OUR CHAIRMAN AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Martin Shreeve
Chairman of ExtraCare's Board of Trustees

Martin graduated from the London School of Economics in 1964. He was instrumental in developing the first local authority programme of very sheltered housing as an alternative to residential care. In 1985 Martin was appointed Director of Social Services for Wolverhampton where he actively promoted a policy of replacing residential care with extra care housing. As an active member of the Association of Directors of Social Services, Martin was the first Chairman of the ADSS for the Elderly People Committee, a position he held for 10 years. In 1998, he became the first Programme Director of The Better Government for Older People Programme (BGOP) and in January 2000 was awarded the OBE for services to older people. Martin's hobbies include jazz, cycling, the ballet, theatre and the plastic arts.

Nick Abbey
Chief Executive of ExtraCare's Board of Directors

After gaining a geography degree at Sheffield University, Nick worked in senior posts in social housing in local authorities before being appointed as Chief Executive at the newly formed Hereward Housing Association in 1992. Nick led Hereward until it joined Sanctuary Housing Group in 2005, and then undertook various roles within Sanctuary, most recently as Group Director responsible for services to tenants in 57,000 homes throughout England and Scotland. Nick is a former Board member of the National Housing Federation and a former Chair of a Local Strategic Partnership. He joined ExtraCare in January 2010.

OUR TRUSTEES

Alan Stark
Trustee

Alan chaired the ExtraCare board of trustees for seven years. He worked for 30 years around the world for American Express, in the UK, the Netherlands, Singapore and Canada. He spent the last 10 years of his career as Chairman and CEO of Amex Bank of Canada, the American Express business in Canada engaged in banking, credit cards, travellers' cheques and travel businesses. Alan gained extensive experience during his career in marketing, customer service, quality management and customer loyalty programmes. He has been asked frequently to speak on quality management and leadership.

Sidney Tyrrell
Trustee

Sidney read mathematics at Cambridge and from there entered the National Health Service as a National Administrative Trainee.  She became Deputy Hospital Secretary at Birmingham General Hospital. In 1981 Sidney took her PGCE qualification at Warwick University and went on to teach statistics at Coventry University where she was offered a Senior Lectureship. In 2003, Sidney was awarded a National Teaching Fellowship and is now an Honorary Teaching Fellow. She is a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society, and the Royal Society of Arts, a District Councillor, an Associate of Newnham College and member of High Table, and a Trustee of four very different charities. Sidney was the first woman to be appointed a Trustee of the Diocese of Coventry, and at least once a week can be found on the end of a mop at the Leamington Night Shelter for the homeless.

Rod Scribbins
Trustee

Rod has over twenty years experience as Managing Director or Director of a number of retail, fast moving consumer goods and logistics sectors of industry. Over half of that time was with the Boots Group, based in the East and West Midlands.
Having retired from full time work, Rod pursues interests in the community, working with charitable organisations. Rod's interests include gardening, golf and theatre.

Richard Clarke
Trustee

Richard is a self-employed consultant advising on tax and treasury instruments. Richard lives in London and is a Freeman of the City and a Liveryman in the Guild of International Bankers. In addition to volunteering with ExtraCare he is the National Treasurer for Cruse Bereavement Care - another charity which, by providing a little help and support, encourages people to take control of their lives and enjoy them to the full. Most days involve Richard in a trip to the gym as well as a few hours on the dance floor!

Ian Wilks
Trustee

Professionally an economist, Ian worked in fast moving consumer goods and then healthcare with General Healthcare Group, the owner and operator of acute care hospitals, medium secure psychiatric hospitals and brain injury re-hab facilities. Ian retired in 2006 and became involved with ExtraCare, becoming a Trustee in 2007. Ian is from Derbyshire and married with two grown-up children. His main interests are travelling, rambling, an allotment and DIY.

