A support network
of like-minded
specialists

James Walters Director

James co-founded Smith Stone Walters in 2001 with David Hugkulstone and Gary Smith.  Together, they have overseen the growth and development of the company’s UK immigration practice including the addition of offices located in New York, Hong Kong and Mumbai.

James has over 30 years’ UK immigration experience gained in the public and private sector and is a regular speaker at immigration and industry events.  He is primarily responsible for managing client relationships, developing new business and managing sponsor licence operations.

David Hugkulstone Director

David co-founded Smith Stone Walters in 2001 with James Walters and Gary Smith.  Together, they have overseen the growth and development of the company’s UK immigration practice including the addition of offices located in New York, Hong Kong and Mumbai.

David has over 30 years’ UK immigration experience gained in the public and private sector.  He is primarily responsible for finance, recruitment and marketing, leading large-scale branding and communications projects for the company.

Gary Smith Director

Gary co-founded Smith Stone Walters in 2001 with James Walters and David Hugkulstone.  Together, they have overseen the growth and development of the company’s UK immigration practice including the addition of offices located in New York, Hong Kong and Mumbai.

Gary has over 28 years’ UK immigration experience gained in the public and private sector.  Gary is widely regarded as the company’s technical expert and is still actively involved in casework, leading a team of consultants to provide an exceptional level of service to a range of small, medium and large clients.

Yvonne Foley Operations Manager (New York)

Former Entry Clearance Manager at the British Consulate-General in New York, London-born Yvonne has managed our regional office for the Americas since 2009 and has wide-ranging UK immigration experience. Prior to emigrating to New York, Yvonne gained her managerial training and over a decade of experience in industry working for a leading British high street chain, world-renowned for exceptional customer service. Her career foundation, combined with over eight years working for the Consulate mean she is equipped with in-depth knowledge of the UK immigration system, an excellent network of contacts, exceptional attention to client needs and significant business acumen, allowing her to bridge the gap between the UK authorities and the corporate world with ease. As an expat herself, Yvonne is sensitive to the needs of the individual at the same time as remaining focused on business need. Yvonne’s broad experience in these key areas mean she is well equipped to lead her team, seamlessly guiding Smith Stone Walters’ clients through even the most complex of immigration scenarios.

Betty Cheung Operations Manager (Hong Kong)

Betty went to the UK to pursue education when she was a teenager. She then graduated with a BSc in Business Management and an MSc in Supply Chain and Logistic Management. She later returned to Hong Kong, and joined our HK office as an Immigration Consultant in 2016. She handles Entry Clearance applications for different scales of corporate companies. She also assists private clients with different UK visa applications. Having previous experience on visa applications, Betty is aware of the challenges people could face when they are applying for a visa. Thus, she makes clear and efficient communication with our clients and proactively responds to their queries, in the hope to give them peace of mind. Before studying in the UK, Betty studied and lived in Mainland China for a period of times. Growing up in multicultural environments has indeed allowed Betty to understand more about our clients’ actual needs and wants and working together towards a win-win is her goal. Betty is now an Operations Manager at our Hong Kong office. She is fluent in English, Mandarin Chinese & Cantonese.

Ragini Parkar Operations Manager (Mumbai)

Ragini began her career as UK Immigration Manager for an India-based corporate relocation service. From there, she joined Smith Stone Walters as a Consultant in our regional office in Mumbai, bringing to the role both specialised regional expertise and an understanding of client needs. Ragini is now Team Lead, managing the day to day operations of the Mumbai office and providing exceptional service and UK immigration assistance to our clients on the ground in India. Ragini also attends conferences and business events in order to develop business in the region.

Susan Scott Senior Account Manager

Susan embarked on a legal career after graduating with an LLB law degree and undertaking the LPC.  She has worked in UK immigration since 2008 and joined Smith Stone Walters in 2010.  Susan has extensive experience of advising companies and individuals on a full range of UK immigration categories covered by the UK Immigration Rules including the Points Based System.  Initially joining as a Consultant, Susan is now Senior Account Manager for one of our largest corporate accounts, dealing with around 400 visa applications a year for clients ranging from summer graduates to CEOs.  Her legal background, attention to detail and organisational skills allow Susan to provide an exceptional level of service to our clients.

