Meet the Guardianship Team

Debbie Cowley (CertED PCET)

Director of Guardianship & Overseas Business Development

Debbie’s background was Kent College, Pembury where she was head of the ICT & Business Faculty for a number of years and more recently running her own business. Debbie was brought in to head up the Guardianship department and increase the Gabbitas client base as well as expanding our services abroad following the opening of our offices in South Korea and China.

Julija Nikisena (BA Hons)

Senior Client Relationship Co-ordinator

Julija is the first point of contact for all new parents who require information about our guardianship services, as well as anyone who may be interested in becoming a guardian family. She is fluent in Russian, Polish and Lithuanian and is particularly able to help parents from these countries who need guardianship support for their children. Julija was educated in Lithuania, where she attended the first Russian private school in the country. She has a great interest in foreign languages and gained her degree in English at Vilnius Pedagogical University. After gaining a TEFL qualification she then taught at a secondary school. Julija moved to London in 2006 where she worked for the International Currency Exchange Company, before joining Gabbitas in May 2007.

Jennifer Britton

Client Relationship Co-ordinator

'After spending 8 years in Asia teaching English as a second language I decided to return to the UK to further my career. With an understanding for the cultures, I believed my experiences as a teacher and as a citizen of Taiwan, Thailand and Malaysia would be best put to use supporting those students that have been lucky enough to come to the UK to study. My time away from home made me appreciate how difficult it can be, especially at 9 years old, so my job, as Client Relationship Co-ordinator, is to ensure the smooth sailing of each and every one of my student's lives here in the UK and to build strong bonds with Houseparents and Guardian Families alike, so that we are like a family to them.'

Jessica Sanders

Client Relationship Co-ordinator

'Having lived and been educated in several different countries around the world I feel that this has given me a clear insight into what it's like to be a foreign student studying overseas, not only from an academic viewpoint, but from a pastoral one as well. The positions that I have held prior to working for Gabbitas have required me to have a high level of organisational skills and this is something that is vital in my role as a Client Relationship Co-ordinator, dealing as I do with with anything from travel arrangements to and from schools to setting up appointments to be fitted for school uniform. With my skills in languages, I speak Dutch, German and Afrikaans fluently, I am able to help students and parents with any queries that they have in their native language. In the guardianship department we pride ourselves on building good relationships with students, parents and the schools to help make the educational experience as beneficial as possible.'

Ursula Smallman

Travel Co-ordinator

Ursula has a background in administration and office management. She has been working for Gabbitas in a whole range of different departments for a period spanning 30 years. While bringing up her family, she lived and travelled all over the world. She then joined the Guardianship department in 1997 and now co-ordinates the travel requirements for over 150 students from her home in rural Somerset.

Ian Turner

Finance Manager & Guardianship Accounts

Ian grew up and was educated on the Isle of Wight. He gained an NVQ in accounting and is continuing with his studies toward ACCA and a degree in Applied Accounting. Ian is a fluent Spanish speaker and, along with his Peruvian wife and two children, is an active member of the South American community in London. His interests are badminton, foreign languages and computer programming.

He is responsible for the administration of all client accounts in the guardianship department including expense claims from all our guardian families, transfers in and out by parents and all extra expenses incurred by students. He is also responsible for accounts payable for Gabbitas, all accounts for our overseas representative offices and a share of the emergency 24hr contact for our students.

Shanghai

Sofie Liao (BSc Hons)

Office Manager

Sofie is the office manager for our Shanghai representative office. Born in China, she moved to Sweden when she was 10, where she was educated at an International school. On completion of her studies in Sweden, she worked as an assistant teacher before deciding to further her education by studying at Royal Holloway, University of London, where she gained a degree in Business Management. Sofie worked in the Gabbitas London head office for over 3 years before being relocated to Shanghai to run the representative office. She has an excellent knowledge of boarding schools, gained from friends and relatives, and understands the needs and concerns of students from overseas. Sofie is fluent in Mandarin, Cantonese and Swedish and is therefore particularly well placed to be able to help parents from China who need support for their children, providing a vital link for parents who prefer to communicate with Gabbitas in these languages rather than in English.

Queenie Au

Client Relationship Co-ordinator

Queenie Au joined Gabbitas Shanghai representative office in 2009 and is responsible for liaising with new and current Chinese students and parents. She was born in Macau, grew up in Hong Kong, and is fluent in Cantonese, Mandarin and English. At the age of 16, Queenie chose to continue her studies in the UK and is able to draw on this experience to provide in-depth support and advice to both parents and students.

Korea

Woo Young Jung

Office Manager

Woo Young worked at the Gabbitas London head office for 3 years before being re-located to run the representative office in Korea in June 2009. With the experience that she gained during her time in the UK she is well able to provide advice and guidance for Korean parents looking to place students in UK schools. She is also able to provide appropriate guardian families as required and offer advice on UK education in general and university placements. She understands the concerns that parents and students have when considering overseas education at all levels, and with her knowledge and experience is able to offer her support in order to ensure as smooth a transition as possible between the two countries.