Judith Mortimer Sykes
Trustee

Judith graduated from the University of Manchester in 1979 where she read geography. She studied for her MBA at Manchester Business School then joined Bank of America in London in the early 80s before moving to Nationwide Building Society in 1991. Her experience in corporate banking, commercial lending and retail banking covers lending, sales and operations, customer service, change and risk management.Since taking early retirement in March 2010, Judith has developed a portfolio of interests to make good use of her business experience: In addition to ExtraCare, Judith is a Trustee Director at Money Advice Trust; a Governor at Northampton College; a member of a Business Angel network based at the University of Warwick Science Park; and also a committee member of Women's Careers Foundation. Most recently, Judith was appointed as a Non-Executive Director on the Board of the Coventry & Warwickshire NHS Partnership Trust with effect from April 2011.

Martin Leppard
Trustee
Martin Leppard graduated from Manchester University in 1979, with a BA in town and country planning. However, rather than becoming a town planner on graduating, Martin instead joined a small specialist tour operator, Eurocamp Travel. Nine years later (with the company now part of Next plc) Martin and three colleagues succeeded in acquiring the business in a management buyout. They floated the company on the London Stock Exchange in 1991. Martin's principal roles were in operations and in marketing. After leaving Eurocamp in 1996, Martin then joined a couple of American-owned travel companies, before once again going down the private equity route and acquiring another specialist tour operator, International Life Leisure, in a management buy-in. This company was subsequently sold to Cendant Corporation, of the USA, and Martin remained with Cendant for a further three years to run their UK travel businesses as Group Managing Director. Since leaving Cendant in 2005, Martin has become Non-executive Chairman of a number of private-equity backed companies involved in hospitality, travel and leisure, namely South Lakeland Parks, Days Of Your Life, Original Travel, French Freedom, and recently ChillFactore. Along the way, Martin has gained a Professional Diploma in Management and an MBA from Hull University.

Paul Jennings
Trustee

Paul worked in the NHS in a wide variety of roles for thirty years and, for the last decade, in Chief Officer and latterly Chief Executive roles, most recently as Chief Executive of NHS Warwickshire (Warwickshire PCT). Paul has developed a reputation as someone who turns round organisations and has a real passion for OD and Communications. Paul has a long term interest in issues relating to older people and was for some years the older people's lead for the NHS in Birmingham and then the West Midlands. He enjoys developing and working in partnership across organisations and sectors, having committed a lot of energy to clinical networks and public health issues. He has a particular concern for and interest in kidney care and sits on a number of national committees and bodies.

Ruth Hyndman
Trustee
Ruth was born and brought up in Rotherham, South Yorkshire and after completing her first degree, studied for a post-graduate business qualification. Ruth's early career was as an industrial relations specialist working in a number of roles in engineering, local government and publishing. She then joined the retail group, Kingfisher PLC in order to move into a more generalist HR role. During her seventeen years with Kingfisher she was appointed to a number of different executive director roles and at various times was the director responsible for distribution, supply chain and IT as well as human resources within a number of different Kingfisher operating companies. Ruth's last role was as Organisation Development Director for Superdrug PLC, the health and beauty retailer. Since leaving Kingfisher in 2002, she has undertaken a number of consultancy and interim Human Resource Director assignments, including working at Harrods, the Knightsbridge store, and for an animal welfare charity.

Selvavinayagam Vireswer
Trustee
Vires is Director of Business Development at London's Guys' & St Thomas' Hospital. He started his career at McKinsey & Company, before working at 10 Downing Street and Oxfam. He subsequently worked in developing and growing businesses - firstly as an investor with V.C. Bridges Ventures, but lastly as a buy-in director of medical firm Medical Diagnostic & Imaging Group, which he grew from one to five centres. Vires exited MDI in early 2008 selling it to a Gulf-based medical group. Vires read economics at University of Cambridge and gained an MBA from Stanford University.

Michael Higgs
Trustee
Michael is a physicist with an honours degree. He also has a background in employment law. During his career Michael has developed and implemented major business change and transformation strategies in the UK and overseas, and is currently Global Deputy CEO and Group Resources Director of a world leading industrial minerals group. He is also Managing Partner of a business transformation consultancy. Michael's current and previous roles include: Chairman of a large UK final salary pension scheme; Chairman of the finance and audit committees of an NHS Mental Health Trust; Group Human Resources Director of an international retailer and logistics group. Michael is also a senior employment law and employee relations consultant.

OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS

Chris Skelton
Finance Director
Chris graduated from Sheffield University in 1982 with a degree in accounting and financial management. He joined Reed Elsevier plc and on becoming a qualified accountant, moved into their regional newspaper division. He remained in the newspaper industry for 20 years holding a number of senior positions including Managing Director for the last ten years. Chris joined ExtraCare as Finance Director in 2004.

Mark Curran
Development Director

After graduating in law from Warwick University, Mark joined GEC in Coventry before moving to work in Central London for several years with the Crown Agents, Cable & Wireless and Foster Wheeler. He returned to work in the Midlands in the late 80s as Commercial and then Managing Director of Solios Thermal - building large capital projects around the world - prior to joining ExtraCare in 2004 as Development Director. Outside work, Mark is involved in leading a local church and currently chairs a local international children's charity. When he finds time Mark likes to try and play golf!

Leann Hearne
Operations Director

Leann began her career after college as a secretary to the Managing Director of a manufacturing company. Following a chance conversation, she was inspired to move into sales and marketing and progressed through the ranks, qualifying in both subjects along the way. She became a Fellow of the Institute of Sales and Marketing in 1993, when she moved into the service sector to set up the Pickfords Business Moving division for the Pickfords Group. Leann then moved back into industry, as Managing Director of a German owned manufacturing business in Coventry, where she led the business through two acquisitions and mergers. In addition, she gained ISO 9001/2 quality recognition, ISO 14001 environmental and Investors in People status for the business. The latter resulted in three regional awards, including Business of the Year and Training Excellence. Leann held the post for eight years. During this time, Leann took two non-executive director positions on housing association boards, where she became Chair of the Audit Committee and Chair of the Board, a post she still holds. Leann is responsible for day to day operations at all ExtraCare locations, once they are established.

John Payne
Partnership Director

John spent 18 years in a social services environment as part of local government providing services to both children and adults.  During this time John was not only a Senior Manager but also became involved in strategy, influencing resource allocation and the political process at all levels. An example of this was undertaking a wholesale review of services to people with a disability which engaged over 800 users or carers. Since 1990, John has worked in the independent sector, initially with Retirement Security where he developed and managed a sales programme for very sheltered housing. Joining The ExtraCare Charitable Trust in 1990, John has worked with housing partners, local and national government to help deliver over twenty ExtraCare schemes and villages. This has involved developing a £100 million-plus sales programme, built around a socially affordable housing model. This programme has also involved securing in excess of £3m ongoing social care funding for residents' support packages.

Angela Harding
Human Resources Director

Angela graduated from Durham University in 1989 with a BA Honours Degree in history. She joined Midlands Electricity Board, as it was then, as a graduate trainee. She achieved the post graduate Institute of Personnel Management (grad IPM) qualification in 1992 and enjoyed Member status of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (MCIPD) from 1998. In 2008 she was awarded Fellow status. Angela held several human resources posts with Midlands Electricity, before moving to GEC/Alstom as Employee Relations Manager. She was promoted to Human Resources Director, being heavily involved in business transition and organisational development for a number of years. In 2005, Angela left the company then owned by Areva, to join ExtraCare as People Development Director. She is responsible for all aspects of human resources with a particular emphasis on employee development and growth.

Angela Bradford
Commissioning Director

Angela qualified in nursing and worked in the NHS before completing a degree in gerontology in 1996. After joining ExtraCare and managing services at a number of the Charity's housing schemes, Angela attended the 1997 World Conference on Gerontology in Helsinki and visited five villages in America.  The experience enabled Angela to commission ExtraCare's first award-winning village, Berryhill, which she managed after it opened in May 1998. As Director of ExtraCare's Commissioning Team, Angela has set up care, activity and housing services in all of the Charity's subsequent village developments.

COMPANY SECRETARY

Steve Whiffen

Having spent eight years in the insurance industry in London, Steve chose to train as a company secretary and became a member of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries & Administrators in 1992. Since then he has enjoyed company secretarial roles in industries as exciting and diverse as the music business, motor sport and brewing. He left his job as Company Secretary & Legal Adviser at Carlsberg UK in 2006, seeking a new role in the not for profit sector. After a short career break in which he, his wife and their four young children lived in Venezuela for three months, he joined ExtraCare in February 2007. Steve's main responsibilities are risk management, governance and legal matters.