Meet our new Chief Executive

Meet our new Chief Executive

  • 26 June 2024

Here, in this personal letter, Hayley Neal, our new Chief Executive introduces herself to Cambridgeshire ACRE members, partners and other stakeholders

Dear Friends and Supporters of Cambridgeshire ACRE

I am thrilled to join Cambridgeshire ACRE as Chief Executive, particularly during the occasion of its centenary year. This milestone not only represents a century of service and dedication to our community but also marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter. I am full of excitement and determination to lead the organisation into a new era of growth and impact.

I was delighted to be invited to attend the centenary celebration at St Mary’s Church and to meet some of you first-hand. The Cambridgeshire ACRE team did a brilliant job and the day was enjoyed by everyone who attended, including HRH The Duke of Gloucester. More information about the event can be found here.

My aim is to build upon the rich legacy of the past hundred years while eagerly embracing the opportunities that lie ahead and propel Cambridgeshire ACRE to even greater success.

I would like to extend my thanks to Kirsten Bennett, whose leadership, vision, and commitment have been instrumental in shaping the success and reputation of Cambridgeshire ACRE for the last 25 years. Under her stewardship, we have achieved significant milestones, expanded our reach, and deepened our impact across the county. The charity is in a brilliant position and Kirsten is leaving on a high. I am also incredibly grateful to Kirsten for the support she has given me during our two-week handover. Cambridgeshire ACRE’s trustees have also expressed their thanks to Kirsten for all her work during her time as Chief Executive (read here).

I understand that change can bring uncertainty, but I want to reassure you that our commitment to delivering exceptional services remains constant. The values that have guided Cambridgeshire ACRE for the past 100 years, community support, rural advocacy, and sustainable development, will continue to be at the heart of everything we do. Our dedicated team remains as passionate as ever about working with you to address the unique challenges and opportunities in our rural communities.

I am committed to understanding and improving our services. Your insights and experiences are invaluable in this process. I am therefore asking for your help. Please will you complete a short questionnaire to help me understand what we do well and where we can improve.

Complete the questionnaire

Completing the questionnaire is easy and should take less than five minutes. Your responses will remain confidential and will directly inform our future strategy. We are committed to transparency and accountability, and we believe that by listening to you, we can continue to grow and evolve.

I look forward to meeting many of you in the coming months and working together to make a positive impact on our communities.

With best regards

Hayley Neal
Chief Executive
Cambridgeshire ACRE

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Kari Payne

Village Agent

Kari joined Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2024, as part of our team of Village Agents, covering Community Hubs in South Cambridgeshire.

Kari’s background is in communications and capturing people’s stories. She has previously worked for local health and care champions Healthwatch, helping share the work of the organisation and encourage local people to have their say on NHS and social care.

She’s excited to continue working with communities, volunteers and different organisations in the district to give people information and support to help their health and wellbeing.

Sarah Severn CBE

Trustee

Sarah became a trustee of Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2023. In her professional life, Sarah worked at DEFRA, supporting Rt Hon Lord Benyon, the Minister for Rural Affairs. She led on rural policy and the government’s commitment to thriving rural communities.

She has a BA (Hons) from the University of East Anglia in Economic and Social History and Sociology; an MBA (Cranfield) and the APM-accredited Project Leadership Programme (Infrastructure and Projects Authority). Sarah was awarded her CBE in 2013 for services to public protection. 

Alison Brown

Head of Business Services

  • Direct Dial: 01353 865029
  • alison.brown@cambsacre.org.uk

Alison has been Head of Business Services at Cambridgeshire ACRE since 2007. Day-to-day Alison is involved in everything from developing new opportunities for Cambridgeshire ACRE, shaping the direction of existing projects, overseeing the delivery of advice and information to our members and working with our Board.

Prior to joining Cambridgeshire ACRE, Alison worked in the private sector holding roles in executive support and facilities management. Alison has BSc (Hons) in Sociology from University of Southampton. 

Rachael Brown

Senior Community Development Officer

  • Direct Dial: 01353 865037
  • rachael.brown@cambsacre.org.uk

Rachael became part of the Cambridgeshire ACRE team in 2006, initially running a gardening project and then moving to her current role as our Senior Community Development Officer where she leads a number of our environmental projects.

