Millpond Team

Mandy Gurney is a registered nurse, midwife, health visitor and infant massage instructor. She is a member of The British Sleep Society.

During her 20 years working as a health professional within the NHS, Mandy saw first-hand the many problems caused by sleep deprivation. This motivated her to set up one of the NHS's first children's sleep clinics. The outstanding results of this clinic became the catalyst for her to set Millpond with co-founder Tracey Marshall in the year 2000.

Millpond is now recognised as one of the country's leading authorities on children's sleep and is the only practice to offer advice and support to children of all ages from babies to teenagers on a global basis.

In 2005 after establishing Millpond, Mandy turned her attention back to her roots in the NHS, by creating a series of sleep workshops designed to train health professionals. The independent workshops, led by Mandy, have become renowned for their excellence, followed by specific training programmes  for NHS PCT's.

As well as heading sleep seminars in the corporate sector, Mandy is regularly  consulted by the consumer press for expert comment. She is also the sleep expert for The Supernanny Parenting Forum and the Best Bear website. Mandy is regularly seen on television, BBC, ITV and Channel 4. She also contributes regularly to live radio chats. She is currently delivering a series of sleep seminars across the South East as the Key Note speaker for Pfzier SMA.

She is co-author of the sleep bible Teach Your Child to Sleep (Hamlyn, 2005), which has sold tens of thousands of copies worldwide and been translated into ten different languages.

"For me solving a child's sleep problem is like putting together a jigsaw. By taking parents through all the issues – however apparently small - that could be contributing to the problem, I find the missing piece. Together we put it in place, and completing the picture is often a transforming experience for the family – and the best job in the world for me!"

As a mother of two children, Mandy knows only too well how sleep deprivation can affect a family. Her first baby suffered from a variety of severe sleep and allergy problems, which is what ignited her interest in child sleep therapy.

We found Mandy extremely supportive and it felt like we were in it together with her and not on our own. She gave us confidence to try things. We liked the way she responded the same day to our queries. She also gave us invaluable advice on other aspects too e.g. breastfeeding ,weaning etc. Kirtsy,  Gloucester

Mandy was brilliant at listening to our needs and giving us very clear advice about the physiology of sleep and who to make the changes in very practical terms. She was very supportive and approachable. It has changed our lives! Karen, London

Clair Lyons met Mandy when they ran baby massage classes. They went on to set up the NHS children's sleep clinic together.

She has worked with children in a variety of clinical settings, including a neo-natal intensive care unit and a paediatric ward.

She has a background in behavioural management and has many years' experience of treating children with behavioural problems within the family home. Clair is especially skilled at assessing how family dynamics affect babies' and children's behaviour.

‘Sleep has a really profound effect on daytime behaviour and it's good to be able to give parents the tools to change both – and then to hear how that's empowered them to change the daily life of the whole family,' says Clair, who has been at Millpond since its inception.

She has an eight-year-old son, who had sleep problems as a toddler, and a toddler, she is expecting her third child in the summer.

Clair was extremely supportive and professional and put me at my ease straight away.  “Thank you Clair for helping us through a difficult period”.  We now have the confidence and understanding to work through any blips that Isabelle may have in the future.  Faye, Southampton

We found Clair’s approach extremely helpful; her advice was concise and to the point.  She was confident and assured, which was reassuring to us.  And best thing of all, it worked with not too many tears or heartache!  Thank you!!  Marianne, Kent

Jane Bloxsome is a registered nurse and health visitor. She worked in the NHS for 25 years, where she specialised in infant nutrition, child development, children's sleep management and breastfeeding.

Unicef trained, she is a breastfeeding lead in the NHS, where she supports a team of health visitors, staff nurses and nursery nurses to promote breastfeeding.

Her extensive health visiting background has given her an instinctive insight into how sleep problems and family dynamics affect each other. She is particularly knowledgeable about the interrelationship between feeding patterns and sleep problems.

'So often the problem isn't just about sleep – the one thing the parents are focusing on – but things like irregular feeding patterns. And once parents start to understand how those different things interrelate, it's very rewarding to watch them get control over the situation,' says Jane.

Jane is a mother of two children.

We received huge understanding from Jane. She was down to earth, firm, supportive and above all kind. We needed this balance and she read us (me) very well. She was/is amazing. Jeannette, London

We were very impressed with the service received; Jane was highly professional very kind and friendly on the phone. We immediately felt that she was there to support us. She was clear and concise, with specific strategies. She gave additional advice with discipline techniques and the science of behind children’s sleep. We are extremely grateful to Millpond for solving Max’s sleep problems AND arming us with a number of sleep tactics for the future. Annie, London

Juliet Newson is a registered nurse, health visitor and infant massage instructor with 17 years experience in NHS and private healthcare settings.

She has worked in various clinical settings in the UK and internationally in Kathmandu, Nepal. She has followed her particular interests in infant nutrition, parenting programmes and behaviour management for younger children. Juliet’s strength is understanding and empathising with the pressures that sleep problems can bring to bear on parents and children.

‘Through my experiences of working with parents and young children, I recognise how important effective and adequate sleep is in establishing a positive environment to enable children to grow and develop. The impact of sleep difficulties on parents and families can be a hugely draining experience, effecting home life and the child’s behaviour. Helping parents resolve these problems is one of the most rewarding experiences I have had in healthcare’.

