Senior team

Prior to his current role, Ben was UKSA’s Deputy Chief Executive and (previously) Director of Operations. He came to UKSA from a professional sailing background where he campaigned for the British Sailing Team and worked onboard various high-profile yachts. He has worked at UKSA for over 10 years. Throughout this time Ben has gained an unrivalled breadth of knowledge about the academy and its facilities. He has also graduated from Cranfield University with the Advanced Development Programme qualification.

Julia joined UKSA in 2018 after over 20 years of professional experience and achievements in the Advertising and Publishing Sector. She previously spent nine years as Chief Operating Officer of the Content Marketing Association (CMA). At the CMA she was responsible for delivering £60m of business to the content marketing sector, and driving it forward to become what it is now a £1bn industry. While there, she also worked directly with top brands such as Audi, John Lewis, RBS, Boden, Bang & Olufsen and Standard Life, providing a consultancy service to help them enter the world of content marketing. Prior to this she was head of new business at media agency Starcom, following senior commercial roles working with Associated Newspapers and Sunday Business. Her communication skills ensure that she builds lasting working relationships with clients, colleagues, senior stakeholders and board level management. Under her direction, objectives are met on time and within budget.

Simon joined UKSA in May 2018 after nearly 20 years spent as a Director in the residential property sector. Before that he worked in the City of London’s marine insurance sector, having trained as an accountant with Coopers & Lybrand. Simon worked for two seasons as a deckhand on sailing yachts in the Med after leaving University, and he has enjoyed sailing ever since.

Chris is a high-level RYA coach who has worked in the maritime industry since training on UKSA’s WIT course over 20 years ago. After working for Neilson and Sunsail, he travelled the world running high-end watersports resorts. After this he used his qualifications to set up RYA training centres in Egypt, before running UKSA Australia for two years. He is still passionate about on-the-water activities such as surfing, and is a keen mountain biker.

Tanya’s fundraising and marketing experience spans both the charity and commercial sectors. She has worked with the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust and pioneering explorer yacht company Arksen, as well as co-founding Alex Thomson Racing and the military sailing charity Toe in the Water. With her communication skills and contacts, Tanya knows how to deliver meaningful, high-value campaigns and programmes that have a lasting impact.