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Milestone Group PLC : Appointment of Independent Trustees to the Milestone Foundation
[July 10, 2014]

Milestone Group PLC : Appointment of Independent Trustees to the Milestone Foundation


(dpa-AFX International Compact Via Acquire Media NewsEdge)  MILESTONE GROUP PLC ("Milestone" or the "Company") Appointment of Independent Trustees to the Milestone Foundation Milestone, the AIM quoted (AIM: MSG) provider of digital media and technology solutions is pleased to announce the appointment of The Lord Patel of Bradford OBE, The Lord Kennedy of Southwark, Commodore Christopher Waite and Richard Evans as Independent Trustees to the Board of the Milestone Foundation, Kevin Everett as Executive Chairman and David Williams as Company Secretary.



As announced on 24 July 2013, Milestone established the Milestone Foundation (the "Foundation"), Registered Charity No. 1152801, to underpin the Passion Project. The Passion Project focuses on inspiring young people, helping them identify their passions and natural skills then matching them with partners' training and vocational opportunities.

The Foundation will work with appropriate sector specific partners and charities to establish the necessary framework required for the achievement of the Passion Project's desired social outcomes on behalf of Milestone Group. As well as ensuring the Foundation has access to the appropriate industry and sector specific partners, the Trustees will also monitor and benchmark the performance of the parties involved in the delivery of those outcomes.


The new Trustees join the existing board made up of Deborah White, Malcolm Pickles and Paul Elliott. It is anticipated that the establishment of an Advisory Board and other key appointments will be made in the near future.

The Lord Patel of Bradford OBE Lord Patel joined the House of Lords in June 2006 and now serves as Shadow Minister for Communities. He has extensive experience working at the highest levels, including government, on national and international developments in a wide range of policy areas impacting on health, social care, crime, community cohesion, extremism, equality and human rights. He is also University Director of Strategic Partnerships and Senior Adviser to the Vice Chancellor at the University of East London. He was previously Chairman of the Mental Health Act Commission and non-executive Commissioner for the Healthcare Commission, where he was focused on the need to tackle discrimination and poor practice, particularly affecting people from Black and minority ethic communities.

The Lord Kennedy of Southwark Lord Kennedy joined the House of Lords in June 2010 and was the former Director of Finance and Compliance of the Labour Party. When he left the employment of the Labour Party in 2010, he was appointed as an Electoral Commissioner. He also serves as a trustee for a number of organisations and charities. Lord Kennedy has a strong interest in education, holding the positions of Non-Executive Director for AMLAPS (UK) Ltd (Safeguarding British Education), a member of the Governing Body of Morley College, London, and a Governor for the City of London Academy Southwark.

Commodore Christopher Waite Commodore Chris Waite has had a distinguished career in the Royal Navy, culminating as Commodore in Command of the Air Station at Culdrose, which included being a trustee of a local charity supporting disadvantaged youth and of a medium sized charity, the Fleet Air Arm Museum. Since leaving the Royal Navy in 2004, he has worked in an interim position with North Bristol NHS to establish management and governance regimes for a major strategic change programme. In 2005, he became Clerk and CEO of the Armourers and Brasiers Company and CEO / Secretary to its charitable arm, the Gauntlet Trust. He retired from this post in June 2014. Commodore Chris Waite is also Freemen of the City of London and a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Armourers and Brasiers.

Richard Evans Richard Evans started work in education after University, teaching politics and history in schools and colleges and was a parliamentary candidate in two General Elections. After a number of years in senior management in education, Richard moved into the charity sector, working as Development Director for the international HIV/AIDS charity ACET International. He is now Director of Marylebone Executive Search, an executive focusing on the charity and not for profit and business sectors. He is also a trustee serving on the boards of the Campaign for Learning, the Council for Education in the Commonwealth and the Ramphal Institute. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a member of the English Speaking Union and the Institute of Directors. He is a Freeman of the City of London and a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Educators. He has previously been a trustee of the Brook Advisory Service, MedicAlert Foundation and a governor of several schools.

