About Skills Federation
We are the voice of employer-led sector skills bodies, representing 18 organisations covering a wide range of sectors from science and construction to financial services and the screen industry.
Supporting apprenticeships and skills
Skills Federation is a charity representing 18 sector skills bodies, collectively advocating for over 150,000 employers across the UK. These industry-focused organisations support workforce planning, skills development and accreditation across diverse sectors.
We are an industry-led expert on skills and business needs and collaborate with our members to inform skills policy. We offer a range of edtech services to support apprenticeships including an End-Point Assessment platform to streamline the EPA process in England and Apprenticeship certification functions in Scotland and Wales.
Our vision is for a skills system that fosters industrial growth by providing a talent pipeline, enabling individuals to access fulfilling careers through clear pathways to employment.
Our story
Sector Skills Councils were created by the UK government in 2002 to focus on industry-specific skills, standards and qualifications. In 2008 the Sector Skills Alliance Scotland changed its name to the Alliance of Sector Skills Councils and began to represent and coordinate the efforts of Sector Skills Councils and other industry-led bodies to address workforce development and skills challenges across industry sectors. The name was changed in 2013 to The Federation for Industry Sector Skills & Standards (FISSS).
Now known as the Skills Federation, we advocate for our members through policy influencing focusing on core issues of workforce development, addressing skills shortages and improving integration of vocational and technical education with employer needs. Our members offer a range of services, funded by industry, which are vital to improving skills.
We also offer a wide range of apprenticeship support solutions including the industry-standard End Point Assessment tool, ACE360, to support delivery of Apprenticeship Standards in England. We are the designated Certifying Authority for Apprenticeship Frameworks in England and Wales and provide both an apprentice registration and certification function for Modern Apprenticeships in Scotland.
Our leadership team
Find out about members of our leadership team.
Dr Fiona Aldridge
Chief Executive
Fiona has more than 25 years’ experience of research, policy and delivery across adult learning, skills and employment. Before joining the Skills Federation, Fiona was Head of Insights and Intelligence at West Midlands Combined Authority, where she was responsible for developing evidence-led employment and skills policy and programmes. Prior to this Fiona was Director of Policy and Research at the Learning and Work Institute.
Alison Morris
Director of Policy
Alison brings many years’ experience in both policy and delivery across skills and employment sectors. Prior to the Skills Federation Alison was Director of Operations at the Education and Training Foundation (ETF) and was responsible for all delivery elements of ETF’s programmes. She was also previously Assistant Director at the UK Commission for Employment and Skills, working on a range of policy areas including careers guidance and employer engagement.
Alison Bailey-Bucknell
Head of UK Certification and Customer Service
Ali has played an integral role in the growth and development of the Skills Federation, particularly in managing the online certification services for Apprenticeship Frameworks across England, Scotland, and Wales. Ali has also introduced processes to ensure consistency and quality in Apprenticeship certification across all sectors. As the head of the Customer Services Team, Ali oversees the support and guidance for Training Providers, Employers, EPAOs and Apprentices. She helps optimise the use of our online systems and resources, for maximum productivity and efficiency, while ensuring compliance with relevant Apprenticeship legislation and quality standards.
Richard Bloxam
Director of Product Strategy
With many years’ experience in education and skills both as a training provider and employer, Richard has developed and overseen the quality assurance of the Skills Federation Apprenticeship Certification Function. Richard’s primary role is to ensure our software solutions meet the needs of our customers through continuous dialogue and development.
Jo Hin Ho
Financial Controller
Jo Hin leads the finance team to deliver robust financial strategies and drive operational efficiency. With a wealth of experience across diverse sectors, Jo Hin brings expertise in management accounts, financial forecasting and modelling, risk management, and regulatory compliance. By combining financial insight with strategic decision-making, Jo Hin plays a key role in shaping the organisation’s future and ensuring its success.
Keith Truslove
Account Director
Keith leads our Sales team at the Skills Federation, engaging with HEIs and EPAOs to streamline their EPA processes through ACE360. With over 12 years in the Apprenticeship sector, Keith’s previous role saw him spearheading a team of eight account managers at QA Ltd, where he excelled in matching employers with top-notch apprentices. Keith is an advocate for apprenticeships, starting as an apprentice in Travel & Tourism, he climbed the ranks to become a Travel Agency Branch Manager in just seven years. His passion for apprenticeships is rooted in personal experience and immense success.
