CER appoints David Parsons as Managing Director

An education recruitment specialist has announced the promotion of one of its long-serving leaders to Managing Director, a role the business has reintroduced after several years.

CER, part of Affinity Workforce Solutions, has this week announced that David Parsons, Regional Director for the North East, has been appointed as Managing Director, a significant milestone for the business.

David has spent almost 15 years with CER, joining in 2012 as a Senior Recruitment Consultant and working his way up through the business. He became Senior Divisional Operations Manager in 2015, Regional Operations Manager in 2020 and Regional Director for the North East in December 2021. In that time he secured CER’s first managed service contract for temporary staffing with a large multi-academy trust in the North East.

The appointment comes during a period of growth for Affinity, following its acquisition in September of education training platform Training Toolz, now live as Affinity Elevate. The group places around 2,900 temporary staff in schools every day from 15 offices across England and Scotland, and has been named one of The Sunday Times Best Places to Work for three consecutive years.

Esme Bianchi-Barry, CEO of Affinity Workforce Solutions, said:

“David is a brilliant example of what’s possible when you invest in your people. He started out as a consultant placing staff into schools and has grown with CER every step of the way, including securing its first managed service contract with a multi-academy trust. He understands schools, he understands supply staff and he understands what makes CER special. Reintroducing the Managing Director role is a statement of our ambition for CER, and there’s nobody better placed to lead it into its next chapter.”

David Parsons, Managing Director of CER, said:

“It’s a real privilege to take on this role at a business I’ve been part of for almost 15 years. CER has always been about relationships – with the schools we support and with the teachers and support staff who work with us every day – and that won’t change. I’m looking forward to working with our teams to build on that, grow our partnerships with schools and trusts, and make sure every candidate who works with us feels supported and valued.”

In his new role, David will lead CER’s teams and operations, working closely with the wider Affinity leadership team to drive the brand’s growth.

Affinity Workforce Solutions provides recruitment, compliance and workforce solutions to schools, multi-academy trusts, colleges and training providers across the UK, through its brands Career Teachers, CER, Monarch Education, The Protocol Group and Affinity Partnerships. Together, these brands support thousands of schools and colleges with supply staffing, permanent recruitment and workforce compliance, helping to keep classrooms running and pupils learning every day.