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Key People

Ann Donkin - CEO

In April 2023 Age UK Norfolk appointed an interim CEO - Ann Donkin. Ann originally hails from County Durham and is bringing to Age UK Norfolk a wealth of knowledge from her previous roles (both nationally and locally) as an NHS Chief Executive and Board Director and Local Authority Programme Director.

Ann is looking forward to working with our team of dedicated staff, volunteers and trustees to aid us in our mission to make Norfolk a great place to grow older.

Find out more about our mission

Meet our Age UK Norfolk Board of Trustees

  • Stephen Drake - Chair

    Stephen trained as a solicitor in London, qualifying in 1984. Today, Stephen is the non-exec director of a Cambridge based family owned company and Chair of Governors at a local school alongside his role as Chair at Age UK Norfolk.

  • Surjait Singh - Vice Chair

    Surjait has worked as a doctor in Norfolk for 26 years, the last 23 as a consultant Surgeon at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn.  Caring for a predominantly elderly population in West Norfolk has provided valuable insight into their specific needs.  He has been an advocate for the provision of accessible surgical services in rural areas.

  • David Stonehouse – Honorary Treasurer

    David has a long history of finance management across NHS and Care trusts, most recently as Interim Chief Financial Officer for Barnet, Enfield, and Haringey Mental Health Trust where he led the organisation during a key period to improve organisational sustainability.

  • Anni Hartley-Walder

    Anni brings experience from senior national roles in regulatory organisations delivering Quality Assurance, Audit, Inspection and Review in District Audit and The Audit Commission. As a Senior Civil Servant and lead government Gateway Reviewer, Anni has delivered policy and practice inspection and reviews in local government, health, education & Central Government.

  • Rachel Buxton

    Rachel has considerable experience in marketing, fundraising and events across a variety of sectors including local government, commercial and charitable. Over her career, Rachel has successfully marketed services and brands, raised much needed funds and organised hundreds of events. Rachel is passionate about using her experience to give back to Norfolk’s ageing population.

  • Meryl Smith

    Meryl spent 12 years working as a solicitor in Norfolk before joining a pharmaceutical company as Legal Counsel in 2022. Meryl was promoted to General Counsel in 2023. Meryl is an avid fundraiser, having taken part in a number of fundraising activities for good causes and has recently entered the ballot to run the next London marathon.

  • Caroline Barry

    Caroline works as a consultant in palliative medicine at the Norfolk and Norwich university hospital and is also clinical associate professor, a joint appointment with the University of East Anglia.  She also works in an advisory capacity for Norfolk and Waveney Integrated Care Board.  She provides insight into health care commissioning and the delivery of services for older people, particularly those approaching the end of life

  • Mark Barry

    Mark is a semi-retired consultant, after spending most of his career in senior information technology roles across a broad range of private sector companies, including, Aviva and Boots, where he was a member of the executive board.  In 2018, he brought his experience to the role of Director of IT at UEA, which he left in 2022 after leading the development of the digital strategy.  Living in North Norfolk, he has an ambition to support the needs of people living in rural communities.

  • David Evans

    David recently became a Trustee for St Nicholas Hospice in Suffolk. David is a Human Resource Professional, CIPD qualified, and obtained his degree from the Open University. David has been fortunate throughout his career to have worked alongside many talented people within the Commercial, Energy, and Financial Service sectors. David has had a ten-year spell working for UK Power Networks, and more recently Koch Supply and Trading Company Ltd, located in London.

  • Cherry West

    Cherry is a seasoned healthcare leader with over 37 years of experience, including 14 years as a Board Director in roles including Chief Operating Officer, Chief Transformation Officer and Improvement Director. She has led transformation, quality improvement, operational performance and organisation change across various NHS organisations. Passionate about accessible, high-quality care, she advocates for community-based services and technology integration. In addition to executive coaching, interim assignments and Trustee roles, Cherry serves as a lay member of the Royal College of Radiologists, and has degrees in Physiology, an MBA, and Executive Coaching.

Find out more about our senior management team.

Are you looking to give something back to our communities in Norfolk? 

Could you join our team as a Trustee and be part of our mission to make Norfolk a great place to grow older? Find out more about becoming a Trustee on our Volunteering Pages.