Arinola Edeh

Principal

Arinola is the Principal for Westminster Adult Education Service and serves as a Governor of the Board in that capacity. She has worked in the public sector for over 30 years, with over 20 of those being in further and adult education. Arinola has been Principal since 2017, having been the Deputy Principal at WAES for the previous five years. Prior to joining Westminster, Arinola worked at two General Further Education Colleges and in both organisations led extensive employer-facing and community partnership work, including the delivery of successful ESF- and externally-funded projects. Having moved into adult and community education at Westminster, Arinola really values the difference and challenge that working as a leader within the local authority brings to the education and skills landscape; the ability to leverage other services in holistically meeting people’s wider needs can make a huge difference and impact positively on their lives. 

Arinola is an active member of HOLEX, the membership body for adult and community education providers and represents HOLEX London on the GLA’s Skills for Londoners Board. She is the HOLEX Policy Forum lead for equality, diversity and inclusion and digital skills, as well as being a co-collaborator of the Women’s Leadership Network, which seeks to amplify women’s voices and change leadership in the sector. 

As a returnee migrant with dual nationality, Arinola is passionate about leading work that enables individuals and communities to benefit from the transformational power of education. Her own journey has made her very keen to help individuals create their own stories and amplify their voices, with a desire to inspire people from all walks of life to “dance to the beat of their own drum!”