founders

NEIL GRIMSTON

An experienced chairman and safe hands in governance and leadership, Neil has established and managed businesses in Asia, Europe and USA. He has been involved in directing and building both multinational companies and SMEs.

Neil led in financial institutions for a global financial services organisation, before entering the third sector in education where he has been working with many of society’s most challenged young people.

He has been involved in the national education sector from the time of his early election to local government within London. He recently contributed to writing a Level 2 award in interpersonal skills to help young adults become better equipped for the workplace.

He is currently Chairman Board of Governors Westminster Adult Education Service, the largest local authority provider of adult education in London and one of the largest nationally, Non-Executive Director Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors Business Development Board, and Chairman at Hanover Partnership, a company specialising in talent and leadership development within both the education and private sector.

Neil is Past Master of the Worshipful Company of Scriveners, and has been a chairman and director of companies in IT and infrastructure development, banking and finance, and professional services.

Neil commanded a Territorial Army unit and is awarded the Territorial Decoration.

He is a Fellow of the Institute of Leadership and Management, Alumnus London Business School, a Freeman and Liveryman of the City of London, and Member of the European Mentoring and Coaching Council.

Neil holds a postgraduate qualification in executive coaching and leadership mentoring.

DERRAM ATTFIELD

Derram initially trained to be a priest with the honour of being sent to the Vatican for his studies. With this unusual beginning, Derram gained extensive experience in dealing with people.

He quickly transformed his ecclesiastical skills to fit a business environment. For five years he was instrumental in turning around a failing London-based advertising agency raising private capital through attracting investors. At the same time he increased profitability by 400% in the first two years by securing major new accounts and raising the agency’s profile. From this, he gained experience in dealing with large companies at high level.

Still feeling a sense of religious vocation, Derram then gave everything up to spend four years as a Benedictine Monk at Ampleforth, North Yorkshire.

Subsequently, he established a headhunting consultancy and greatly enjoyed the challenges of building a Third Sector, Education and Whitehall practice, utilising the network of people and related skills he had already developed.

Derram has established a network of friends and colleagues across philanthropy, politics and business and he is regularly sought after for his advice and guidance on both commercial and human relationships.

He was educated in Wales, at Eastbourne, and in Rome where he read both Philosophy and Theology at the Gregorian University in the Vatican.

Serena Standing

Serena specialises in talent development and performance management from boardroom to trading floor. She has been Chief Executive of Hanover Foundations since 1997. During that time Hanover has become an influential and highly regarded not-for-profit organisation working in the education sector. Clients include central and local government, colleges, schools and similar agencies. Hanover specialises in providing performance management programmes to the age group 14-24, both in further education and training, and in the transition from education to employment.

She is also a founder of Hanover Partnership an established consultancy specialising in developing individual talent and leadership in the private and public sectors.

Based in Cairo with her family for seven years, Serena contributed academically at Cairo University, where she was offered a chair. She also ran and established a number of successful organisations in the Middle East before returning to the UK. In addition to being a businesswoman in her own right, she has helped a number of entrepreneurs model and develop successful enterprises.

The ethos of Hanover Foundations is the development of the young learner and helping them develop skills to become better learners or move into the workplace. She has recently co-authored and piloted a pioneering Level 2 award in interpersonal skills accredited by the QCA.

Serena is the University College London Trustee of The Philological Foundation (a Westminster based educational charity), a Fellow of the Institute of Leadership and Management, and a Member of the European Mentoring and Coaching Council.

She read Ancient Near Eastern History and Archaeology at University College London, and possesses a number of postgraduate qualifications in the field of leadership psychology and professional development, in particular from The Industrial Society and from The University of Strathclyde.