Jackie Driver - Chair
Jackie is Chair of Breakthrough UK. She was previously the secretary to the Board of Trustees of Manchester Deaf Centre. Jackie has been involved in developing local, regional, and national work to ensure D/deaf people get greater access to services and employment opportunities. She has recently joined DEAF, Deaf Education Advocacy Fellowship as a board member, an exciting emerging organisation whose vision is to help build self confidence in Deaf and disabled people's lives towards achieving their personal goals.
Jackie is Head of Good Relations at the Equality and Human Rights Commission. Her programme of work focuses on good relations and community cohesion. Current programmes include leading on the disability related harassment formal inquiry, 'Beyond Tolerance' - making sexual orientation a public matter, and adaptive conversations - balancing interests between equality strands. She also takes a practice lead in the Commission on sexual orientation, driving the agenda for delivering a comprehensive strategy around key priorities in LGB equality. She previously worked at the Disability Rights Commission heading up the Employment and Equalities strategy. Prior to this, Jackie worked within the Local Government sector heading up and delivering strategic equality policy work, housing and homelessness strategies.
She is a also a member of the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) Equality Advisory Board where she advises on specific issues relating to black and minority ethnic communities, disability, gender, religion and belief, sexuality and age. Jackie also works with the HCA to support the delivery of its vision for diversity and respond to current and emerging equality and diversity challenges.
Jackie says "I enjoy chairing such a dynamic and forward thinking organisation as Breakthrough UK. It is a true roots and branch disability led organisation focused on delivering long term attitudinal change, promoting inclusion and improving the life chances of disabled people well before it was popular or pc to do so. This grounded approach has enabled us to work at the forefront of delivering these changes, and take along many colleagues from across all sectors who have joined us in this drive for equality and human rights."
Lilian Barton - Board Member
Lilian is a recognised strategic and creative chartered marketer with over twenty years experience in all sectors.
In the past she worked for local and central goverment. She was the innovator and developer of the nationally recognised accessible information Factsonline project. She served as a board member for the UK Government's E-citizen project and was a member of a Department of Health reference group. Her projects have gained recognition as finalists at the national E-government Awards and Good Communication Awards. She is also an Associate Lecturer in Marketing at Manchester Metropolitan University Business School, a guest lecturer at Manchester University Business School, and a frequest speaker at conferences.
She started working life at Wimpey Construction as a material buyer working in London and Edinburgh before moving to Hong Kong where she worked for the government. She returned to work in the construction industry witnessing and contributing to major regeneration schemes within Greater Manchester. She has also worked for the Open University.
Dean Cavanagh - Deputy Chair, Treasurer and Company Secretary
Dean has worked in local government since leaving school. For a number of years Dean has been involved in disabled people's rights at work and has been heavily involved in developing a disabled people's network for his employer. More recently, Dean has moved into the area of access and inclusive design and is relishing the challenges that lie ahead.
Dean says "I am excited about the prospect of working with such an established and ground breaking organisation as Breakthrough UK as the work Breakthrough undertakes is very important in promoting disabled people's rights and independence within the workplace."
Councillor Basil Curley - Board Member
Basil is a Councillor for Charlestown ward in North Manchester as well as working as an employee of Manchester College. Basil is currently presiding as Chair of the Communities and Neighbourhoods Overview and Scrutiny Committee and is closely involved with Work Solutions, the Airport "Fencing" Committee, Arms Length Management Organisation and Northwards Housing (ALMO).
He is a champion of dignity and care and his main focus is on people who have mental health issues, giving help where it is needed and at the same time allowing personal respect in all the different circumstances individuals find themselves in. He strongly supports independence for all who want to exercise their rights to live their lives in a way that is compatible with how they see their futures going forward.
Previously, Basil has held the positions of Executive Member for Adult Social Care and Health and Housing. During his time as Executive Member for Housing he was involved in negotiations, many stock transfers to existing Housing associations as well as settnig up and chairing Eastlands Housing association, securing the agreement on setting up the Arms Length Management Organisation for North and East Manchester, Ardwick Private Finance Initiative, and the Market Renewal Fund. During his stewardship of Adult Social Care and Health, Basil organised a partnership of all the NHS Trusts in Manchester and the Primary Care Trust to investigate employment opportunities for local people.
Jackie Daniel - Board Member
Jackie was appointed as Chief Executive at Manchester Mental Health and Social Care trust in November 2008. A qualified nurse, with 30 years experience in the NHS, Jackie has been a National Health Service Chief Executive for the last ten years leading some of the most complex and challenging healthcare organisations. She has driven a number of significant change programmes including service reconfigurations, organisational merger, financial turnaround, and improving service performance and organisational reputation.
