Meet the Team

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Ben has worked with adults with learning disabilities and autistic adults for over 10 years. Ben previously managed a local music festival. He loves going out for food (Chinese, especially) and watching live music.

Following her time as Chief Commercial Officer at an international intelligence firm, our super spy director Laura now runs her own start-up & marketing business called Nova Consultancy. Laura loves going out for nice meals and enjoys long walks with her dog, Jax. 

Chantelle is an established print designer at ASOS and has worked for brands such as Next, River Island and Boohoo. Chantelle's younger brother Ben is autistic and has Down's Syndrome and she enjoys spending time with him and going out for food. 

Lynn has over 20 years of experience working in the field of Health and Social care. For the last 10 years this has been at a strategic level. She loves walking with her two dogs Bella and Bruno.

Anna manages our Creative Placements and Volunteer Project. Anna has a wealth of experience in working in communities on large scale arts and cultural projects and has managed a team of over 1,000 volunteers. 

Rachel supports our Managing Director, Ben and also provides HR support to the organisation. Rachel's younger brother Chris is one of our COSE Assistants. Rachel has two children and enjoys spending time with her family.

Stacy leads our Bridge Academy delivering adult education, training and apprenticeships and leads our expert training teams including the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training team. She brings years of experience in education to support staff and people we support. In her spare time she enjoys walks, family game nights and the gym.

Ross is our Finance Lead based at The COSE, where he oversees all things finance-related. Away from work he's either keeping fit in the gym or at a Newcastle match. 

Amy brings 12 years of event production experience to Bridge Creative. Amy enjoys working in a corporate environment as much so as working in a muddy field.  Amy has qualifications in Health and Safety, Accessibility, Counter Terrorism and Sustainability. She loves her French bulldog "Happy" and dining out at fancy restaurants.

Paul is our Centre Manager based at The COSE. He likes to go away on city breaks with his family. Paul is very social and enjoys being with his mates. He is distantly related to artist- Norman Cornish.

Jonathan coordinates our In-Work Support service, making sure the service runs seamlessly. Jonathan used to run his own dog-walking business and enjoys getting out for walks with his dog, Toby.

Jordy (guess where he’s from?!) once interviewed Beyonce when working on GMTV! Jordy has no sense of fear due to an operation - this has been scientifically proven by sending him off a 418ft tower!

Charlotte works in our workshop for our Creative Placements project. If you see her, she'll probably be wearing something green - her favourite colour! In her free time, she gardens at her allotment and goes on adventures with her children.

Charlotte runs her own business as a professional make-up artist. She was also the European Champion in Freestyle Dance in 2014! In her spare time she likes to go to the gym and takes her dog (Simba) on long walks.

Jayne is a professional artist specialising in glass and fabric printing. Jayne was commissioned to create The Weardale Tub on display at Killhope Lead Mining Museum - a replica of a lead-mining tub made of glass tiles designed by the community.

Anna is a professional artist and designer, who for has for the last 10 years delivered community and carnival arts in County Durham , but has professional experience in prop building and design, Visual Merchandising, shop fit and  window display, commercial interior design and architectural design. 

Donna works out in the community on our Keeping People Connected service and runs our Friendship Friday group and online fitness sessions! She loves early morning jogs along the sea front where she lives and enjoys sky diving, sea swimming and paddle-boarding. 

Rachel has worked with children with SEN in mainstream schools, she loves going out with her family and two dogs (Milo and Roxy) especially to the beach. She loves watching live music and catching up with friends at the pub over food and drink.

 Keith has worked as a teacher and is a qualified joiner. Keith supports the guys on our Creative Placements project, supporting people to gain work experience and learn new woodworking skills. 

 Deb supports our Volunteer Project, helping people gain sustainable volunteering roles in their community. Deb is very creative and runs a craft group for adults with a learning disability in her spare time. 

 Emily works on our Volunteer Project, supporting our Volunteer Incubators and providing 1-1 support for people to volunteer. Emily loves working with people and making a difference in their lives. 

Chris works at our head office as one of our COSE Assistants. He likes art and drawing and enjoys creating animations in his spare time. He likes to go out with friends and family and likes a good party.

Kim works at the head office as part of our COSE team. She loves spending time with her family and has a pet hamster called Lilly. In her spare time she enjoys going to the gym, shopping, theatre and loves to travel abroad.

Erica works as a COSE Assistant at our head office. She competes in the Special Disability Olympics for swimming and was recently on BBC Look North news Special Olympics City of Hull. She also likes running and has done the Great North Run. 

Bradley is an apprentice COSE Assistant who grew up in Newton Aycliffe but originally comes from Stevenage so has a strong southern accent. His main interests are anime and occasionally writing. His pets are a cross Labrador/collie and two cats.

Thomas helps us with our Keeping People Connected calls and groups. In his spare time, he likes to play video games. Thomas is also an Expert Trainer at Bridge Creative.

Shannan is one of our Project Assistants and often helps with the Keeping People Connected calls and video chats. She enjoys drawing and crafting and going out for meals. Shannan is also an Expert Trainer at Bridge Creative.

Marta is mother to three children and three cats. She is one of our new Events & Festival Supporters starting in 2024, her first event being our Street Food Market in March 2024. In her spare time she likes roller skating, visiting castles and museums and going away in the caravan. 

 Debbie spent the last 5 years studying photography and working with people with disabilities to promote inclusion within photography. She currently works in a homeless project and has experience working in independent support living. Now she works at events supporting people in their working environment.