Lorraine Davidson

The Scottish Council of Independent Schools (SCIS) has appointed Lorraine Davidson, head of education strategy at the Scottish government, as its new chief executive.

Davidson will succeed John Edward, who announced his departure from SCIS in February after 14 years at the organisation. Davidson will start the new position next month.

Davidson has experience in strategy development, corporate communications and crisis management. She was previously the head of communications for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, and prior to that head of corporate communications for NHS Health Scotland. Earlier in her career, Davidson was a political correspondent for STV, the BBC and The Times.

Alan Hartley, chair of SCIS, said: “Lorraine is a dynamic, passionate leader, with a proven track record in strategy development and stakeholder management. SCIS looks forward to seeing Lorraine build on the success of her predecessor to support the charity’s ambitions and continue supporting the needs of our member schools.”

Davidson commented: “I am extremely proud to be joining SCIS as the new chief executive, and I am looking forward to visiting the member schools and getting to know the staff. SCIS has an outstanding reputation and I am keen to leverage my skills and experience to support the sector at a challenging time and in the strong contribution it makes to Scottish education.”