Catherine Walters
Director of Assessment, Guidance and Consultancy
Educated at St Mary’s, Cambridge and St Mary’s, Ascot, Catherine went on to run Boxford House Language School, originally founded by her mother, The Lady Hilda Swan. Catherine joined Gabbitas in 2002. She has three children, all of whom attended independent boarding schools and are currently at university. Catherine has been guardian to several overseas students at school in the UK.
With a wide-ranging knowledge of boarding education and understanding of the needs of students coming from overseas, Catherine offers a wealth of sound advice and information to parents looking for the right school.
Paul Wilcock
Senior Consultant, Schools, Higher Education and Careers
Paul provides guidance on appropriate independent school options from the wide range of choices that are available. He is also is experienced in advising on the key pathways in terms of both higher education and wider careers advice.
Paul has some 15 years' experience in the education and careers consultancy field, initially with MSL Group and then with CEDAR International. He has advised a diverse range of individual clients and also supported a number of FTSE 100 companies, covering a variety of industry sectors. Prior to moving into consultancy, he had a corporate HR career with Pilkington Glass, Sears Retail and The Burton Group and passed the examinations of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.
Paul is keen on continuous professional development and has more recently been awarded the Postgraduate Diploma in Careers Guidance (QCG) through full time study. He is also qualified to administer a range of psychometric personality and aptitude tests and careers guidance tools.
Deirdre Donegan
Special Education Needs Consultant, Assessment, Guidance and Consultancy
Deirdre grew up in Peru and attended Edinburgh University where she read French and Spanish. She initially worked as a Translator and then worked in Executive Search for Public Relations and Advertising. She joined Gabbitas in 2000 in the School Selection department where she helped parents with the choice of schools and latterly worked in the Tutoring department.
She has two children who attended independent schools, has a good knowledge of private education in the UK and particularly schools catering for Special Needs. She is also a French and Spanish speaker.
Contact Deirdre Donegan
"I would like to say that I found your consultant outstanding. It was not just her hard work, dedication and commitment. What stood out more than anything else was her knowledge of the sector, her relationship with the schools and her ability to manage both prospective school and client so effectively. A truly amazing performance and a fantastic credit to your organisation. I am absolutely chuffed that our daughter will be starting school tomorrow. It would not have been possible without such a fantastic service." Mr G, England