Community Care – The Excellence Network
the JUDGING Panel
CHILDREN & FAMILIES (INC. CHILDREN IN CARE)
Clare Tickell
As chief executive of Action for Children since January 2005, Clare Tickell has been responsible for one of the UK’s largest and most important charities. Action for Children employs over 6,000 people in nearly 500 projects across the UK and in parts of the Caribbean and Africa supporting more than 170,000 children, young people and their families. For more information about Action for Children’s work please go to www.actionforchildren.org.uk.
Throughout her career, Clare has been committed to improving the lives of our most excluded and vulnerable fellow citizens. Her previous role was as chief executive of Stonham Housing Association. She has also held many non-executive and advisory positions in the voluntary and housing sectors, as well as in the Social Exclusion Unit, the office of the Deputy Prime Minister, the Department of Health and the Audit Commission.
Clare is a member of the management board of the Information Commission and the Public Interest General Council of the Office of Public Management. In July 2006 she became Chair of Praxis, the organisation which helps new residents integrate in the UK, including both refugees and economic migrants. In July 2007 Clare became a Commissioner for the Howard League’s newly established national Commission on English Prison’s Today.
Clare lives in West London, with her husband – an art director in the film industry and her two teenage sons.
DISABILITIES
Simon Heng
Following a rare spinal disorder, Simon Heng became a wheelchair user 13 years ago . He has been active in promoting service user involvement and disability issues for the past 11 years, and was the Chair of the Worcestershire Association of Service for 10 years. His involvement has included training with social and health care workers, and teaching health and social care students. Simon writes a fortnightly column in Community Care magazine, highlighting disability and service user issues. In his spare time, Simon has helped to set up and run the Wyre Forest Film Club, to further his interest in independent and world cinema. In November 2005, he was awarded an honorary MA for his services to the community, by the University of Worcester.
LEARNING DISABILITIES
Su Sayer
Su Sayer co-founded United Response in 1973. It is now in the top 100 charities, has a turnover of £55 million, over 2000 staff and provides a range of services for people with learning disabilities or mental health needs across England and Wales.
Su is very active in the voluntary sector; she was Chair of ACEVO for three years and has served on the Boards of several Government bodies and a range of charities including Save the Children and NCVO. She has received two prestigious charity awards, one for Outstanding Achievement and the other for Lifetime Achievement. On receiving the latter award, she was described as “a true innovator” and “a pioneer who championed care in the community long before Government interest”.
Su is the Vice-Chair of The Prostate Cancer Charity.
Su is an Honorary Senior Visiting Fellow in the Faculty of Management, Cass Business School, City University.
First and foremost however, she is a mother to her two sons.
MENTAL HEALTH/SUBSTANCE MISUSE
Paul Jenkins
Paul Jenkins is Chief Executive of Rethink, the leading national mental health membership charity, working to help everyone affected by severe mental illness recover a better quality of life.
Rethink’s aim is to make a practical and positive difference by providing hope and empowerment through effective services and support to all those who need us. We believe that people who experience severe mental illness are entitled to be treated with respect and as equal citizens. And we actively campaign for change through greater awareness and understanding.
Paul, born in 1963, was previously Director of Service Development for NHS Direct. Between 1998 and 2004 he was the National Project Manager in the Department of Health responsible for the establishment of both NHS Direct’s telephone helpline and website for which he was awarded the OBE in 2002. Paul has previously been involved in the implementation of a number of other major national government initiatives including the Next Steps Programme and the 1993 Community Care Reforms. He has an MBA from Manchester Business School.
Paul is a member of the Carers’ Standing Commission which is advising the Government on carers issues and inputting into the development of a revised Prime Minister’s Strategy for Carers.
Paul is also a member of the Third Sector Forum on Criminal Justice and Mental Health which is bringing together organisations across the third sector concerned with the impact of mental health issues on people in prison and other parts of the criminal justice system.
Paul is married with two children and lives in Leeds. He is a keen supporter of the Welsh Rugby Team.
OLDER PEOPLE
Annie Stevenson
Annie Stevenson's background is in social services and the voluntary sector. She started work in a children's home in the 80's then became a hospital-based social worker at the Middlesex Hospital working with older people. As a team-leader of former social workers, she implemented the changes required of the Community Care Act. She then went into commissioning as contracts manager leading on learning disabilities contracts. Making the leap into the voluntary sector she became Head of Care and House Management at the Abbeyfield Society and then worked for Help the Aged on developing quality in their care homes. Her next step was to transfer to Policy where she has been Help the Aged's Senior Policy Adviser on Care for seven years. She is now on secondment to the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) to strengthen the older people's voice and relationships with the independent sector. She is passionate about the need to change attitudes to ageing, improve older people's quality of life and has been instrumental in co-developing the Help the Aged plus partners' "My Home Life Programme".
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