Rachael has a BSc in Horticulture from Bath University and, upon leaving there, put her skills to work in the private sector before becoming a primary school teacher for several years.

Lisa Chambers

Community Development Officer

  • Direct Dial: 01353 865048
  • lisa.chambers@cambsacre.org.uk

Lisa became part of the Cambridgeshire ACRE team in 2015 taking on the role of Community Development Officer. Part of her week is spent providing expert support and advice to the County’s community-run buildings with the remainder being spent working as a Village Agent in the South Cambridgeshire area.

Prior to joining Cambridgeshire ACRE, Lisa was the County Councillor and Cabinet Member for Education and Skills at Suffolk County Council. 

Linda Watson

Finance Officer

  • Direct Dial: 01353 865026
  • linda.watson@cambsacre.org.uk

Linda joined Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2005. Her role as Finance Officer sees her administer all the financial processes of Cambridgeshire ACRE, ensuring up-to-date and accurate financial information is available at all times.

Prior to joining the organisation, Linda spent over 20 years working within the charity and the commercial sector gaining wide-ranging financial administration experience.

Annie Blair

Co-Chairperson and Trustee

Annie became a trustee of Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2017. She has been a volunteer for community and parish organisations in the village of Folksworth and the surrounding area for over 30 years.

Professionally, she had a career in the financial and insurance sectors before changing vocation and training in the educational sector as an arts educator / practitioner working for both Anglian Ruskin University and Peterborough Regional College.

David Gibbs

Trustee

Dave became a trustee of Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2017. In his professional life, he was a community development worker specialising in finance and external funding. Since moving to the Fens, Dave has taken on a number of parish clerk roles, as well as being a trustee of Newton Village Hall.

Terry Jordan

Vice Chairperson and Trustee

Terry became a trustee of Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2011. Terry is currently the Clerk and Responsible Finance Officer for Wisbech Town Council in Fenland and has worked in local government in Cambridgeshire for more than 40 years. 

Terry is also a trustee of CP Learning Trust.

Julie Spence OBE CStJ QPM

President

Cambridgeshire ACRE’s current President is Julie Spence OBE QPM. In 2017, Julie was appointed by Her Late Majesty The Queen as the 37th Lord-Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire, the Sovereign’s representative in the County.

Professionally, Julie trained as a teacher before joining the Police in 1978 and being appointed Chief Constable of Cambridgeshire in 2005. In the Queen’s 80th Birthday Honours, Julie was awarded an OBE for her management of complex and contentious organisational issues and leadership contribution. In 2008 she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Laws by Anglia Ruskin University: then in the 2010 New Year’s Honours list she received the Queens Police Medal (QPM). In September 2010, after a 32 year career, she retired from policing.

Toby Frith

Digital Marketing Degree Apprentice

  • Direct Dial: 01353 865035
  • toby.frith@cambsacre.org.uk

Toby joined the team in 2021. As our Digital Marketing Degree Apprentice, his role is to implement our digital marketing strategy  generating interest in our work and helping to build the organisation’s social presence.

From January 2022, Toby will be undertaking a Digital Marketing Degree at Anglia Ruskin University alongside working for Cambridgeshire ACRE.

Jessica Sellick BA (Hons), MSc, PhD

Trustee

Jessica joined the Board of Cambridgeshire ACRE in February 2022. In her professional life,

Jessica works at Rose Regeneration where she undertakes projects on behalf of Government, Local Authorities, charities and community groups across the UK. She is also a senior research fellow at the National Centre for Rural Health and Care (NCRHC) where her work focuses on the impact of rurality and sparsity on the costs of delivering health care.

Jessica produces ‘rural words’, a regular policy briefing used by the Rural Services Network and RuSource (part of The Arthur Rank Centre). Before joining Rose Regeneration and the National Centre Jessica worked at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the New Economics Foundation.

She is a Chartered Geographer accredited by the Royal Geographical Society; a Fellow of the RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce); and a member of the Institute of Economic Development.

As well as supporting Cambridgeshire ACRE, in her spare time Jessica sits on her local patient participation group.

