Staff Biographies
Sylvia Perrins - National Director
Sylvia was appointed Director of the National Skills Academy for Financial Services in 2006 and took up her post in January 2007.
Prior to her appointment Sylvia was Director of Business Development and Planning at Westminster Kingsway College of Further Education in London, having also held the position of Director of Strategy & Innovation at the same institution from 2001 to 2003.
From 1997 to 2001 Sylvia was Assistant Principal Finance and Information Systems at Orpington College of FE in Kent. Sylvia started her working life as a financial and business analyst, being employed at British Petroleum plc for seven years, followed by a period of self employment.
Sylvia holds an MBA, a Post Graduate Certificate in Education and a BSc (Econ) from the London School of Economics. She is an Associate Chartered Management Accountant (ACMA).
Sylvia is a Non Executive Director of the Queen Elizabeth Trust.
Photographs available.
Nigel Benton
Regional Director-South West
Having graduated from the University of Southampton in 1987 with an honours degree in Psychology, Nigel has now spent 20 years developing a career in the Life Long Learning sector. Eighteen of those years have been specifically dedicated to the management and delivery of government funded learning across a variety of organisations and occupations. For eleven years he was Regional Training Manager in the South West and South Wales for the then largest training provider working with the motor industry.
Three years ago he was appointed Chief Executive of the Western Training Providers Network. In this role he helped to provide a central point of engagement for and with the Work Based Learning community in the West of England LSC area. With the LSC agenda moving increasingly to a regional footing, Nigel originally convened and chaired the South West Regional Network of Networks, bringing together representatives from across the region to disseminate information and share best practice. This group also provided a regular interface with the LSC Regional Director and his team, ensuring that the WBL provision was fully integrated in the overall regional offer.
Nigel has a long history of working with a wide range of key partners and stakeholders from across his region (and nationally) and he is pleased at being able to bringing this experience to bear in setting up the NSAFS in the South West. Well used to working to an employer led imperative, Nigel sees the establishment of National Skills Academies as an exciting leap forward that will ensure the delivery of industry specific learning is fit for purpose.
John Brierley
Regional Director-East of England
John was appointed as Regional Director for the East of England in December 2006, initially employed by City College Norwich. He was subsequently reappointed in September 2007 by the National Skills Academy for the Financial Services.
Prior to his appointment John was the Executive Director of the Learning and Skills Council for Norfolk. Having previously been Chief Executive of the Norfolk and Waveney Training and Enterprise Council and City Treasurer of Norwich City Council.
John is a qualified accountant and has held a number of positions in both the public and private sectors. He has for many years been a Trustee of the local MIND, is a non-executive Director of the Norfolk and Waveney Mental Health Foundation Trust where he Chairs the Audit Committee and is a school governor.
Karen Davies
Head of Quality and Development
Karen Davies has been Head of Quality and Development at the Skills Academy since November 2007. Prior to her appointment she was Examination & Curriculum Manager at the Securities & Investment Institute where her work focussed on developing new and redeveloping existing qualifications to meet current industry needs. Before joining the SII in 2003, Karen was Examination Manager at Language Testing Associates, managing diplomatic service examinations for the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and service examinations for the Home Office.
Prior to 2001, Karen combined a variety of linguistic work with bringing up a family having moved to the UK to marry. Her early career in her native Denmark was as a lecturer in technical English at a technical college and as an English lecturer at Odense University Business School where she taught at undergraduate and graduate level.
Karen has a degree in English Language and Literature from Odense University and an MA in Mediaeval English from University of Durham. She is an Associate of the Securities and Investment Institute and of the Chartered Institute of Educational Assessors.
Beverley McGillycuddy
Regional Director-West Midlands
Before joining the NSAFS as Regional Director for the West Midlands, Beverley McGillycuddy had spent the previous 5 years working in adult education, including 10 months as a Skills Development Manager at the Learning and Skills Council in Birmingham. Prior to that Beverley spent 7 years working for HSBC in a variety of roles during which time she completed her CeFA and CeMAP qualifications to add to her HND in Business Studies and Graphic Design at the University of Northumbria and then the CIM Post Graduate Diploma in Marketing.
