I am a founding Director and partner in Forget Me Knot Wellbeing CIC, a social enterprise specialising in health and wellbeing interventions, with a particular specialism in working with people and families living with dementia. Since September, 2014, I have also been a Director/Trustee of Foundation, a charity working with socially excluded people, and am taking a particular role in developing its social enterprise activities. In addition, I have been a Consultant since 2012, following a 32 year career in local government and, with Sue Lancaster, established ComRes Consultancy, specialising in community health and well being. Starting in sport and leisure, my career developed to encompass events management, policy, performance and ‘Best Value’, community development and partnerships, adult learning and European and external funding programmes. From 2004, I worked for Sunderland City Council as an Area Regeneration Officer and, latterly, as Principal Policy Officer responsible for the ‘Community Resilience Action Plan’. I have extensive experience of policy development, business planning, partnership working, community development and project management, as well as managing to source large amounts of external funding!