Meet the team
Our rapidly-growing team is a diverse bunch, but we all have one thing in common: we’re passionate about how children learn.
We’re here to help and love communicating with our customers – anything you need, get in touch!
Nicola Chilman
Role: Co-founder
Family: 2 boys and a girl
Previous career or training: Teacher 10 years, Education Centre Director 7 years, Lifeguard, Carer, Chalet Host in a ski resort
Most likely to be found: Cooking or baking
What most people don’t know about me is: Welsh Young Farmers Stock Judging Champion
Favourite superhero: Supergirl
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Justin Trudeau
Biggest achievement to date: Keeping track of my three kids
#1 on my bucket list: Travel across America (with Tom…maybe)
Tom Minor
Role: Co-founder
Family: 2 boys and a girl
Previous career or training: Teacher 11 years, Education Centre Director 7 years, Ford Motor Company 2 years
Most likely to be found: Swimming, cycling or watching rugby (if not working or with family)
What most people don’t know about me is: I bred budgerigars as a teenager – one day, I’ll get to do it again!
Favourite superhero: Bananaman
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: David Walliams
Biggest achievement to date: I’ve never missed a vote in a local or general election
#1 on my bucket list: Spacetravel
Rebecca Hill
Role: Finance Manager
Family: 2 girls
Previous career or training: Legal Executive specialising in personal injury law, Secretary, Shop Assistant and Chambermaid
Most likely to be found: Things with my kids or reading
What most people don’t know about me is: I used to be a Bristol Rovers FC season ticket holder and travelled to all their away matches
Biggest achievement to date: Definitely my kids!
#1 on my bucket list: To go snorkelling in The Maldives again
Guilty pleasure: Watching Neighbours and a glass of pink Prosecco
Laura Young Santos
Role: Digital Marketer & Schools Marketing Coordinator
Previous Career or training: BEd Primary Teaching
Most likely to be found: Spending time with family and dancing!
What most people don’t know about me I can perform the whole of Mamma Mia from beginning to end. “I have a dream…”
Favourite Superhero: Mulan
Person I’d most like to have dinner with: Kit Harrington
Biggest Achievement: Graduating with a 1st
#1 on my bucket list: Travel around Australia
Guilty pleasure: Eating baby food
Don Keir
Role: Technical Lead
Family: 2 girls
Previous career or training: 34 years in IT industry including founder of two tech companies
Most likely to be found: Buying pointless things on Amazon
What most people don’t know about me is: I watched the Space Shuttle launch from Cape Canaveral
Favourite superhero: Jessica Jones
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Richard Feynman
Biggest achievement to date: Helping to raise three children to adulthood
#1 on my bucket list: Explore the UK and Europe in a VW Campervan
Alex Howard
Role: Software Engineer
Previous career or training: Student at the University of Bath
Most likely to be found: Playing FIFA or running
Favourite superhero: Groot
Biggest achievement to date: Graduating with a First
#1 on my bucket list: Run a marathon
Sarah Jane Dent
Role: Product Manager
Previous career or training: Maths graduate from The University of Bath
Most likely to be found: Drinking tea and eating cake
What most people don’t know about me is: I have a Silver Blue Peter badge
Favourite superhero: Bubbles from the Power Puff Girls
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: The Queen
Biggest achievement to date: Being on Spotify
#1 on my bucket list: See the pyramids in Egypt
Guilty pleasure: Gilmore Girls
Jack Taylor
Role: Software Engineer
Previous career or training: Computer Science graduate from the University of Bath
Most likely to be found: Playing tabletop games or cooking
What most people don’t know about me is: I’m an amateur writer
Favourite superhero: Antares
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: John McCrae
Biggest achievement to date: Earning the Bath Award
#1 on my bucket list: Become fluent in Dutch
Guilty pleasure: Watching Once Upon a Time
Emma Hall
Role: People, Space and Culture Manager
Previous career or training: KS2 teacher, lifeguard, ice rink steward
Most likely to be found: Running or reading
What most people don’t know about me is: I learnt to fly a glider aged 16
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: J.K. Rowling
Biggest achievement to date: Completing a marathon
#1 on my bucket list: See the Northern Lights, ideally from a glass bubble or igloo!
