Sam Smethers
Sam Smethers, Chief Executive, is the former Director of Public Affairs at the Equal Opportunities Commission. She has worked as a communications consultant and also has eight years’ experience of working in parliament. Sam is a trustee of Gingerbread and a former trustee of the Fawcett Society. She has four children and was brought up by her grandparents. sam.smethers@grandparentsplus.org.uk
Denise Murphy
Denise Murphy, Interim Chief Executive (covering Sam Smethers’ maternity leave) is the former UK Director of Community Service Volunteers’ Retired & Senior Volunteer Programme (RSVP). She has worked for over 35 years in the statutory and voluntary sectors as a community worker and manager of services for older people. Denise is a trustee of IPSEA (Indedendent Parental Special Education Advice), RSVP Outer London North and Counsel & Care.
denise.murphy@grandparentsplus.org.uk
Alison Blaxland
Alison Blaxland is the Co-ordinator of the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Network. Alison has worked in the voluntary sector for almost 20 years in media and communications roles and previously worked for the children’s charity Barnardo’s as an Editor. She has one son.
alison.blaxland@grandparentsplus.org.uk
Sacha Shabbir
Sacha Shabbir is our Information Systems and Office Manager and has previously worked with the Reviewing Team, Hackney Children’s Services and has several years’ experience in both the voluntary and private sectors. She is also a member of the Ormiston’s London Links Advisory Panel, and volunteers at her son’s school and local community centre. sacha.shabbir@grandparentsplus.org.uk
Oonagh Murphy-Jack
Oonagh is our Project Manager. She has previously worked for the Big Issue as a journalist and also as a researcher on The Times newspaper focussing on issues such as foster care and substance misuse. She has recently written Waiting for Erin, a novel about kinship care.
oonagh.murphy-jack@grandparentsplus.org.uk
Sarah Wellard
Sarah Wellard is our Policy and Research Manager. She has seven years’ experience in the voluntary sector working for a national disability charity and as Parliamentary Officer for Barnardos. She has also worked as a freelance journalist and consultant, an advisor within the civil service and has an MSc in social policy from the LSE. She has three children and is a school governor. sarah.wellard@grandparentsplus.org.uk
Ben Wheatley
Ben is our Campaigns Assistant. He works on our parliamentary and campaigning activity. Ben has a Masters in Public Policy and a degree in Politics and International Relations. He started with us as an intern and has been with the charity for a year.
ben.wheatley@grandparentsplus.org.uk
Jo Raine
Jo Raine is one of our Advice and Information team. She previously worked as a Citizens Advice Bureau adviser for five years. She has also worked for many years in Supported Housing, after doing an MSc in Housing. She has two children, and their grandma plays a big role in their lives. jo.raine@grandparentsplus.org.uk
Peter Hulme
Peter Hulme is our Campaigns Officer, he has previously worked as a campaigner for Oxfam and Amnesty International. More recently he worked as Communications Co-ordinator for CommUNITY Barnet (formerly the Barnet Voluntary Service Council) and co-ordinated a network of voluntary organisations working with older adults. He has also been a adviser to the Kenyan government on mainstreaming disability issues and a trainer to Kenyan disability organisations on leadership and advocacy skills.
peter.hulme@grandparentsplus.org.uk
Agnes Gautier
Agnes Gautier is our Policy Officer. She has nine years of policy, project and campaigns experience in the voluntary sector. She’s worked for the United Nations International Labour Office and the National Union of Students. She has a Msc in European Social Policy from LSE and studied politics in France.
agnes.gautier@grandparentsplus.org.uk
Susannah Cardy
Susannah is our Deputy Co-ordinator of the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Network. Susannah has 15 years’ experience as a television director, working on a range of documentaries, and as a freelance writer. She directed ‘A Grandparents’ Tale’ for Channel 4, which followed 3 sets of grandparents who were raising their grandchildren. Susannah has been a kinship carer for 8 years raising her 3 nephews and 1 niece, after the death of their father. She also has 2 younger children of her own. susannah.cardy@grandparentsplus.org.uk
Thomas Mauchline
Thomas is our Campaigns Intern, he has just finished a degree in Politics and International Relations at the University of Sussex and has experience in Campaigning and Social Media from volunteering in the Brighton and Hove Labour party office. He is working with us on promoting our campaigns to local authorities and other service providers as well as on social and other media. tom.mauchline@grandparentsplus.org.uk