Ray Vidler

Treasurer and Trustee

Ray joined the Board of Cambridgeshire ACRE in February 2022 and is currently the charity’s Treasurer. He has been a member of Weston Colville Parish Council, which he currently chairs, since 2008. He is a fellow of the Institution of Chemical Engineers and holds an MBA.

He has enjoyed living in rural Cambridgeshire for over 35 years and is keen to be able to support an organisation that aims to sustain, support, and develop rural communities.

Prior to retirement, Ray was a general manager responsible for aspects of the operation of a large food company based at Histon, having previously been the site’s chief engineer. During his working life he gained lots of experience of managing large multi-million-pound projects and developed a good understanding of finance and human resource management.

Stephanie Baxter

Trustee

Stephanie joined the Board of Cambridgeshire ACRE in February 2022.

Stephanie is a strategic thinker, utilising housing policy to deliver social justice and poverty alleviation. She is passionate about community led housing and how this can enable local communities to be part of their own solutions. Stephanie has worked in rural local authorities for the past 16 years, with knowledge of planning and housing policy. She is a Trustee with her local foodbank and an active member of her local church.

David Olney

Co-Chairperson and Trustee

David completed an MBA at City University Business School, following an engineering first degree at Loughborough University. He has considerable defence acquisition experience culminating in his role as Chief Operating Officer at the Defence Infrastructure Organisation where he was responsible for delivering proposals on the management of the estate as part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review in 2010.

Subsequently, David had been Managing Director within the Babcock International Group responsible for 4 businesses ranging from media and education to infrastructure both in the UK and Brazil. David is a member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology as well as a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

David is a Non-Executive Director of WaND Consulting and a Trustee of Thedwastre Education Trust.

Susan Shirley

Village Agent

Susan joined Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2024, as part of the team of Cadent Village Agents, covering Community Hubs in Cambridgeshire.

Over the years, Susan has worked in various sectors of health and social care, housing, family support and the criminal justice system. She enjoys working with people of all ages and her main source of motivation comes from helping people overcome challenges they may face in their life.

Karen MacKelvie

Natural Heritage and Communities Officer

Karen studied Environmental Biology at St Andrews University and holds a diploma in Therapy at Warwick University. She lived and worked on Shetland soils for 25 years before moving to North London to work as a Nature Recovery Ranger. 

Her internationally-acclaimed ‘Nature Prescriptions’ project (RSPB Scotland) is an example of the innovative way she enjoys working. Karen looks forward to inviting people back into deeper connection with the wonderful wildlife of the Fens. 

Lucille Bingham

Village Agent

Lucille joined Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2024, as part of the team of Village Agents, covering the Fenland area. 

Prior to joining Cambridgeshire ACRE, Lucille managed her local village Post Office for over 17 years, a role she was passionate about. She has also been heavily involved with a village hall committee, organising many social events, as well as continued fundraising for charities. 

Rachel Mason

Community Wellbeing Manager

Rachel joined the Cambridgeshire ACRE team in 2024 and leads the development of our community wellbeing work. She manages the organisation’s team of Village Agents who support individuals with their health wellbeing needs.

Rachel has an extensive background in the charity sector, with over 20 years’ experience of developing advocacy and involvement services in Cambridgeshire and of managing people. More recently, she was national Practice Lead responsible for the continuous improvement and quality of advocacy practice for nearly 400 advocates. Rachel is a BA (Hons) Psychology graduate from University of Bedfordshire.

Tate Oulton

Natural Heritage and Communities Officer

A laboratory research scientist by training, Tate worked for over seven years in the field of infectious disease and immunology before setting his sights on a career in conservation. Eight months spent as a full-time volunteer officer with the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire provided an immersive and highly varied introduction to life as an ecological conservationist, where he developed skills in conducting biological surveys, research and monitoring of habitats, land management, and practical conservation methods among others.

Tate has a particular interest in regenerative agriculture, and the role farms have to play in response to the climate crisis and environmental degradation. He is highly involved with a local farm cluster aiming to promote and encourage more sustainable and wildlife friendly practices on agricultural land.

Angela Stibbs

Village Agent

Angela joined Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2024. Prior to joining the team, Angela worked as an Estate Agent for over 35 years. 

After leaving her role in property, she then worked as a gardener for five years, enjoying the slower, but still rewarding, pace of work.

