Who we are

The Board

Rodney Buse
Chairman of Trustees
photo of Rodney BuseThe focus of Rodney's work has been on enhancing the effectiveness of both individual charities and the sector as a whole. He chaired the 'Commission' into the future of self-regulation of charity fundraising and also voluntary sector's Quality Standards Task Group. He is Chair the Venturesome Investment committee and Foyer Accreditation panel. He has held the position of chair of the charities I Can, ActionAid and Childhope and Vice Chair of the National Council for Voluntary Organisations and a trustee of the Charities Aid Foundation and Charities Evaluation Services.

Richard Corden
Trustee
Richard CordenRichard Corden is Chief Executive of the Commission for the Compact on relations between the Government and the voluntary and community sector. Before that he worked in the Treasury, on the Government's review (2006/7) of the role of the third sector in social and economic regeneration. Richard's earlier career included appointments in the Office of the Third Sector, managing the Charities Act 2006 through Parliament; the Home Office, preparing the Charities Bill; the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit, producing a review of the law and regulation of charities and not-for-profit organisations and the Charity Commission, in various policy and operational management posts.

Simon Hebditch
Trustee
Photo of Simon HebditchSimon Hebditch is an independent consultant working with third sector organisations, voluntary organisations, community groups and social enterprises. Simon was Chief Executive of Capacitybuilders, a public agency which dispenses grants to voluntary organisations to help increase their efficiency and effectiveness, from February 2006 to March 2008.
 
Previously, Simon was External Affairs Director at Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) and Assistant Director of NCVO. He is also a member of the Board of Social Firms UK, a social enterprise network working with people with disabilities as well as disadvantaged people to help them get into the labour market. 

Harinder Mann
Trustee
photo of Harinder MannHarinder is a Lecturer and Course director at the LSE, having previously worked for the Prime Minister's Interfaith Envoy as his advisor. Harinder is also on the board of Citzenship Foundation, a charity that focuses on providing political educational resources to schools; the founder and chair of the Sikh Healthcare Chaplaincy Group, a charity that supports the training, recruitment and development of hospital chaplaincy; a Governor and Trustee of the St Olave's School Foundation and a member of the appeals committee of chance to shine, an initiative putting cricket back into state schools.

Mike Nussbaum
Trustee
Photo of Mike NussbaumMike Nussbaum is Chair of Volunteering England and has been in the thick of social change and community development for nearly 50 years.  His first career as a research chemist was cut short by failing eyesight, but Mike soon forged a second career in local government and public policy development.  Since retirement Mike has taken on various roles in the national voluntary sector but particularly in promoting and developing the role of volunteering. In 2003, he steered the merger of 3 national voluntary organisations to form a single national focus for volunteering and helped to establish national quality standards for volunteer centres and for volunteer management. He was also instrumental in persuading the UK government of the need for ‘The Office of the Third Sector’ as a key function of the Cabinet Office.

Mike is involved with various charitable organisations both locally and nationally and is a member of the Centre Européen du Volontariat. In 2005 he received a Year of the Volunteer Award for services to volunteering. Mike is Chair of Milton Keynes Volunteer Centre, a Board member of Bucks Vision, formerly Bucks Association for Blind and Partially Sighted People and a Trustee of Charity Trustee Networks.
Mike was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by The Open University in 2008 in recognition of over 40 years of public service

Uday Thakkar
Trustee
Uday ThakkarUday now manages Red Ochre which he set up in 2002. The consultancy specialises in the social sector economy, providing strategic and management services to charities, social enterprises, local authorities, faith bodies and community groups. Previously in 1999 Uday and a friend launched Smartchange, a charity which connected 2,500 small charities to the employees of some of the UK's largest employers - Royal Bank of Scotland, Diageo, AON insurance, Credit Suisse First Boston, Cable & Wireless, etc. In 1990 Uday launched his own consultancy. Supporting SME's in the UK and Europe the firm assisted with start-ups, business and management advice, capital raising and generally trying to keep business owners assets safe from banks. Uday has also been involved in the start-up of a number of enterprises as an investor/manager in the service and technology sector. Uday now writes and speaks extensively around the UK on and about social enterprise and governance issues. Despite trying to hide his accountancy background he is constantly called upon to contribute to the debate of charity finance, full cost recovery, decreasing grant dependency and becoming more entrepreneurial.

Tim Toghill
Trustee
Tim toghillTim began his career as Editor of an architectural journal. He then worked in the accountancy and legal professions providing PR & Marketing services and adding to his skills public speaking, management training and personal development. He was at Trustee on the management committee of the local village hall at the age of 18; representing the local drama group that used the stage. Since then he has been a volunteer/trustee with pressure groups, conservation organisations, arts festivals and hospitals. Tim believes that we should never forget that Trustees are volunteers too and that they need the same level of support and development.

Zöe Willems
Trustee
photo of Zoe WillemsSince graduating Zöe has worked for conflict resolution and development charities, and spent nine years at the Charity Commission, in various roles from charity advisor, business planner, to senior policy advisor. She developed and managed the original Large Charities team, and advised and lobbied on charity legislation. She has been an observer member of the Institute of Fundraising Standards Committee, and was on the steering group developing the model for the new self-regulation of fundraising body. Her main voluntary activity during this period was as chair of the departmental trade union. Zöe is now a freelance consultant, with a particular interest in the voluntary sector and links between governance and fundraising. Zöe is also a lay member of the Fundraising Standards Board, and a member of the fundraising committee for her grade 1 listed city Church.

The Staff

Karen Heenan
Chief Executive
Karen HeenanKaren's background is in law - she practised as a solicitor at Bristows in central London. In 1994, she made the move to the voluntary sector where she has held operational and developmental posts at two youth development charities. In 2000, she was awarded a Winston Churchill Memorial Travelling Fellowship and she spent two months in Australia and New Zealand studying leadership development in young people. She is currently a lay member of the General Medical Council's Fitness to Practise Panel and a lay member of Surrey County Council and Waverley Borough Council Standards Committees. She has recently completed a six-year term serving as a Member of Surrey Probation Board and is continuing as an independent member of their Audit Committee. Karen is a trustee of Getting on Board.

Sara McIlroy
Membership & Events
Coordinator
Photo of Sara McIlroySara joined CTN in April 2009 as our part-time Membership & Events Coordinator. Her normal working hours are 9.30am to 5.30pm Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays.

She previously worked in marketing for the Treloar Trust, which supports a specialist college and special school for young people with physical disabilities, in Alton.

Sue Howson
Admin Officer
photo of Sue HowsonWith over twenty five years of administrative experience Sue joined CTN in the summer of 2005 and now works part-time.  She normally works all day on Mondays and Thursdays and the mornings of Tuesdays and Fridays.

She has been involved as a volunteer with her local branch of the Multiple Sclerosis Society for fourteen years and Age Concern Surrey for the past six.