Kevin Everett - Executive Chairman Kevin is currently Treasurer and Chairman of the Sir John Cass's Foundation, increasing their assets from £9m to £130m during his tenure. He has vast experience of the working relationship between charities and the business sector. He has served as a Director of the London Tourist Board, as a Director of Birnbeck Housing Association and as a member of the Parole Board (LRC HM Prison Maidstone). Whilst working with the ITV Telethon Trust, Kevin set up the Revolving Doors Agency, the UK's only charity dedicated to improving the lives of people who are caught up in a cycle of crisis, crime and mental illness. He currently serves as a Chairman of the Valuation Tribunal for England. Kevin has also been awarded with an Honorary Doctorates from City University, London in January 2008, UEL in November 2010 and the Richmond American University in London in May 2011 for service to Education and Young People. Kevin is a non- executive Director of Milestone Group Plc and joins the Foundation as Executive Chairman.

David Williams - Company Secretary David Williams has been appointed to the Foundation as the Company Secretary.

David spent 17 years as the Appeals Secretary for the National Association of Boys Clubs, where he was responsible for the organising of major activities and the associated VIP ceremonies whilst also overseeing the high-level appeal committee headed by the late Earl Spencer. David was appointed as a Justice of the Peace in 1990 and spent 4 years as a Governor of the Sir John Cass Primary School at Aldgate, London. David is currently Corporate Sponsorship Manager for the Royal Armouries at the Tower of London. He is responsible for securing support and sponsors for the many historic displays, exhibitions and special events. David's extensive network, combined with his organisational skills are expected to bring significant benefit to the Foundation via his new role.

Deborah White Deborah White is the founding Trustee of the Foundation and also CEO of Milestone Group Plc. She has over 20 years experience in the Financial Services sector and has built a number of successful businesses. Deborah personally acquired a major stake in the business at the time of her appointment as CEO in 2008. Since then, she has driven substantial change in the Company through her leadership, vision and extensive network of key industry contacts. Deborah is passionate about making a difference, both in the business community and society in general. Her vision to establish a new and sustainable operational model that sees the joining together of the profit and not-for-profit sector for the purposes of supporting young people and business is the inspiration behind the creation of the Passion Project.

Malcolm "Wilf" Pickles Wilf Pickles, also a founding Trustee of the Foundation, is a security industry professional, with experience in both law enforcement and the private sector.

Prior to moving to the private sector, he was a successful manager within the UK's largest policing organisation. He has over 30 years experience in matters pertaining to law enforcement, crime prevention, community safety, corruption and risk management in a diverse, dynamic and challenging environment. Wilf is now Director of BGP Global Services Ltd, delivering bespoke services to a diverse range of corporate and government clients worldwide.

Paul Elliott CBE Paul Elliott is also a founding Trustee of the Foundation as well as Milestone's Sports and Corporate Social Responsibility ("CSR") Ambassador. His focus is on introducing and promoting the Company's community and sports based initiatives to key stakeholders, ensuring they achieve maximum reach and effectiveness. Paul was awarded a CBE in the 2012 Queens Birthday Honours for services to equality and diversity in football. This is the highest honour to have ever been received by any football player from the Premier League. Paul has represented England internationally, starting his career at Charlton Athletic Football Club.

Following his successes as a player, Paul sat on numerous boards including the Diversity and Inclusion Board for LOCOG, the Board of Trustees for the Professional Footballer's Association and the UEFA Football Committee.

For further information: Milestone Group PLC Deborah White, Chief Executive Tel: 020 7929 7826 Cairn Financial Advisers LLP, Nominated Adviser Liam Murray / Avi Robinson Tel: 020 7148 7900 Hybridan LLP, Broker Claire Louise Noyce Tel: 020 3713 4581 This announcement is distributed by GlobeNewswire on behalf of GlobeNewswire clients. The owner of this announcement warrants that: (i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and other applicable laws; and (ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.

Source: Milestone Group PLC via GlobeNewswire [HUG#1820576] 9131143312791R43 Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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