Guilty Pleasure: Munching on chocolate while reading a good book by the fire
Jess Evans
Role: Curriculum and Product Manager (Child Experience)
Previous career or training: Biology graduate and Primary School Teacher
Most likely to be found: Reading with a cup of tea
What most people don’t know about me is: I have been an extra on TV!
Favourite superhero: Baby Groot
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Freddie Mercury (if he was still alive!)
Biggest achievement to date: Marrying my husband and graduating with a 1st
#1 on my bucket list: New York
Guilty pleasure: Watching Keeping Up with the Kardashians
Andy Edwards
Role: Senior Software Engineer
Previous career or training: Nine years of mobile app development
Most likely to be found: Hanging out with my Australian cattle dog and pal, Blue
What most people don’t know about me is: I lived in Canada for a while and grew an unhealthy obsession for Tim Horton’s coffee
Favourite superhero: Flash
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Elon Musk
Biggest achievement to date: Running 60 miles from London to Brighton, raising money for Cancer Research UK
#1 on my bucket list: Whale watching
Wayne Timbrell
Role: Digital Marketing Specialist
Previous career or training: 20+ years working in marketing and ecommerce
Most likely to be found: Gardening
What most people don’t know about me is: I once took part in a daytime tv quiz show. No, I didn’t win.
Favourite superhero: LEGO Batman
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Chris Packham
Biggest achievement to date: Completing my Panini Football 85 sticker album
#1 on my bucket list: Learn to speak fluent Spanish
Guilty pleasure: Chocolate. And Biscuits.
Charlotte Murray
Role: Graphic Designer
Previous career or training: BA History (for some reason), MA Graphic Arts, freelance graphic design
Most likely to be found: Watching Netflix with the boyhalf and a glass of wine
What most people don’t know about me is: I was born with an extra finger (don’t worry, it was removed at birth!)
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Only one!? I’ll go with Olivia Colman. Equal parts adorable and hilarious
Biggest achievement to date: Staying alive this long. I’m quite clumsy.
#1 on my bucket list: Get a book published
Guilty pleasure: Louis Theroux documentaries
George Finn
Role: Software Engineer
Previous career or training: BSc Computer Science
Most likely to be found: Exploring an interesting story – most likely reading one
What most people don’t know about me is: I’m more Irish than English
Favourite superhero: Nightcrawler (Marvel)
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Genghis Khan
#1 on my bucket list: Learn to play the piano
Guilty pleasure: Writing bad stories
Lucy Hart
Role: Brand and Content Marketer
Previous career or training: History graduate from the University of Exeter; President of the Out of Doors Society; Student Ambassador
Most likely to be found: Going on a long walk with an ice cream in hand
What most people don’t know about me is: I can recite the entirety of Shrek 2 off by heart!
Favourite superhero: Baymax
Biggest achievement to date: Graduating with a 1st
#1 on my bucket list: Visit Japan and eat an unhealthy amount of mochi
Guilty pleasure: Watching Homes Under the Hammer
Jasmin Clements
Role: School Success Advisor
Previous career or training: 3 years teacher of English as a foreign language, BA Linguistics and Spanish, bilingual school English assistant, park keeper
Most likely to be found: Rock climbing! (or possibly eating)
What most people don’t know about me is: I have a black belt in karate
Favourite superhero: Spiderman (for obvious reasons…)
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Emma Watson
Biggest achievement to date: Marrying my childhood sweetheart
#1 on my bucket list: Canoeing in Canada
Guilty pleasure: MonsterMunch (they’re not just for kids!)
Lydia Carneige
Role: Customer Service Manager
Previous career or training: Retail, Secondary Teacher of Drama & English, Teaching Assistant and an excellent Pot Wash when I was 14
Most likely to be found: Spending time with family, friends and my dog Buddy
What most people don’t know about me is: I was once on CBBC
Favourite superhero: Hulk
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: The Spice Girls
Biggest achievement to date: My little boy, Milo, and getting a 1st in my degree (oh, and completing these questions…)
#1 on my bucket list: New York, New York!
