None of our work would have been possible without the support of our funders, trustees and our committed and hardworking team of staff
Claire Cooper, Trustee
Staff
Board of Trustees
- Marian Mahoney (Vice Chair)
Marian has been an LGT board member since 2007 and is the current Vice Chair. She is a resident on Old Willow Close site in Tower Hamlets, secretary to the site residents’ group and has been actively involved in LGT’s campaigns for many years.
- Richard Bennett (Treasurer)
Richard joined the board in 2017 and is the current Treasurer. He started his working life as a schoolmaster before setting up his own business, and from 1987 to 2011 he was a councillor on Reigate & Banstead Borough Council. He led the Local Government Association’s investigation into the shortfall in site provision for Gypsies and Travellers and has for many years provided training to councillors on the issues facing Gypsies and Travellers.
- Sarah Edwards
Sarah joined the board in 2017. Sarah has both Romany and Traveller heritage and has close family members who have lived ‘on the road’. She hopes to help break down prejudice towards Gypsies, Roma and Travellers. She is currently a lecturer and tutor at the University of Oxford.
- Tunji Makanju
Tunji joined the board in 2016. He is the Head of Finance at the Fairtrade Foundation and is a highly proficient accounting professional with experience covering financial reporting, management accounting, planning, budgeting & forecasting, cash flow management and risk management.
- Giorgio Mariani
Giorgio joined the board in 2017. He is a dedicated institutional fundraiser with experience in growing charities’ grant bases and working with UK trusts and foundations. Having grown up in Italy, he saw at first hand the treatment of Roma and wants to use his fundraising experience to support the work of London Gypsies and Travellers.
- Helena Kiely-Savin (Chair)
Helena joined the board in 2020 and is the current Chair of the board. She is an Irish Traveller and Director of The Really NEET Project, a social enterprise providing alternative education to 16-25 with Special Educational Needs. As a qualified youth worker, Helena brings to the board her experience and passion for working with young people.
- Chelsea McDonagh
Chelsea joined the board in 2023. Chelsea is an Irish Traveller and works at the Young Foundation as a senior researcher. She and is one of the co-founders of the Rom Belong programme, a widening participation programme for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller people at King’s College London.
- Sally Barter
Sally is a Romany Gypsy and has worked in Traveller education for almost 30 years, as well as in various voluntary roles supporting and representing Gypsies and Travellers nationally. She is currently employed as a Gypsy Roma Traveller education liaison officer in the same West London borough that she was born and grew up in.
Website
- Simon Crompton, content
- Ilinca Diaconescu, updates
- Thomas Paterson, build
- Hilary Tranter, design
- Mary Turner, photography
- Elisabeth Blanchet, photography
Funders
- BBC Children in Need
- The Henry Smith Charity
- The Irish Government Emigrant Support Programme
- The Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust
- The Lloyds Bank Foundation
- The London Borough of Hackney
- The London Community Foundation
- The Oak Foundation
- The Trust for London
- The National Lottery Community Fund
- Moving for Change