I have over 20 years’ experience working in the voluntary sector as a Fundraiser specialising in Trust and Foundations and leading fundraising teams. I feel fortunate to have worked for other great deaf and disability charities such as Sense International, SignHealth, deafPLUS, Shaw Trust and RNID, where I honed my fundraising and leadership skills in this domain.
My fundraising career started by accident. After graduating from Staffordshire University with a degree in Biology and Environmental Sciences, I joined the Forensic Science Service as a DNA Forensic Scientist.
As glamourous as the job sounds, it was quite systemic and process-focused. I left after two years to travel around the world and worked in Australia on a visa. Following that, I went to New Zealand and one day, visited the Auckland Deaf Society. I spotted an advert for a job vacancy which included fundraising. The rest is history.
As a Deaf BSL user, I am a representative of the community and passionate about addressing key inequalities that Deaf women face in society, in particular our struggles with generations of systemic oppression to our sex and language – British Sign Language (BSL). As an ambitious and career-focused individual, throughout my career, I have experienced disadvantages and oppression as a woman and a mother in a male-dominated environment. More needs to be done to develop Deaf female leadership and networking opportunities so we are able to achieve equality in all aspects of life.