“In British legend, griffins are seen as the guardians of important things. Bells symbolise wisdom, clarity and understanding in a range of different cultures. In our view, all great educators are the custodians of the treasures of learning.”
Read more about Our Philosophy
Matthew Smith
Owner and Founder
Matt has worked as an English tutor and an education consultant for over 16 years, with students of all ages from early literacy up to Oxford and Cambridge entrance preparation and beyond. He has worked extensively with tutees at GCSE and A-level, with small groups in primary schools in Brixton, and helped applicants to succeed in their entrance exams for the top private schools in London and the UK, including Westminster, St. Paul's Boys’ and Girls’ schools and Highgate.
Matt believes that tuition works best when complementing effective teaching at school, or when providing an outlet for struggling or prodigiously talented students who find that class lessons do not answer to their individual needs.
Matt read English Literature at Christ Church College, Oxford. He was on the judging panel for the 2022 and 2023 Learning Excellence Awards. His poetry has been published in The London Magazine, Acumen, Orbis and many more of the top journals. He was a winner at The London Magazine Poetry Prize 2018. He won the Orbis Readers’ Award. His photography has been exhibited internationally, in the US, Europe and Japan. His website for his creative work is here.
He offers in-depth consultations to parents, and academic assessments to students, who feel they will benefit from what a modern educational service can offer.
As co-founder of Griffin + Bell, Matt enacts Rule No. 1 of our company: everyone who works with us must teach.
Contact Matt – matt@griffinandbell.com / Writing and Photography – www.matthew-smith.co.uk
Dee Francken
Education Consultant
Dee Francken was formerly Assistant Head at the North London Collegiate School, one of the UK's leading schools and the only school twice named Sunday Times Independent School of the Year. She then became the Headmistress of NLCS Junior School and therefore has experience of selection and education provision across the age range from 4 -18.
Dee has been an advisor on the government's City Academies project and a consultant at the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority. She provides seminars on education topics at major London financial, legal and business institutions.
As an education consultant, Dee offers a bespoke service for parents who require expert assessments, advice and strategies for success when their child is moving to the next stage of their education. In addition, she provides support and advice for parents on a wide range of issues relating to their child's education, including school selection, home-school relationships and selecting GCSEs and A levels. Dee offers interview practice at all levels and helps compose personal statements for 6th form and university entrance.
Dee works extensively with parents from abroad seeking to educate their child in the UK whether as a day pupil or a boarder. Dee has close relationships with many Registrars who appreciate the fact that Dee has many years of real school experience in a top UK school.
Contact Dee – enquiries@griffinandbell.com
Camilla Smiley
Education Consultant
Educated at St Paul’s Girls’ School and Oxford University, Camilla started providing private tuition and education consultancy in 2006 to London-based families. She joined the prestigious Teach First scheme soon after and spent almost ten years teaching History in two very successful London schools – an oversubscribed 'Outstanding' girls' school and then one of the top co-ed independent schools. At both schools Camilla was involved in UCAS preparation, advising candidates, providing mock interviews and building relationships with universities. She was also part of the broader admissions team, interviewing 11+ and 16+ applicants and gaining valuable insight into what schools are looking for.
In 2015 Camilla left the classroom for good to become a full-time education consultant and has since supported students from all over the world. As an experienced consultant, Camilla has visited schools across the country, giving her an in-depth understanding of the UK education system.
Camilla advises families on all elements of school and university admissions. Often this involves guiding families through the whole process over many months, but sometimes students are moving at short notice. As part of her work to secure school places, she can structure preparation for assessments and interviews and advise on curriculum choice. In the past five years, Camilla's students have won offers from more than 150 outstanding schools including Eton College, Winchester College, St Paul’s School, Westminster School and Wycombe Abbey.
Camilla also specialises in UCAS applications, and every year her students are offered places at Oxford, Cambridge, University College London (UCL), the London School of Economics (LSE) and Imperial College, London. She can advise on college choices, drafting personal statements, entrance test preparation and interview technique.
Contact Camilla – camilla@griffinandbell.com
Pandora Layton
Oxbridge Consultant
Pandora tutors in the Humanities for students aged 7 to 18. She specializes in Oxbridge entry, especially in History, but also advises on interview preparation and college selection.
Pandora studied History at Trinity College, Cambridge, and then pursued a MA in Painting from the University of the Arts London, and a MRes in Fine Art and the Humanities at the Royal College of Art, after founding the Trinity College Fine Art Society.
In her spare time, Pandora enjoys World Cinema, travelling, and, in particular, painting, using, as a source of inspiration, her deep knowledge of Medievalism. She also played hockey at County level, captained Trinity College’s ladies’ team for two years, and won Cambridge University’s inter-collegiate mixed Cupper’s event, as joint-captain, in 2015.
Contact Pandora – laytonp@griffinandbell.com
Tom Moores
Tuition Agent
Tom grew up in North Devon before moving to London to achieve his BA in English Language and Literature from King's College London. He then went on to obtain a Masters in Shakespeare Studies from KCL working with Shakespeare's Globe. Tom has been working with and advising families as a private tutor for nearly ten years, having helped students gain places at many of the UK's top independent and state schools.
As a tutor, Tom specialises in the English and Verbal Reasoning elements of the 11+ and pre-tests. He designs and delivers Griffin + Bell's acclaimed 11+ and Pre-test Courses. He also helps to prepare older students for their English exams up to A-level.
Alongside this, Tom has coached students through their LAMDA Speech and Drama awards, and supervised dissertation work for a top London drama school. He enjoys a parallel career as a successful performer and writer for television, theatre and the Edinburgh Fringe.
Contact Tom – tom@griffinandbell.com
Luke Fowler
Tuition Agent
Luke graduated from the University of Warwick in 2008 with a Master's degree in Physics, before studying for a Master's degree in Systematic Theology at King’s College London. Since 2012, Luke has tutored students from age 10 to 18 in Maths, Physics and Chemistry and has helped his students to gain entry to many top private schools including Westminster, Eton, St. Paul's and schools in the London Consortium.
Luke specialises in teaching Physics and Maths at GCSE and A-level, as well as the Maths and non-verbal reasoning elements of 11+ and 13+ examinations.
Luke is also a musician and composer, whose compositions have been performed in the UK and abroad. He is passionate about interdisciplinary education, combining his interest and knowledge in science, arts and the humanities, to provide general academic support to his students. He can advise tutees on how to craft their personal statements, and how to build their profiles, for UK and US college admissions.
Contact Luke – luke@griffinandbell.com
Abraham Hagos
Client Manager
Since graduating with First Class Honours in Business & Marketing from Middlesex University in 2013, Abraham has worked with a number of corporations in London.
Abraham prides himself on achieving outstanding results through hard work and applying himself thoroughly to all challenges. His experience in demanding client-facing roles has taught him the importance of achieving excellence in any environment in which he operates.
Abraham loves to travel and to read in his spare time along with playing sports and keeping up with the Premier League.
Contact Abraham – abraham@griffinandbell.com