Who we are

I have just completed 10 years service with Abbeyfield, starting initially in the Marketing team managing voids by developing bespoke marketing plans to maximise occupancy levels for older people for both Sheltered Houses and Registered Care Homes across the UK utilising the Abbeyfield charitable heritage and values.

My background is sales and marketing with a proven track record in delivering profitable sales growth within blue chip branded environments, such as Mitsubishi, Bosch and United Biscuits by establishing excellent long lasting customer relationships in highly competitive markets, managing many of the UK’s largest national retailers across the grocery and high street sectors.

I have met so many people across Abbeyfield both in the UK and internationally over the years as compere at the national conferences to appreciate the commitment that continues to drive the ethos throughout Abbeyfield today. In my new role as Partnership Manager, I look forward to working closely with all our societies and supporting them through all the challenging times ahead.

My time originally started at Abbeyfield as a young volunteer aged only 16, since my grandfather was the Chairman of a local Abbeyfield Society, who together with my grandmother devoted many of their early retirement years organising numerous activities for our local Abbeyfield house, for which I have very fond memories together with appreciating the bedrock of being part of the Abbeyfield Family.

I became involved with Abbeyfield on retirement as Director of Social Services at Cornwall County Council more than 15 years ago. My initial role was as House Chairman of a small home in my village which is part of the Abbeyfield South West Society. What attracted me to the society as a volunteer chair was the local management, considerable involvement from our community and an historical approach in the organisation which saw older age as an opportunity to try out new activities and make fresh friends whilst living in an affordable and safe home.

Abbeyfield is possibly more relevant today than at any time in its history. A fresh approach to the future, building on what we do best and making it even more relevant should be what we all are seeking to do.

I am the chair of the Abbeyfield Loughborough Society and have been a trustee since February 2013 and chair from 2019. We are a 64 bedded dementia care home, having successfully completed the new build of a 33 bedded unit. As well as the board; I chair our staffing group looking at recruitment, retention, training, staffing levels etc, plus providing care management expertise. I am a member of the group reviewing all the financial issues of the home including budgets, cash flow and residents’ fees. I chair the NE England, Yorks and E Midlands hub.

My background is in nursing and general management. In my 38 years working in the NHS, I was required to work across organisational boundaries and with staff at all levels within health, social care and the voluntary sector in the areas of emergency planning, older people’s services and Continuing Healthcare.

I believe my experience working within the NHS in management, commissioning and strategy as well as within the Abbeyfield family equip me to represent the care sector and my hub/region on the Abbeyfield England board.

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.