Gillingham have added an experienced coach to their backroom department.

Former Bristol City and Crystal Palace coach Keith Millen's appointment was announced before Gillingham’s home game against Doncaster on Good Friday. Millen, 56, has been brought in as the club's new head of academy coaching and started work on Monday, having replaced outgoing Steve Bartlett.

The Gills are looking at the possibility of having an under-21 side next season and Millen’s appointment would suggest things are progressing well. Manager Neil Harris spoke about the latest on the proposal this week.

Gills' academy manager Bryan Bull said: “He will not only play a massive part in the development of our coaching workforce and our older players, but will also provide someone within the academy with huge first-team experience at coach and manager levels.

“It is another example of the positivity around the building, and the very fact that Keith has applied and agreed to join us is of course largely due to having the likes of Kenny (Jackett) around.”

The academy functions are now being overseen by director of football Jackett.

Bull added: “Already in his short time here I have found his input and experience invaluable and he will play a huge part in the club being finally able, at some stage, to put in a “buffer” group between the youth team (under-18s) and the first-team group.

“It is something even prior to Brad and Shannon’s arrival that we had wanted to do and were talking about, but now the plans are firmly back on the table.”

Millen played for Brentford, Watford and then Bristol City, where he began his coaching career as the club’s under-17 manager.

He worked his way up and had a spell as caretaker before becoming manager of a full-time basis.

A brief spell as a coach at Blackpool was followed by a move to Crystal Palace as assistant manager under Ian Holloway. He ended up having caretaker manager spells on several occasions after working under Tony Pulis, Neil Warnock and Alan Pardew. He left when Sam Allardyce took charge in January 2017.

He was quickly back in work, briefly with the Tottenham development team, before joining MK Dons as assistant manager and later the caretaker boss.

In October 2021 he was appointed manager of Carlisle United but left a year ago with the club inside the relegation zone.

Over his career he’s taken charge of 100-plus league games as the various clubs he’s been associated with.