THE head at a popular York secondary school is off to pastures new after six years.

Simon Barber took over the helm at Manor CE Academy in the west of York back in 2016 from Brian Crosby.

He will be leaving in the summer and will become executive director of education at the Minerva Trust in Sheffield in September.

He said: “Leading Manor over the past six years has been a real privilege. I will miss the whole Manor community tremendously, particularly our amazing students, and will treasure the memories of my time here forever. I’ll remain in post until August 31, but would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for all the warmth and support they have shown me over the past six years and for their ongoing support as I complete my time at Manor.”

Chief executive of the Hope Sentamu Learning Trust, Helen Winn, said: “Simon has been an excellent Principal over the last six years and we wish him all the very best in his new job when he departs this summer.

“To ensure that we can select the very best new school leader for Manor CE Academy and provide stability during this period of transition, we are looking to appoint an acting principal until we commence the substantive recruitment process.”

Prior to joining the staff at Manor, Mr Barber was head of Holy Trinity in Barnsley, a through school for children aged three to 16 and the only Catholic and Church of England school of its kind in the country.

After qualifying in 1991, he became a primary school teacher, with music as his main subject, and became head teacher of Silkstone Primary in Barnsley in 2005 which was subsequently rated outstanding by school inspectors Ofsted.

Mr Barber became a National Leader of Education and his school a National Support School, supporting other schools locally.

The brand new Holy Trinity was proposed in 2010, combining a secondary and two primaries.

Mr Barber oversaw the design and build of the new school and has led it ever since. He grew up in Stockton on Tees and is a keen supporter of Middlesbrough football club.

Away from work, he enjoys running and walking in the Lake District and spending time with his wife and family.

Manor is now part of Hope Sentamu Learning Trust which includes 15 academies across York, Hull, Selby and Scarborough.

Alongside Manor, in and around York they include Vale of York Academy, Barlby High, Graham School, George Pindar School, Poppleton Ousebank Primary, Burton Green Primary, Forest of Galtres Anglican Methodist Primary and Skelton Primary.