Jane Barry, Chair of Trustees Expand Jane Barry has spent over two decades within the civil service and has two teenage children, one who has moderate permanent hearing loss. It was Auditory Verbal UK's aspirations for deaf children and the hugely positive affect the programme has on the whole family and society in general which inspired Jane to take up the role which she did in March 2020. Her current job on secondment to the Metropolitan Police as Director of Change, focusses on ensuring cross-UK capabilities are ready for the challenges ahead and planning for change.
Katherine Bartrop, Trustee Expand Katherine is an experienced leader in the charity sector, with her most recent role as Head of Regional Fundraising at Parkinson’s UK, where she doubled their fundraised income and developed a series of products including fundraising walks across the UK. Her professional interests include mentoring, learning and development, building and delivering a strategy and managing remote teams. Katherine joined the AVUK trustee board in 2022 and is excited to bring her strategic skills to the role at a time of ambitious growth for the charity. She has two young sons, Joseph and Robin. Robin is profoundly deaf with cochlear implants and joined the AVUK programme at nine months old. Outside of work, Katherine enjoys the theatre, sewing and making the most of the outdoors with her young family.
Paul Clifford, Treasurer Expand Paul is a former Company Director. An Oxford graduate, he spent most of his working life in publishing, the last 15 years as MD of Lion Hudson plc, the UK’s largest independent Christian publisher. He also had a spell of 8 years, mid-career, working for Oxfam in marketing and general management and promoting fair trade. In addition, he has been a lay minister in the Church of England for more than 25 years. Now retired, he is vice-chair of the board of governors of his local primary school. He is married with two adult daughters and two grandchildren. Paul joined the board as the Treasurer in October 2016.
Milly Ehren, Trustee Expand Milly joined the Board of Trustees in 2021. Milly is an experienced strategy professional, with a passion for creating social value and lasting impact. She is currently working at the City of London Corporation as Strategic Project Lead for Bridge House Estates (an ancient charitable trust). Milly brings her skills in articulating organisation-wide thinking on strategic issues and implementing transformational projects to support AVUK as it embarks on its major investment programme. Milly will act as Board lead for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) and will support AVUK to further develop and implement its DEI policies and plans. Milly is a strong advocate for people with disabilities and brings her personal experience of living with a chronic invisible illness. Milly’s lived experience affords her a natural insight and empathy that will help support families in their journeys through Auditory Verbal therapy.
Gillian Smith, Trustee Expand Gillian Smith FCIPD Having spent most of her career in the Civil Service, Gillian leads on People and Culture aspects of Accelerated Service Transformation in HMRC. She has led Equality, Diversity and Inclusion functions in several Government Departments and in a voluntary capacity has worked extensively with disadvantaged young people, coaching and supporting them to flourish in life and work. Joining the AVUK Trustee Board in 2022, Gillian brings experience of having held Trustee roles in other organisations and having been a Governor at Great Ormond Street Hospital. She also brings her professional experience in Human Resources, business transformation and public policy making. As a mother of a child who became seriously unwell and needed access to additional services, she has first-hand experience of navigating the health and education systems and understands the challenges for parents faced with similar challenges. She is driven by a determination to help build a fairer world with good access to provision, removing barriers that create disadvantage.
Shiona Adamson, Trustee Expand Shiona joined the Board of Trustees in Autumn 2023. Shiona is an experienced organisational leader and communications professional with over 20 years’ experience in different public and private sector organisations of varying sizes and is the Board lead for communications. Shiona has been a member of four Executive Boards and led teams and national campaigns to educate and inspire a range of audiences about an organisation’s purpose and priorities and has designed strategies and led teams to help organisations gain increased brand awareness and trust externally and employee engagement internally. Shiona became captivated by AVUK's mission during a leadership strategy day in which AVUK invites senior leaders from across the public and private sector to learn and advise on the Charity's strategy and brings her experience of reputational risk to AVUK's Finance and Risk Committee.
Jonathan Pepper, Trustee Expand Jonathan has spent his career focussed on the public sector, both as a civil servant and consultant. He currently leads the Central Government Consulting Business for AtkinsRealis, with a portfolio that includes Home Affairs, Foreign Affairs, and Health and Social Care. Jonathan has two children, one of whom was born profoundly deaf. He saw first hand the impact of AVUK as a service user, and is a keen advocate of the benefits the programme can have on deaf children and their families. With his professional background and experience, and a passion to expand the AVT offering to be more universally available, he has provided support to the organisation both with their strategy and business case, and to subsequently join as a Trustee in 2024.
Aileen Thompson, Trustee Expand Aileen joined the Board of Trustees in July 2024. She is an award-winning executive leader, advisor, mentor, and Board Trustee in private, public and not for profit sectors including infrastructure and major projects, pharmaceuticals and life sciences, telecoms, technology, consumer goods and not for profit organisations. Her expertise in effective strategic stakeholder engagement helps create commercial value and resolve business challenges. Aileen is a Fellow and mentor for the Chartered Institute of Public Relationsand a member of the Company of Communicators and its Charity Committee. She will develop a lead role on the AV UK Board focused on compliance, governance and strategic risk and is a member of the Finance & Risk Committee.
Chris Campbell, Trustee Expand Chris Campbell is the father of three children, two of whom are profoundly deaf and learnt to listen and talk at AVUK. Chris has worked in Executive Search for 26 years and is the Managing Partner of Curzon, a leading firm which recruits leaders and Board members for the Infrastructure and Energy Sectors. Chris began his career in teaching and has also worked as an advisor in Parliament. Chris holds degrees from Durham and London Universities and an MBA in Finance from City University Business School (Bayes). Chris has launched, grown and merged a number of firms and brings a hands-on set of experiences of developing and delivering strategies and business planning and will lead AVUK's effectiveness in its organisational delivery and business case implementation, and is a member of the Finance & Risk Committee.