Anthony Millard

Chair

Anthony Millard is well known in the education sector. Before founding Anthony Millard Consulting in 2004 he was managing director of Nord Anglia’s schools division. This followed headships of two HMC schools and the chairmanship of the Boarding Schools Association.

Early in his career he worked in Zambia and then in Brussels with the European Commission. A graduate of The London School of Economics and Balliol College, Oxford, Anthony is also a Fellow of The Royal Society of Arts.

As an educational entrepreneur Anthony has built AMC into a leading consultancy for search recruitment and strategic thinking. Its “Dine and Discuss” events, which he chairs, have become pivotal in the educational world.

He was chairman of The British International School of New York for its first decade and is still a governor of Greensteds International School in Kenya’s Rift Valley. He retains a great interest in Africa and lives on the upper Thames in Gloucestershire.

Natasha Millard-Watson

Chief Executive Officer

Natasha has taught for sixteen years in both the UK and Kenya. She has extensive experience in both preparatory and senior schools, from a PE teaching level and as a Key Stage 2 teacher, and also as a Boarding Housemistress in three schools.

Having spent a total of 7 years working and living in Kenya as well as extensive travel and a 3 month exchange programme in South Africa, Natasha has a strong understanding of life in Africa as well as extensive contacts in both East and South Africa. 

In addition to her interests in education and sport Natasha has established a successful business in event and hospitality management. Natasha has been a Director of Anthony Millard Consulting for the past eight years and works full time as Chief Operating Officer.

Nikki Naish

Business Director

Nikki is the Business Director for Anthony Millard Consulting Ltd, having started her AMC career as an accounts assistant. Nikki supports the wider AMC team and is the vital link in making sure that everyone is up to speed on projects and assignments across the whole company.

Prior to AMC, Nikki spent 18 years working in recruitment and sales within the finance and the insurance industry. Working her way up through the ranks to leadership roles, recruiting for her own sales team as well as gaining experience and qualifications in business administration and financial planning.  Nikki also sits on the governing board at a local SEN School.

Rod Grant

Managing Director

Rod Grant was born in Scotland to an English mother and Scottish father who met and married during World War 2. In his early career, he established an award-winning restaurant before turning to the world of education. He has now worked in schools for over 30 years, both in the independent and state-maintained sector. Currently, he is the headmaster of Clifton Hall School in Edinburgh. He writes articles for the national press as well as being a regular contributor to BBC Radio Scotland programmes and mainstream media podcasts for Sky News and The Daily Telegraph. His first book, ‘Success Decoded’ is a self-help guide aimed at teenagers and his co-authored musical play ‘A Man’s A Man’ recently gained 5-star reviews at The Stand in George Street.

Franciska Bayliss

Director – Recruitment and Strategy

Franciska has brought passion and vision in leading a number of London independent schools. She has experience as head of large and smaller co-educational and single sex schools across both primary and secondary levels.

She has instilled values and the highest standards throughout each organisation. She firmly believes that central to a school’s ethos should be its focus on pupils as individuals and their desire to learn. She also believes that central to the management and development of the school community are the attraction, appointment and retention of key personnel to ensure curricular development and critical innovation that makes an organisation academically and culturally vibrant. Alongside these criteria each school must meet ISI and Ofsted standards.

Franciska has been Schools’ Operational Advisor to the Alpha Plus Group providing support to the Director of Schools and Education by focusing on governance, policy making, organisation of training and inspection. She is a former ISI inspector both in the UK and of international schools worldwide.

She has served on many independent schools’ regional and national committees and is an ISA life member. She has been a governor in independent schools most recently in a local boys’ preparatory school and as chair of the Education Committee of a leading HMC school and a trustee of the Froebel and Hellenic Trusts. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a Liveryman of the City of London Worshipful Company of Educators.

When not in London her family spend time on the south coast sailing, where they also pursue their interest in the theatre and the performing arts.

Floyd Steadman OBE DL HonDEd

Associate Director

Floyd spent the first 9 years of his teaching career working in state senior schools within the London Borough of Barnet. This experience really enhanced his classroom practice and understanding of teenagers. In 1989 he took a career break from teaching and worked in the field of sports marketing for one year. One element of his work involved supporting several rugby clubs to enhance their sponsorship and marketing portfolios. Another involved arranging corporate hospitality within the field of rugby. In 1990 Floyd was appointed as the Head of Sport at Colet Court, St. Paul’s Junior School. After seven years in that role he joined the senior team as the Head of Juniors. This role gave him overall pastoral responsibility for the boys in years 3 to 6. He stepped into the role of Deputy Head Pastoral at Belmont, the prep school for Mill Hill in 2001. A phone call from Sir Chris Woodhead in 2005 convinced him to join Cognita as Headmaster of Salcombe Prep School. Working for this international company gave Floyd valuable experience and the opportunity to lead four prep schools around London and Surrey. These included Downsend Prep, Clifton Lodge Prep and Cumnor House Boys Prep School. On each occasion he was challenged to move the school forward, a role he took on with relish. He is a trained ISI Inspector and has very strong coaching / mentoring skills.

