Eric Cato

FGHA

Tzeggai Deres

Director of Evelyn Oldfield Unit

Over the last 18 years in London, he has served in a number of organisations as a trustee including the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust, Consortium of Opportunities for Volunteering, Multi – faiths Refugee Network, and Barbara Melunsky Fund.  In April 2005, he was appointed to be a member of Central Governing Body of the City Parochial Foundation, a leading funder in tackling poverty in London.

In 2006, He was elected to be a Deputy Chair of Trust For London, a funding body for small groups , also has/had been  involved in an advisory capacity in several organisations: Government of London, National  Refugee Integration Forum ( Home Office) ,  and Common purpose. On the 15 October 2007, he was selected by Ken Livingston, Mayor of London, to be one of the fifteen London Leaders to promote the sustainability of London.

Florence Davies - BNRRN Chair

Project Development Manager of LVSC

Florence Davies works as a Policy Adviser on the Third Sector Team at the Government Office for London. The Team’s role is to build relationships between Government and the third sector in London by working with both to make sure the London context is understood. Florence has been in the Civil Service for 15 years and has worked across a range of policy areas to include the New Deal Programmes and GCE A/AS level policy. Florence is currently seconded to the London Voluntary Service Council to lead on an income generation project and will be returning to GOL in the New Year. Florence has a real interest in seeing the third sector continue to develop and strengthen its voice on issues which affect the most vulnerable and disaffected in our society. Her reasons for joining BNRRN’s board are twofold. Florence would like to contribute to BNRRN’s work by bringing her experience of working on Government policies around the third sector.

Dr. Effiong Akpan

CEO London Business Development Agency

He has contributed enormously to the development of economic and business development policies and strategies in London and more specifically Haringey. He was responsible for developing the Ethnic Minority business Support Charter which ensured that a London Council economic development and business support policies and strategies were inclusive and recognised diversity. He worked with Middlesex University to develop the Haringey Community Economic Development Handbook. He has developed and piloted a number of economic development schemes aimed at Black and Ethnic minority communities. Dr Akpan was a member of the LDA Think Tank which looked into economic development opportunities for refugees and asylum seekers.

He was instrumental in developing the Upper Lee Valley Procurement Initiatives, later renamed “Trade Local”. He presided over the development and delivery   of the pan London Development/Greater.

London Authority flagship Procurement Development Programme which aims at supporting businesses to access lucrative public sectorcontracts.

Judith D’Aguilar

Business Consultant at Brent Business Venture

An experienced and versatile Manager, Business Advisor and Mentor with a broad commercial background, exceptional organisation, project management and IT skills.  Highly competent, focused, self-motivated and quality driven whose dedication and perseverance promotes a successful and positive approach to work. 

She is currently a self employed adviser providing consultancy, training and start-up advice to businesses; mentor new and young businesses, advising them in all areas of business: turnaround strategies, marketing, business planning, growth strategies, budgeting, accounting, operations, etc. to the Enfield Enterprise Agency and the Haringey Business Development Agency. At he same time she is working for the Brent Business Venture Ltd (BBV) as a Business Consultant providing advice, information, counselling, consultancy and training to the small business sector in North West London.

Benjamin Smart

Sr. Client Service Manager at Business Link London

Benjamin Smart – A Senior Client Services Manager with Business Link London. He was responsible for the first advisory project within Business Link that was dedicated to Social Enterprises. Benjamin serves on a few Boards as trustee and is familiar with the funding needs of Social Enterprises. He has been described as follows:

• Mature leader with boardroom presence and the vision to determine and assist businesses deliver growth.
  
  

• Ability to operate at a senior level in an environment of complete confidentiality, providing counselling and advice on a range of business/management related issues.
  
  

• A motivator and effective communicator capable of welding a team together to achieve challenging objectives.
  
  

• Ability to work on own initiative with the competency to translate the strategic direction of an organisation when appropriate.
  
  

• Developing, assessing initiatives for Urban/Inner city areas.
  
  

• Computer literate with wide ranging communications and negotiation skills

Helen MacFoy - BNRRN Treasurer

Finance Manager for Computer Aid International

Helen Macfoy has over 20 years experience of working in the voluntary sector both in paid and unpaid positions. Her background is finance and administration and she has worked in these positions for several years in the voluntary sector. She is an Associate of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators and has also in the past completed a course in Charity Management. She presently works as the Finance Manager for Computer Aid International, an organisation that is the world’s largest non-profit supplier of computers to developing countries. Her previous job was as the Finance and Administration Manager of Centre 404 (formerly Islington Mencap) that provides services for people with learning difficulties and their families. She has also worked for Race on the Agenda, which is a Social Policy Think Tank, devoted to issues that affect London’s Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Communities. She has acted as trustees in organisations like Black Cancer Care, Nketewa Day Nursery, and has acquired the necessary skills required of a good trustee.

Kankay Barlay

Coordinator Genuine Empowerment of Mothers

Faith Ndirangu

Policy Officer from Umoja Pamoja

Iman Achara - BNRRN Vice Chair

Director of British Black Anti Poverty Network

Patience Ologe

Trustee at Mobility Help for Disabled Africans

Patience is a co-founder trustee of Mobility Help for Disabled Africans. She is a qualified nurse and champion of disability issues. Together with her husband who is registered disabled, they founded Mobility Help for Disabled Africans which works to provide support and equipment for disabled Africans living in London. Patience uses both her clinical and social care knowledge to promote integration for people with a disability at all levels, promote access issues and importantly campaigns for inclusion of all Londoners with a disability. As a member of BNRRN Patience applied to be a trustee as she feels she has the skills necessary to further support BNRRN in promoting the needs of BAME people with a disability at a regional level.