ADD-vance

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01727 833963 (MON - FRI 9AM - 1PM)

herts@add-vance.org

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Our Team

One of the things that makes ADD-vance special is that all our team members are parents of children affected by ADHD, Autism or other related conditions. We are unique in bringing a parents perspective and pragmatism to our work while all team members are qualified and trained in their specialist area, to ensure that all our services are provided to a high professional standard. Our team includes specialists from psychology, social work, teaching, nursing and more besides.

Our Trustees

Beverly Gleeson

Chair of Trustees

Beverly works part-time as a senior government lawyer in the Cabinet Office and is also mum to three children, one of whom has a diagnosis of Autism and ADHD. Like so many of us, she was made aware of ADD-vance at her son’s diagnosis and soon after attended one of our parenting courses and found the advice and tips invaluable in understanding more about the conditions and how she could help her son. When we started the search for a new trustee Beverly kindly decided to return the favour and offered to lend her professional skills to ADD-vance, for which we are deeply grateful.

Nick Dilworth

BA (Hons), ACA

Trustee

Nick was inspired to get into working with ADD-vance after hearing about their great work through a friend. His passion for working with Charities runs in the family as his Father has spent over 30 years advising and assisting not-for-profit organisations. Nick is a professional Chartered Accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales having qualified with Deloitte LLP. Nick has spent over 15 years working in Banking and Capital Markets in Compliance and Audit roles, currently with Winterflood Securities, part of the Close Brothers Group. Nick lives in St. Albans with his wife, two children and a very excitable Hungarian Vizsla called Peggy.

Lis Barlow Jones

Trustee

Lis was happily looking forward to the life of Riley after retiring, but now spends some time supporting the ADD-vance management team using commercial and business development skills gained during far too many years in the IT and business process outsourcing industry. This time with ADD-vance has saved her from spending too much time enjoying herself and she approaches all her dealings with ADD-vance pragmatically and humorously. She says her time as a trustee with ADD-vance has been illuminating, and so rewarding working with such dedicated and able team members and seeing the organisation grow stronger whilst sustaining such a high level of quality.

Chris Harrison

Trustee

Chris first came across ADD-vance when, following his youngest daughter’s ASD & ADHD diagnosis, he and his partner started to access support in Hertfordshire. After several years, during which his wife Emma became a trainer for ADD-vance, Chris put his hand up as being interested in becoming a trustee in 2015 and obviously we snapped at the chance! Chris says “I wanted to give a little back to a great organisation and therefore indirectly to the individuals and families ADD-vance supports; my background is in Welfare to Work and skills, in most cases bidding and running contracts that support people with disabilities and health conditions, and I have had the pleasure of doing this in the public, private and VCSE sectors. I try to bring relevant elements of this knowledge to the table as a trustee, with specific emphasis on experience of commissioning, grants and funding.”

When Chris is not working or cleaning out the ever growing menagerie in his house he tries to escape to the side of a lake or to find a TV in the corner to watch some football.

Dr Kirsty Saunders

Community Paediatrician

Trustee

Kirsty has lived and worked in Hertfordshire for over 25 years. Her work brings her into regular contact with children and families who live with ADHD and Autism and she sees first-hand the impact this has, both positive and negative. Kirsty has been inspired by the life enhancing support given to families by ADD-vance and says it as a privilege to serve as a trustee. Kirsty is hardworking, compassionate and loves a bit of banter, which means she fits in well around here!

The Office Team

Anne Ross

BEM, MBPsS

Founder & Director

Anne is our Obi Wan (although without the beard). Wise and motivated, she founded ADD-vance in 1996 to provide the support for local families she missed out on when her boys were young. Over the following years she built a talented, caring and positive team of trainers, coaches and support staff and made ADD-vance the force it is today.

Carolyn Green

MBPsS, BSc (Hons), RN, PGCE, NASENCO

Training and Development Manager, Specialist Trainer and Coach

Carolyn has trained as a nurse, a teacher, a SENCO and an astronaut (probably). Not only does Carolyn know how it works from the perspective of the professionals in our kids’ lives but through her personal experiences of Autism and ADHD, she brings together the two worlds in one kind and fun-loving package.

