Jul 9Going our own waysIt’s a year now since I relocated to York from London. But leaving my home city and starting a big new job have not been the biggest stories of the last 12 months for me. …Divorce5 min read
Mar 8In solidarity and sisterhoodInternational Women’s Day is a great moment to celebrate the brilliant women who are shaping our world. It’s a wonderful opportunity to give thanks to the women who’ve impacted our own lives directly. …Poverty3 min read
Sep 1, 2021A few thoughts as I start my new job.I start my new job as the Emerging Futures Director at Joseph Rowntree Foundation next week, after several months of decompressing and recovering from a pretty punishing couple of years personally and professionally (something I wrote about here). I’m excited and nervous in equal measure; itching to get started and…Jrf11 min read
Published in Patterns for Change·May 14, 2021Connect generously: Building collaboration and trust“If the goal was to increase the love, rather than winning or dominating an opponent, I think we could actually imagine liberation from constant oppression.” – adrienne maree brown, Emergent Strategy I am writing this having set up and run a frontline charity, Little Village, for the last five…Organisation Development7 min read
May 13, 2021Burnout, imagination and hope: some reflectionsBurnout and bold thinking I had intended to write this post a month after stepping down from my leadership position at Little Village. But that date came, and I still felt broken and exhausted. So I left it. Another month passed. Still, the cursor winked at me from the blank…Charity8 min read
Feb 9, 2021Child poverty, a national emergencyLittle Village turned five this week, and to mark that milestone, we have been working with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation to look at the scale and depth of poverty for families with babies and very young children. We know that poverty during these early months and years is a distressing…Child Poverty9 min read
Dec 18, 20202020: the year in perspectiveThe beginning of 2020 really does feel like ancient history. There we were in January, all shiny and fresh and bright, planning for a year that involved supporting 3000 families, proud of the scale of our ambition and hopeful that, thanks to a new five year partnership with the fantastic…10 min read
Sep 1, 2020An ending, and a new beginningToday, we have advertised the role of CEO for Little Village on The Guardian and CharityJob. Nearly five years since I set the organisation up, I have decided to step down from the role of Chief Executive, and we are starting the search for someone to take my place. I…Leadership7 min read
Apr 6, 2020From one family to anotherLike every other person running a frontline charity, I’ve been flat out over the last three weeks. We’ve redesigned the whole of Little Village’s operations, launching Virtual Village so that we can continue to support struggling families across London during the pandemic. We’ve applied for many grants and set up…Child Poverty8 min read
Feb 7, 2020Big bold ideas and birthdaysI’ve started this year feeling tired and edgy and I feel like this has a lot to do with the world in which I’m working. For the first time in my career I’m wondering whether it is actually possible to make positive changes on the vital issues of the day…9 min read