Principal appointed to lead Paston College
9th January 2026
Paston College is entering an exciting new chapter with the appointment of Tom Smith as college Principal.
In his new role, Mr Smith will lead teaching and learning, drive curriculum development, and oversee the day-to-day management of our North Walsham college, ensuring students continue to benefit from outstanding educational opportunities.
Jerry White will continue in his role as Principal and Chief Executive of City College Norwich, Easton College and Paston College, operating as a college group.
Tom Smith, Principal of Paston College
Mr Smith has worked in education for 16 years and started his career at East Coast College where he developed expertise in both teaching and curriculum management, working as Curriculum Manager of Construction, Building Services and Civil Engineering.
After achieving a BA (Hons) in Business Management and spending time working at Suffolk New College further broadening his understanding of the sector, Mr Smith joined City College Norwich in 2022. For the past three and a half years he has worked as Director of Resourcing and Performance, leading on curriculum planning, quality, data reporting, resourcing, transformation and driving improvements in operational efficiency and student outcomes.
Mr Smith’s role will also take on leadership of Higher Education, Norfolk Teacher Training Centre (NTTC) and cross-college English and Maths provision.
Mr Smith said:
I am excited to take on the role of Principal at Paston. Together, we will build on our strong foundations to deliver outstanding outcomes, prepare learners for the future, and ensure Paston, Higher Education, NTTC and English and Maths remains a beacon of opportunity and success within the community.”
The appointment of Mr Smith forms part of important changes to the college group Senior Management Team, designed to strengthen leadership and support our continued transformation.
Following a period of interim arrangements, a comprehensive review of the senior structure was undertaken to ensure it reflected the size and ambitions of our organisation today. This process has supported the creation of a new leadership structure which is cost neutral against our college budget, with no increase to spending on the senior team.
The new structure is built around three key pillars essential to the success of the college group:
- Outstanding learning opportunities for the community
- Excellent facilities and infrastructure to support those experiences
- Strong financial foundations to enable continued investment
To deliver on those priorities, three Chief Officer roles have been introduced, each responsible for one of the pillars. These are alongside the three new Principal positions to provide clear and visible leadership for each of our colleges, while also overseeing key cross-group functions such as Inclusive Learning.
In addition to Mr Smith’s role at Paston College, Lucy Whitwood has been appointed as Principal of City College Norwich, and Mathew Scott as Principal of Easton College.
Jerry White, Principal and Chief Executive, said:
These changes mark an exciting step forward in our journey to become “future ready” and I am delighted to have Tom, Lucy and Mat leading our three colleges. They will enable us to celebrate the unique strengths of each college within our group while continuing to evolve and deliver exceptional education and training for our communities.”
In addition, other key roles within the senior team have been evolved with a new Executive Director for Business Development, Apprenticeships and Adults bringing all our key functions related to employers together, and a Vice Principal for Safeguarding, Inclusions and Student Services supporting our students in a variety of ways to succeed at college. The importance of our support services in Human Resources and in IT, Digital and Registry functions have also been consolidated in Executive Director roles,
Recognising the importance of financial sustainability, the college is also establishing a new senior leadership role focused on driving our commercial strategy and increasing non-governmental income, ensuring investment in students and staff.