CentreForum

CentreForum describes itself as an independent, liberal think-tank.

CentreForum, 27 Queen Anne's Gate, SW1H

Its main focus is on education policy reform.

Lobbying for education reform

CentreForum has published a series of reports and run events around the topic of education reform in the UK. Events include, for example:

• 'Schools reform: the next stage', a conference in March 2010, which featured: Michael Gove and David Laws, and drew on the experience of: Kunskapsskolan; New York City Charter School Center; and Ark schools.

CentreForum also provides a platform for companies in the education industry. For example:

• In June 2008, Microsoft sponsored an event, called 'Personalisation and the Reform Agenda for Education', at which Nick Clegg outlined a Liberal Democrat agenda for education reform.

• Pearson sponsored a report in Jan 2015 by CentreForum on testing and tracking in primary schools called 'Progress matters in Primary too: Holding schools to account consistently', by Chris Thoung, James Kempton and Harriet Davison. In the acknowledgments, CentreForum thanked Pearson for its support and particularly to Bob Osborne, its former Strategic Development Director and Julie McCulloch, Director of UK Policy & Thought Leadership at Pearson.

People

Advisory Board

In 2014

• Rt Hon David Laws MP, chair
• Rt Hon Lord Alderdice
• Rt Hon Lord Ashdown
• Nick Boles MP
• Baroness Bonham Carter
• Rt Hon Dr Vincent Cable MP
• James Cameron
• Rt Hon Nick Clegg MP
• Dan Corry
• Ramesh Dewan
• Andrew Duff
• Natascha Engel MP
• Lord Finkelstein
• Will Hutton
• Chris Huhne
• Anatole Kaletsky
• Baroness Kramer
• Rt Hon Lord Myners
• Lord Newby
• Alan Parker
• Prof Philippe Sands
• Lord Turner of Ecchinswell
• Andrew Tyrie MP
• Rt Hon David Willetts MP
• Prof Alison Wolf

Management board

In 2014

• Paul Marshall, chair
• Duncan Greenland
• Rt Hon David Laws MP

People

• Stephen Lee, chief executive
• Anthony Rowlands, executive director
• James Kempton, associate director, education and social policy
• Tom Papworth, associate director, economic policy
• Nick Tyrone, associate director, external affairs
• Richard Reeves, associate director, contemporary liberalism
• Harriet Davison, research assistant
• Tom Frostick, communications manager and policy analyst
• India Keable-Elliott, researcher, economic policy
• Nikki Stickland, events and executive assistant
• Holly Taggart, policy research officer
• Chris Thoung, researcher, education policy

Research Associates

• Sam Cannicott
• Toby Fenwick
• Quentin Maxwell-Jackson
• Vicky Pryce
• Stephen Tall
• Gill Wyness

Former staff

• Chris Nicholson was chief executive until March 2012. He left to become special adviser to Ed Davey
• Julian Astle - former director, now special adviser to UK Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg
• Giles Wilkes, former director, now special adviser to Vince Cable at BIS

Former members of the advisory board

• Lord Wallace of Saltaire - Chair
• Robert Chote
• Lord Dholakia
• Alan Leaman
• Dr Tim Leunig
• Baroness Neuberger
• Hugh Simpson
• Baroness Thomas of Winchester
• Lord Vallance of Tummel

Former members of the management board

• Natascha Engel MP
• Neal Lawson
• Jennifer Moses
• Alan Parker
• Andrew Tyrie MP
• Lord Wallace of Saltaire
• Neil Sherlock - special adviser to Nick Clegg
• Dr James Sandbach - Company Secretary

Trustees

• Duncan Greenland, chair
• Charles Brand
• Ian Hargreaves
• Lord Kirkwood of Kirkhope
• Paul Marshall

Former trustees

• Lord Clement Jones
• Nick Harvey MP

Press Releases

• Businesses should make a profit from academies arguing that business should be allowed to make a profit from British schools and the taxpayers coffers that subsidises them.