I do lots of things for lots of people, watch my film to find out more

Ben took up the reins as CEO, having previously been Deputy CEO and Head of Operations, so he knows us well. His experience in the voluntary (VCSE) sector is extensive, most recently as the Regional Mental Health System Influencing Adviser for Greater Manchester at Mind. Not one for taking it easy, as well as his day job he is also a Trustee at Salford CVS and Vice Chair of the Board of Directors at the Brunswick Centre.

Originally from a village called Luddenden in West Yorkshire, he moved to Manchester in the mid-noughties whilst training as a social worker. At first this was working in child protection, adoption and fostering, before spending several years in HIV prevention at a time when treatment options were severely limited. He misses the day-to-day contact and experiences of people living in the community, but as CEO relishes making people and our reason for being central to everything we do.

He has a mantra which is  “no decision about me, without me” which he brings to everything he leads on, believing that a more collaborative approach will always be the most innovative, simple and powerful solution.

The best advice he’s ever received is “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference”.

Emma’s favourite thing about Gaddum is how varied things are. She loves the buzz and vibrancy, and having the ability to get involved in a wide range of activities.

Emma was born in Rochdale and has stayed close to home, now living in Saddleworth with her daughters and their four fish and two hamsters (Daffy & Buttercup). She describes her biggest challenge as managing her work-life balance when the girls were both much smaller and she was in the private sector. But Gaddum’s understanding culture is one of the things she appreciates most about working here, along with the fact that we do what we say we’re going to do!

Without a particular person in mind for her biggest inspiration, Emma is in awe of all those individuals in society who don’t let their circumstances limit them and have the courage to simply go for their goals – no matter how big or small – when there might be a whole list of obstacles in their way.

The best piece of advice she ever received was, “Listen earnestly to anything your children want to tell you, no matter what. If you don’t listen eagerly to the little stuff when they are little, they won’t tell you the big stuff when they are big, because to them, all of it has always been big stuff”.

Lauren joined Gaddum in 2020 and has 8 years’ experience working within the voluntary sector in Greater Manchester. Lauren originally trained as a social worker but is passionate about the innovative working practices found in the voluntary sector.

Lauren is committed to delivering people centred services and workforce development. Lauren also sits alongside Ben Whalley as a designated safeguarding lead and manages the charities therapy services.

Outside of work, Lauren spends her time caring for her ever growing plant collection, trying out new recipes in the kitchen and playing with her young daughter.

Jenny was drawn to Gaddum because of our commitment to supporting local communities and empowering individuals through meaningful health and social care services. She’s always sought out roles that have an impact on a local level, so Gaddum was a natural fit.

Jenny leads services like NHS Talking Therapies and Child Bereavement support, ensuring high-quality delivery and team development. Before she came to Gaddum in spring 2022, she worked at the University of Manchester Students’ Union, managing a diverse range of student-led community volunteering projects, as well as student charitable fundraising. She’s also supported volunteers and service users at Greater Manchester Victim Support.

What Jenny loves most about working at Gaddum is the people; the dedicated team and the individuals we support. She says, “Each team member brings unique experiences and skills, and the individuals and communities we are connected to have their own stories and backgrounds, which is a privilege to be a part of.”

Gaddum’s services appealed to Elaine due to her own experiences of being a young carer herself.

Manchester born and bred, Elaine originally wanted to be a teacher, but took a different career path, working at NHS Greater Manchester Integrated Care as an Equality and Inclusion programme manager.  She confesses her biggest challenge in life has been breaking down barriers to career progression.

Elaine previously chaired a black-led mental health charity in Manchester in the 1990s and is a volunteer today with other local groups. This experience has helped her develop an understanding of mental health, particularly the need for culturally appropriate, accessible services.

When asked who most inspires her, without hesitation she said Maya Angelou, because she is a brilliant, motivational and inspirational wordsmith.

Coming from a family interested in campaigning for social change, Ian was drawn to Gaddum, hoping as a trustee to support and guide us to be the best we can be in serving the needs of people in Greater Manchester. He describes his role as a privilege.

Born in Oxford, Ian originally wanted to be a cricketer, though 50 years on he’s starting to think his England call-up is unlikely.

Before joining Gaddum, Ian worked in the NHS as a senior leader. His biggest challenge was helping to lead the NHS in Manchester through the Covid pandemic. This included setting up the Nightingale Hospital and ensuring the Covid vaccination campaign reached the city’s diverse communities.

He came to Manchester for University and stayed along with his wife, who also worked for the NHS. They have two grown-up sons and an old Labrador, Bronny. Ian watched Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid with his boys again and again as they grew up, and now knows the dialogue off by heart.

John was attracted to Gaddum because of the services we deliver and our hard-working teams. However, it’s our Carers service that is really close to his heart as he has been a carer – and at a time when there were no commissioned services.

Born in Ireland, John now lives in Greater Manchester. Work wise, he is Chief Officer of The Brunswick Centre in West Yorkshire, an organisation in the field of HIV social care, HIV prevention and LGBT issues, particularly for young people. The biggest challenge in his working life has been tackling stigmas and the impact of (health) inequalities.

He is most inspired by Angela Davis, author and political activist, and his favourite quote is actually from her, which is “We must always attempt to lift as we climb.”

