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Daycare Trust Board of Trustees

Our Trustees are responsible for overseeing the organisation’s development. Daycare Trust is a vibrant and fast-changing national charity and the Trustees play an important role in developing and supporting its work. They meet four-five times a year at Daycare Trust’s offices.

We aim for our Board of Trustees to be representative of childcare’s many different stakeholders.

Our current trustees

Clem Henricson

Clem Henricson is a social policy analyst who has specialised in investigating the relationship between the state and the family. She was formerly Director of Research and Policy/ Deputy Chief Executive at the National Family and Parenting Institute where she edited the Institute's research and policy publications and led a multidisciplinary academic team of developmental and social psychologists, and comparative cultural and social policy analysts. She serves on international governmental and academic advisory committees concerned with family policy. 

Sue Martin

Sue is a consultant in children's services and community development and a director and partner of Smith Martin Partnership LLP, a consultancy organisation delivering a range of projects in regeneration areas. Sue qualified as a teacher, working throughout primary schools and became a headteacher in a rural school. She worked in childcare development, enabling many projects to be created with a special regard for children and families on the margins of society.

June O'Sullivan

June is currently the Chief Executive of London Early Years Foundation (LEYF) which is a registered charity that provides childcare services to families, agencies and employers in Westminster. Before working for LEYF, June spent 20 years working with children and families in various roles for the Education, Social Services and Health sectors. June is a qualified social worker and psychiatric nurse. She is very passionate about the services offered to children and their families and trains, researches and writes about its development and management.

Martin Pilgrim 

Treasurer of Daycare Trust's trustee board, Martin retired from the post of Chief Executive of London Councils (formerly the Association of London Government) in April 2007 after nearly 10 years in post. He worked in local government for 39 years. He is a member of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy. Martin's other appointments are: Chairman of the London Regional Council and England Council as well as Trustee of the Prince's Trust; Chair of the London Sustainability Exchange; and Director of Film London.

Kate Stephens

Vice-Chair of Daycare Trust's trustee board, Kate is currently a Director at MHP, one of the UK's leading public affairs and PR consultancies. She has direct responsibility for MHP's marketing and external profile, which includes everything from advertising to the website, promotional materials, events, sponsorship, awards and any specific new business initiatives. MHP is also part of the Engine Group, an independent group of 12 companies with expertise across the marketing and communications spectrum.

Maggie Darling - Chair

Chair of Daycare Trust's trustee board. Following a long and successful journalistic career, including as staff writer for the Glasgow Herald, Sunday Standard and Daily Record, Maggie undertook considerable charity work opening up 11 Downing Street to host events with small and medium sized charities during the time her husband was Chancellor of the Exchequer. As lead patron for Scottish charity Circle, which provides community based support to marginalised children and families, Maggie understands only too well the difference early intervention can make.

Ruth Thomson

Ruth is deputy editor of Nursery World, the market-leading, weekly magazine serving the early years sector. Her main responsibility is commissioning and editing the analysis and curriculum sections of the magazine. She is also involved in Nursery World exhibitions and conferences and has edited a range of the magazine's supplements, including Nursery Management. In her 13 years at the magazine, she has built up an in-depth knowledge of Government early years policy and has a particular interest in nursery education. She was previously a finance editor.

Karen Mackay

Karen is currently the Head of External Affairs for Busy Bees, the largest childcare provider in the UK. She has over 30 years experience in the public, private and voluntary sectors as a former Headteacher, Ofsted Inspector, Head of Service for a local authority, Director of a national charity and national early years lead for Together for Children. Karen also founded a publishing company producing dual language fiction books for children.

Carole Barnes

Carole is the Families Information Service Manager for Newcastle upon Tyne.  Carole joined Newcastle City Council in 1999 after working in the voluntary sector as a Playgroup Manager for five years.  Carole worked within a team developing out of school childcare as part of the national childcare strategy and, prior to her role as FIS Manager, managed the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership.

As FIS Manager, Carole strives to raise the profile of the service as the information hub for parents and carers for Children’s Services.  She has also been involved in Newcastle’s Integrated Youth Strategy and is committed to integrated working.  Newcastle was one of the first four authorities to achieve the NAFIS Families First Standards Award.

Tracy Wilson

Tracy is Group Operations Manager for Co-operative Employee Benefits, part of The Midcounties Co-operative Society based in Warwick.  She has been with the Society since March 2007, originally joining on a 9 month maternity cover contract to run the childcare vouchers part of Imagine Co-operative Childcare.  During this time the business has re-branded, increased headcount from 6 people to 16, reduced debt from £1m to zero, grown sales from £20m to £33m and expanded their range of benefits from one (childcare vouchers) to a comprehensive range of 7 co-operative benefits.  They have both public and private sector clients as well as a number of charities and not-for-profit organisations, varying in size from a couple of employees to a headcount exceeding 100,000.

Tracy’s background has always been in Sales and Business Development, most of her career having been spent as a Key Account Manager in the nuclear industry.  At AEA Technology she was involved in negotiating major contracts with MOD, International Atomic Energy Agency, British Nuclear Fuels etc and was influential in developing Environment Agency policy on the treatment of radioactive waste.

She has also spent time working with Super Camps, who operate children’s activity camps during school holidays.

Ryan Shorthouse

Ryan is a Researcher for the Social Market Foundation with expertise in social policy, including early years, education and welfare. He was previously a researcher for Rt Hon David Willetts MP, where he authored the Conservative Party's Childhood Review, and an adviser to the Shadow Minister for the Family, formulating Conservative party policy and managing media relations. Ryan is the Director of Bright Blue - a group campaigning for progressive policies from the Conservative Party - and is editor of The Progressive Conscience, Bright Blue's magazine. He was the Political Secretary of the Bow Group and writes regularly on social affairs for various national newspapers and magazines. He was educated at the University of Warwick.

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