Originally from Co. Durham, Beverley left her native North-East to join Magnet Ltd as a trainee manager working her way up to Branch Manager before moving to spend the next 7 years as an Account Manager for an Insurance company. Married to a Brummie, Beverley has lived and worked in the West Midlands for the past 20 years.
Belinda Ryan
Regional Director-North West
Belinda Ryan is North West Regional Director of the National Skills Academy Financial Services.
Prior to this role Belinda worked for two years on an education-led regeneration project to develop a ‘University Quarter’, designed to raise the achievement of higher level skills and qualifications in the West Midlands.
Previous to that, Belinda was the UK Director of Partnerships & Engagement for People 1st, the Sector Skills Council (SSC) for Hospitality, Leisure, Travel & Tourism. She managed a team across the UK, with responsibility for driving forward the skills agenda for the sector.
Belinda’s early career was in the travel industry, followed by a period of 11 years working in vocational skills during which time she developed and led the national Modern Apprenticeship programmes for the Travel, Tourism and Events industries.
Belinda holds an Honours Degree in Vocational Training from the University of Wales.
Linda Schofield
Regional Director-Yorkshire and Humber
Linda Schofield started her career working in a small branch sales office which allowed her to learn about all aspects of running a business and helped her progress to office management. The desire to know more about ‘management’ took Linda back into education in her late twenties and led to her career in further education which progressed from Business Lecturer to Head of the Business School at Park Lane College in Leeds after completing an MBA at Bradford School of Management.
Linda had always taken an interest in the wider aspects of all of her job roles and so had been Staff Governor/A level Examiner/FEFC Inspector as well as representingher employers on curriculum development boards. She successfully managed a project to bring together the nine FE colleges in Leeds to establish NVQs in the sector and have written a CEL paper on devolved management in FE. The Business School developed new offers including Foundation Degrees and provided a career path for the under-recognised security sector.
Linda is most proud of the distance she has travelled and that she been able to help others progress on their own career journeys. Something she will be able to continue to do in her new role as Regional Director for the National Skills Academy Financial Services Yorkshire & Humber.
Linda Schofield has had 10 years in the commercial sector, 30 years Further Education, progressed from Office Management to Head of Business School in large FE College. Always involved in the wider aspects of job roles including: representative on national boards, examiner, assessor and part-time inspector as well as the management of new projects and implementing new initiatives. MBA, BA(Social Sciences), CDipAF Cert.Ed
Stephen Smith
Regional Director-South East
Stephen Smith joined NSA-FS in 2008 having previously been Regional Manager South for almost 4 years with the Financial Services Skills Council.
Stephen is charged with developing Employer involvement with and commitment to the Skills Academy in the South East by establishing in 2008 a Regional Employers’ Board and local Provision to complement the national Provision and respond to Employers’ needs.
He also develops and maintains relationships with the South East Regional Development Agency (SEEDA), the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) South East, both of whom have Financial Services as a priority sector and are supportive of this Academy initiative.
Stephen’s career has been in financial services and has put skills development at the forefront of people development in the businesses he has managed – Moorgate House (major IFA) as Sales & Training Director from 1998; Allied Irish Banks (where he set up their independent advice company from 1990); Prudential, National Mutual Life and Canada Life.
Stephen has an Honours degree in Politics from the University of Warwick.
Lisa Whitehead
Project and Communications Manager
Before her move into marketing, Lisa studied at the University of Sunderland in the North East to attain a BA Honours Degree in Media Production, Television and Radio.
Lisa moved back down South after completing her degree and worked briefly at the BBC before becoming interested in education and training and taking up a post at Epping Forest College as a Student Advisor where she began to dabble in marketing and events.
Enjoying working in education and training but also deciding to pursue marketing as a career, Lisa moved into her first Marketing role in December 2005 as a Marketing Assistant for an award winning Marketing team at Westminster Kingsway College where she began to ‘learn the ropes’ of Marketing Communications, Events and PR.
Just over two years on, Lisa joined the National Skills Academy as Project and Communications Manager in January 2008.