Advisory Board members

As Second Sea Lord, Vice Admiral Paul Beattie is responsible for delivering the Royal Navy’s future capabilities, strategy, and long-term programme, as well as serving as the Principal Personnel Officer.

Vice Admiral Beattie joined the Royal Navy in 1989 and spent his early career conducting embargo enforcement operations in the Persian Gulf, Northern Ireland, and the Adriatic. He later completed a second Northern Ireland tour as Commanding Officer of the patrol boat HMS Arun.

He returned to sea as Operations Officer of HMS York and HMS Edinburgh, followed by service as Executive Officer of HMS Westminster and HMS Daring. He subsequently commanded HMS Manchester. Afterwards, he relocated to the United States, where he completed the Navy Senior Command Course in Newport, Rhode Island, and served on the United States Navy Strategy Staff at the Pentagon.

Promoted to Captain in 2014, he returned to the UK in 2015 to contribute to the Strategic Defence and Security Review, during which he authored the UK’s first National Strategy for Maritime Security.

He went on to serve as Chief of Staff to the UK Maritime Battle Staff, and later as Principal Staff Officer to the Commander of UK Strategic Command. Promoted to Commodore, his one-star appointments included Chief of Staff to Navy Command and Head of the Navy Staff during the subsequent Defence Review.

Promoted to Rear Admiral in 2021, he became Director of Naval Staff, where he focused on improving operational outcomes and enhancing the lived experience of Royal Navy personnel.

A graduate of both the US Naval War College and the UK Higher Command and Staff Course, Vice Admiral Beattie holds an MSc in Leadership and Management. He lives in Hampshire with his wife and children.

Bethany Burrow joined the Advisory Board in 2024 as the Governance and People Committee Chair. She is also a member of the Audit Committee.

Bethany is a solicitor, chartered governance professional and Group Company Secretary of British International Investment plc, the UK's development finance institution. Before this, she held a governance and legal role at JPMorgan Chase & Co. and was previously a private practice mergers and acquisitions lawyer at Sidley.

Bethany has 20 years of experience as a charity trustee in comparable roles. She is a member of the Audit and Risk Committee of the Archbishops' Council of the Church of England and a Trustee of the Conway Merchant Navy Trust.

Nigel Bolton joined the Advisory Board in 2023 and also sits on the Finance Committee. 

Nigel was a Managing Director at BlackRock from 2008- 2023; his roles included Chief Investment Officer of Blackrock’s  Fundamental Equity business and Head of European Equities. He sat on Blackrock’s Global Operating Committee and Investment Council.  Prior to joining BlackRock, Nigel held a number of senior Portfolio manager and leadership positions in asset management, including Scottish Widows Investment Partnership and Citigroup Asset Management. 

Nigel is a Trustee of Buttle UK and is a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment. 

In September 2025, Sam Caughey was appointed Finance Director of the Royal Navy, where he leads on financial management, governance, planning, and investment assurance across the Royal Navy’s budget. As a member of both the Admiralty Board and Navy Board, Sam is the most senior Civil Servant within the Command, representing the Civil Service at board level. Sam began his career in the private sector before joining HM Treasury (HMT) in 2004. 

Since 2011, Sam has held a series of senior finance leadership roles across government, including Finance Director at the UK Border Agency, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, and HMRC. In 2018, he joined the Department for Transport, initially as Commercial Director, overseeing rail franchise contracts for the Midlands and North of England. He later became Director for Strategy and Planning for rail passenger services, leading the department’s annual business planning cycle.

Sam undertook his finance training in the late 1990s but was soon drawn to economics and strategy—earning an MA in Economics from the University of St Andrews and working with L.E.K. Consulting and Barclays. He returned to finance at HMT, where he completed his CIMA qualification, became an active member of the Government Finance Function, and served on the Financial Reporting Advisory Board.

Martin Coles has spent a lifetime working with and for children. His career includes being a Primary School Headteacher in Oxfordshire, Vice-Dean for Education at The University of Nottingham, The Head of Schools and Learning for Swindon Local Authority, Assistant Director at The National College for School Leadership, and CEO and Principal of The British School in The Netherlands.

Martin holds degrees from the universities of Oxford, London and Nottingham. Since retiring from full-time employment, Martin has built a portfolio of advisory roles, including as a Trustee of The Radius Trust, Anthem Multi-Academy Trust, and Board member of The Council of British International Schools and Geneva English School. He is a panelist for the Teacher Regulation Agency’s Professional Conduct Panel. 