Magda Witkowska

Finance & Payroll Officer

Magda holds the purse-strings at ADD-vance, and as if that wasn’t enough to make her everyone’s best friend anyway she seals the deal with added loveliness – balancing us out nicely with her calming zen. Magda was inspired to lend her talents to ADD-vance when she was struggling at home with her lovely, funny, autistic daughter at the same time as working full time in London. Magda started to look for something different, and we are so grateful that she found us. Magda is passionate about running, rock climbing and yoga!

Sue Barrington

BA(Hons), PGDip HRS, Chartered MCIPD

Office Support

Sue was looking for a change after working in London for 25 years in various Design, HR and commercial positions and found the perfect role at ADD-vance. Sue has brought with her a wealth of experience and has been invaluable in helping to update all our training documents and paperwork. In her own words “I constantly surprised by the diversity of projects that I am involved in, I also enjoy sharing knowledge gained whilst working with my colleagues. I haven’t looked back since I started in December 2016 – mainly because of the committed and compassionate team; and the culture and ethos of ADD-vance”.

The Training & Coaching Team

Dan Adams

Specialist Autism and ADHD Coach and Trainer,

Dan has joined ADD-vance after three years as an Independent Supporter with KIDS supporting hundreds of families through the process of applying for and maintaining an accurate EHC Plan. He is a Dad and Step dad to three awesome children, one who has Autism and Dan himself has ADHD and wants to share what he knows to help people better understand how it can work to their advantage. He also has a love for and is a professionally qualified photographer and will bore anyone willing to listen to him talk about it.

Catherine Ainsworth

Specialist Autism and ADHD Trainer, Website Admin

Catherine was first inspired to volunteer when she attended the 6 week parent Time Out course and the rest, as they say, is history. Catherine’s background in digital marketing and being Yorkshire in no way prepared her for the trials and tribulations of life as the parent of kids with ADHD and Autism but like so many others has found that you become an expert pretty quickly! Catherine provides parent training and also works behind the scenes on website improvements and other marketing projects.

Serena Baker

MSW

Specialist Autism and ADHD Trainer & Coach

Serena is one of our most ardent ADHD advocates and brings humour, energy and pragmatism to the fold as well as fiery determination to make a difference to children affected by the condition. Serena has a background in social work which complements the rest of the team and brings extra perspectives on how to support families and children and young people seeking help. Serena lives in St Albans with her husband and two lovely children.

Emma Dalrymple

Specialist Autism and ADHD Trainer

Emma is one of our resident training gurus. She has been involved in training and group facilitation for 15 years, both before and after welcoming her two beautiful girls to the family. Emma’s focus is in delivering high quality, engaging parent training to help other families to build knowledge, confidence and strong support networks. She is believes strongly in the importance of working together to support each other and promote understanding and wellbeing. Anyone who has attended one of Emma’s training sessions will be able to attest to her outstanding knowledge and compassion.

Joanna Daw

B.Ed (Hons)

Specialist Autism and ADHD Trainer & Coach

Jo first came to ADD-vance after both her children were diagnosed with a combination of ADHD and Autism, having previously worked as a primary school teacher. She expressed interest in joining the team as a coach and trainer and hasn’t looked back!Jo is passionate about all things ADHD and Autism. She is very open and honest about the delights and challenges that come with loving in a neuro-diverse family. She loves working with families along their journey, and helping them to feel confident and empowered, alongside working with schools to improve awareness and understanding.

Russell Hedger

Specialist Autism and ADHD Coach

Russell is one of our few male colleagues. He is not afraid of being in a minority and braves our team meetings with hardly a flicker of the eye. Russell has been with ADD-vance since pretty much the beginning and brings his own personal experience of being a single father to “the most annoying, dysfunctional, unique and loving” children as well as extensive professional experience working alongside families to apply proven techniques to drive positive change and benefits for the whole family.

