Leadership Team

CEO

Charlie Kennard MBE

Charlie is the founder of ELAM and the founding Principal of London Screen Academy. Drawing on deep experience in creative education, he builds strong partnerships that connect young people to real opportunities with clarity and care.

Yansé Cooper

Yansé Cooper is Principal of East London Arts & Music. Since joining in 2022, she has shaped the school’s culture and strengthened teaching and learning, using her background in education leadership to champion equity and open pathways into the creative industries for young people.

ELAM Principal

LSA Principal

Sam Summerson

Sam Summerson is Principal of London Screen Academy. As part of LSA’s founding team and one of the founders of Global UTC, he brings a strong background in creative education, combining industry experience with thoughtful curriculum design to build clear pathways for young people into film, TV and the wider screen sector.

Maria Donovan

Senior Recruitment Director

Maria began her career as a teacher and has spent 15 years in senior recruitment and leadership roles across education, government and social purpose organisations, including Teach First, Unlocked Graduates and Penna. At Day One Trust she is strengthening our trust wide approach to recruitment, connecting excellent practice across schools and ensuring talented people are not held back by background or circumstance.

Nevin Bhandari is Chief Financial Officer at Day One Trust, a role he has held since 2022. He leads finance across the trust and works closely with school business and IT teams to strengthen systems, sustainability and strategic planning so ELAM and LSA can focus on delivering high quality creative education.

CFO

Nevin Bhandari

Kirsty Hunter brings deep experience in creative education, having spent over six years as Vice Principal at the Brit School. She has also worked in school improvement, supported the launch of new schools, and developed her own creative practice through podcasting, alongside holding an MBA from Warwick Business School.

Project Manager (Scaling Impact)