CAF Board

The Chelsea Academy Foundation is an independent charitable organisation that supports the Academy. The Foundation’s Board of Trustees comprises a team of dedicated, local volunteers with a passion for education and supporting their local community.

Megan Ouchterloney

(Chair of Chelsea Academy Foundation)

Megan has over 20 years of experience working in the not-for-profit sector, primarily in education, with experience in fundraising, governance and partnership-building within the educational charity sector.  She has previous career experience as a lawyer specialising in Corporate Finance and Banking, practicing in New York, Connecticut and London.  She holds a BA from Williams College and a JD from Fordham University. 

Dr Niccolò Caderni

The recipient of the 1978 Award of the Italian Physical Society for his research on General Relativity, Dr Caderni has been a European Space Agency Senior Fellow at Cambridge, a Fellow at the Institute for Theoretical Physics of the University of California, and a Professor at the University of Pavia in Italy. Next, Niccolo developed an interest in the then nascent field of technology transfer, and heeded to a new calling as a technology strategist. He has worked at Bankers Trust International, was a Managing Director at Phillips, the third largest auction house in the world, and a Senior Advisor to the Bentinck Thyssen family. He also served on the Board of the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels. In 1997 Dr Caderni co-founded IPG AG, a technology incubator, with a portfolio of new media companies focusing on the delivery of digital content, and in 2000 was elected Chairman of the Board of Webiz Holding BV, the private equity fund of the Italian utility giant ENEL, Europe’s second largest energy provider. From 2005 onwards, Dr Caderni has contributed to a number of initiatives leveraging on his interest and experience in technology, private equity, art collecting, and the fostering of innovation. He is Chairman of ETT Solutions Ltd, a company offering multimedia interpretations to museums and cultural venues, a Director of Unit9, a leading digital agency, as well an advisor to a number of financial institutions.

Astrid Nellemann

Astrid started her career working as an investment banker with Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs. She then joined Goodman Group, a global real estate investment management firm, as Head of Corporate Transactions and member of the European Management Committee. Astrid was subsequently a co-founding Partner of Isabella Capital, a credit-focused hedge fund investing principally in European high yield. Astrid is currently Director of Corporate Transactions for LakeSprings, Bruxelles. Astrid holds an MBA from The Wharton School and an undergraduate degree from The London School of Economics. She is a Danish national, but has lived in Chelsea for many years together with her husband and three daughters.

David Rosa-Casado

Originally from Spain, David came to London in 1999 to complete the final six months of his Computer Science degree but 22 years later he is still here. He lives in Battersea with his wife Anna, originally from Cheshire, and their 11 year old son, who is enjoying his time as a student at Chelsea Academy. David holds a MSc in Computer Science from the University of Madrid and has spent his working life in IT holding a number of management roles mainly in the financial sector. He has worked for The London Stock Exchange, London Metal Exchange, Morgan Stanley and he is currently at Deutsche Bank where he manages a Global IT team. He is a keen road cyclist and is a member of the Rapha Cycling Club and GFTL racing team. David is very much looking forward to supporting the CAF board and being an active member of the Chelsea Academy family.

Serena Snell

Serena is a brand consultant with over 20 years agency and client side experience, and was Head of Brand at Cancer Research UK before starting her own consultancy. In the last seven years she has focused her energies on working with charities and science organisations.  Serena brings a broad spectrum of brand, marketing and fundraising experience to the foundation’s board. She lives with her family locally and is an active part of the community.

Filippo Lanza

Filippo is Chief Investment Officer at Numen Capital LLP, a London-based multi strategy manager focused on credit markets. Filippo has also been a Venture Investor in several start-ups in EduTech across the UK and USA, and FinTech in the UK. Previously he worked at Lehman Brothers and JPMorgan Chase in the credit derivatives department.

Zehra Imam-Sadeque

Zehra has a background in investment banking and has many years of experience in developing partnerships and fundraising within the educational sector. She has a BSc Hons degree in Pharmacy from University College London and an MBA from London Business School.

Mariana Luxardo

Mariana worked at the Wholesale Credit Risk department at Santander in Buenos Aires, New York and London for over 15 years. In 2008, she moved to the UK where she was made responsible for the management and assessment of the credit risk portfolio for Large Corporates and Structure Finance products. Through her various roles within the credit risk area, she was involved in the development of the Wholesale Corporate franchise that supported the Corporate and Investment banking division.

More recently, Mariana decided to apply her financial experience and skills through volunteering within the educational system in order to support young children and their communities. In September 2022, she accepted the role of school Governor at Springwest Academy. 

Julie Oyogoa

Julieis an international seasoned events planner, manager and producer that has been fortunate to curate professional events and major productions within various industry sectors ranging from corporate, government agencies, charities and third sectors that spans three continents. For the last 15+ years, she has executed events and fundraisers for dignitaries, royalties, and high-net-worth individuals. Her career pièce de résistance was her significant role in making an A list Hollywood actor a brand ambassador for an NGO! She earned a BA in International Studies with a focus on International Development and International Economic Policy, MA in Marketing, PGDip in Events Management, and several professional diplomas.

Julie would describe herself as a world traveller, multilingual and lifelong continuous learner, who credits her upbringing for providing her with cultural intelligence and adaptability. Originally from Lagos, Nigeria, she currently calls London, England home.

Annie Rainsford

Annie is a partner and General Counsel at Cibus Capital, advising the Cibus funds from a legal perspective on fund raising and investments in sustainable food.  Annie was previously GC at Motion Equity Partners and Bluefield Partners.  Annie qualified as a lawyer at Ashurst in 2000 having studied law at Guildford Law School and Economics at Durham University. Annie was previously a governor at Hanford School.


Observers

Mariella Ardron

Principal of Chelsea Academy

Gary Griffin

Chair of Governors