BSA / BAISIS - Visa and immigration conference

Caroline Nixon, International and Membership Director, BSA and Director, BAISIS

Caroline has worked in international education for 30 years. As Caroline Nixon Education, she has worked on many successful projects including helping UK schools to establish new overseas branches, advising an international school opening in the UK, assisting an educational group to set up a guardianship agency, and advising schools on academic and pastoral provision for their international students. Before becoming a consultant, Caroline was Principal of Taunton School International and set up a new school for international children aged 8-14. She was also responsible for the international marketing of, and admissions into, Taunton School. Caroline is also Director, BAISIS (British Association of Independent Schools with International Students), a member of the British Council International Education Advisory Group, and a member of the advisory group to the British Government’s All-Party Parliamentary Group for International Students.

Sarah Chidgey, Head of International Education, The Department for International Trade

Sarah is Head of International Education at the Department for International Trade, previously working as China/Hong Kong and South/Central Asia Lead for the UK education portfolio. Sarah has worked in a range of UK civil service roles in Whitehall (and in Wales) since 2008, having previously worked for the Ministry of Justice, Department for Work and Pensions, the Wales Office and His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs before joining the Department for International Trade in 2017.

Prior to joining the UK civil service, Sarah worked for the United Nations World Food Programme in Rome, and before that a private sector public affairs company named DeHavilland (which focuses on parliamentary and political reporting). Sarah holds an undergraduate degree in social anthropology from King’s College, Cambridge University, and a postgraduate degree in international development from Birkbeck, University of London.

Sarah Bellotti, Chair, BAISIS and Head, Mill Hill International

Sarah was elected BAISIS Chair in January 2022, having served as Deputy Chair since November 2020.
Sarah started her career in education at an international school in Rome, Italy and then returned to the UK to take up a post at King’s Ely where she later became Director of King’s Ely International. Since 2014, Sarah has worked at The Mount, Mill Hill International as the founding Headteacher.

Aileen Kane, Deputy CEO & COO, BSA Group

Aileen is Deputy CEO & COO of BSA Group. Aileen leads operations at BSA providing guidance and training and works closely with government departments, local authorities and other agencies to support members. She heads up the group’s work to find places for refugee children escaping from conflict countries and is also a trustee for a children’s charity.

Kate Goldstone, Border Force Senior Officer, National Safeguarding and Modern Slavery Team, Home Office

Mark Taylor, Executive Director, Taylor Education

In a previous reincarnation Mark founded The Taylor Partnership – supporting U.K. independent schools in meeting the compliance demands of their UKVI sponsor licences and training many school staff. Mark was previously a Trustee of AEGIS and, during the pandemic, assisted independent schools in creating Covid management plans and organised testing. More recently, after travelling the world, Mark has identified the increased risk to independent schools as a result of the need for greater probity and due diligence in financial awareness of school suppliers, parents and agents. Mark’s interest in this field was first sparked in 2016-17 when he supported a number of schools following the disappearance of students from Vietnam.

Mark is working in partnership with Verisio, a specialist organisation concentrating on integrity and due diligence checks on corporations and individuals.

John Murphie, COO, Independent Schools’ Bursars Association

John has been with ISBA since February 2017.  He is responsible for the head office internal organisation and functions and he is the main point of contact for advice and guidance to schools. John spent 31 years in the Royal Navy, retiring in 2007.  Since then, he has worked as the Chapter Clerk in Portsmouth Cathedral, managed a Barristers’ Chambers in London and been Bursar in two schools before joining ISBA.

John Zhang, Managing Director, Connexcel

John Zhang has lived in the UK for 20 years. Graduating from the University of Leeds with a master’s degree in Finance, he was employed by two FTSE 100 international companies as a procurement director before starting his own business. Since establishing Connexcel, he has devoted himself to helping elite private schools in China and the UK form partnerships through sister schools and cultural exchanges. John has supported schools in China with setting up new curriculums in collaboration with UK partners and training senior education personnel. He also acts a consultant for UK schools seeking advice on expanding their brand within the China. Through his consultancy work, John has built an extensive network within the Chinese Education Bureau along with schools in the UK and China, always taking the needs of each school to best allocate resources to support them.

Peter Wells, Executive Consultant, Connexcel

Peter trained at Exeter University and has spent much of his teaching career in boarding education, both at prep and senior level. He was a housemaster at Dulwich College and headmaster at Junior King’s, Canterbury from 2000 -2017. Since retirement he has been on the governing board of two HMC schools and maintains a keen interest in schools through consultancy work with Connexcel. Now living in North Dorset, Peter has recently trained as a Licensed Lay Minister within the Salisbury Diocese. Peter is married to Vivienne who is also a school governor and part of the Connexcel team.

Kate Hollyer, Legal Director of BSA Group and Director of BSA Legal Services Ltd

Kate is Legal Director of BSA Group and Director of BSA Legal Services Ltd. As a qualified solicitor with more than 10 years’ experience advising clients on UK immigration law, Kate assists members with all immigration and safeguarding legal matters. Prior to joining BSA in 2022 Kate was Partner and Head of Department at a leading full-service UK law firm. Having resided in state, preparatory and senior school boarding houses since 2014 with her Housemaster husband, Kate has a unique perspective of boarding life.

Hazar El-Chamaa, Partner, Penningtons Manches Cooper and Chair, ILPA

Hazar has over eight years’ immigration experience and has been advising education providers on all aspects of compliance, restructuring and business strategies since the inception of Tier 4. Her experience also includes advising on appeals, judicial review applications and challenges to Home Office decisions which affect sponsors. Hazar is a frequent speaker on immigration law and gives training on sponsor compliance and prevention of illegal working. She is an elected executive committee member of ILPA (Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association) and has been recommended by the Chambers Guide to the UK Legal Profession. Penningtons is recognised as a key link between the Home Office and educational institutions in the process of implementing and working through PBS reform.