About me

I am a fundraising professional, leader and manager with over 25 years experience in the sector. Currently I am Revenue Fundraising Director for Maggie’s Cancer Care Centres and was previously Development Director at the NSPCC responsible for Legacies. I am also the Chairman of Remember a Charity, a consortium of over 140 UK charities promoting legacies and aiming to make giving in wills a new social norm.

In my fundraising career I have worked across most forms of fundraising but mainly in community, major giving and legacies. I started working in fundraising with Scope (formerly the Spastics Society) as a local Community Fundraiser, then regional, then national manager. I then went to Unicef UK as the Head of Regional Fundraising where I restructured the regional operation and created a new team and strategy. After 3 years I became the Director of Community Appeals at the NSPCC, joining just before the Full Stop Appeal was launched - and specifically leading the regions appeal that raised £55 million and creating a new strategy for local fundraising. I have been part of the senior leadership team throughout, and whilst focusing on Legacies, took an insight driven strategy with donors which resulted in a new approach to gifts in wills that is focused on making it the norm through conversations.

I speak, write, share, mentor, train and contribute – and I keep learning. I am most interested in people, teams, strategy, leadership and am a donor led fundraiser that uses techniques – not the other way round. This is my personal blog. Whilst I may draw on my experience, the opinions and viewpoints are mine and do not represent the organisation I work for and care about.  So what’s this blog about?

Giving. Leadership. Ideas. Insight. Inspiration

These themes sum up what I believe in and champion.

• I am passionate about giving - time, money and influence. It is the lifeblood of society and community and people who care and make a difference.
• I believe in leadership. Personal leadership. Finding, sharing, motivating, and empowering people to be brilliant – to take control and make an impact.
• I believe in ideas, innovation and creativity based on respect for the past and what it has taught us, but with fresh open minded thinking and the courage to try things out.
• I believe in insight.  About donors, about products, about brands, about the way we work. But most of all, insight into the way people, volunteers, donors, fundraisers and leaders understand themselves, improve and develop to be better – and make a bigger difference.
• And finally, I believe in inspiration. Life is too short to live without inspiration. It’s a light I like to seek out and hope to share.

How to use this blog

I intend to write about what I care about.  Some ideas, some thoughts, some personal observations and insights, some challenges, some stuff to use  some tools, techniques, and knowledge. And above all, some inspiration and stories that reflect the human journey. Please feel free to follow me on the usual social media platforms or give me comments and feedback via the blog.  Send this to your friends and colleagues, and spread these few words in the hope that they might inspire you to be a little bit better….