Who we are

As the General Secretary, I report directly to the Abbeyfield Board, supporting their strategic direction for Abbeyfield England and their support of all members. My past experience as Head of Service in a large metropolitan authority will certainly help with the responsibility for ensuring excellent governance for Abbeyfield England, and taking on the Company Secretary role.

With extensive background in partnership working, including the growth and management of a large strategic partnership that brought together members from the public, private and community and voluntary sectors, I know only too well the importance of delivering value for money services, and the actual benefits of collaboration for improvement and development that can be delivered.  

I am the direct contact for all Member Societies who are based in the North Region, receiving help from Richard Lenthall who supports the North Regional Hub on an interim basis.

As the Governance and Finance Officer I enjoy working in an organisation whose priority is to enhance the quality of life for older people by creating communities that keep people connected.

I make use of my extensive experience in partnership working, digital communications and senior positions within Local and Central Government to assist Abbeyfield England in empowering member societies to successfully deliver their vision. 

I provide support to the PST Manager and the AE Board, and taking charge of the new platform for sharing resources across all our Member Societies. You are likely to hear from me when I’m arranging the annual conference, collecting the census data (which will help the Finance Committee with reviewing the membership fee formula) and when you receive regular updates around policies and announcements that will affect you.

As a Partnership Manager I am currently the primary support for the South East region. I will likely have met representatives of most of our Member Societies during my time here, and feel very much a part of our Abbeyfield Family.

I will continue to be the direct contact for all Member Societies who are based in the South East Region, and continue to help the PST Manager in the support of the North Regional Hub on an interim basis.

As a Partnership Manager, primarily supporting the South West region, I am bringing over 20 years experience in community development with organisations providing care, support, and housing solutions that ensure older people feeling listened to and enabled to stay part of their community.

I will be the direct contact for all Member Societies who are based in the South West Region, and will be helping with the support for the South West Regional Hub (SWIPG). I am hoping to engage with all societies in the area, and I will be here to listen, and respond, to your concerns and needs. I will also be sharing my expertise across the PST to maximise the capacity within our team.

I am pleased to have become a member of the Abbeyfield England Board, whilst remaining committed to my ongoing position as a trustee of Abbeyfield the Dales.  As a qualified Chartered Accountant, Banker and Corporate Treasurer, I have acquired a whole host of skills and knowledge which I feel will allow me to make a valuable contribution to Abbeyfield England.

This contribution is further enhanced by my involvement with several charitable engagements such as volunteering as Chair for Bradford Breakthrough, a major city regeneration project, and acting as mentor and course leader for the Princes Trust.

Across my career, I have adopted the role of Chair, trustee, mentor, coach, motivational public speaker and published author and I feel that my diverse experience has enabled me to better communicate with others and more importantly, relate to residents and members.

I worked as a housing professional for over 40 years before taking early retirement in 2022. For much of that time I worked for and with organisations specialising in the provision of housing, care and support to older people. I took great pride in the work I led on and contributed to, improving access to services which will have helped thousands of older people maintain their independence and dignity as they moved on with their lives.

Perhaps the most enjoyable and fulfilling years were those as regional lead at Anchor Trust during the 1990’s, a time of significant expansion which saw the development of some of Anchor’s first integrated extra care services. I was able to take that experience to another level in the early 2000’s, working with mainstream housing organisations on their development of services for older people.

In 2012 I moved into consultancy, and up to my retirement worked with over 30 service providers and strategic commissioners across England and Wales on projects directly linked to older people. I have a good network of influential contacts within the profession and beyond, at both practitioner and strategic level and am currently a Trustee of the Foundations Independent Living Trust.

Abbeyfield addresses a vital and growing need in society. I have extensive experience in helping community organisations compete effectively and efficiently – without compromising their social goals.

I was an elected, non-Executive Director of HF Holidays Ltd, which has strong parallels with Abbeyfield. It’s a member-owned Co-operative with a community-focused mission, owning properties in the UK and also working abroad. Volunteers are a key part of the offer.

We faced financial and sustainability challenges: a tired estate, ageing guests, and a failure to attract younger people. During my time on the Board, we modernised governance, re-engineered strategy, formalised our code of values, and established a financial plan to refurbish the estate. I served on three key committees: finance & estates, strategy, and audit & risk – and on the emergency Covid-19 committee, navigating the forced shutdown and supporting the recovery. I also chaired a working party evaluating Board skills and performance.

The changes Abbeyfield are planning must meet the needs of Members large and small. I’m a Unitarian and we celebrate (and fiercely defend) the independence and localism of our 170 congregations, while building on the shared expertise and shared benefits of a long-standing national family. I will bring that approach to my work with Abbeyfield.

I have been a trustee and board member of Abbeyfield Braintree, Bocking, and Felsted Society since 1996. During that time I supported the Board in developing a 35 unit independent living facility and more recently successfully project managed their new independent living village from initial inception to successful completion in terms of both construction and financial outcomes. The village cost £23.5m to build and has 99 apartments, a bistro, a gym, a beauty and health parlour, a media room, a number of meeting rooms, a large greenhouse, etc.

My initial career was in local and central government, finishing as a Director in a London Borough. Subsequently I became a freelance management consultant, working as an associate of Deloitte Consulting. I specialised in embedding change management into organisations. Long term assignments included managing a large public sector procurement agency and strategic housing management for the largest local authority. My track record of achieving operation efficiencies and cultural change was achieved through engagement with staff, management boards, trade unions and elected members.

For over 20 years I also worked as an associate lecture for the OU Business School tutoring on the Diploma and MBA programmes, in Finance, Strategy, and across a wide range of management topics in the UK and overseas.

I am a passionate advocator of good, affordable housing that gives security, support and opportunities for interaction but at the same time enables independent living.