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The national charity and leading voice for disabled people in sport and activity

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Team

Our two office hubs are in Loughborough and Manchester. Many of us work remotely across England. Our Board is made up of highly experienced volunteers with a variety of skills to support our charity's strategy, policies and vision.

Please see below the details for staff, Board and Advocates. You can also use the contact us form for general information.

Find a team member

Found 32 team members.

  • Courtney Perks

    Communications Manager

    Sport is ingrained in Courtney's DNA. She joined the team in November 2014, following communication roles at two National Governing Bodies of sport. She brings a passion for marketing strategy to the table and is always on the look out for new opportunities to promote the charity's work. Never one to sit still, she regularly cycles to work and laces up her running trainers. One of her proudest moments is completing the Liverpool Half Marathon in 2018. Away from sport, she loves listening to music in the kitchen while cooking or baking. Later with Jools Holland is a TV favourite.

    Phone
    07896 998171

  • Dawn Hughes

    Strategic Partnership Advisor (East Midlands)

    Dawn is our relationship lead for work across the East Midlands and also heads up our national work with the leisure sector. This includes raising the profile of our renowned Inclusive Fitness Initiative. She is on hand to support leisure providers and operators to embed inclusive practice into their facilities. Dawn likes to run, and is known to sign up to a physical challenge or two!

    Phone
    07788 423277

  • Emma Chadwick

    Project Officer

    Emma is one of our programmes team Project Officers. She joined the organisation in April 2023 after spending 10 years working in the Middle East. Emma wants to see an inclusive approach to sport and activity for everyone. When not working, you’ll often find Emma hiking in the Peak District with her rescue dog, enjoying a good book or watching sports on the TV.

    Phone
    07792 459803

  • Harry Pate

    Project Officer

    Harry is one of our Project Officers who works across a variety of Activity Alliance programmes. He spent six years at Burnley Football Club in the Community, working as part of their Disability Sport team. Harry’s passion is in sport and ensuring disabled people are given a fair opportunity at anything in life. Away from work he will watch any professional sports if they are on TV. He also enjoys running, cycling and following Burnley FC.

  • Helen Derby

    Get Out Get Active Programme Manager

    Helen works within the programmes team, supporting the development and delivery of Get Out Get Active (GOGA). Away from her desk, she can be found on the indoor netball court. Helen loves a game of walking netball with other women at a GOGA activity in Nottingham.

    Phone
    07764 291662

  • Helen Newberry

    Get Out Get Active Workforce Lead

    Helen is part of our programme's team, working on Get Out Get Active, having been the Engagement Advisor for the South West. Working with a wide range of partners, she is at the heart of developing and implementing workforce plans for the programme. A keen athlete, Helen can be found taking part in many running events. She is also a fabulous baker!

    Phone
    07967 573345

  • Jannine Walker

    National Events Manager

    Jannine manages our events programme and is at the heart of delivering inclusive sporting opportunities for disabled people at all levels. She has been in events management for two decades. At one with her clipboard and timelines, she supports our in-house events, functions and conferences to run smoothly and accessibly. When not running herself, Jannine can be found near a cricket or football pitch, supporting her two sons' active schedules.

    Phone
    07725 273158

  • Jayant Mistry

    Impact and Learning Advisor

    Jayant supports our engagement and programmes teams to embed better practices in their work. This could be through improvement plans or effective monitoring. Among his many sporting achievements, Jayant is a four-time Paralympic wheelchair tennis player and twice inaugural grand slam doubles champion. He was the Wheelchair Tennis Sport Manager at the London 2012 Games and part of the wheelchair tennis coaching team at the Rio 2016 Paralympics. Jayant believes we can create a more open and inclusive society by increasing people’s confidence and competence. He was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Loughborough University and is an avid Leicester City fan.

    Phone
    01509 227752

  • Jess Cook

    Strategic Partnership Advisor (East)

    Jess is our relationship lead for work across the East region and also heads up our work with national partners, including the National Governing Bodies of sport. She looks after these relationships and builds on our collaborative projects. Jess enjoys bringing people together to create more conversations about disabled people’s inclusion. Her work involves finding new ways to bring out the best in organisations so they can be more inclusive. An active swimmer and baker, Jess can be found in the pool or cooking up treats for our team.

    Phone
    07764 291660

  • Jessica Flavell

    Senior Research and Insight Advisor

    Jess provides research support, managing projects and evaluating the impact of our programmes. This helps us and our partners to understand more fully disabled people’s experiences and supports providers to be more inclusive. Jess is particularly interested in challenging inequalities in all forms, and breaking down barriers through inclusive research and coproduction. A keen cyclist, Jess loves to venture to the countryside or coast in her free time.

    Phone
    07817 787542

  • Kat Southwell

    Head of Programmes

    Kat oversees all Activity Alliance programmes and has specific responsibility for the management of our Get Out Get Active programme. She’s worked for the charity since 2009 and continues to enjoy the challenges and opportunities that each day brings. She loves being a programme manager because she gets to see an idea through to its implementation and understand its impact. Kat is also a secret spreadsheet fanatic! Her personal goal is to impact the way that people and organisations think. So everyone has an inclusive approach at the very heart of what they do. Outside of work Kat plays rugby for Bath and has started to enjoy trail running. She also likes to bake and eat tasty treats!

    Phone
    07967 573343

  • Lorraine Harris

    Strategic Partnership Advisor (South West)

    Lorraine joined our partnerships team in 2021 as South West Strategic Partnership Advisor. Lorraine’s background includes supporting communities across Devon to lead more active lifestyles, and supporting organisations to provide more accessible and inclusive opportunities for Deaf and disabled people. With more than nine years’ experience, Lorraine is passionate about everyone having the choice to live the life they choose.
    For fun, Lorraine plays rugby and is part of Crediton RFC’s first female ladies’ team. Her highlight so far is being awarded the most improved player after her first season. Her biggest achievement was climbing Kilimanjaro and being the second group to the summit. She is now busy planning her next trip to the mountains!

    Phone
    07436 245815