RISE

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Alex has a BSc (Hons) in Psychology, a Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management and a PTLLS teaching qualification.

Alex began his career in customer service, moved to work in banking and then joined Better Connect following University in 2012. He felt a strong connection to the values and work within the community sector and has developed his career within the organisation, progressing from an Assistant to his current role as Head of Programmes. Along the way, Alex has worked across almost every aspect of the company.

For Alex, the most important part of work is feeling as though it is meaningful and that it is making a positive difference to society.

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Emily has a BA (Hons) in Equestrian Management and Development from Myerscough College. She previously worked at Subway and has experience working in the equine industry. Working in an organisation like Better Connect is a first for Emily and she has enjoyed the progression from Kickstart Assistant, to a fulltime member of the finance team.

Emily is excited to learn more about the workings of the voluntary sector and how she can be a part of it. She’s passionate about getting involved with promotional activities for Better Connects’ programmes, reading people’s experiences,  and supporting the network of partners across the projects.

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Hannah has a BA (Hons) in Theatre, specialising in working with and supporting Young People with learning difficulties and mental health issues to gain confidence and feel safe in positive spaces. She thrives in a creative environment and tries to bring those skills into everything she does at Better Connect.

Hannah began her career at 16, working in customer facing roles until the age of 23. She will always be grateful for the experience she gained in these roles and feel that they helped her to engage with partners and stakeholders. After finishing University, Hannah worked at York Theatre Royal as a Research and Evaluation Graduate Intern. Whilst at the Theatre, Hannah learnt about the voluntary sector and began volunteering with various community groups in York delivering theatre-style workshops to vulnerable people.

Hannah has worked at Better Connect since 2017, starting in the Programmes Team as an Assistant.  Since then, she has worked across various funding streams and programmes, working her way up to becoming a Programme Manager in 2020. Now our Impact Manager, Hannah is inspired every day by the amazing work that partners do in their communities and loves that she can have a role that helps highlight the impact both Better Connect and our partners are making. She loves being part of an organisation that wants to make a positive difference in the world.

Hannah is also a Trustee for a charity based in Leeds called Purple Patch Arts. Purple Patch Arts exists to provide innovative, inclusive, creative learning opportunities that improve the lives of learning-disabled and autistic adults by expanding their understanding of, and engagement with, the world.

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Joe has a BA in Philosophy and is also mental health first aid trained.

Previously Joe worked in a Leeds school as a literacy tutor and then briefly at an insurance firm as an administrative assistant. He then joined Better Connect in 2017, as a programme coordinator: assisting partners and ensuring all their paperwork and claims were correct. He then became a manager, steering ATI towards success.

He also contributes to Better Connect’s marketing strategy and ATI’s focus on equality, diversity and inclusion.

This work matters to Joe because it creates tangible positive results for so many people – from improved mental health to giving people employment opportunities. He loves that the programmes unlock people’s full potential.

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Jonah started his career in a multinational financial technology company and progressed to Better Connect in 2019. He originally started out as a Programmes Coordinator and has since moved into a more finance focused role.

Jonah believes that the third sector is a vital part of creating a kinder and more inclusive society.

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Julie has a BA (Hons) in Urban Geography and a Certificate in Management from Leeds University. She began her career piloting and running projects within the Chamber of Commerce and then later with the then Training and Enterprise Council. She took a career break whilst bringing up her children and worked part-time in a call centre for a well-known bank where she gained valuable experience of frontline customer service. Following redundancy, Julie set up her own business which she ran for several years until being drawn back into programme management, ultimately leading her to Better Connect in 2018.

Julie is a strong believer in the provision of opportunities for everyone and this runs through the core of Better Connect.

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Having formerly spent 2 years working as a Participant Experience Coordinator on one of Better Connects’ ESF & Lottery funded projects, Action Towards Inclusion, Laura is a huge advocate for sustainable social change, and believes this begins with supporting and empowering individuals and their communities and championing social inclusion.

Within this role, she managed the collaboration between partners, keyworkers, and participants on an administrative and ESF/National Lottery compliant scale. She also tracked the ‘Participant Journey’ from start to finish, following participant engagement across the programme, and liaising with some truly transformative partners, as they delivered wide reaching support across York, North Yorkshire, and the East Riding area.

Laura has a first-class BA (Hons) in English Language and Literature from the University of Sheffield. Whilst studying there, she became involved in a university led volunteering opportunity with a local primary school, where she provided literacy support to the children over several weeks. Following this opportunity, she travelled to Thailand to teach English as a foreign language and gained a TEFL accreditation.

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Natasha has always enjoyed working in roles which are focused on enabling people and businesses to thrive in the North.

Before joining Better Connect as CEO, Natasha worked at Relate Bradford & Leeds helping people to develop and sustain healthy relationships and improve their mental health and wellbeing. She has been an entrepreneur and COO of Wizu Workspace a flexible workspace provider supporting the growth of businesses in Bradford, Leeds and Sheffield.

Natasha completed an MBA at Leeds University in 2016, where she is now a leader in residence. She then went on to be Regional Entrepreneur Director for NatWest supporting and helping to coach hundreds of entrepreneurs in accelerators across the North to start, scale and succeed.  Natasha has both a banking and legal background.  She worked as a banking lawyer at Walker Morris following which she joined Regional Lloyds Bank team as the Regional Sales Director and Client Services Director.

Natasha was appointed as a board member and trustee in 2021 for Trust Leeds, she has been on LEP investment steering groups, she has recently been appointed as an independent panel member at AFC(H) and is completing a NED insights programme shadowing NHS boards.

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I was born in Heidelberg in Germany where I lived until the age of 25 before moving to Yorkshire with my family. I studied psychology, anatomy and physiology and initially worked with people of all ages with hearing loss and hearing difficulty.

Having worked in healthcare, private sector and the NHS for several years in various roles, I feel very privileged to learn about the voluntary sector and the lifechanging difference this makes for so many individuals and even more privileged to be a part of a warm, dedicated and enthusiastic team.