Louise Hodgson

Specialist Autism and ADHD Coach

Louise is absolutely passionate about trying to help families who have children with ADHD and Autism, particularly in the early years, pre-diagnosis, as this is so often the time when parents need support the most. Louise has been a keen stalker of ADD-vance for some time now and managed to attend many of their training courses in an effort to understand ADHD and Autism to help her in her home life but now also as a Specialist Coach. Louise is excited to now be part of the ADD-vance team and able to dedicate her whole time to coaching through ADD-vance and raising her two lively boys, one with ADHD and one with an inability to stop talking (not medical, just noisy!).

Janet Holdsworth

Specialist Autism and ADHD Coach

Janet joined ADD-vance with a professional career in therapeutic counselling, training and lecturing in education settings behind her. She has a love of travel, a passion for trees, and great joy in having seen her children grow and develop into strong, independent adults with enquiring minds and a continued sense of wonder.

Bridget Livesey

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Specialist Autism and ADHD Trainer & Coach

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Kirsty North

Specialist Autism and ADHD Trainer & Coach

Kirsty is a mum to two lively, crazy and hilarious little boys, as well as a writer, comedian and technology whiz. Kirsty’s eldest son was diagnosed with ADHD and a sleep disorder at six, and her husband also has ADHD, which whilst incredibly tough at times has allowed (forced) her to really get to grips with supporting the boys through the unique set of challenges they face. Kirsty’s aim is to support families and young people with ADHD and Autism and help them to build their self-esteem and confidence. Kirsty deeply believes that a confident child is a child with a great future regardless of the challenges they face, and her aim is to do as much as she can to combat that negativity and help parents and children feel supported and accepted.

Frances Parsons

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Specialist Autism and ADHD Trainer

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Melanie Peeke

MA, Human Sciences

Specialist Autism and ADHD Trainer, Facebook Admin

Mel has a background in corporate training and development and like so many of us went into motherhood thinking she had everything sussed. When life threw a few curve balls at her and she ended up finding parenting more difficult than expected, she found fantastic support from local schools and charities (including ADD-vance) to help her bring out the best in her autistic daughter and really enjoy family life. She is absolutely passionate about the positive impact of parenting courses in helping to build a sense of community, provide a supportive place to share ideas and allow time for reflection. Mel has been involved with ADD-vance since 2010 and is one of the founding members for our sister group – Spectrum Girls.

Pamela Reitemeier

BA (Hons), PgC (Autism)

Consultant Trainer

Pamela has been immersed in the autism sector for over 15 years. She sharpened her training skills working for UNICEF in Chad (West Africa), Bangladesh and the UK. She is a Trustee of the National Autistic Society.

Sarah Secoy

MA SEN, BEd ( Hons ), Cert SpLD

Specialist Autism and ADHD Trainer & Coach

Sarah joined ADD-vance in 2013 accessing the charity for both personal and professional use. She currently teaches in a mainstream school for children with additional needs as a Specialist Support Teacher of Specific Learning Difficulties and Social, Emotional and Mental Development. She has found that this experience has lent itself well to coaching families through specific issues and topics related to the conditions associated with ASD and ADHD. Sarah is passionate about supporting and empowering families to confidently access the best strategies and services to enhance the lives of their family.

Pippa Simou

BA (Hons), PGCE

Specialist Autism and ADHD Trainer & Coach

Pippa is compassionate and enthusiastic in her role as Trainer and Coach. She has over 20 yrs of teaching and pastoral experience in a variety of Secondary School settings. She discovered ADD-vance when it was suggested to her that her son might (!) have ADHD, and she realised that although she knew what the letters stood for, she needed more input… one ‘Time Out’ course later, and a generous portion of coaching gave her what she and her family needed to get to grips with their neuro-diversity. She is really proud to be part of the team, and hopes her time and talent can contribute to helping even more families and professionals.

Robin Wilding

Specialist Autism and ADHD Trainer & Coach

Robin is one of our original team of specialist coaches. She is also a busy Mum to four beautiful children. Her eldest child was diagnosed with Aspergers and ADHD at the age of 8yrs, leading her to train as a specialist coach with ADD-vance. She recognises the challenges parents face with their children and aims to offer strategies that work for individual families and children, to improve family life as a whole, offering a fresh perspective without judging. Everyone can feel as though they’ve run out of ideas and sometimes may simply need a little support to regain the confidence in their own resourcefulness.