About Us

Fiona has practiced as a Business Consultant for the last 15 years, in management training, communication skills, people and business development. Emphasis on health has played an important role in training and mentoring individuals and teams on performance and motivation.

Fiona Slade
formerly joint Managing Director of a successful business consultancy of £2.6m turnover

Fiona finished Tech in Wiltshire with post A’ level Business Studies and walked into a temp agency in London, in the West End. Before having completed registration papers, she had started work with the team at Colgate Palmolive running the Sunningdale Golf Tournament. That was in 1977.

The years continued with work with a team at an international bank involved in research and planning projects; advertising agencies co-ordinating teams and product launches; support and customer services and PR in large firms of solicitors and accountants and joining a large construction team with 9 other project managers and designers, surveyors and architects with up to 8 sites live at any one time and dealing with a whole host of suppliers and regulatory authorities.

Career moves built on the project management, operations and marketing relying on very strong communication skills and moving into training and management. Fiona then worked for 3 years as a freelance business consultant in various companies – small private firms and large international blue chips - and then in 1995 she started a business consultancy as joint Managing Director, the focus very much on business development and people skills, communication, management, presentation, sales, negotiation, motivation, coaching and counselling – always emphasizing that health was a key to success.

The business grew from start up to a £2.6m turnover plc in 4 years, running anything up to 8 contracts simultaneously including small assignments and contracts of £12k, £82k, £480K and £693k in value. This involved consultancy and design, new business, recruitment, administration, organisation, implementation and all aspects of running a business, plus managing a team of 250 associates.

The business was sold in 2001 and Fiona then discovered the benefits of taking a lot better care of herself (health had begun to struggle badly) and in particular nutrition. Fiona has attended nutrition courses and seminars and studied the subject since 2001. She now combines business skills and consultancy, nutrition and health, and people development – and although trying hard, is still working towards achieving that all-important work/life balance.

Helen has been a practising Nutrition Therapist for 11 years, after studying a 4 year qualification at the highly respected Plaskett College of Nutrition Medicine. Helen also works at Penny Brohn Cancer Care (formerly the Bristol Cancer Help Centre) and has done since 2002.

Helen Cranston
BSc, DNMed, DIridol, Nutritional Therapist
Registered Member of the British Association of Nutritional Therapist

Helen gained a BSc (Hons) in Psychology at university and then became an officer in the Army in the Royal Signals and served 3½ years during which she met her husband.

After leaving the Army and having two children Helen re-trained with business skills and worked for some time in a bank in computer operations. She later became ill with chronic fatigue syndrome. Helen found that treating the problem with diet and supplements was highly effective. She became so interested in the power of food to heal that she trained in Nutritional Medicine. She studied over 4 years with the highly respected Plaskett Nutritional Medicine College.

This course blended elements of naturopathy, homeopathy, Chinese medicine, biochemistry and physiology. These elements form a coherent system of treatment. Helen has a practice in Stroud and since 2002 is also one of the team of therapists at Penny Brohn Cancer Care (formerly the Bristol Cancer Help Centre) supporting people with different forms of cancer and related conditions. Helen has worked at the Nutritional Cancer Therapy Trust and Ruskin Mill Further Education Centre and is a Registered Member of the British Association of Nutritional Therapists.

She is particularly interested in the energetics of food, mental health and emotional problems. She writes for the Good Gardeners magazine and is a member of the management team of an environmental charity, Green and Away. Helen has always loved living and working outdoors. Her hobbies are mountain walking and wilderness camping, dancing, reading, gardening and cooking.