Kathryn Neilson started her career as a teacher and spent much of the early part of her career working within the training and learning development sector.  

When the opportunity arose in 2011 to branch off into Maritime Training, she jumped at the chance. For seven years, she worked for Royal Caribbean Cruise Line as their Safety and Compliance Officer responsible for the UK fleet’s certification and compliance and for overseeing their UK and International Cadet Training Programmes.  

In August 2017 Kathryn took over the responsibilities of Merchant Navy Training Board (MNTB) Director at the UK Chamber of Shipping. The MNTB is a unique tripartite organisation bringing together the views of employers, educationalists, and trade unions within the Maritime industry and is responsible for setting the standards and framework for seafarer training and education in the UK.  

As the Director, Kathryn is responsible for the overall operation of the MNTB, overseeing and facilitating its technical work, new entrant training programmes, careers promotion strategy and managing the charitable work of the Maritime Educational Foundation as their Director.    

Kathryn is also a Maritime Skills Commissioner.