TST Directors

Andy MacDonald - Director 

Andy MacDonald is a risk and compliance managing director at a major UK bank. He has worked primarily in the anti-financial crime space for over twenty years, specialising in Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorist Financing, and Sanctions compliance. 

Andy lives near Dover with his wife, although he was born in Scotland and raised in Northumberland. He attended a large comprehensive school in Cumbria at which his father was a teacher. Andy read Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at Mansfield College, Oxford before starting his working career at Arthur Andersen in London. 

Based in Singapore for five years and then Canada for four, Andy has travelled to over fifty countries for work and leisure. In his spare time, he plays golf, enjoys films, and loves spending time with family and friends. 

Fiona Coombe - Director, Chair of the Board

Fiona qualified as a solicitor in London specialising in employment and commercial litigation. For 12 years, she led and managed the legal advisory services at the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), the largest trade association for the private staffing and recruitment industry in the UK. Her work included company secretarial duties, as well as providing advice on a range of business law topics and lobbying UK and European parliaments on the impact of legislation to the temporary staffing industry.

In 2010 she left to run her own consultancy business providing legal and HR consultancy services and compliance training for UK staffing firms. In 2014, she joined Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA) a global consultancy providing analysis and advisory services relating to staffing and workforce solutions as the Director of Legal and Regulatory Research.

While living in London, Fiona was governor of a maintained nursery school in Balham for 15 years and led the merger with two other schools to form the Wandsworth Federation of Maintained Nursery Schools. Having moved to Tenterden to be closer to family and the countryside, when not working Fiona plays golf and sings in local choirs.

Mark Kirby - Director, Co-Vice Chair

Mark lives in Maidstone and has many years of experience during a 35 year career.  Originally as call centre manager for personal and corporate claims assessing teams within a corporate company, Mark then settled into the design and packaging sector where he became the Sales, Commercial and Marketing Director of two blue-chip companies. 

He is currently a Company Director for an SME business within the design and bespoke packaging sector looking after speciality sectors such as the MoD and Aerospace.

Philippa Harris - Director

Philippa is retired from a senior business career mostly in travel with well-known companies like Sovereign Luxury Travel, TUI AG, British Airways Holidays and Eurotunnel, and latterly in logistics serving the UK tourism industry. Apart from general business, people and management skills, Philippa has many years’ marketing experience, strategic and tactical, and holds the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) Post-Grad Diploma.

She is the Chair of Trustees to the Family Holiday Charity, giving families the opportunity to experience a break away from often difficult home circumstances, and trustee of Tenterden Mindfulness Group.

Philippa has lived in Biddenden for the last 28 years with Simon, and currently hosts a Ukrainian family of 3 whose son attends John Mayne School.

Rebecca Swansbury - Director

Rebecca is the Deputy Director of Education for the Diocese of Canterbury. Her role encompasses many things, but primarily it is to support, equip and walk alongside leaders and governors in the 105 Church of England Schools within the Diocese.   Rebecca has worked at the Diocese for 5 years and before being the Deputy Director was the Schools Officer (Christian Character) and SIAMS Manager. This role included regularly leading training to support and enable leaders, teachers and trainee teachers across the Diocese in RE, collective worship and SIAMS (Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools)

Rebecca is a SIAMS inspector and inspects in Rochester and Southwark Diocese. She is also a foundation governor at The Archbishops’ School, Canterbury and Selling Church of England primary school.

Before working for the Diocese, Rebecca was a primary school teacher for 14 years, with the responsibility of leading RE and collective worship as part of the senior leadership team.

Rebecca lives in Herne Bay with her husband John-Marc, dog Luna and two grown up daughters, Annika and Grace.