandra Charity, Birmingham’s governing team as a co-opted (independent) member of the Audit Committee in Decem-ber 2022 and became its chair in summer 2025.

Nic studied German and music at the University of Nottingham before training for The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountan-cy (CIPFA) qualification with Robson Rhodes LLP in Bristol. She then moved to Grant Thornton UK Advisory and Tax LLP and, after a two-year stint in Australia working on commercial audits, she took up her current role within Birmingham, specialising in public sector audit.

Outside work, Nic enjoys reading, playing the piano and attending the theatre, where live comedy and musicals are a favourite, along with classical music performances at Birmingham’s Symphony Hall.

Nirmal Singh joined the Board of Trustees in 2025. He sits on the Audit Committee and is the Lead Trustee for Community Services. 
 
Nirmal has dedicated over 20 years to public service, working across the charity, housing, and public sectors to improve the lives of vulnerable people. His career has focused on fostering independence and dignity for those facing complex challenges, spanning social housing, mental health, addiction recovery, and disability support. This includes experience working with housing providers such as the Longhurst Group and managing performance for ‘Supporting People’ programmes. 
 
Passionate about the sustainability of the voluntary sector, Nirmal has a background in business development and grant funding. He takes pride in supporting grassroots charities, using his experience in bid writing and strategy to help smaller, community-led organisations secure funding and build the capacity they need to survive and thrive. 
 
He brings operational and financial oversight experience to the Audit Committee, while his history of building collaborative partnerships across health, housing, education, and the community informs his work as Lead Trustee for Community Services. Outside of his professional roles, Nirmal remains an active volunteer, dedicated to exploring how digital transformation and emerging technologies - such as AI and Robotics - can be harnessed to empower the third sector.

Pavan Patel is a former trustee of Queen Alexandra Charity, Birmingham and is now a director of QAC Enterprises Limited.

Pavan originates from Wales but now lives in the West Midlands after ob-taining a degree in business management at The University of Birmingham. He is a private banking manager.

Alongside his degree, Pavan holds various higher education and professional qualifications such as Senior Financial Services Customer Adviser, The Chartered Management Institute Level 5 Certificate in Management and Leadership, Chartered Banker Institute Professional and Responsible Banking in a Digital Age and Association of Accounting Technicians Level 3 Advanced Diploma in Accounting.

Previously Pavan was a Silver Sport Leader Ambassador for the Active Young People’s Department in which he coached community tennis sessions in ages ranging from 11 to 16 years old, educating them on the key techniques required within the sport, alongside the importance of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle.

Pavan is on the Audit Committee and is also a director and board member of QAC Enterprises Limited.  Pavan is proud to be part of the QAC team.

Richard Percival joined the then college’s Audit Committee as its independent chair in May 2016 and became a governor in July 2021. He now chairs the Resources Committee, sits on the Governance Committee and the Remuneration Committee and is the Lead Trustee for Estate, Health and Safety.

Richard is a qualified accountant whose audit career has equipped him with a thorough understanding of financial governance and financial management in the public sector.

After graduating in economics from Leicester Polytechnic, Richard pursued a career in public sector finance, initially in local government, then with the Audit Commission and, latterly, with Grant Thornton UK Advisory and Tax LLP. During his career, Richard was responsible for the delivery of external audits for a broad range of public sector bodies across the West Midlands, in-cluding large local authorities and major NHS organisations. Richard also assessed organisational arrangements for securing value for money in the use of resources.

Richard is an experienced trainer and presenter. He delivered technical training to auditors and public sector finance staff and designed, and led, the delivery of a career development programme for local authority finance staff.
He was a lay member of Coventry and Warwickshire Clinical Commissioning Group and is chair of their Audit Committee.

Rosemary Adams joined the Board of Trustees in 2019. She chairs the Services Committee, sits on the Audit Committee, the Governance Committee and the Remuneration Committee, is the Lead Trustee for Safeguarding and has been covering the role of Lead Trustee for Curriculum: Vocational.

Having qualified as a teacher for students who have vision impairment and obtained a degree in cognitive psychology, Rosemary held teaching and management positions in eight schools across five local authorities and the Royal National Institute of the Blind, specialising in physical, visual, hearing, language and learning difficulties. She was then head teacher of Baskerville School for 18 years and was awarded the Order of the British Empire for services to education.

Rosemary enjoys walking her dogs, swimming and gardening

Sherv Garcha joined the Board of Trustees in 2022.  She sits on the Services Committee and is the Lead Trustee for Work Placements.

Over the last ten years, she has specialised in disability support and special educational needs and disability (SEND).  She is passionate about supporting under-represented groups to achieve their full potential and in closing attainment and employment gaps for disabled students.  In 2021, she achieved senior accredited member status with the National Association of Disability Practitioners (NADP).

Sherv worked in a management role at QAC’s college between 2012 and 2016 and has also worked freelance, securing a sound understanding of the challenges faced by parents and carers when trying to access specialist provision. In 2018, she moved into higher education, working as a Disability Support Manager for Birmingham City University. In 2022, she moved to the University of Wales Trinity Saint David as Learning Support Manager for its campuses in Birmingham and London. 

Sue Moore joined the Board of Trustees in 2025. She sits on the Governance Committee, the Remuneration Committee and the Resources Committee and is a Director of QAC Enterprises Limited. She is the Lead Trustee for Income Generation and Marketing and for Staffing.

Sue is a commercially astute customer experience and transformation director with over 20 years’ experience across regulated and non-regulated sectors. She is a trained customer experience designer, founded her own consultancy and is a lecturer in customer experience management. Sue also serves as a customer experience awards judge and brings a pragmatic, insight-led, people-first approach to board-level governance and change.

Sue loves her three dogs and is boxing fan with close links to professional boxing.