Allawee Albaghdadi Expand Allawee joined Acorn as a trustee in February 2020. Allawee is a real estate lawyer and partner at national law firm Shakespeare Martineau LLP based in their Milton Keynes office. Prior to that he headed up the real estate development team of a large regional law firm and has also spent time as global real estate counsel for both FTSE250 and Fortune 500 companies. He has over 15 years of experience advising on transactional and operational real estate. Allawee is also a trustee of a Milton Keynes based arts centre.
Carolyn Norfolk Expand Carolyn has been a trustee of Acorn since 2017, taking on the role of Vice Chair in 2022. As an ex-parent at Acorn, Carolyn has a detailed understanding of the social impact of Acorn's work. Carolyn is a Chartered Tax advisor and Partner at EY LLP with over 20 years of advising both corporate and charity clients, so brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise in matters of taxation to Acorn. Carolyn's experience advising entrepreneurial and charity clients has supported the Board of Trustees, CEO and Senior Leadership Team as the organisation has grown.
Damien Beedham Expand Damien joined Acorn in February 2020 as a parent trustee with a child at Stanwick nursery. He studied film at university and worked in TV and video for over a decade, before pivoting and beginning a career in Tax. He is now a qualified Chartered Tax Advisor specialising in Property and Real Estate.
Giles Chilton Expand Giles joins Acorn with vast experience in Project Management and a keen interest in analysis of social impact and the ability to co-generate value. Having gained a Bsc (Hons) in Engineering as well as a post-graduate certificate in Business Leadership, Giles has worked in the rail industry for 16 years, now leading complex railway operations IT projects.
Hema Kotecha-Clarke Expand Hema is a mother to two young children and two teenagers. She is a qualified teacher with a history of teaching children from nursery up to year 7 across local authority, independent and international settings. She has a doctorate in Educational and Child Psychology and has been working in this role for 16 years. Hema has experience working with children and young people with a range of needs, and her role involves supporting the successful cognitive, social, emotional, sensory, communication and physical development of children. In addition, Hema has experience in strategic development, training, research and supervision, with staff, parents, and other professionals. Having worked as a Local Authority and Independent Educational Psychologist, Hema has experience applying her knowledge, skills and experience in a range of contexts and systems, and she is enthusiastic about making a positive difference in the education, development and inclusion of all of the children at Acorn settings.
Katy Pillai Expand Katy joined Acorn Early Years as a trustee in early 2023. She has two young children who have both attended our nurseries and holiday clubs. Katy has a background in strategic finance, with 20 years experience of investing in, and advising companies across the UK and internationally. She has spent the last 10 years focused on companies with a positive Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) characteristics and in her 'day job' she invests in clean energy companies and projects. Katy has prior experience of working with social enterprises, particularly those supporting young people, and is passionate about supporting all children to access high-quality, affordable early years provision.
Laura Faulkner Expand Laura has been a Trustee member since March 2022. She is a current parent of a child at our Cold Harbour nursery. Laura has worked as a qualified teacher for nearly a decade and is currently employed at Paulerspury Primary School in a Year 5/6 class, in addition to leading Mathematics, Forest School and Music. Prior to this, Laura started her teaching career working in Didcot in Oxfordshire, which is where she gained her Level 3 Forest School Leader qualification. In addition to BA (Hons) Primary Education with QTS, Laura holds a PGC in Leading Mathematics (Specialist Mathematics Teacher), both from the University of Northampton.
Narendra Laljani Expand Narendra Laljani is a management educator, consultant, and CEO coach who specialises in strategic thinking, innovation, execution, the challenges of building market-focused organisations and leader development. Narendra has undertaken management development projects for a diverse range of clients and has consulted at board level with a large number of international organisations. Narendra studied economics followed by a postgraduate degree in management with a concentration on finance. He started his career with ICI and worked with the multinational for 15 years, in a range of general management roles in the UK, Belgium and India. He has a doctorate from Cranfield, was Dean of Graduate Studies at Ashridge Business School for five years, and is an Executive Fellow at Henley Business School and Professor of Practice in Strategy at Ashridge Executive Education. Narendra is the Chair of Acorn's Strategy & Impact Committee.
Professor Dr Eva Lloyd OBE - Chair of Trustees Expand Eva is professor of Early Childhood in the School of Education and Communities at the University of East London and Director of its International Centre for the Study of the Mixed Economy of Childcare (ICMEC), which she co-founded in 2007 with Professor Helen Penn. Her research and academic publications focus on national and international early education and childcare policies, particularly for disadvantaged children. She has held honorary positions at the University of Cambridge and the Queen’s University Belfast and in 2017 spent a semester as Visiting Professor at the University of Muenster, Germany. Eva has wide experience of providing expert policy advice to national and international government departments, and she has co-authored a range of government commissioned studies and evaluations.
Robert Prosser Expand Robert is the parent of two young boys and joined Acorn as a Trustee in February 2021. Robert is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales and a member of the British Computer Society. Robert brings to Acorn more than 25 years’ of industry experience in both finance and day to day operational management. Robert is the Chair of Acorn's Finance, Audit & Risk Committee.
Vanessa Freeman Gwynn Expand Joined the Board in February 2020 following a varied career of over 30 years in local government promoting employment growth (including provision of Early Years Services); lifelong learning; leisure and youth services; and the Safeguarding of children and young people irrespective of setting. At the point she retired Vanessa was the designated Director of Children’s Services for Milton Keynes. Vanessa holds an Honours degree and a Masters from the Open University, is a Fellow of the Chartered Governance Institute; a lifelong member of the Institute of Economic Development; and has held a variety of board positions both before her retirement and presently. Vanessa is the Chair of Acorn's Governance & HR Committee.