In addition to his teaching Floyd has a very strong rugby background. He played for and captained Saracens in the days before professional rugby. Floyd has said that rugby at that level was amateur in name only, and you accepted that there were two full time careers. He played for Saracens between 1980 and 1990, captaining them for 4 seasons. Floyd is one of only 14 players to be inducted into the Saracens Hall of Fame. He also captained Middlesex County RFU, played for London Division, and was honoured to play for the Barbarians FC. He is a Vice President of both Saracens FC and Middlesex County RFU.

Nigel Archdale

Director – Strategic Consultancy

Nigel was a school Head for 25 years, initially in the independent sector in the UK as Head of The Royal Wolverhampton Junior School and then Head of Cheltenham College Junior School. Nigel concluded his years as Head first as Principal of The British School of Warsaw and finally as Principal of Compass International School in Doha. Both international Principal posts were with schools operated by Nord Anglia Education.

Nigel is now a Director of Anthony Millard Consulting and divides his time between leadership searches and strategic consultancy to schools around the world for AMC.

Nigel is a former International Schools Inspector for ISI, a COBIS trained Heads’ mentor, a Governor of an international school in Switzerland and a Foundation Fellow of The University of Gloucestershire.

Wendy Ellis

Associate Consultant

Wendy started her teaching career in the UK independent sector, particularly relishing her time as Housemistress at Wycombe Abbey School. She has 20 years’ experience as a School Principal which encompassed roles both in the UK, at Windermere School, and internationally in Slovakia and Switzerland in schools operated by Nord Anglia Education. She has overseen significant strategic change such as leading the first girls independent boarding school to a successful and quick transition to coeducation and relaunching an international school with a new campus and new identity. Latterly she has worked as part of the Nord Anglia education team in an advisory role.

In addition, Wendy gained valuable experience through 20 year’s service in the Guiding Association and as the UK and European representative on the board of Round Square. As such her educational philosophy has been as much about character education as academic excellence. Her leadership practice is shaped by attention to the student and parent experience from the first contact with a school through to graduation and, school improvement through coaching staff for leadership positions. Her areas of expertise therefore are school admissions processes and communications to gain the competitive edge, strategic planning and change management, leadership coaching and mentoring.

Caroline Spencer

Associate Consultant

Caroline has been Head of the Junior School at two leading independent girls’ schools in London. She has been a teacher in state primary schools and independent Pre-Prep and Junior Schools (co-ed and single sex) in London and Sydney, Australia for 20 years. Initially studying a Masters in Occupational Psychology and pursuing a career in academia, she took with her a natural interest in people at work when moving into teaching and subsequent school leadership. During her nine years as Head, Caroline oversaw 11+ preparations for top day schools and boarding schools and, later, as Head of a flagship GDST School, delivered a talk on best practice at the International Coalition of Girls’ Schools conference in Cleveland, Ohio in June 2023.

Combining a background in Psychology with her practical school leadership experience, Caroline’s areas of expertise include staff recruitment, development and retention, promoting diversity and inclusion, organisational culture / climate, managing change, balancing pastoral care and academic excellence, promoting pupil resilience, and whole school strategic planning. She also has experience of chairing staff disciplinary hearings.

Kit Thompson

Associate Consultant

Kit Thompson has 25 years’ experience working in independent prep schools in the UK. 22 years on senior leadership teams, 11 years as head. He has experience of 13+ boarding schools and London 11+ prep schools. His most recent role as headmaster of Orchard House School in Chiswick, West London. Kit has been a governor at Bedales School, Petersfield and Godolphin School, Salisbury and is an experienced inspector for the Independent Schools Inspectorate, ISI.

Kit has an extended overview of the independent sector from 3 – 18. His experience of day and boarding, city and rural, 11+ and 13+, gives him a deep understanding and perspective on the opportunities for pupils, staff and parents across a range of school types.

Kit began his working life in the City before moving into education. With a degree in Social Anthropology, Kit has always held a keen interest in how people make their lives meaningful and has recently carried out his training with the Institute as an ILM Level 7 Executive and Senior Level Coach and Mentor.

