Meet our Hollybank Trustees.
Chair of Trustees
Jane was a litigation partner in a national firm of solicitors before her middle child James was born with profound disabilities. She was unable to pursue her career, but found herself using her legal skills to obtain the specialist care and support that James needed. She wrote a book about the constant battles involved which was featured in several national papers and referred to in Parliamentary debate.
She subsequently became a Family Ambassador for Mencap for eight years, and a trustee of Seashell Trust for disabled young people for three years. She also worked as a legal consultant for IPSEA charity and Autism West Midlands.
She has over 25 years lived experience of special school and college environments and now adult care settings since James moved to Hollybank Trust. She campaigns for better understanding of profoundly disabled young people and better provision for them.
When not involved with disability, Jane has an interest in the Polish refugees who came to England on the ship Empire Windrush in 1948, which included her mother-in-law.
Member of the Quality Sub-Committee
Charlie is a qualified accountant and finance director with 35 years’ experience in large, fast-moving organisations.
Initially training to be a minister in the Church of England, Charlie subsequently switched careers into Finance. He has held Finance Director positions mainly in consumer-facing businesses including Travel Counsellors, Smiffys, Card Factory and Costcutter Supermarkets. He has worked in UK, Ireland, Malaysia and France and has board-level leadership experience in financial planning, improving organisational performance and Mergers & Acquisitions. He holds an MBA from Manchester Business School and previously served on the Finance Committee of a national poverty alleviation charity, Church Urban Fund.
Charlie’s motivation for trusteeship comes from a belief that everyone deserves dignity, opportunity and the right support to thrive. Hollybank’s focus on ability not disability, and its commitment to helping people learn, communicate and live as independently as possible, closely matches his values.
He lives in Wakefield, West Yorkshire with his wife and son. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking, scuba diving and playing the piano.
Colin is an experienced Estate Management Executive with wide Management Expertise.
He started his career as a design engineer before spending 31 years as Director of Estates and Facilities at the University of Huddersfield and a member of the Executive Management Team. In 2015 he was honoured with an MBE for services to Higher Education and the Community of Huddersfield and soon after appointed as a Deputy Lieutenant of West Yorkshire.
He feels very fortunate to have been successful in his career and has received much kindness and care throughout his life, he has therefore been committed for many years to ‘putting a bit back’. He has worked with many charities and feels that Hollybank is very special as it supports some of the neediest in our community.
In retirement Colin has relocated to Northumberland, spending time with family, undertaking voluntary work, walking and wood crafting. He remains very active in West Yorkshire working with charities and spending time with family.
David is a Director of Frescrete Ltd, a construction industry company focused on repairs to buildings and structures. He has extensive knowledge of both commercial and project management, and in improving health and safety at work.
Serving initially as an Officer with the Corps of Royal Engineers, David has experience in small, medium and large organisations in the construction, logistics and facilities management sectors. He holds an Executive Master of Business Administration and a Diploma in Management Consulting.
He lives in North Yorkshire and enjoys spending time in the Alps with his family.
Ian is a Chartered Accountant specialising in the management of merger and acquisition transactions and in providing strategic advice to business owners and management teams.
He spent 18 years at KPMG, becoming a Director in their Leeds corporate finance team. Ian then spent 11 years as a partner at Grant Thornton, before becoming a partner at the independent M&A advisory firm Sentio Partners in 2013.
Ian has advised many well-known names both locally and nationally including Braford & Bingley Building Society, Persimmon, Card Factory, Seabrooks Crisps, Sheffield Forgemasters and Symphony Group. Ian was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Yorkshire Insider Dealmakers Awards in 2023.
Ian believes Hollybank is a vital service for the Yorkshire area providing care and support for some of the most vulnerable members of society and their families. He also has a longstanding interest in education and training. Together this made Hollybank an obvious organisation for him to support.
Ian enjoys walking in the countryside around his home in Woolley. He is also a cyclist, taking part in a 250-mile charity ride each year. However, his main interest is watching football, supporting three teams at different levels of the football pyramid and holding season tickets at two of them!
James is an Independent Advisor at the John Lewis Partnership, where he has held many roles over a 19-year period. These include being Head of both the Sheffield and Leeds branches. He has recently completed a Masters in Leadership and is fascinated by culture, leadership and unlocking organisational potential.
He is a father of three; Lili, Neve and Theo. Any spare time he has apart from being Dad is spent reading, listening to classical music, catching up with friends and getting lost in nature.
Mike is an experienced executive and non-executive plc director with broad industrial sector expertise and knowledge, including real estate management and services.
His executive roles have included Finance Director of Global Procurement within Rolls-Royce Plc, Group Finance Director of Vp plc and Chief Financial Officer of Low & Bonar plc, three main market listed companies. He was also Executive Chair of Real Good Food plc, which was an AIM listed company.
Mike was a non-executive director and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee of Schroders Asian Total Return Investment Company plc for nine years between 2014 and 2023. He has recently been appointed as a non-executive of Ground Rents Income Fund plc, a real estate investment trust managed by Schroders.
Mike has been a trustee of Hollybank since 2017.
Member of the Quality Sub-Committee
Nick is the identical twin brother of one of Hollybank’s residents. He is the younger sibling by 10 all-important minutes! Nick is primary headteacher of an all-through mainstream school in inner London. His background is in special education needs, pastoral care, and safeguarding.
In his spare time, Nick loves travel and languages, and is learning Finnish to grow closer to his husband’s family in eastern Finland.
Chair of the Employment Sub-Committee & Member of the Nominations Sub-Committee
Sara has a long career in HR, working across retail, professional services and international organisations. She began at British Gas in 1982 as a recruitment advisor, where she developed a solid grounding in recruitment, workforce planning and employee relations.
She later became HR Director at Habitat, the design-led consumer brand known for accessible contemporary home products. In this role she led the people agenda within a fast-paced retail business, covering organisational structure, leadership development, employee relations and culture, and supported the business through periods of change.
Sara went on to serve as HR Director for Europe at McArthurGlen, an international owner and operator of designer outlet destinations. Her responsibilities included overseeing HR strategy across multiple European countries, working with local leadership teams and managing differing employment frameworks. She also held senior HR roles at CPA Global, a global Intellectual Property and Trademarks professional services business, where her focus was on governance, HR systems and supporting specialist teams.
