Cheryl Campbell “does the things that professional organisations should have already done”.

One of her achievements is founding a network of professionals that supports black, Asian and minority-ethnic (BAME) school business leaders. The ABBLed network (Association of BAME Business Leaders in Education) is a response to the Black Lives Matter campaign, and not only seeks to encourage new entrants into the profession but aims to raise the visibility of BAME school business leaders and provide opportunities to develop leadership skills.

Judges also noted how Campbell has developed the School Business Manager Steps Challenge, which promotes physical activity among school business leaders (SBLs) - and she has successfully persuaded private businesses to sponsor prizes for participants.

Not only is she very active on Twitter, where she seeks to match up SBLs with mentors, but she also regularly blogs about her experience as an SBL.

After receiving an Emerging Leaders Scholarship from the US-based Association of School Business Officials in 2019, she now promotes bursaries to offer scholarships to BAME candidates to develop them as school business professionals. As well as all this, she works full time as business director for Thomas Tallis School in Greenwich, London.

Judge Hilary Goldsmith said: “Cheryl Campbell stands head and shoulders above the crowd, both as a highly skilled school business leader but also as someone whose clear moral purpose and determination inspire change for the better.”