Chair

I have lived in Croydon all my married and working life and raised a family here. I recently retired from the Civil Service where I was a senior civil servant working in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.   Throughout my career I have been passionate about making a difference to the world around us.  I am therefore delighted and honoured to be joining Croydon Vision as the new Chair of the Board of Trustees.

My aspirations as Chair are to lead the Board to provide effective governance and help build a long-term sustainable future for Croydon Vision providing high quality facilities, services and support for people with sight loss. 

Treasurer

I am an Information Management professional with over 20 years’ experience and Co-Founder of a software company specialising in enterprise information and application solutions. My career has focused on governance, structured decision-making and financial oversight, which underpin my role as Trustee and Treasurer at Croydon Vision.

I have lived in the Croydon Borough for the past 20 years and care deeply about supporting the local community. Alongside my professional career, I have held leadership roles including Treasurer and Chairman within the Coleman Street Ward Club in the City of London, and senior positions within the Worshipful Company of Security Professionals Livery Company. I am also a member of the Rotary Club – City of London branch.

I joined Croydon Vision because I strongly believe in enabling people living with sight loss to maintain independence, dignity and opportunity. As Trustee and Treasurer, I am committed to strong financial stewardship, transparent governance and helping ensure the long-term sustainability of the charity.

Member Liaison Trustee

As the Member Liaison Trustee, I am proud to be part of a progressive charity to improve the wellbeing of the local VI community.

I have been a Trustee for some 12 years. I first came to Croydon Vision as a Fitness Tutor, some 20 years ago.  I have always been a fitness and sport enthusiast, having been a Gymnast and represented my country in competition in my teenage years.  These days I play tennis at the local Selsdon Tennis Club and enjoy watching most sports.  I was born and brought up in Swansea and am very proud of my Welsh heritage.

Business Development Trustee

I am an optometrist and entrepreneur encouraging a healthier relationship with technology in the digital age. Since I received a development grant from City University in London, I have built my company Ocushield into an internationally distributed. I have been featured in Forbes, The Guardian and The Telegraph as well as a finalist for Health Tech Founder 2018 Tech Founder Awards.

I am pleased to be joining Croydon Vision as someone who grew up locally, I wanted to give back to an organisation which is making a positive impact on peoples lives. My background in optometry and business will hopefully allow me to execute the tasks required as the business development trustee which in turn will mean improved services for members and continued growth for the charity.

Legal Trustee

I am a lawyer who has worked in the legal profession for a number of years. This is my first trustee appointment and I am honoured to have been appointed.

I joined to help the charity continue the great work that it does. I will use my breadth of experience to ensure that the charity continues to have robust governance and achieves all of the goals set out in its strategic plan – including helping the charity increase its reach and accessibility. I am also looking forward to helping a charity based in an area which I have many ties to.

Team Development Champion

I am a policy and strategy professional who has spent his career working for the Ministry of Defence and more recently the Department for International Trade. I bring with me a passion for developing people, a love for creativity and endless enthusiasm for getting stuck in.

I have joined Croydon Vision as a trustee in the Team Development Champion role due to my passion for helping develop those around me and finding opportunities for all. Experience from mentoring and networking across government and private sector, has built my knowledge and I have confidently joined Corydon Vision with an ambition to help take it into the next 100 years.

HR and Development Trustee

I feel privileged to be joining Croydon Vision as an HR Trustee. Previously, in my HR roles I have worked across different areas including organisational development, learning and development, employee engagement and HR strategy & policies.

I am an Engineer-turned- HR professional and have always desired to make a difference through my work. I resonate with the charity’s work of contributing to the lives of people with visual impairment. I see my role at Croydon Vision as an opportunity to draw from my HR experience and apply these skills to provide overall direction and contribute to the charity’s governance. My vision for Croydon Vision is greater outreach and community engagement. I am from India and proud of my roots. I love animals, dancing and badminton.

Lived Experience and Recruitment

Carolyn brings over 30 years of leadership experience spanning recruitment, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and currently serves as Head of Programmes at London Works. Since losing her sight in 2021, she has become a powerful advocate for independence and opportunity for visually impaired people.

Eye Health Representative

I am a public eye health physician and a retired ophthalmic surgeon. As a clinician, my main interests were cataract, glaucoma, pediatric ophthalmology and strabismus.

I have worked with several international NGOs like Swiss Red Cross, Orbis UK and Orbis Africa, as lead ophthalmologist, to bring eye care to several communities in Ghana, my home country. As a paediatric ophthalmologist serving the Northern and middle belt of our country, I was an advocate for children with sight loss and their families.

I joined Croydon Vision some months ago as a volunteer serving in different roles. I was excited and honoured a few months later when I was appointed as Eye Health Representative Trustee. I trust that I will help Croydon Vision in raising awareness about avoidable sight loss and therefore preserving vision and quality of life for our members.