Guilty pleasure: Eating peanut butter out of a jar
Steven Craig
Role: Education Consultant
Previous career or training: Primary School teacher, NPQSL, DipEd, Conference Manager
Most likely to be found: Going on an adventure
What most people don’t know about me is: I have a passion for writing
Favourite superhero: The Dark Knight
Person you’d most like to have dinner with:Sir David Attenborough
Biggest achievement to date: Lapping Wayne in Go Karting
#1 on my bucket list: Seeing Earth from space
Guilty pleasure: Listening to Hans Zimmer soundtracks
Kim Grosvenor
Role: Creative Artworker
Previous career or training: BA Graphic Design and MSc Marketing, Freelance Designer & Illustrator & Digital Marketing experience
Most likely to be found: Drawing!
What most people don’t know about me is: When I was younger I got to Level 10 in ice skating (I was able to do spins and jumps)
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Banksy
Biggest achievement to date: Winning an award for my artwork!
#1 on my bucket list: Visiting Japan
Guilty Pleasure: Watching First Dates
Kim Brown
Role: School Success Advisor
Previous career or training: Music and Psychology Graduate, Primary School Teacher (Y1 and Y6)
Most likely to be found: Listening to live music
What most people don’t know about me is: I trained as an opera singer
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Louis Theroux
Biggest achievement to date: Having my art shown on CBBC when I was 7!
#1 on my bucket list: To travel South America and visit Machu Picchu
Guilty Pleasure: Going for afternoon tea
Olivia Austin
Role: Business Support Administrator
Previous career or training: Front of House assistant in a seafood restaurant and a country club in the USA
Most likely to be found: By the sea and spending time with my family
What most people don’t know about me is: I spend around 2/3 months a year living in a beach hut in Dorset
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Bruce Springsteen
Biggest achievement to date: Getting my degree in Events Management
#1 on my bucket list: Travel Australia
Guilty pleasure: Friends (the TV show) and cake!!!Saara Ailasmaa
Role: QA Software Test Engineer
Previous career or training: Vocational qualification in Graphic Design
Most likely to be found: Drinking coffee
What most people don’t know about me is: I used to have pet snails
Favourite superhero: Aikku Jokinen
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Tove Jansson
Biggest achievement to date: Moving to England
#1 on my bucket list: Write a bucket list
Guilty pleasure: Coffee
Megan Taylor
Role: School Success Advisor
Previous career or training: BEd Early Years Education & Early Years Practitioner
Most likely to be found: Socialising, baking and walking my dogs
What most people don’t know about me is: I was once in a tornado in Florida
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: David Attenborough
Biggest achievement to date: Completing Bath half marathon
#1 on my bucket list: To take my dad back to an orphanage in Kenya that we visited
Guilty pleasure: Chocolate, gin and Desperate Housewives!
Chris Jones
Role: Education Consultant
Family: One wife and two daughters
Previous career or training: Twenty-plus years as a primary school teacher (6 years as as an Assistant Headteacher) teaching in KS1 and KS2. PhD in American History
Most likely to be found: Cooking or daughter-wrangling
What most people don’t know about me is: I lived in a log cabin in West Virginia for 3 months
Favourite superhero: Peter Quill
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Graham Norton
Biggest achievement to date: My daughters’ sense of humour
#1 on my bucket list: Take my wife to Venice on the Orient Express
Guilty pleasure: Fizzy sweets
Krista Clay
Role: School Support Administrator
Family: Two brothers and a sister
Previous career or training: Barista, biology graduate and maths teacher
Most likely to be found: Adventuring outdoors or baking in my kitchen!
What most people don’t know about me is: I love board games
Favourite superhero: Wonder Woman
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: David Attenborough
Biggest achievement to date: Completing the Bath Half Marathon
#1 on my bucket list: To complete a massive piece of artwork!