A Registered General Nurse who holds a BSc (Hons) in Nursing Studies and a MA in Quality Assurance in Health and Social Care, she is also a business and executive coach who believes in the improved performances that effective coaching and motivational techniques can bring.
Jackie regularly speaks at national conferences on subjects including leadership and change management, developing effective partnership working and engaging patients and the public in developing health services.
Angela Madeley - Board Member
Angela is the Board lead for Independent Living. She was an Executive Council Member with Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People (GMCDP) until March 2009 and has been involved in disabled people's organisations for many years. She has also worked as a Disability Action Trainer.
Angela says "It was as an Executive Council member of GMCDP, I first heard about and became involved with the concept of a company being created in Manchester in partnership with the City Council, controlled by a majority of disabled people and specialising in the employment and training of disabled people. Breakthrough UK is the very successful result of that idea."
Councillor Martin Pagel - Board Member
Martin is a councillor for the Cheetham Ward of Manchester City Council, which he has represented since 1990. He has held many positions of responsibility and currently sits on the Health and Well Being Overview and Scrutiny Committee. Martin is an active campaigner supporting the self-organisation of disabled people and is a committed community champion. He is an upaid carer, supporting older neighbours to live independently.
In his spare time Martin is a writer, avid reader, and dedicated supporter of Manchester City FC.
Kirit Patel - Board Member
Kirit is the Race Equality Programme Co-ordinator for Oxfam. He is responsible for a programme of work tackling race inequality and poverty in partnership with a range of ethnic minority community organisations, mainly in the north of England.
Joan Rutherford - Board Member
Joan is a chartered town planner and has worked in the West Indies, Sheffield, Salford and Manchester. Joan recently retired from Manchester City Council where she managed the Council's Access Team and, among other things, co-authored Design for Access 2, the Council's manual of inclusive design standards.
Joan is a member of the Town Planning Institute and of the Urban Design Group. She is a Board Member of Manchester Disabled People's Access Group and the Vice-Chair of Manchester Women's Design Group (MWDG). MWDG recently won the 'Women and Environment' award from Manchester City Council.
Joan says "It was when working for Manchester City Council that I first heard about Breakthrough UK and the vital work it does to promote disabled people's right to employment and to support disabled people into employment. This work has never been more important than in the present economic climate and I look forward to working with Breakthrough UK to support disabled people to play a full, economically active role in society".
Anne Tober - Board Member
Anne has worked for twenty years for Trafford Council of which the last ten years were spent working on Disability Equality and Diversity issues. Anne steered the initial involvement of disabled residents within the Council, understanding the importance of meaningful and ongoing involvement of disabled people which resulted in the setting up of the Council's first disability focus groups. Another area of work that Anne recognised was of great importance was building up trusted working relationships with colleagues from local disabled people's user-lead organisations which has resulted in excellent working relationships with Trafford Council for Breakthrough UK and Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People with the ongoing development of the Manchester Area Partnership Right to Control Trailblazer and Trafford's CIL. Her role within the Council also involved advocacy and mediating work with disabled colleagues within the Council. Sorry to have now left the local authority as a result of cutbacks, she decided that if she could no longer work on disability 'within' the local authority then she would work 'without'... so Anne is delighted to be on Breakthrough UK's Board at the heart of the disability agenda.
Clair Wilson - Board Member
Clair is a resourcing/recruitment specialist and has recruited across 13 European countries and Australia from volume operations staff in private sector contact centres up to Chief Executive level in the public and third sectors. She has worked in recruitment consultancy since 1995 for a number of the top global recruitment brands and in HR in Australia for a well known business services firm.
She is now self-employed and is director of a resourcing improvement consultancy, BRL (Better Resourcing Ltd), advising private, public, and third sector organisations on how to attract and recuit the right talent to ensure sustainable organisational success. Clair helps clients enhance their own recruitment capabilities and reduce spend and reliance on third parties. She is presently working in Singapore.
Clair holds a BA (Hons) in Business Management and a PGDip in HR Management and is a Gratuate Member of the CIPD.
Clair says "I am extremely proud to be supporting the team as a board member, the skills and commitment of the individuals I have met so far have pretty much astounded me. I will learn an immense amount, intellectually and within an environment from which the government can seek assurance is leading the disability field with practical recruitment, training, advocacy and legislation advice. Consulting Breakthrough should be a matter of course for any organisation focused on best practice employee engagement and development".