Robin Lewis

Associate Consultant

Robin has been closely involved with independent education for his entire career; he has taught in schools across the sector, day, boarding, co-ed and single sex, was a boarding housemaster for thirteen years, headed two, boarding, preparatory schools and latterly spent a dozen years as a Reporting Inspector and educational consultant qualified to inspect schools with pupils from 0-18yrs, Early Years, boarding and day, in this country and overseas.
He is a governor of a major HMC school, sits on the advisory board of a proprietary school and, having visited over 600 schools and inspected 115, feels able to count active listening – to senior staff, heads and governors – amongst his experiential strengths. His consultancy work has often involved him in a wide variety of challenges including acting as the independent chair of governors’ complaints boards, the investigation of allegations of abuse and, frequently, the appraisal [and occasional dismissal] of senior staff.

Harri Millard

Associate Consultant

Harri’s career has had a creative thread. She spent 15 years working on one of her biggest passions – musical theatre, on West-End blockbuster hits such as Starlight Express and Billy Elliot, and was selected to be a member of the original London stage crew for Disney’s The Lion King in 1999.

She moved across to marketing and in 2013 studied Marketing Management & Branding at the University of Gloucestershire where she graduated with a first.

Working as part of the marketing team at The Football Association, Harri learned many skills whilst on the England brand, and also whilst with a top London ad agency.

In 2018 Harri won the UK’s Business Development of the Year Award from the Institute of Sales Management, and following the pandemic she decided to help her own clients with creative branding and marketing strategies.

Antony Clark

Associate Director

Antony Clark is a South African-born Head who has led five schools with distinction in an unbroken period for nearly 30 years: St Joseph’s College, Cape Town, South Africa (1992-3); St Andrew’s College, South Africa (!994-2002); Gresham’s School, Holt (2002-8); Malvern College (2008-2019) and more recently Michaelhouse, South Africa from 2019 to the present.

His experience encompasses both co-educational and single-sex schools and, whilst at Malvern College, he was responsible for establishing schools in China, Hong Kong and Egypt bearing the Malvern name.

A history graduate of Rhodes University, South Africa and Downing College, Cambridge, his chief interests lie in sports such as cricket and squash and in all matters of an educational nature. He is married to Brigitte, an academic lawyer, and they have three children.

Peter Derby-Crook MBE

Associate Director

Peter Derby-Crook MBE joined Dipont Education in October 2019 as Director of Education (based in Shanghai), having previously been Senior Vice President of GEMS Education, Dubai. Peter is very familiar with Asia where for eight years he was the CEO of Tanglin Trust School in Singapore. He has previously led schools in Jakarta, Tokyo, Oman and Dubai and held two Headships in the U.K. In October 2018 he received an MBE at Buckingham Palace for his services in Education to British communities abroad.

Peter is very passionate about education and how it can help young people to flourish and grow. To this end he has presented at many conferences (inc. HMC, FOBISIA & BSME), written articles, produced a TEDx lecture on ‘The Future Horizons of Education’ and has accredited schools across Asia for CIS and FOBISIA.

Peter is the incoming Principal of the Garden International School in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Benedict Dunhill

Associate Consultant

Benedict Dunhill has 25 years’ experience working in British private schools – 14 years of headship in leading boarding prep schools and a London day prep followed ten years in senior schools as a teacher, tutor and boarding housemaster. Benedict also taught English in Le Puy, France. Benedict has been a governor of the Drapers’ Academy School in Havering for the past five years and is an experienced serving inspector for the Independent Schools Inspectorate, ISI.

Benedict has an extended overview of the independent school sector from 3 – 18; co-educational and single sex, boarding and day. This perspective and his close knowledge of the transition requirements at each stage, as well as his many close contacts within schools, allows Benedict to have a highly informed and impartial view at all stages of a child’s educational journey.

As well as being a governor of the Drapers’ Academy, Benedict is a member of the Charities Committee of the Drapers’ Company. Benedict has a degree in French Language and Literature and began his working life in the City before moving into education.

Ian Barron

Associate Consultant

Ian’s career has spanned the worlds of UK public company boardrooms and international education.

Over 25 years, Ian held a number of Company Secretary appointments at FTSE 250 companies followed, over the last 15 years, working in the UK and international education sector.

As Bursar/Chief Operating Officer/Secretary to the Governing Council of Malvern College, Ian played a pivotal role in the transformation of the College’s finances and campus facilities and its overall strategic direction.

As Director of Business Services for a major, for profit, K-12 schools’ group in the UAE, operating in partnership with the internationally renowned Brighton College UK and Dwight School, New York premium brands, Ian was accountable to the Governing Board for all the non-teaching operations of four schools and a premium nursery. Ian was a key member of the pre- operational planning team that developed the prestigious, Brighton College and Dwight School dual-campus opened in Dubai in 2018.

Latterly, Ian has provided consultancy services to the iconic NEOM project in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Ian is a Fellow of ICSA: The Chartered Governance Institute and holds an MBA from Bradford University School of Management.

In 2020, Ian was appointed to the Advisory Board of Edu-Alliance, an international higher education consultancy based in the UAE and USA.