Meet our new trustees!
At PAS' AGM last week, we were delighted to welcome four new trustees to the board - Louise Marryat, Fiona McHardy, Katie Metcalfe and Sarah Rogers.
The four join Ross McCulloch, Neil Mathers and Linn Sailer.
Neil Mathers, chair of the board of trustees, said "I am delighted to welcome our new trustees, who bring a wealth expertise that will be invaluable to PAS. This is an exciting time for the charity as we develop our new strategy with a focus on championing parents and carers across Scotland."
Right to left: Louise Marryat, Fiona McHardy, Katie Metcalfe and Sarah Rogers
Louise Marryat
Louise (top left) is a researcher and lecturer at the University of Dundee. A sociologist by background she has around 20 years’ experience working in research around parenting and child development. She has a particular interest in children who experience adversity in early childhood and how we can improve the care and support they receive. She sits on the Scottish Government working group for Early Years Education and Childcare, and has carried out a number of evaluations of Scottish Government and NHS policies around support for parents.
Outside of work, she lives with her partner Alastair, and children, Callum (aged 17) and Sophie (aged 6), and two trouble-making cats!
She first worked with Parenting across Scotland a number of years ago whilst working on the Growing Up in Scotland study and has followed the organisation's work with interest. Her combined experience in working around parenting and child development, alongside two very different parenting experiences, firstly as a young single parent, and then more recently as a (relatively!) older, partnered mother were pivotal to her interest in becoming a trustee, and is very much looking forward to being involved in this new era of the organisation.
Fiona McHardy
Fiona (top right) is a research and information manager and is responsible for the overall management and delivery of all research programmes at Poverty Alliance. Fiona has been involved in poverty and social exclusion research, working at Scottish, UK and European level for a range of funders including the European Commission, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Roberston Trust and the Big Lottery Fund.
One of her main interests lies in tackling child poverty and she has worked on multiple thematic areas including family support, stigma, and child maintenance. Her research studies have been utilised in a range of policy settings including local authorities, the Scottish Parliament, the House of Commons, and the House of Lords.
She welcomes the opportunity to join the board of trustees to support the organisation of Parenting across Scotland as an opportunity to further support parents and caregivers across Scotland. Whilst her professional skills give her important experience, her own experience of having become a parent four years ago has equally influenced her desire to support the work of Parenting across Scotland.
Katie Metcalfe
Katie (bottom left) has worked in the voluntary sector for over 15 years, starting her career in youth programme management and community engagement, specialising in events delivery and business development.
In her current role at a large national mental health charity, she provided consultancy and support to local affiliated charities around income generation and fundraising, recently moving into an internal operations manager role to ensure the organisation is delivering effective, efficient and legal fundraising. She is passionate about supporting charities to reach their ambitions.
Outside of work commitments, Katie has volunteered with youth organisations, both as a youth support worker and Girlguiding volunteer. Having recently become a parent, she found PAS to be a valuable source of information, and is keen to ensure the sustainability and growth of PAS to support other parents and caregivers for the long term future.
Sarah Rogers
Sarah Rogers (bottom right) is a community education practitioner with extensive experience of working directly with children and young people in a diverse range of education, care, and youth work settings. In her current post as Participation Associate at CELCIS, she is responsible for embedding the voice of care-experienced people across its policy and research projects.
Through the Churchill Fellowship, Sarah previously performed research in Los Angeles on innovative infant mental health services for undocumented families. Her professional interests include childrens’ rights, attachment-informed practice, and the impact of poverty on parenting. She has also spent significant time working in the domestic abuse sector.
Sarah is inspired to contribute to Parenting across Scotland because of her deeply-held belief that parents must be valued and supported if children are to be loved, safe, and respected.