Guilty pleasure: Maltesers and anything with Maltesers in
Jo Kiddell
Role: Customer Service Advisor
Family: A boy and a girl
Previous career or training: BSc in Environmental Science, Education, Heritage and Arts Project Manager, Company Director
Most likely to be found: Reading, gardening or at the beach
What most people don’t know about me is: I once presented a science show on TV
Favourite superhero: Wonder Woman
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Kirstie and Phil
Biggest achievement to date: My children
#1 on my bucket list: Seeing polar bears in the wild in Canada
Guilty pleasure: Chocolate!
Kelly Antonowicz
Role: Customer Service Advisor
Family: Two sons and one daughter
Previous career or training: BSc Psychology, Certificate in Supporting Teaching and Learning, and School Governance
Most likely to be found: Ferrying my children from club to club, or at the gym
What most people don’t know about me is: I speak Italian
Favourite superhero: Black Widow
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Maria Montessori
Biggest achievement to date: My three children!
#1 on my bucket list: Walk the Appalachian Trail
Guilty pleasure: Dark chocolate and espresso
Nicki Smith
Role: Customer Service Advisor
Family:Husband Robin, daughters Aimee (11) and Cerys (9), puppy dog Connie and guinea pig Jiffy
Previous career or training: BA (Hons) in French and English; franchise owner for The Creation Station; pub manager; Wine Merchant management, retail and painter/decorator!
Most likely to be found: Geocaching in the great outdoors or supporting Welsh rugby
What most people don’t know about me is: I spent a summer working at Disneyland Paris while I was studying for my degree
Favourite superhero: Alun Wyn Jones (or Batfink)
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Jacinda Ardern
Biggest achievement to date: My two daughters!
#1 on my bucket list: Taking the family to New Zealand
Guilty pleasure: White wine – anything but Chardonnay!
Tristan Russell
Role: Software Development Placement Student
Previous career or training: Currently studying Computer Science BSc at The University of Bath
Most likely to be found: Shopping for computer components
Favourite superhero: Spiderman
Biggest achievement to date: Completing my A Level maths a year early
#1 on my bucket list: Learn to fly a paraglider
Tom Hall
Role: Software Developer
Previous career or training: Chalet Host, paralegal, tax analyst, test engineer
Most likely to be found: Rock climbing, cycle touring, baking, reading
What most people don’t know about me is: I volunteer with Bristol Bike Project
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: Dervla Murphy
Biggest achievement to date: Finishing a mountain marathon in Wales – views were nice, but the hills were hard!
#1 on my bucket list: Cycling in Patagonia
Guilty pleasure: I can eat an entire pot of ice cream in one go
Maddy Austin
Role: School Success Advisor
Previous career or training: I’m a trained primary school teacher with experience across KS2, and I’ve particularly loved finding new ways to use technology to improve experiences for children, parents and teachers.
Most likely to be found: Reading, roller skating or doing a jigsaw…but not all at once.
What most people don’t know about me is: I was on an episode of The Chase (and won!)
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: David Bowie
Biggest achievement to date: My son, who inspires me to try dance moves I never would on my own.
#1 on my bucket list: See the Northern Lights
Guilty pleasure: Terry’s Chocolate Orange
Andrew Roy
Role: School Success Advisor
Previous career or training: Primary Teacher 10+ years (Y5, Y3, Y1 and EYFS!); History/Geography degree
Most likely to be found: Busy with my daughters (a walk, helping them tear around the house to the dismay of my wife, reading book after book, being Elsa from Frozen…). Playing a fun board game! Love modern and party games.
What most people don’t know about me is: I’m a pretty decent ice hockey player (even for Canadians), and used to rollerblade for miles and miles, everywhere. I once made the mistake of buying $100+ worth of groceries and trying to rollerblade it all home. Had to keep stopping to consume things!
Person you’d most like to have dinner with: My maternal grandfather – he led such an interesting life and there is so much I wish I could have discussed with him!
Biggest achievement to date: Helping raise two clever, creative (and crazy) girls!
#1 on my bucket list: Hot air balloon ride over Bath!
Guilty pleasure: Peanut butter (by the kg); 90’s hip hop