Hertfordshire Mind Network employs around 130 members of staff and 100+ volunteers throughout the county. Leading this group is a qualified and experienced team who are responsible for looking after the day-to-day operation of the organisation. These are:
Jo originally trained as a BACP Registered Psychodynamic Psychotherapist before moving into the voluntary sector in the arena of Palliative and End of Life Care, as a Health and Social Care Director. She graduated in Applied Community Studies, and retains an avid interest in EDI and group dynamics. Jo transformed services in local hospice provision, including design, development and delivery of Counselling, Wellbeing and Outpatient care and is embarking on an M.Sc. in Mental Health Sciences.
Jo is experienced in high quality and innovative growth & sustainability, through building and maintaining successful relationships with commissioners, partner organisations and local providers to identify and create service delivery solutions that work for and are based on the needs of individuals and local communities. The wellbeing of staff, volunteers and clients is at the heart of Jo’s leadership.
In her spare time she enjoys making dream-catchers, walking her two dogs and being with family and friends.
With twenty-five years’ experience in management Hilary is dedicated to the areas of IT, Facilities and Health and Safety.
For the last eight years Hils has led a Facilities team at a local charity working across ten sites. Hilary’s professional interests are negotiation and procurement, quality governance and solution focused strategies to support the charity to run efficiently, effectively and safely.
Hils is passionate about good mental health and ensuring Hertfordshire Mind Network can deliver the best services for clients.
In her spare time she enjoys visiting her friends in Ireland and is an avid Watford FC fan, never missing a match.
Danielle joined Hertfordshire Mind Network in 2017. Originally joining as part of the Community Support Service she has a passion for ensuring the needs of harder-to-reach communities are met.
With a BSc. in Psychology, Childhood and Society, she has spent most of her career in the third sector, volunteering with North London Samaritans for 10 years, being a Co-Director for 3 years, as well as spending time working for Rethink Mental Illness.
Danielle’s experience lies in partnership working, creating holistic person led services that take into consideration the barriers faced by people facing multiple disadvantages and complex needs. Danielle’s professional interests are adverse childhood experiences, domestic abuse, drug and alcohol misuse and complex housing needs.
In her spare time Danielle is a keen Spurs fan and enjoys spending time with her three children, often at the side of a football pitch or tennis court.
Carys joined Hertfordshire Mind Network in 2014 from the National Health Service (NHS) after gaining a BSc. (Hons)/DPS in Psychology from Loughborough University. Here, she spent a year in a Clinical Psychology team supporting with delivery of clinical interventions.
Carys brings knowledge and understanding of front line service delivery, where she started with us as a support worker and went on to design and deliver our Peer Support programme for young care leavers and young carers.
Carys is passionate about improving mental health and wellbeing provision, providing choice and quality assured services in the charity sector, with a keen interest in children and young people’s mental health, suicide prevention, widening access of mental health provision for all, and staff development.
As our Suicide Prevention Lead, Carys ensures that our organisation keeps listening and learning so that we are responsive to our local communities and their needs.
In her spare time she is a proud Welsh rugby supporter and enjoys spending time with friends and family travelling, usually to watch sport!
Clare joined Hertfordshire Mind Network in 2016. She has twenty-five years’ experience of working in health and social care settings, both in service delivery and service development roles. Clare also holds a BA (Hons) in Social Policy and Administration.
Clare is passionate about using and developing our marketing, communication and fundraising activities to make mental health services more accessible to our community.
She is committed to ensuring that local people, organisations and companies know who we are, what we do and how to find our ‘front door’ if ever they need us
In her spare time she enjoys walking her greyhound and volunteering for a local greyhound rescue charity.
Fran is a generalist HR professional, who started her working career in retail management and worked in a number of different jobs before taking her first HR role in 2000.
Her HR background is varied from supporting the training department in a Watford based print company, to leading the HR support team in a UK based parent, baby and child retailer, before moving to join a well known UK pub chain, progressing to UK HR Business Partner for a Relocations and Global Mobility company and latterly at a Hertfordshire based Pharmaceutical company before joining Herts Mind Network on 1st August 2022.
In her spare time, she volunteers regularly for a local Arts centre working front of house, and helping build and paint sets for the children’s productions as well as being the safeguarding lead the group based in the centre. She is an active Governor at a Watford based secondary school and also a member of the Girl Guide association as a district volunteer, having previously ran a Brownie unit for 20 years.