Richard Gould is Chief Executive of Villiers Park Educational Trust, a national charity that helps able young people achieve their full academic potential and get into leading universities. The Trust is committed to fair access and has developed highly regarded strategies including the Villiers Park Scholars Programme that enable students from less advantaged backgrounds to compete on equal terms.

Richard has a background of teaching in schools and universities and has been active in gifted and talented education for twenty years. He leads a team that works with teachers and lecturers; school, college and university leaders; and other third sector organisations as well as directly with students and their families. He is co-author of the Gifted and Talented handbook Developing very able students at post-16 (Optimus Education, May 2009) and regularly contributes to educational journals. Richard presents at national and international conferences covering gifted and talented, fair access, student voice and post-16 issues.