Poverty Strategy Commission

I am experienced in working with individuals and communities facing different types of poverty. This includes lecturing in social policy on family and community policies and on public sector management. I have formed a voluntary organisation for young people in the Abbey Ward in Cambridge. I have also been a Board Member for a local Housing Association (CHS Group for nine years).

I am keen to be part of a Poverty Commission that will explore the many challenges of tackling poverty. I want to work with others to address practices, evidence and impact to alleviate poverty. I am a huge fan of collaboration (that’s the social psychologist in me). I view this process as an opportunity to do just that.

I started my career in Health Club Management in London. I moved to Ely in 2004 in search of more space for my growing family. I began working with Citizens Advice Rural Cambridgeshire in 2012. I wanted to pursue my passion to help and support the local community and to work alongside like-minded people. It has been a journey of growth and development. I have honed my skills in fundraising and staff development. I have helped to grow an exceptional service to support the local community by providing holistic and empowering advice.

Everything Citizens Advice Rural Cambs strives to achieve aligns with Cambridgeshire County Council’s Anti-Poverty Strategy.

Being part of the commission allows me to offer my experience, knowledge and contacts to help develop realistic recommendations. When I’m not working, I enjoy keeping fit, watching sport and spending time with my family and friends.

I’m half French - it’s usually the first thing people ask – but with a British sense of humour. I am compassionate, curious, open and bold. I am an advocate for listening and learning enabling systems and outcomes focused change.

I have extensive roots in multi-agency partnerships, building new projects, and facilitating community voice and co-production. I work with voluntary and community services, Public, Health, and Housing sectors.

In the past ten years I’ve been a COVID volunteer team lead in my local community. I worked as a Project Manager firstly for the county wide Tempo Time Credits programme. I then joined Change Grow Live, a drug and alcohol service, leading on our new homeless outreach service. I am keen to see how I can best offer this broad perspective and experience as a member of the Poverty Commission.

I have always had a passion for communities both as a child and throughout my professional life. I am interested in how they work and what makes them tick. This includes the disability community, minority communities, underrepresented communities and forgotten communities.

For me, poverty is more than just money. It is opportunity, education, awareness, a lack of hope and engagement, a voice in your own future. I have dedicated most of my professional life to social causes. I am more than happy to be part of this piece of work. I hope to offer some solutions to the issue of poverty in Cambridgeshire.

I am an experienced voluntary and charity sector leader. I have an environmental and teaching background. I am passionate about encouraging people to share their skills and experiences, especially through voluntary work. I strive to engage with people from diverse backgrounds. Together we explore how they can support and improve their local community. I focus on making the organisations I work for inclusive and accessible to all.

As the CEO of Cambridge and District Citizens Advice, I lead a team of managers and project leads. We run a successful advice service. I have overall responsibility for financial management, governance, HR and volunteering. I also manage funded project and ensure the smooth running of an advice hub with tenants.

I am thrilled to be selected as a commissioner. I look forward to working collaboratively with other members of the Commission to tackle poverty in a joined-up way across the County.

I am the Managing Director of Social Enterprise East of England. I bring 30 years of senior leadership experience across both the commercial and not-for-profit sectors. I am passionate about building community support and connectedness. I have a particular interest in how social enterprises can play a key role in improving health, wealth, and wellbeing. 

I am eager to bring my experience to the Cambridgeshire Poverty Strategy Commission. I aim to help to develop a practical action plan that can make a measurable difference to those living in or near poverty.

I have worked in people-focused roles since 1999 across the statutory, community, and housing sectors. From 2007 until recently, I worked in Cambridgeshire on outreach projects. These projects tackled digital exclusion, employability and financial capability. I engaged with a diverse range of people and piloted new approaches to address digital poverty.

In my current role as a Community Connector for Places for People, I work with a variety of groups addressing poverty. I also serve as a trustee for the Angels Foundation. The foundation helps people fleeing domestic abuse to overcome deprivation.

I am the Director of Re-imagine Resource Centre CIC, a non-profit company. For over a decade, I’ve found creative ways to help care for our planet. The centre is a hub of creative energy. We have a successful Resource Centre, Community Kitchen, Solidarity Larder and Social Supermarket in Ely, Cambridgeshire. My mission is to promote sustainability, creativity and imagination. I do this through events, creative reuse, educational programmes, material re-allocation and community partnerships. I want to help address global challenges like poverty, inequality, climate change, racism, and social justice. I also aim to raise awareness about the consequences of our actions on the planet.

As a single parent from a young age, I balanced many responsibilities. This experience has given me resilience and strength from navigating the challenges of raising a child alone. It has helped me create a place of giving, unity, and creativity. I’m incredibly proud of the constant commitment to our uniquely connected community and the planet.

I am a Business Development Manager for Evouchers. The organisation distributes vouchers within communities to provide support. I also play an active role in the Brampton Village School Association. Prior to this, I worked in recruitment and employability. I saw the impact of poverty on young adults and those affected by long-term unemployment.

I am passionate about reducing poverty and minimising the impact it has on people's lives.

I have been sober for 25 years. I turned my life around from addiction and homelessness to a successful career in transport and infrastructure. My journey began in sales and marketing but took a dramatic turn due to addiction. This led to a period of homelessness and a brief stay in a psychiatric ward. After a transformative three-month rehab programme, I rebuilt my career. I started as a frontline adviser at the Department for Work and Pensions in Streatham, South London. From there I moved on to National Highways followed by Jacobs Design Consultancy. I then served as Head of Transport for the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mayoral Combined Authority (2019-2022). In 2022, I founded Executive Consultancy Services Ltd. I focus on accelerating transport and infrastructure projects for community betterment.

I’m also a qualified personal and business coach, NLP Practitioner, and Personal Development Mentor. I dedicate my personal time to supporting individuals and organisations tackling homelessness and addiction. This reflects the support I once received. My professional expertise and personal resilience drives my passion as an advocate in the fight against poverty.

I spent my early years in the Fens. I have since lived in various parts of the county, eventually settling in Histon. For over 20 years I worked in the scientific sector. I began in a laboratory in Huntingdon and later working for the University of Cambridge. In the 1990s I became a volunteer at the Emmaus Community in Land beach. This led to me becoming employed in the charity sector. I am currently the coordinator of a food charity and a Trustee of Cambridge Aid.

I am very pleased to be joining the Commission. I hope that the work of mapping and measuring poverty in the county will produce valuable and useful data. This data will help organisations and individuals who are working to improve the lives of the residents of our county.