Jonathan found Gaddum particularly appealing because of its long history of supporting people in Greater Manchester, and the inspiring work the charity continues to do today. He currently leads a team of NatWest relationship managers in Greater Manchester supporting SMEs and loves meeting ambitious entrepreneurs growing their businesses. Whilst remote working made it a challenge to help customers in the early stages of Covid, supporting businesses in the region through the pandemic was particularly rewarding.

Jonathan was born in London and  has seen plenty of the UK,  living  in Maldon, Grantham, Edinburgh, and Leeds. He moved to Manchester in 2018 after marrying his wife, whose family are from Altrincham.

His weekends are mostly spent with his 18-month-old daughter and when she has some downtime,  Jonathan will be out running, cycling, or watching Fulham.

Beth was inspired to join Gaddum because of our values, how central we are to Greater Manchester’s history, and our work on bereavement support.

For the last twenty years, Beth has been working and volunteering in the charity and social policy sector. She is currently Regional Funding Manager for the National Lottery Community Fund in Greater Manchester and is passionate about collaboration and innovation to tackle social issues and inequalities. Growing up, however, she thought she’d be a zoologist living in the Galapagos islands!

Beth grew up in Sheffield with her Cockney parents, who moved north to find some green space to raise a family. Her biggest challenge in life has been struggling to conceive and pregnancy loss. It’s nice to know that she now lives with her Spanish husband and one son who she describes as “a tree climbing pirate renegade”.

The best advice she’s ever received is, “don’t do nothing just because you can’t do everything”.

Gaddum came to Ady’s attention through a work connection, and then later when the opportunity came to be a Trustee, he applied because of his shared values, and his own experience of child bereavement. Now a Carer himself for his mum, he hopes his involvement with Gaddum will help others find the services they need.

Ady is the founder and Managing Director of branding and design agency, True North, who work with a range of national and international clients. Running a business for 22 years has been his biggest challenge due to the ups and downs that come with it. But he loves what he does and is inspired by the people he works with.

Growing up in Rochdale, Ady always knew he wanted to work in design, but had some alternative careers in mind including manager of Rochdale FC, a professional darts player or a joiner.

His weekends involve football, family and DIY and he enjoys watching Taskmaster due to it’s level of silly humour. However, Morecambe and Wise is closest to his heart. He’s met Eric Morecambe’s son, Gary, and is the very proud owner of Ernie Wise’s top hat, as seen in many dance routines, and the famous Angela Rippon sketch.

Rob started his career as a primary school teacher, but for the past 25 years he has worked in the VCSE sector. Rob worked at CEO or Deputy CEO level for organisations including LGBT Foundation, Landau, and Tameside Third Sector Coalition. A career highlight was being the GM Programme Manager for HIV. In this role he helped secure £1.3 million additional investment and spearheaded the development of innovative services and increased HIV testing. 

Gaddum appealed to Rob because of our proud track record of providing important services for almost 200 years. He says the best thing about Gaddum is, “It has really strong organisational values which put people first. I can see it is an organisation which at its heart wants to listen and learn.” 

Rob was born in Crewe but has lived in Greater Manchester for the last 20 years, so he feels like an adopted Mancunian. He lives with his husband Rich and their beautiful terrier, Ruby – who’s a bit of a character and enjoys watching TV! 

The best piece of advice Rob has received is, ‘You cannot care for others unless you take care of yourself. So self-care is really important and benefits all of us.’ 

Jackie began her career as a biologist, working in animal nutrition. She later qualified as a commercial property surveyor. Jackie has worked with NGOs, commercial consultancies, and government, and has also been self-employed. This diverse experience has allowed her to see the bigger picture. 

Jackie says her favourite thing about Gaddum is our supportiveness and inclusivity, and she looks forward to contributing to our work. On a personal level, she notes, “Having been a carer myself I know how challenging it is, and I would have welcomed the support that Gaddum can provide.” 

On weekends, Jackie enjoys spending time with friends and family. She also loves to read all kinds of books, from classics to detective fiction. Although Jackie grew up in a small village in the south of England, she has family roots in the northwest. The best piece of advice she has received is, ‘Happiness is a choice, not a result.’ 

Zoe spent the early part of her career as a general nurse, training at NMGH before joining Manchester City Council as a Medical Visitor/Assessor. She has since held a variety of roles, mostly specialising in the care of older people. Between 2014 and 2024 Zoe was an adult social care commissioner. She’s particularly proud of her work during the pandemic, which included launching the new support service for carers across Manchester.

It was through her former role as commissioner that Zoe first encountered Gaddum. Zoe was attracted to the role of Trustee because she’s keen to learn more about Gaddum from a different perspective and contribute to our next key strategic aims.

Growing up in Manchester, Zoe now lives in Rochdale. On weekends, she enjoys reading, baking, and walking.

Zoe says the biggest challenge in her working life was trying to achieve a work-life balance. Now she’s semi-retired she looks forward to prioritising self-care. The best advice she’s received is ‘Adopt great time-management skills and answer emails promptly!’.

Sarah began her career in 2005, studying Health & Social Care. Over the years Sarah continued to study and has worked/volunteered for various organisations and mental health services. Sarah is enthusiastic and quite passionate about her work ethics which has enabled her to have a positive impact on contributing to the development of improving services including their policies and procedures.

Sarah is a qualified therapist with a vast experience of working with young people, adults and families.

Sarah currently works as a Step 3/3.5 Mental Health Practitioner for ‘Thinking Ahead’ Rochdale.