Board of Trustees and Key Staff

Board of Trustees

Chair - Jane Edgerton

Jane has worked in the public sector for over thirty years including as a local authority advisor, a school improvement partner, a Non-Executive Director, and as a head, executive head and trust leader. Much of her career has focused on working with children and young adults who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and with those who are socially disadvantaged. Jane has her own business and is currently working nationally as an education consultant alongside her work as a school inspector.

Jane has been involved in the charity sector for a number of years. She is currently a trustee of three charities.  Jane is a trustee of Newlife, a national charity, which supports children with complex physical and medical needs.  Regionally, her work as a trustee also includes working with The Birmingham Royal Institute for the Blind, a charity for adults who have visual impairments and/or other special needs and vulnerabilities. This charity helps clients to access community services, health care and suitable housing. Jane became Vice Chair at Age Uk Birmingham and Sandwell in October 2025.

Vice Chair – Paul Todman

Paul is a qualified Chartered Accountant with more than twenty years’ experience in social housing, having held a range of finance roles spanning financial reporting, treasury, financial planning and management reporting. This includes four years with a charitable housing provider operating within a retirement community.

He joined the Board in 2024 and currently serves as Vice Chair and Chair of the Finance and Governance Committee. He has also previously served as a trustee of a small counselling charity, supporting individuals who would otherwise be unable to access such services. 

Trustee – Sophie Williams

Sophie has worked for over two decades in the higher education and charity sectors, in senior roles in Students' Unions. Throughout her career, she has also held roles in the public sector, as a Police Officer, a Neighbourhood Manager, and a Mental Health Lead, all in hyper-diverse communities in Birmingham.

Sophie has extensive experience in non-executive roles, having served as a local authority school governor, an Independent Director on the Board of the OIAHE (Officer for the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education), and she is currently Chair of the trustee board for a students' union in Birmingham. 

Sophie's mother spent a significant period in care with dementia and thus Sophie is determined to help ensure dignified lives for the people of Birmingham.

Trustee – Grace Hampson

Grace is now retired following a long career in the NHS, where she started as a management trainee and worked over many years at both front line and regional level in primary care, general hospitals, mental health and community services. Her last role was as Director of Commissioning for Worcestershire. She feels fortunate to have spent time in the USA on a Senior Health Management Development Programme at Harvard University and on a Mental Health Study Tour in New England and Illinois .

For the last five years of her working life she was a management consultant and project leader for various local authorities and health trusts in the West Midlands. Her last project was in developing an innovative service for people with dementia who required admission to acute hospitals for various physical conditions. This was developed at New Cross Hospital in Wolverhampton and rolled out to other hospitals in West Midlands.

Grace was previously a Trustee and Chair of Age UK in Coventry and Warwickshire and is very committed to improving the lives of older people.

In her spare time Grace enjoys playing golf, visiting art galleries, reading and is a member of Soroptimist International Solihull, which strives to improve the lives and status of women and girls.

Trustee – Rosie Harvey

Rosie has over 10 years experience in the charity sector with a background in volunteer management, governance, influencing and community engagement.

Completing an MSc in Voluntary Sector Management from the Centre for Charity Excellence, Rosie combines practical experience in the sector with academic knowledge.  

After years of working with boards within charities as a staff member, and volunteering with older people in the community, she is thrilled to have joined Age UK Birmingham in her first trustee role.

Trustee - David Sykes

David Sykes has a wealth of experience in both the public and private sectors and as a strategic marketing consultant for PWc. After 25 years in the private sector in senior commercial roles and as Managing Director for a £30M manufacturing business David established a consultancy business.

During his 15 years as an independent consultant he has undertaken commercial and commissioning assignments for 25 health and local authority clients including the Dept. of Health, regulators and commissioning organisations. Over the last few years these assignments have focused on health and social care integration.

David is a CEDR accredited mediator skilled in stakeholder management and contract negotiation. An accredited practitioner in managing successful programmes (MSP). A MBA graduate of Warwick University who now acts as a mentor to Executive MBA students.  5 years experience as a trustee & chair of trustees for Coram Life Education West Midlands.

Executive Team