Jennifer Eaton Senior Account Manager

After graduating, Jennifer began her UK immigration career in 2004, working for large well known consultancy and law firms. She joined Smith Stone Walters as a Senior Account Manager in 2013 with extensive experience of advising companies and individuals on a full range of UK immigration categories covered by the UK Immigration Rules including the Points Based System.  Jennifer works closely with clients to provide strategic advice in order to achieve the best solutions for their UK immigration needs.  Jennifer has travelled overseas extensively and spent time working in Australia prior to embarking on her immigration career in the UK.

Jack Blackhall Deputy Team Manager (New York)

After graduating with a degree in Business Management, Jack began his career in UK immigration in 2009 with a 12-month internship working in the Visa Section at the British Consulate-General in New York. Upon returning to the UK in 2010, Jack joined Smith Stone Walters where he worked on one of our largest corporate accounts, advising on a full range of UK immigration applications.  After spending two years in the UK office as a Consultant, Jack moved to our New York office where he is now Deputy Team Manager.  Jack has developed excellent relationships within the Visa Section of the British Consulate-General in New York and specialises in providing exceptional UK entry clearance services to our clients.

Anthony Hall Senior Account Manager

Anthony qualified as a UK solicitor in 2009, gaining both UK immigration and employment law experience before joining Smith Stone Walters in 2010.  Initially employed as a Consultant on one of our larger corporate teams, Anthony is now a Senior Account Manager on our Private Client Team.  Assisting private clients on a wide range of immigration applications, Anthony also continues to manage some key corporate accounts.  In addition to his caseworking responsibilities, Anthony leads an internal study group at Smith Stone Walters which is designed to facilitate technical learning and development within the company.  Anthony has first-hand experience of the relocation process, having spent 10 years of his childhood living in Indonesia and becoming fluent in the language.  Prior to embarking on his UK immigration career, Anthony spent two years teaching English in Japan.

Ekaterina Gladkova Senior Account Manager

After graduating in her native Russia, Ekaterina relocated to the UK to continue studying and was awarded a Masters Degree in Business Administration in 2006.  Ekaterina began her UK immigration career in 2003 working for high street law firms where she specialised in various aspects of UK immigration law.  From there, Ekaterina joined Smith Stone Walters in 2006 as a Consultant, initially managing a number of small and medium sized corporate clients.  Ekaterina is now a Senior Account Manager on our Private Client Team, managing the Entry Clearance process for the EMEA region at the same time as continuing to assist high-net worth individuals with investor and entrepreneur applications.  Her personal experience of moving to the UK makes Ekaterina sympathetic to the pressures facing our clients and their families during the relocation process.  A leading specialist in complex business visa applications, Ekaterina is also the main point of contact for our Russian clients.

Phill Allcorn Account Manager

Phill began his UK immigration career in 2004 and gained over ten years’ experience in the immigration sector before joining Smith Stone Walters in 2014 as Account Manager for one of our largest corporate clients.  Having worked for well-known consultancy and law firms, Phill brought with him extensive knowledge of advising companies and individuals on a full range of UK immigration categories covered by the UK Immigration Rules including the Points Based System.  Phill has excellent customer-facing skills and his dedication to outstanding service enables him to provide clients with the best solutions to their immigration needs.

Kaming Yip Account Manager

Kaming qualified as a UK solicitor in 2009, gaining high-net worth UK immigration experience before joining Smith Stone Walters in 2011.  Initially employed as a Consultant on one of our corporate teams to service a diverse client base, Kaming is now an Account Manager on our Private Client Team, specialising in a wide range of immigration applications for private individuals.  Kaming has first-hand experience of the relocation process, having spent five years of his childhood living in Holland.  As the son of Hong Kong nationals, Kaming is fluent in Mandarin and spent a year in China teaching English before embarking on his UK immigration career.

Louise Matthews Account Manager

Louise joined Smith Stone Walters in 2007, progressing quickly to become an Entry Clearance Specialist.  From there she moved into a Consultant role, gaining experience of a wide variety of UK immigration applications for both corporate and private clients.  Louise is now Account Manager on one of our corporate teams, where she uses her in-depth knowledge of UK immigration categories covered by the UK Immigration Rules including the Points Based System to effectively manage a number of large corporate accounts.  Her technical knowledge, combined with her friendly and patient approach, has enabled Louise to develop strong relationships with clients.

