How we are governed

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In Control is a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee. We have a Board of Trustees and its members are also directors of In Control for the purposes of company law.

The Board of Trustees has overall responsibility for the strategic leadership and governance of In Control.

Statutory duties of trustees

As a trustee of a charity there are a number of statutory duties that must be complied with as detailed below.

  • To ensure that the organisation complies with its governing document, charity law, company law and any other relevant legislation or regulations.
  • To ensure that the organisation pursues its objects as defined in its governing document.
  • To ensure the organisation uses its resources exclusively in pursuance of its objects: the charity must not spend money on activities which are not included in its own objects, no matter how worthwhile or charitable those activities are.
  • To contribute actively to the board of trustees' role in giving firm strategic direction to the organisation, setting overall policy, defining goals and setting targets and evaluating performance against agreed targets.
  • To safeguard the good name and values of the organisation.
  • To ensure the effective and efficient administration of the organisation.
  • To ensure the financial stability of the organisation.
  • To protect and manage the property of the charity and to ensure the proper investment of the charity's funds.
  • If the charity employs staff, to appoint the chief executive officer and monitor his/her performance.

Members of our Board of Trustees all have lived and/or experience of working within the health and social care sector.

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Julie Stansfield - CEO

Julie has more than 25 years of experience in the health and social care sectors. Her career began when she worked with older people to support their rehabilitation and this led to her becoming a manager of older people’s services by the age of 21. Julie has also worked in service manager posts supporting people with mental health needs to be resettled in their communities and managed change in day services and hostels for people with learning disabilities

Julie is rooted in her passion for inclusion and enabling people to have the support they need to lead an ordinary life.  In 2003 she was the co-founder of the national charity “In Control Partnerships”, which pioneered self-directed support and the personalisation agenda in health and social care policy and practice. In 2014 Julie co- founded “Partners in Health” a leadership programme focusing on people with a range of long term or continuing health conditions. The course enables a range of stakeholders from recipients of health and social care, children and adult along with professionals and workers in the field to join together and understanding the history and context to work together co productively for local change and influence nationally. She is qualified to degree level in business, management and leadership with a particular focus on managing change.

As chief executive of In Control, Julie will ensure In Control remains committed to supporting and empowering people to live the life they choose.

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Gaynor Cockayne - Business and governance manager

Gaynor worked for Royal Mencap Society for 12 years organising training and development provision for employees, and prior to that worked within vocational training and development with young people for 6 years. She has worked for In Control since its conception in 2003, initially providing the administration for the first pilot programmes of the self-directed support model which took part across six Local Authorities. Gaynor now provides admin support for the Community of Change programme, the Personal Outcome Evaluation Tool (POET©) the Partners in Policymaking programme and the Social Care Future movement, attending and organising events. In addition her role includes managing the income and expenditure for the charity organisation and reporting to the Board of Trustees.

Our Trustees

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Paul Davies - Chair

Paul Davies has been involved with and worked in Adult Social Care for almost forty years. He is a qualified social worker of over thirty years standing. As a former Director of Adult Social Services he has extensive experience across the sector. He is an Associate of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services and continues to promote choice and control for people who use services as the best approach to dealing with the challenges faced by the sector today. Paul is currently a Director of a Health and Social Care Consultancy specialising in personalisation, efficiency and modernisation of services.

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Dr Helen Leonard - Vice Chair

Helen is a Consultant in Paediatric Neurodisability with more than 25 years’ experience as an NHS doctor. Her middle child, now a young adult, has lifelong severe disabilities and has a great life at home supported by a care team through a Personal Health Budget. Helen is passionate about improving the experience of people in receipt of self directed budgets and improving access to them. Helen is a member of the NHS England national Strategic Coproduction Group has chaired the Advisory Group for the PHB Quality Framework for PHB.

David Ashley

David Ashley

David has worked in and around Direct Payments for nearly 20 years in various roles, starting as Direct Payment administrator and advice worker for a charity based in Stockwell. Since then he has worked as a DP Team Manager at Islington Council, relationship manager at Fish Insurance, business development Manager at Mark Bates Ltd and now heads up the Training Team at the Independent Living Group (ILG).  He has also been heavily involved with the London Self Direct Support Forum (formerly Direct Payments Forum) for over 10 years.

In his current role he is leading the development of a national peer support group for individual employers - the ILG Community.

With experience in service delivery, the insurance sector, employment law and developing training courses, David has a unique overview of Direct Payments and is a passionate advocate, promoting them as a fundamental component of Self-Directed Support across the UK.

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Gillian Crosby

Gilly is a Director of the charity Centre for Policy on Ageing (CPA), established by the Nuffield Foundation (1947).

The charity aims to promote the interests of older people through research, policy analysis and the dissemination of information - and always by drawing directly on the experiences of older people themselves to enhance the sharing of knowledge and good practice in all sectors.

Gillian has developed the unique information resources, called AgeInfo, to establish an evidence base for the field of ageing. She has participated in numerous projects on a range of topics around ageing, most recently exploring older people's vision for long term care; age discrimination in health and social care services; promoting the financial wellbeing of older people; and independent living for older people with high support needs.

Gillian sits on several advisory and research groups, including the UK Advisory Forum on Ageing and is a trustee of In Control.

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Sophia Erskine

Sophia has a background in inclusive education receiving a masters from the university of Bolton. Alongside this she has 20 plus years of direct payments and personal budgets as she is a wheelchair user and requires support. With a background in the arts and teaching Sophia is on the advisory board for paperwork theatre, offering her services in access and inclusion consultancy. Sophia is passionate about changing societal attitudes toward the disabled community.

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Jo Ferguson - Treasurer

Jo has a background in finance and corporate governance, having worked in a variety of roles within the regulated gas industry. Having graduated from the University of Stirling with a Batchelors in Accounting and completing her MBA at the University of Huddersfield, she is keen to use her skills and experience in promoting disability and carers rights alongside her corporate responsibilities. She has a strong personal interest in disability and carers rights, ensuring that the organisations she has worked for consider all aspects of these rights as a key part of all policies and procedures, building in flexibility and accommodation for personal circumstances as a core value. She has joined the Board of Trustees of In Control in 2024 to help promote its core values.

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Loredana Guetg-Wyatt 

Loredana is the President of the New Helvetic Society and has been elected in 2017 as one of the UK delegate of the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad. She is also the treasurer of Jubilee Gardens Trust, FOSSUK (Federation of the Swiss Societies in the UK) and In Control and is the Managing Director and Trustee chair for the charity STEPS.

 

Loredana was born and educated in the Italian part of Switzerland. After graduating in 1998, she joined an international risk consulting firm. Loredana moved to the UK in 2004 in order to found the UK branch of the American Risk Consulting company Protiviti. At Protiviti Loredana was the UK solution lead for the internal audit and financial assurance team specialising in consulting to multinational companies. After spending ten years with Protiviti, Loredana has now founded her own company and works as a freelancer specialising in supporting global companies and charities complying with local and international legislations. Loredana is the President of the New Helvetic Society and has been elected in 2017 as one of the UK delegate of the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad. She is also the treasurer of Jubilee Gardens Trust, FOSSUK (Federation of the Swiss Societies in the UK) and In Control and is the Managing Director and Trustee chair for the charity STEPS. Her hobbies include hiking, horse-riding, skiing and of course going to concerts and theatres. Loredana is married to Jonathan and has a son, Lawrence, who keeps her very busy.