Gary Roffey

Rural Housing Enabler

Gary joined the Cambridgeshire ACRE team in March 2024. His role is focused on developing affordable housing on rural exception sites.

Gary has previously worked for a number of Local Authorities and Housing Associations managing social housing. He also worked for the Audit Commission’s Housing Inspectorate and the Housing Ombudsman Service.  

He has a BSC(Hons) in Social Science from the University of Bradford and a postgraduate Diploma in Housing from the London School of Economics.

 

 

Hayley Neal

Chief Executive

  • Direct Dial: 01353 865034
  • hayley.neal@cambsacre.org.uk

Hayley was appointed as Cambridgeshire ACRE’s Chief Executive from 2024. She oversees the work of the charity and puts in place our plans and strategies for the future. Day-to-day, Hayley develops our relationships with new partners, explores new opportunities and oversees all aspects of the charity’s work.

Before working at Cambridgeshire ACRE, Hayley worked for the Countryside Regeneration Trust and worked as a freelance fundraiser.

Magda Bryans

Macmillan Village Agent

  • Direct Dial: 01353 865033
  • magda.bryans@cambsacre.org.uk

Magda joined Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2024 as part of the Macmillan Village Agents, offering wellbeing support to anyone affected by cancer in the Fenland area. 

Magda is a trauma therapist with an MSc in Psychology, believing that creativity, movement, curiosity and good friends are foundations of a healthy life. She has experience working with numerous local charities, enjoying the co-creation of community projects. 

Kathy Davey

Macmillan Village Agent

  • Direct Dial: 01353 865032
  • kathy.davey@cambsacre.org.uk

Kathy joined Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2024 as part of the Macmillan Village Agents, offering wellbeing support to anyone affected by cancer in the Fenland area.

Prior to joining the charity, Kathy worked for the NHS as a Falls prevention Assistant Practitioner. She has also worked for many years within the charity sector. 

Kathy enjoys engaging with communities, supporting people as best as she can.  

Richard Harlow

Trustee

Richard lives in Ely and works for the Church of England Diocese of Ely, where he supports over 160 parishes church communities in Cambridgeshire, Peterborough and parts of Norfolk. The majority of these churches are based in rural communities, and work alongside schools and other community groups. He also serves as trustee to various charities that serve education, or more vulnerable members of our communities.

Prior to moving to Ely, Richard was a vicar in Hampshire, where he pioneered a community hub linking NHS services, schools, local council and the voluntary sector. Richard joined Cambridgeshire ACRE’s board of trustees in 2024. He is passionate about faith groups integrating with the wider voluntary sector to serve the common good.

John Mitchell

Trustee

John is retired and lives with his wife in the small village of Ramsey Mereside where he is chair of the village hall committee. John also volunteers as one of Cambridgeshire ACRE’s Hallmark Visitors, supporting the assessment of village halls across the county who wish to achieve the Hallmark quality standard.

Prior to retiring, John taught computing in Whittlesey, Peterborough and London and was a governor of a local primary school.

Lisa Hill

Village Agent

Lisa joined Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2024 and operates as a Village Agent as part of our Community Hubs project. 

Lisa has worked in the charity sector for The National Childbirth Trust, supporting new and expectant parents. She has always been heavily involved in the charity and voluntary sector.

Prior to working in the charity sector, she was self-employed, but also completed voluntary work as she is very passionate and enjoys supporting individuals to the best of her ability.

Sophie Payne

Village Agent

Sophie joined Cambridgeshire ACRE in 2024, as part of the team of Cadent Village Agents, covering the South Cambridgeshire area.

She is also an administration assistant for a village centre, working closely with the community for the last 5 years. Sophie has organised many social and charity fundraising events.

Jenna Brame

Senior Rural Housing Enabler

  • Direct Dial: 01353 865022
  • jenna.brame@cambsacre.org.uk

Jenna joined the Cambridgeshire ACRE team in 2020. Her role involves leading our rural housing partnership, developing affordable schemes on rural exception sites.

Jenna has a BSc in Geography from University of East Anglia and prior to join the organisation worked as a Graduate Housing Strategy and Enabling Officer at West Suffolk Council. Since joining Cambridgeshire ACRE she has become an accredited Community Led Housing Advisor.