Governance and Trustees

Chair

Laura was appointed Chair of Trustees in November 2023. Laura lives with husband, Colin, three grown-up sons, and three grandchildren. Laura recently retired from a General Nursing career she loved since training at the age of 18 – but for a break with election to the House of Commons as the MP for Crawley from 1997 until 2010. Laura’s interest has grown in GDWG over

the years, and this led to her becoming a Visitor in 2018. There are many reasons that lead us to the door of GDWG. Laura knew she wanted to become more involved with the fight for those with no voice in detention, so she put herself forward to join the Board of Trustees and was very glad to be accepted.

Treasurer

Adrian started to visit people in the Beehive Detention Centre at Gatwick in 1995. He was appointed treasurer in 1996 and continued in this role until 2010. He is a chartered accountant and has worked in the charity sector in a variety of roles over the last 25 years. He was reappointed treasurer in 2021.

Felicity started to visit detainees in the Beehive Detention Centre at Gatwick in 1995. She became the first Chair in 1996 when the group obtained charitable status and continued in that role until 2007. She has lead GDWG’s fundraising activities and, supported by staff and many dedicated trustees, the group has raised more than £1.5 million pounds since 1996.

She has a degree in Psychology and for many years worked on attitude studies for industrial companies. She has a Diploma in Counselling.

Harry first heard of the GDWG in 2021, when looking to find a way of giving back to the community and to support a charity with the skills learnt in the corporate sector. He has a long-standing passion for freedom of speech and equal opportunities and felt the GDWG was perfectly aligned to this.

Currently working in a global role for a healthcare company gives him frequent interaction with people from all over world where he loves to find out more and create connections. He has two young children who keep him and his wife fit from all the running around.

Lorraine has a Master's degree in Human Resources and experience working for multi-national companies in this role. She has two young children and is currently training to be a teaching assistant whilst also active in her local church, volunteering at a drop-in for refugees and at a foodbank. She is an expert by experience having been formerly detained and is a Refugee Tales walker and hosted the Walking Inquiry Multi-Media Exhibition in Stockton.

Pious has lived experience of detention and GDWG supported him when he was detained.

Pious is a volunteer with the Red Cross and has volunteered with GDWG and Refugee Tales for over 5 years.

He wishes to bring his lived experience over two years and nine months in detention to work with the charity for change.

Seth brings lived experience to the Board having been detained for 17 months and having had a GDWG visitor. He is currently working as a care assistant, is active in his local church and a volunteer in a local foodbank. Seth has walked with Refugee Tales every year since it started in 2015, his tales feature in Refugee Tales anthologies, he hosted the Refugee Tales Walking Inquiry Multi-Media Exhibition when it visited Stockton and has been a speaker at many Refugee Tales events.  

Stephen became a trustee in 2024. He is the author of over a dozen books of poetry and prose, including The Commons (2008), the BC Book Prize winning On the Material (2010), and Almost Islands: Phyllis Webb and the Pursuit of the Unwritten (2018)—all published by Talonbooks. A History of the Theories of Rain (2021) was a finalist for the Governor General’s Award for poetry, and in 2019, Collis was the recipient of the Writers’ Trust of Canada Latner Poetry Prize. The Middle, the second volume of a trilogy begun with A History of the Theories of Rain, will be published in 2024. He lives near Vancouver, on unceded Coast Salish Territory, and teaches poetry and poetics at Simon Fraser University.

Tom has been a volunteer visitor with GDWG since 2017 and is a member of the Refugee Tales planning group and self-advocacy group. Tom works as a Children’s & Youth Development Officer, supporting local churches in their engagement with children, young people and families and is a mental health advocate and delivers training as a Mental Health First Aid England instructor member.