Graham Howe
Head of Development
Meet the team
Find out about Skills Federation’s staff team.
Developer team
- Graham Howe – Head of Development
- Paul Maxwell – Development Team Lead
- Stuart McLay – UK Certification Lead and IT Manager
- Beverly Pereira - Analyst Developer
Finance team
- Michael Clark – Finance Administrator
Business Development team
- Mark Fitzgerald – Training and Implementation Manager
- Jamie Masterman – Account Manager
- Mark Schulz – Implementation Trainer
Customer Services and Certification team
- Leigh Lyus – ACE360 Customer Account Support Manager
- Danielle McGregor – Business Operations Support Specialist
- Debs Northam – Business Operations Support Specialist and Office Manager
Our governance
As a charitable company limited by guarantee, Skills Federation operates a representative governance structure.
The Directors (Trustees) of the charitable company, as set out in the articles of association, are drawn from member organisations, with the exception of the independent Chair of the Board. Directors are elected by full members of the charitable company. They serve a three-year term before going forward for re-election (if they so desire) at the following Annual General Meeting.
Board members
The Board meets four times a year and comprises up to 12 people. Skills Federation’s company secretary role is undertaken by MBM Secretarial Services Limited.
Dame Julie Mellor
Chair of the Board
Passionate about how skills can unleash talent and increase productivity, Julie has focused on skills development for a large part of her career. She has over 20 years experience in business working for a range of companies including Shell, TSB and British Gas, as well as local government. As Chair of the Equal Opportunities Commission (1999 -2005), she worked with business and government to tackle occupational segregation and reduce skills shortages. More recently Julie was Chair of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (2011-17). She is currently Chair of Demos and was appointed Chair of the Federation Board in May 2018.
Phil Beach
Director
Phil has been CEO at Energy & Utility Skills since September 2020. Prior to this he was Executive Director for Vocational and Technical Qualifications at Ofqual where he led the reforms for technical qualifications and the COVID-19 response across vocational qualifications. Before joining Ofqual, he served in the Royal Air Force, with much of his career focused on command, leadership, strategy, policy and capability.
Justine Fosh
Director
Justine Fosh is Group CEO of Cogent Skills. Following a successful commercial career in the food and drink industry she created the skills body for the food and drink industry (NSAFD) and acquired and developed its awarding organisation subsidiary. A passionate advocate for the employer-led skills agenda she became Group CEO of Cogent Skills in 2020 overseeing its charitable organisation and its family of commercial businesses and developing it to be recognised as a Times Good Company to Work For.
Andrew Hockey
Director
Andrew is Chief Executive of ECITB – the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board, a statutory skills body which works with employers, training providers and government to develop skills and improve productivity for the energy industry and other process industries. The role also includes a commercial business providing skills products and services overseas. Andrew chairs the Federation’s Finance and Risk Committee.
Laura Mansfield
Director
Laura took up the post of CEO of ScreenSkills in January 2024 bringing a wealth of sector experience, both as co-founder and managing director of Outline Productions and a Creative Director of Tin Roof Media Group. Currently a non-executive director of Elstree Film Studios, and the Creative Diversity Network (CDN), Laura was a board member of Pact Council between 2012 and 2016, and its Chair from 2014 to 2016. She also served as an advisory board member of the Indie Training Fund (2012-2014).
John Rogers
Director
John Rogers is Chief Executive of the Workforce Development Trust (incorporating Skills for Health, Skills for Justice and People 1st). Much of his early career focused on the health sector, including roles as Chief Executive of Skills for Health, Chief Executive of Healthwork UK, as a Director at the NHS Training Authority, and other senior roles in the Department of Health. John has also worked across a number of sectors including contributions as the Chair of the UK-wide Alliance of Sector Skills Councils and as a non-executive of the South West Learning and Skills Council.
Governance structure and financial control
Financial control is exercised by the Board with delegated authority to the Executive. The accounting service is provided by the Finance Team of Skills Federation.
The following governance structure is in place:
Composed of at least one Federation Board member with a quorum of two and meets at least once per annum.
Up to 12 elected trustees from Member Chairs/Chief Executives with an independent Chair (appointed by the Board) and meets at least four times per annum.
The Chief Executive or other lead officer is appointed by the Directors to manage the day-to-day operations of the charity.
Our annual reports
Download copies of our annual report and accounts here…
Our brand guidelines
These guidelines will help you to use our logo correctly. For any queries about using them, please contact us at [email protected]