Juliet has 3 young children under 9.

Juliet was concise and calm. Our written plan was tailored to Olivia’ needs – previously, we have been bombarded with information from well-meaning friends and family members, but to have that information put things in perspective. I also liked it that Juliet made reference to her own children, which made the plan feel more realistic and less theoretical. Natalie, London

The consultations on the phone kept us going and made us confident that our approach was right. What really helped were the emails – Juliet answered them promptly and with huge detail. It really helped me to stay positive and focused when the phone call was a few days away. Jane, London

Jackie Garwood is a community psychiatric nurse and health visitor.

She became a health visitor after finding that there was so little support for her when her first child developed a chronic sleep problem. Always interested in children's behavioural problems, she subsequently set up a behavioural and sleep clinic, which was enthusiastically supported by the local GP practices.

Her background in mental health nursing combined with a special interest in women's mental health have helped her develop particular expertise in emotional issues such as post-natal depression.

‘I had a very difficult time with my first child so I can fully understand mums who find parenting a real stress,' says Jackie. ‘It undermines their confidence hugely, especially if they're suffering from post-natal depression. But even in that situation we find simple strategies that work for them.'

Jackie is a mother of two.

Jackie was always on hand with encouragement, reassurance and practical advice. Thank you. We literally couldn’t have coped any longer without you.

Mark, Surrey

We received clear and straightforward advice from Jackie, plus all the necessary support and encouragement required to sort out our son’s sleeping problems. I have recommended Millpond to many mums. Sheila, Surrey

Evelyn Stewart met Mandy when the Millpond and the Southampton Children’s Sleep Clinic, where Evelyn was working, took part jointly in the ITV programme “My Child Won’t Sleep”.

Evelyn has worked for the NHS for many years, initially working on Post Natal and Special Care Baby Wards. Later Evelyn worked with the local Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service. As a Behavioural Advisor at CAMHS, Evelyn was part of a specialist ADHD team and also developed a particular interest in children and young adults with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. More recently Evelyn has worked as a Sleep Counsellor with Southampton Sleep Team.

Evelyn has considerable experience in conducting educational workshops for parents and professional within the NHS, Local Education Authorities and in the private sector. Evelyn also works with Southampton Sleep Training which is designed to train Health Professionals and improve Children’s Sleep Services across the country.

We were sceptical at first about using Millpond.  However, as soon as we started to work with Evelyn, we were reassured that we had made the right decision.  Evelyn was flexible but firm on the way forward and we had an improvement with our baby’s sleeping within 3 days!  Evelyn was always on hand by e-mail or telephone and this gave us the support we needed at a difficult time. Angela, London

Evelyn completely understood my daughter’s personality from the outset and devised an approach and advice on-going that was wonderfully effective, empathetic and encouraging throughout.  Justine

Vicki Dawson is a qualified teacher, and has specialised in working with children with special educational needs for the last 13 years.  She has obtained a postgraduate diploma in special and inclusive education and written a number of books around the subject.

Vicki has had a specialist interest in sleep for a number of years now and has been trained by both Sleep Scotland and Southampton Children’s Sleep Service.  She has worked as a sleep practitioner for the past 5 years supporting children with additional needs.  Vicki regularly trains professionals and parents across the country in behaviour management and sleep hygiene.

Vicki particularly enjoys supporting families with sleep problems and understands how debilitating sleep deprivation can be.  “I’m a mum myself and I’ve experienced sleep problems with my children.  I understand how exhausting being a parent can be at the best of times and fully empathise with families who have sleep deprivation to contend with.”

Cathy Madley-Dowd is a registered nurse, midwife, health visitor and infant massage instructor. She has also obtained a postgraduate diploma in promoting the mental health of young children.

Cathy has worked in the NHS for 26 years and more recently has specialised in working with families to promote the positive emotional wellbeing of parents and children. This work has included offering support to families where behaviour issues have been identified and working with mothers with postnatal depression.

Cathy has a wealth of experience working with families with sleep problems. She recognises how sleep deprivation can have such a negative impact on all aspects of family life. “For me working in close partnership with parents is imperative in helping them to resolve their child’s sleep problem”.

Cathy also works with Mandy delivering sleep workshops to professionals in the NHS and private sector.

Cathy is a mother of 2 children; her son experienced sleep problems. She understands through her own experience the difficulties sleep problems can bring to families but how with the right support a seemingly impossible scenario can be positively turned around.

Our Administrators

Val Godfrey met Mandy at ante-natal classes and later came to work for Millpond. As a mother of three children, one of who had eczema so serious he had to sleep wrapped in wet bandages, she can relate to parents of children who don't sleep.

Carolyn Reynolds is a mother of two who knows how behavioural habits can influence a child's sleep profoundly.

With many years experience working for Millpond Val and Carolyn know how important it is for parent's first contact with the clinic to meet with a sympathetic ear. They are also often the first to hear how life changing our results can be.

Tracey Marshall
We want to pay tribute to the memory of Tracey Marshall, Millpond's co-founder, who tragically passed away. Her work and expertise will live on through Millpond.