Who We Are
The Scottish State School Mentoring Network was founded by a group of former Scottish state school pupils committed to equalising opportunity for the next generation.
It is run by a Steering Committee:
Paul Bonner Hughes
A former pupil of St. Aidan’s High School in Wishaw, Paul is now a Barrister based in London. He studied law at the University of Glasgow, the University of Oxford, and Harvard Law School. He spent 6 years working in New York before returning to the UK. He has three young children.
Marie-Claire MacDonald
Born and raised in Lanark, Marie-Claire attended St. Aidan’s High School in Wishaw, She is now a GP based in Carluke. She holds a medical degree and a science degree from the University of Glasgow. She has four young children.
John McDermott
John was born and raised in Edinburgh, where he attended Broughton High School. Since 2011 he has worked as a journalist. He is currently
based in Johannesburg as the Africa Correspondent for the Economist, a
global magazine with a circulation of 1.5m readers. Before joining the Economist he worked for the Financial Times newspaper, where he
covered a number of stories, including Scotland's referendum on independence. Prior to becoming a journalist John spent three years as a civil servant, working in the Cabinet Office and the Downing Street Policy Unit. He has a history degree from the London School of Economics and a masters in public policy from Harvard University,
where he was a Fulbright Scholar.
Katrina Hughes
Katrina is a former pupil of Lanark Grammar. She now works in London as a manager with the National Health Service. She has a BA in philosophy, politics and economics from the University of Oxford, and an MSc in health leadership from the Universities of Birmingham and Manchester.
Andrew
Scott-Ramsay
Andy is a former pupil of St. Aidan’s High School in Wishaw. He studied drama at The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (now the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland) and spent several years as an actor. He now writes and directs films, and runs a film production company (5 by 12 films) in Chicago, Illinois.
Dr. Hayley J. Hooper
Hayley grew up in Erskine and attended Park Mains High School. The first in her family to attend university, she holds an LL.B with Honours from the University of Glasgow, and a Bachelor of Civil Law, M.Phil in Law, and D.Phil in Law from the University of Oxford. She now teaches and publishes in public law at the University of Oxford.
David Kellighan
Born and raised in Wishaw, David attended St Aidan's High School. He holds an MEng in Civil Engineering from the University of Strathclyde and is currently working towards his Chartership with the Institution of Civil Engineers.
David started his career at Balfour Beatty before moving to Story Contracting Ltd, where he is now Project Manager with responsibility for all Civil Engineering projects in Scotland.
In his spare time David is player/manager for an amateur football team in Glasgow and enjoys playing the guitar when he can.
John Ferry
John is a former pupil of St Margaret’s High School, Airdrie. After graduating in economics from St Andrews University he worked as a financial journalist for 10 years, first in London and then as a busy freelancer based in Edinburgh, where he wrote for a number of publications ranging from investment trade and consumer magazines to the Wall Street Journal Europe. He now runs his own media relations and marketing consultancy business serving clients in the finance sector.
Graeme Morrison
Born and raised in Moodiesburn, Graeme attended St. Maurice’s High School in Cumbernauld. He now teaches history and has served as Acting Faculty Head of Humanities at Biggar High School. He holds degrees in history and secondary education from the University of Strathclyde.