“After a telephone call with Jo, I was sold on the potential of how easy it would be to work with her, and her team and I wasn’t wrong. The set-up is very professional with a friendly, approachable feel.”
“Jo and her team at Bursary Assessment Associates have helped transform how we manage our Bursary process.”
Jo
Founder and Managing Director
Jo is responsible for the overall direction and leadership of the company. She collaborates closely with leaders to understand how BAA can best support them to achieve their goals.
Before founding BAA, Jo spent almost 30 years in board level finance and procurement roles and worked as Director of Finance and Operations at a leading day school. She is a Chartered Global Management Accountant and qualified in Advanced Programme Management.
Jo is fiercely proud of the work BAA does and having spent her early years in one of the most deprived areas in the country, she has a first-hand appreciation of how transformative a great educational opportunity can be, having gone on to achieve a successful international business career herself.
Jo lives in Cheshire with her husband, young daughter, and crazy rescue dog, Fluke. They are an active family and can often be found enjoying the outdoors and spending time in Anglesey.
Helen
Operations Manager
Helen’s priority is to ensure BAAs services are seamlessly delivered to families and schools, overseeing the overall capacity of the team and ensuring the highest level of quality.
Prior to joining us, Helen owned her own manufacturing business, a water-based paint company. She is a qualified Management Accountant and has recently completed and ILM in Coaching and Mentoring and a Level 7 Certificate in Sustainable Leadership.
Helen lives in North Wales with her active and sporty family. Outside work Helen loves walking Lexi, her Cockapoo, yoga and watching cricket. Helen has a passion for learning, particularly relating to coaching, mentoring and finance.
Wendy
Office Lead
Wendy is our mainstay in the office. Responsible for everything relating to the bursary application process, she is always happy to help both parents and schools, providing a seamless application process.
Having worked in banking and finance for over 30 years, her strength in building successful relationships and ensuring excellent customer service is at the heart of everything she does. Wendy is an expert at delivering practical solutions for every situation and making sure that every process is both accurate and efficient.
In her spare time she likes to travel and spend quality time with her grandchildren, having recently combined the two with an amazing family holiday to DisneyWorld, Florida. Wendy also enjoys reading and walking, enjoying the delights of the Cheshire countryside in all weathers!
Natalie
Senior Associate
Natalie loves the varied nature of her job, especially getting out and about and meeting the wonderful and interesting families we support. She is responsible for assessing applications, guiding families through the bursary process, and submitting a fair and factual report on their behalf. Prior to joining us at BAA, Natalie spent over a decade in finance and management roles.
Natalie lives in Oxfordshire and away from her busy work life, Natalie enjoys an even busier home life spending time with her three young children, their three cats and Winnie and Wanda the basset hounds!
Kate
Senior Associate
Kate absolutely loves her role of Senior Associate. She feels privileged to be part of each family’s bursary journey and always sets her sights on securing the best possible educational environment for each child.
Prior to joining BAA, Kate worked for a firm of Chartered Accountants. She holds a degree in Accounting and Finance and has a strong financial background with almost 20 years’ experience working in various financial settings, including credit control, internal audit, accounts, and payroll.
Kate and her family live in Cheshire and outside of work, Kate’s energetic young daughter likes to keep her busy with her numerous after school clubs and hectic social life!
Therese
Senior Associate
Therese has over 20 years of experience in accountancy, internal audit and grant management and has worked across a diverse range of sectors including private practice, non-profits and charities.
She loves meeting with families and helping them through the bursary process, knowing that for many, this opportunity will lead to a generational shift and feels honoured to be part of that journey.
Alongside her role at BAA, Therese runs mental wellbeing and resilience courses for young people who are care experienced or at risk, helping them to uncover their innate resilience to overcome the unique obstacles and challenges they face in life.
Therese lives near Glasgow and loves music, dance and theatre.
Shelley
Senior Associate
In her role as Senior Associate, Shelley meets with families to guide them through the bursary process, undertakes the financial assessment and submits a fair and factual report in support of their bursary application.
Shelley has vast experience in Business and Finance both in practise and industry up to Group Finance Director level.
Shelley lives in North Wales with her husband, young son and dog Roxy. She enjoys travelling, long walks around North Wales and reading. Her greatest joy is spending time with family and friends around the dinner table with a large meal and a good glass of wine.
Lucy
Associate
Lucy has a background in finance and is unique in having experienced the bursary journey from all sides! Lucy has a son who attends an independent school, she has also worked in a school bursary. Lucy is passionate about helping families access the best education for their children and considers it a privilege to meet each family to support them with the bursary application.
Living in North Wales, Lucy enjoys home and family life with her son and various pets. She has an interest in arts and crafts and in birds; from watching them in the wild, fostering parrots and raising poultry. Lucy trained as a volunteer debt counsellor during lockdown. She tells us that when she retires, she will dedicate her life to breeding parrots!
Claire
Associate
Claire has spent much of her career in accountancy practice, where latterly she was partner of a large practice advising clients in respect of their business and taxation affairs across a range of sectors. She has built a wealth of experience particularly in understanding and advising on clients’ personal finances.
Claire lives in Bedfordshire with her husband and three children who are at various stages of their university education, making her very familiar with completing student finance applications! Claire is also a huge animal lover particularly of dogs and horses. She has three crazy spaniels which she enjoys walking, in the countryside.
Bansi
Associate
Bansi’s background is in analytics and finance, having previously worked as a business analyst at a prominent global analytics company. She is a lifelong student and is now studying for a Masters in Business Analytics.
Bansi finds great joy in connecting with families as part of their bursary journey. Knowing that her support and guidance contributes to their educational aspirations is deeply fulfilling to her.
Residing in Manchester, Bansi exudes a cheerful and optimistic personality and she is committed to giving back to the community, evident through her volunteer work. In her spare time, she enjoys preparing authentic Indian cuisine, immersing herself in philosophical books and in addition, Bansi is an energetic Garba folk dancer!
Corinne
Associate
Corinne has many years of experience gained working within both the Private and Public sectors. For the last 15 years, Corinne has worked for the NHS in various management positions latterly as Practice Manager at a large GP surgery, a most varied, challenging and fulfilling role!
Having relocated from Essex in the early 1990’s, Corinne lives in the West Midlands and is Mum to three grown up children. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends and is kept on her toes as Granny to her adorable twin Grandsons.
Lisa
Associate
Lisa started off her career in banking and has worked in finance for over 25 years. Leaving her family’s business upon her father’s retirement, she set up and ran her own bookkeeping and accounts business, managing a large number of clients alongside carrying out associate work for a firm of accountants.
Lisa really enjoys meeting with bursary families and helping them achieve their education goals for their children, knowing what a life changing event this can be. She is able to take her practical knowledge and excellent communication skills built up over the years to help achieve this.
Alongside her role with BAA, Lisa runs her own food education business, teaching the benefits of a plant based diet and hosting Cooking in the Community lessons to the underserved. She is a foodie through and through.
Away from the kitchen Lisa, who lives near Chester, loves nothing more than being outdoors walking her Labradoodle Buddy Bear and spending time with her family including her two grown up children.
Testimonials
“Jo and her team at Bursary Assessment Associates have helped transform how we manage our Bursary process.”
Bursary Assessment Associates
Company Number 11078885
ICO Reference Number A8422092