Our Trustees serve voluntarily and pro bono; they have particular responsibility for strategy, quality, compliance, governance and oversight of management. They make sure we comply with legislation and all relevant regulations, and are responsible for safeguarding our assets. Finally, they are our advocates and ambassadors.
Meet our Trustees
Stuart Evans – Chair
Stuart became our Chair in 2017, having previously chaired the Arthur Rank Hospice in Cambridge. In 2015, the hospice won a significant grant from the NHS for service delivery; in late 2016, it opened a new charitably-funded £12m hospice. He was also a board member at the East of England Development Agency, which supported economic development in Cambridgeshire, Peterborough, Norfolk and elsewhere. Stuart was educated at Cambridge University and Harvard Business School. He spent his early career at IBM and McKinsey, and then became an entrepreneur and CEO at several start-ups in Cambridge and London. He and his wife Brenda adopted three children as babies, and have deep experience of caring for family members.
“What carers do has never been more important for those they care for, and for the burden they remove from our hard-pressed health and social services. Inexorable demographic trends mean this will continue. Yet being a carer can be challenging and stressful. So it’s a privilege to chair a charity which supports these wonderful people”
Stuart can be contacted at [email protected]
Alison Griffiths – Honorary Treasurer
Alison brings vast financial and professional expertise spanning 30 years to the board, which she joined in 2016. Alison, a Chartered Accountant and member of the Institute of Taxation, was a Director of Taxation in international FTSE 100 groups Inchcape plc and EMAP plc, working on worldwide tax affairs and board governance. She is also a Trustee of Cambridgeshire Community Foundation.
“I have so far enjoyed using my financial and project management background to help Caring Together and look forward to providing further support in this area in the future.”
Mark Blake
Mark brings significant charity and commercial experience to the charity, having held a number of senior finance leadership roles in the charity sector over the last 20 years, including over eight years in a disability support organisation, bringing knowledge of the social care and social housing markets to his role as a Trustee for Caring Together Charity. Mark’s director-level experience spanning finance, HR, IT, legal and governance, as well as various change management roles, coupled with an appetite for continuous learning and development, will bring sector knowledge and experience to the Board.
Mark is keen to contribute to the support to unpaid carers that Caring Together Charity provides, recognising the increasing demand in a challenging health and social care environment.
Kate Hepton
Kate brings a wealth of experience having served as a Senior Nurse Leader in the NHS for 24 years. Her experience in various clinical, operational and transformation leadership roles demonstrates her passion for high quality safe care for people in need and supports the development of those that provide it.
“I became a Trustee for Caring Together due to my desire to be involved in supporting carers outside of my NHS role and was inspired by Caring Togethers values and vision”.
David Hipple
David brings considerable financial and general management skills to the charity having spent over 35 years as a Chartered Accountant, Finance Director for a number of large and medium-sized groups in both the public and private sector specialising in utilities and infrastructure. These include Anglian Water, Guernsey Electricity, the Department for Transport and EEDA. He brings strong financial and strategic skills to the board.
“I became a Trustee as I wanted to help Caring Together respond to the challenges that the increasing demands for care create. This is a major issue for the UK in the 21st century.”
Christy O’Connell
Christy is passionate about her role as a trustee of Caring Together Charity. The work Caring Together does is very close to the hearts of her and her family. Christy is a partner at Ashurst LLP, an international law firm, and in her spare time she likes to spend time in the outdoors with her husband and their dogs.
Anita Pisani
Anita has over 30 years’ experience of working in the NHS and has been a Board member on a variety of different NHS Boards since 2004. She is currently Deputy Chief Executive and Workforce Director at Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust, where she has been undertaking this role since 2012.
She has significant experience of working across different health and care systems and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. She is looking forward to working with us at Caring Together as she is passionate about providing support to carers across our local communities and has some first-hand experience of seeing the important role that carers play, through her work in the health service. She also has some personal experience of being a carer and has been a Trustee previously with another local charity.
Bertone Santos-Soccoro
Bertone is the Head of Acute and Specialised Commissioning for the Norfolk and Waveney Integrated Care Board (ICB). He is the commissioner for the three Acute Trusts in Norfolk and Waveney, where he ensures holistic, robust, and timely access to high-quality services for the local population.
Bertone became a Trustee in July 2023 and has worked as a Senior Leader in the NHS for over nine years, spanning multiple specialties. He began his clinical journey as a Biomedical Scientist at Oxford University Hospital, where he became registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). His passion for community services led him to a role as Senior Programme Manager for Mental Health, Learning Disability, and Autism within the Norfolk and Waveney ICB.
In his current leadership role, Bertone is committed to delivering holistic, high-quality care and improving timely access to services for the Norfolk and Waveney population. He is dedicated to supporting improvements in elective care, reducing health inequalities, and creating positive change for service users.
Bertone believes in collaborative and innovative approaches to addressing the challenges faced by carers and those they support. “My commitment to lifelong learning and staying abreast of emerging best practices allows me to drive impactful, evidence-based programs.”
Steve Scott
Steve brings 30 years of commercial and financial experience gained in the UK, USA and further afield. Originally from Aberdeen, Steve moved to the region in 2000 with his family and has been made to feel very welcome. A fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Steve has enjoyed a successful career working with the likes of Anglian Water and Travelex. A recent addition to the Board, Steve is looking forward to supporting his fellow Trustees and to giving back to the wider community.
Donna Talbot
Donna has been Chief Executive of Emmaus Cambridge since September 2023, having previously spent more than a decade at Arthur Rank Hospice Charity. With extensive leadership and management experience, she is passionate about people and committed to making a positive difference to individuals and their communities. Donna, as chair of the fundraising committee, champions the importance of fundraising. Celebrating it as a powerful mechanism for those to show appreciation of the work of Caring Together whilst recognising its increasing role in creating financial sustainability. Donna remains driven in helping to raise awareness to ensure support for the incredible and tireless work of unpaid carers.
Committees
The Board has established three committees to oversee critical elements of our operations:
- The Finance and Audit Committee (FAC) which is chaired by Alison Griffiths; its other members are Mark Blake, Steve Scott, Stuart Evans, and Donna Talbot. It is supported by our Director of Finance. View the Terms of Reference.
- The Quality Service and Delivery (QSD) Committee which is chaired by Anita Pisani; its other members are Kate Hepton, David Hipple and Bertone Santos-Soccoro. It is supported by our Director of Operations. View the Terms of Reference.
- The Fundraising Committee which is chaired by Donna Talbot; its other members are Stuart Evans and Christy O’Connell. It is supported by our Head of Fundraising and Communications. View the Terms of Reference.
The Terms of Reference of these committees are initially approved by the full Board and are subsequently kept under regular review. Their meetings are reported back to the full Board, and our Chief Executive, Miriam Martin, routinely attends meetings of both committees.
The Trustees comprise the Board of Directors of Caring Together Charity (Company No. 4379948, Registered Charity No. 1091522), trading as Caring Together.