Martin has also published 19 books and over 50 articles on literacy, school leadership and school improvement, most recently: How to Have Happy Children (2019), RedDoor Press.

Joining the Advisory Board in 2023, Robert Hayes is also a member of the Finance Committee.

Robert has a long investment career as an institutional portfolio manager and investment strategist, advising and implementing asset allocation and risk management approaches for charities, pension funds and insurance companies globally. He was Investment Director for UK Charities and Endowments at BlackRock and prior to that CEO of BlackRock Fund Managers Limited and Head of Investment Oversight for regulated funds and products in Europe. He now works as an independent advisor and has particular interests in asset allocation strategy and manager evaluation. 

He has been a trustee of a number of charities, is a Court member of the Goldsmiths’ Company and an advisor to the University of Southampton.

Philip Lawford joined the Greenwich Hospital Advisory Board in 2023.  He chairs the Charity and Education Committee and sits on the Governance and People Committee.

Philip has 20 years’ experience in the charitable grant-making sector, having served as Director of the Linbury Trust and latterly as the CEO of the AKO Foundation, which awards between £30 - 40 million per annum in grants.  He began his career in investment banking, with COO roles for ING Barings and Union Bank of Switzerland/UBS Warburg.

Philip is a member of the Drapers’ Company and a Trustee of The Steel Charitable Trust.

Mark Lewthwaite  joined the Greenwich Hospital Advisory Board in 2022 as the Chair of the Audit Committee.  He also sits on the Finance Committee.

Mark is a Chartered Accountant and spent over 30 years as a finance professional in the IT sector in both compliance and business support.

Mark had experience of working for charities early in his career and has been a trustee of various organisations in the past 10 years.  Before joining the Greenwich Hospital Advisory Board, he served as the finance trustee of the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity.

James Parkin joined the Royal Navy after university in 1997 serving across the globe, including operational tours in Baghdad and Bahrain. He holds degrees from Oxford and Kings College London and is an alumnus of the London Business School.

Rear Admiral Parkin initially specialised as a Fighter Controller and, latterly, as a Principal Warfare Officer. He has commanded at sea in every rank, including the inshore patrol vessel HMS RANGER, the Type 23 frigate HMS MONTROSE, the Fleet Amphibious Flagship HMS BULWARK, the Joint Expeditionary Force Maritime Task Group, and NATO’s Initial Follow-on Forces Group. After a year in the UK’s Permanent Joint Headquarters as Assistant Chief of Staff for Joint Plans (ACOS J5), he was promoted to Rear Admiral and assumed the role of Director Develop (and as the 78th Controller of the Navy).

Since leaving the Royal Navy, James has set up his own consultancy advising on Defence Technology and Private Finance to UK and European small and medium-sized enterprises. He joined the Advisory Board of Greenwich Hospital in 2024, after 9 years as a Trustee of the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity.  

Kiran Patel joined the Greenwich Hospital Advisory Board in 2023.  He sits on the Finance Committee.

Kiran is Global CIO and Deputy CEO at Savills Investment Management, leading on their investment and asset management platform and the creation and implementation of investment and risk strategies.  He has over 34 years’ experience of global real estate investment markets across Europe, Asia and the US. He is currently chair of their Investment Committee and is a Board member on their Global Executive and Strategic Committees.  

Kiran is also a non-executive adviser, appointed in 2021, for Sellar, creator of the Shard and other iconic London buildings.

Trevor Rowell joined the Advisory Board in 2023 and sits on the Charity and Education Committee.  He is also a member of the Governing Body of the Royal Hospital School. 

Trevor has had a long career in educational leadership.  He has worked in and led schools and colleges of all types both in the UK and internationally, including as CEO of a school group based in Europe and a further education college near Portsmouth.  He has advised and trained school boards in many countries, and chaired the Council of British International Schools for a decade, leading its contacts with UK and other governments, institutions and corporations.  He brings extensive understanding of the educational scene, as a former director of the UK Independent Schools Council and as a board member of leading international schools.

Ed Skeates was appointed to the Greenwich Hospital Advisory Board in 2023 and sits on the Finance Committee.

For six years Ed was Development Director at Be First, the wholly owned development company of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, most recently overseeing a £1.5bn regeneration programme across East London.  Previously Director of Development for The Grosvenor Estate, he has particular interest in regeneration, place-making and large-scale housing projects.