Rob Liu Senior Account Manager, Head of China Team (UK)

After graduating with a First Class law degree in China, Rob relocated to the UK in 2004 to complete a Master’s degree. He subsequently gained a wealth of experience in HR consultancy, international recruitment, business development and marketing communications. Rob began his UK immigration career with Smith Stone Walters in 2013 and has since worked with global organisations and SMEs in both Western and Far Eastern cultures to facilitate their needs in UK immigration. Rob has progressed to become a Senior Account Manager of the firm and Head of our Team China in the UK. Rob leads a specialist team that is committed to advising on a variety of applications from both individual and corporate clients, as well as on the compliance and risk control aspects of the ever-changing UK immigration legislation. Rob takes pride in providing his clients with accurate, strategic and pragmatic advice, by utilising his profound business knowledge, extensive cross-cultural understanding, as well as long-term relationship nurturing and native Mandarin language skills.

Kiran Rasoda Senior Account Manager

Kiran began her legal career after graduating with an LLB law degree and undertaking the LPC.  She joined SSW in June 2014 with experience in both corporate and private immigration, and is now the key contact for a number of medium and large client accounts.  Kiran assists our clients in complying with current UK immigration legislation, helping them to fulfil their duties as the employers of migrant staff.  Able to respond to the cross-cultural needs of many of our clients due to her Indian background and fluent Punjabi language skills, Kiran’s comprehensive approach towards client-care is enhanced by her legal background, enabling her to maintain first-rate client relations and deliver an exceptional level of service.

Alastair Mason Senior Account Manager - Global Immigration

After completing an undergraduate BA at UCL and then a  Graduate Diploma in Law, Alastair began his UK immigration career at a London law firm with a focus on private client work. Alastair joined SSW in 2013 as a consultant, providing advice to medium and large corporate clients, before progressing to account manager and now Senior Account Manager – Global Immigration.  Alastair has become the key contact on a number of corporate accounts, using his technical expertise to ensure that the best  solutions are identified and that client requirements are consistently met.

As a Senior Account Manager in the global immigration team, Alastair works with SSW’s suppliers and seeks to develop our global immigration service offering.

Having travelled extensively and studied in Australia for a period, Alastair is well placed to understand the demands our clients face when relocating.

Amrita Singh Account Manager

Amrita has been in the legal profession since 2007, working across various areas of Law whilst studying and qualifying as a Chartered Legal Executive. Amrita joined Smith Stone Walters in 2017 with wide-ranging UK immigration experience gained during employment with large professional consultancy and law firms. Amrita is the Account Manager for one of our largest corporate accounts, in addition to dealing with smaller accounts and private clients. She has broad experience of advising companies and private individuals on a full range of immigration categories covered by the UK Immigration Rules and has extensive knowledge of complex immigration applications, including those made outside of the Rules. In addition, Amrita has wide-ranging knowledge and experience of EEA Law. Amrita’s amiable personality and Hindi and Punjabi language skills, combined with her extensive legal training and qualifications, enable her to provide exemplary customer service to our clients.

Magdalena Makulska Account Manager

Magdalena started her UK immigration career with Smith Stone Walters in 2008, initially training as an Entry Clearance Specialist.  From there she moved into a Consultant role, gaining experience of a wide variety of UK immigration applications, and is now Account Manager for a number of medium and large sized client accounts.  Prior to working in UK immigration, Magda graduated as a teacher in her native Poland and spent two years teaching German to Polish students.  At Smith Stone Walters, Magdalena has utilised her teaching skills to impart knowledge of our internal processes to colleagues.  Her first-hand experience of relocating from Poland to the UK in 2006 has allowed her a unique insight into the pressures being faced by some of our clients.

Camelia (Cami) Kane Account manager

Camelia (Cami) has over 25 years of immigration experience. Cami has worked for the UK Border Agency, where she gained a wealth of expertise in all types of entry clearance applications, document verification, case assessment and visa decisions. She specialised in complex settlement cases and family reunion and worked at various Home Office visa decision posts overseas, across Africa, South Asia and Europe. She joined the SSW UK team in 2013 as an entry clearance specialist. She is now an account manager on our EMEA/private client team, assisting with both corporate and private client visa cases. Cami has a law degree from her native Romania. Her broad experience and extensive travel, together with her gregarious personality, have equipped her with unique skills in understanding and helping our clients with their immigration and relocation requirements.