East Anglia

Carolyn brings over two decades of dedication to the charity sector, with a career spanning mental health, medical research, emergency medicine, higher education, and conservation. As a long-standing member of the Committee, Carolyn is proud to serve as Chair, championing collaboration and innovation across the local fundraising community. She is passionate about building networks that not only strengthen professional practice but also nurture the wellbeing and creativity of fundraisers themselves. Carolyn believes fundraising is more than a profession—it connects people, stories, and causes to create lasting impact.  

Gill is passionate about fundraising and the professionalism of the sector. She has over 30 years’ experience across all areas of fundraising and managing fundraisers and departments/divisions. Since setting up her own consultancy she has worked across the sector in local, national and international organisations. She takes on interim management roles, specific projects including capital appeals, recruitment and restructuring as well as training and coaching.  Besides being a speaker at national and international conferences, Gill writes widely and has contributed to a number of books. She has also sat on a number of grant-making boards and awards panels.

Rachel is Director of Visitor Experience at Firstsite gallery, Colchester. Rachel has worked in the not-for-profit sector for 6 years and has been part of the East Anglian committee for 5 years. Her first charity role was at Lepra where she found a real passion for developing messaging and campaigns to grow supporter loyalty and generate income. During lockdown the team at Firstsite produced two national digital campaigns 'Art is where the home is' and 'The Great Big Art Exhibition' to bring the benefits of art to everyone whilst at home. These projects won Art Fund Museum of the Year in 2021.

Following a successful career in business development Jill joined St Helena Hospice as a corporate fundraiser in 2012 and has never looked back. She is currently Fundraising Manger at MS-UK, who support people affected by Multiple Sclerosis. Her passion is increasing income from new campaigns and developing her team to excel in their roles. She joined the committee in 2021 to be part of a group of brilliant regional charities working together to support fundraisers across East Anglia.

Soraya is an experienced relationship fundraiser with over seven years working in the sector and currently serves at Alzheimer’s Society. Fundraising is more than a profession for her—it is a personal mission shaped by a family member’s dementia diagnosis, which inspired her transition into the charity sector.

Before moving into fundraising, Soraya worked across London on a range of public health and community development initiatives, gaining valuable experience in stakeholder engagement and capacity building.

Beyond her professional role, Soraya is an active community advocate and an outdoor enthusiast. She has completed two of the UK’s National Peaks, attempted Mount Toubkal, and recently undertook her first steps into alpinism completing her first glacier trek. For Soraya, hiking mirrors the journey of fundraising: a pursuit of perseverance, purpose, and reward, where every step contributes to a meaningful view from the summit.

Lex champions Equality, Diversity and Inclusion for the committee. They are committed to championing accessible, equitable and representative fundraising across the region. Bringing both professional insight and lived experience, Lex focuses on practical action that moves inclusion beyond policy into culture. They believe a more inclusive sector is not only fairer, but stronger, more innovative, and better.

Richard started out his working life as a consultant focused on delivering growth for financial services, healthcare and technology companies. He moved on to work as a private motorcycle instructor and music teacher. He combined his person-centred approach from teaching with his experience of building strategies for growth as a consultant and has brought these to charities, helping them achieve growth by putting the supporter experience at the heart of strategies and plans. Richard is currently Director at About Loyalty and has previously worked with Goalball UK, Plantlife International, RSPB, Greenpeace, The Children’s Society, Scope and was the Director for the Commission on the Donor Experience. Richard is passionate about helping charities put supporters at the heart of their plans, strategies and approaches. He was born in Manchester,and now lives in Norfolk to be closer to the sea. He supports Manchester City and spends too much of his time taking pictures of his three pups in various positions around the house.