From Kitchen Table to Global Platform: Hilary Kershaw-Naylor Inspires the Next Generation of Entrepreneurs at St Mary’s Ascot

Hilary’s story begins in Belfast, where she attended the Belfast Royal Academy. Eschewing the traditional university route, she entered the workforce early, driven by a passion for business—an interest shaped by her grandfather, who built a successful retail business from a market stall.

Her early career in banking, followed by work in HR and recruitment, laid a practical foundation. Alongside her husband Phil—an ex-Army officer and tech enthusiast—the pair juggled careers, relocations, and supporting three children in boarding schools. Like many parents, they found navigating school life, especially sports fixtures, unnecessarily difficult. This frustration sparked the idea that would eventually become SOCS.

What began in the late 1990s as a homegrown solution to confusing school sports schedules blossomed into a pioneering digital platform. At a time when internet access was unreliable, Google didn’t exist, and paper maps were still the norm, Hilary and Phil set out to create a tool that schools didn’t yet know they needed.

Initially launched as The Schools' Rugby website, SOCS grew organically—thanks to handwritten letters, school visits, and a lot of persistence. Despite the early scepticism from educators wedded to noticeboard team sheets and fixture cards, the couple pressed on.

“Phil worked around the clock in a small home office. What many dismissed as a ‘hobby site’ gradually became indispensable,” Hilary told the students.

By 2010, the couple committed to SOCS full-time. Hilary led the charge in marketing while balancing her recruitment business; Phil continued as the technical architect. Their three children—James, Will, and Lucy—eventually joined the business, each bringing new energy and skills.

What started as a single-sport scheduling tool has evolved into a modular ecosystem supporting Sport, Co-Curricular activities, Calendar, Music, Tuition, Transport, and Competitions. SOCS now leads the market in school activity and communication systems.

And the innovation continues. Recent launches like SOCS Facilities (for resource booking) and SOCS TV (for secure livestreaming of events) show the team’s commitment to staying ahead of the curve. Next up: SOCS Trips, an all-in-one solution for managing school excursions and risk assessments.

Reflecting on her journey, Hilary emphasised that innovation often starts with frustration and a simple desire to make life better.

“Don’t wait for permission to start something new,” she told the students. “Whether your passion is in technology, sport, art, or business—take that first step.”

As the SOCS Innovate programme continues to bring real-world business stories into schools, Hilary’s message is a powerful reminder that with passion, grit, and a willingness to adapt, it’s possible to turn a kitchen-table idea into a global solution. And perhaps, sitting in that very audience, is the next young innovator ready to do just that.