Ian Simms – Director
Ian has over 15 years’ experience in the Education Sector and is passionate about helping people to develop and reach their full potential by providing routes into employment and learning. SW Training was established in 2006 and Ian’s role as director has allowed him to focus on the Business Development side of the company for both SportWise and SkillWise. Ian is an advocate of the Apprenticeship scheme having completed a football apprenticeship when leaving school whilst he pursued his career in football. Ian is a keen golfer and a huge football fan supporting Aston Villa and enjoys taking his young boy to football training at the weekend.
Lee Croucher – Director
Lee has over 25 years’ experience in the Education and Training, Sport and Business sectors where he has held a range of senior management posts successfully leading on both operational and strategic development and growth. Lee set up his own company ‘Your Future Solutions’ in 2009 where he specializes in delivering Leadership and Management Master classes and courses. He also mentors and coaches individuals and businesses to develop and grow in order to fulfil their maximum potential. Lee joined SkillWise in 2016 as a Director and is responsible for Quality and Compliance across the business. Lee loves playing sport especially golf, cycling and football and is a QPR fan.
Sharon Wilkinson – Interim Head of Quality
Sharon has a wealth of experience lecturing in Administration and IT and roles involving co-ordinating apprenticeships. Sharon is currently responsible for supporting the team of assessors, monitoring learner progress and carrying out IQA for Business Admin, Customer Service, Marketing, Team Leading and Leadership and Management. Sharon enjoys travel and socialising with friends and family and is a registered puppy walker for both Guide Dogs and the West Midlands Police.
Joanne Feaver – Tutor and Assessor
Jo has a background in Hotel and Catering Management and had a career change following the birth of her daughter where she studied for her assessor qualification. Jo joined the team in 2016 and assesses in Marketing, Business Admin, Team Leading and Management. Jo visits learners in a wide area to cover Birmingham and the North West of the country. Jo is a keen runner and swimmer, loves spending time with her daughter, friends and family, and has a passion for travel having trekked through Borneo jungle climbing Mt. Kinabalu.
Afifa Ayyaz – Tutor and Assessor
Afifa has over 17 years of experience in Management and Training, Marketing and Sales. Having qualified as an assessor in 2010, Afifa has delivered a variety of apprenticeship programs before joining SW Training in 2016. She currently delivers and assesses Level 2, 3 and 4 apprenticeships in Customer Service, Marketing, Business Admin, Sales and Management. Afifa loves to travel and spending time with her family and friends.
Natasha Wallace – Tutor and Assessor
Natasha brings a wealth of experience from teaching in charitable, public and private sector organisations. As a former business owner and education enthusiast, Natasha achieved a 2:1 BA Honours in Business Management, including a final research project on ‘Women in the Workplace”. Her subsequent work around Leadership and Management has encouraged the participation from underrepresented groups, following the notion that there is empowerment through education. Outside of work, Natasha is an avid shoe collector, dance-mom and enjoys letting her creative personality flourish in the world of hair and beauty.
Anne Stanton – Tutor and Assessor
Anne has been an independent management and leadership trainer and business consultant for over 20 years following a corporate career in sales, quality management, process improvement and change management. She is enthusiastic about problem solving and sharing ideas and insights that help people to achieve their goals. Based in the West Midlands, she has two grown up children and enjoys a variety of interests from music to current affairs, philosophy to fashion. Pets include an adorable cat, Jackson, (who challenged her belief that she did not like cats!)
Kate Hopkins – Administrator
Kate’s role is to ensure that the delivery team are supported and have everything they need to deliver high quality effective programmes. Kate processes all paperwork required for our funded programmes, set exams and claims certification. Kate has had a passion for dance since she was 7, and worked as a professional dancer in hotels and on cruise ships. She has worked in Greece, Malta, United States and the Bahama’s.
Jill Dent – Recruitment Manager
Jill has over 10 years of experience in Sales, Events and PR which has enabled her to live abroad in New York and worldwide. Jill joined the team in 2016 and is responsible for recruiting all learners and apprentices across all our programmes placing them into businesses. Jill is passionate about helping people and will go the extra mile to help find the right role for our learners. A keen netball player, she competes in the Birmingham, Dudley and Walsall leagues and enjoys spending time with her family, in particular her young boy.
Lucy Croucher – Admin Manager
With over 10 years of Event Management and Sponsorship experience, Lucy worked as the Swimming Manager at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and delivered a variety of European and World Championships Sporting events. Lucy joined the company in 2016 and supports the team with various administrative duties across the business. A keen tennis player representing Leicestershire and competing in national tournaments, Lucy also loves taking on new sporting challenges and spending time with her two young boys. Her claim to fame is appearing on the TV show “The Weakest Link.”