Our Board of Trustees
What About The Children? Trustees are a group of volunteers from all walks of life who have come together to campaign on behalf of children too young to speak out for themselves. The Trustees all have a shared interest in the emotional wellbeing of babies and young children and the importance of their emotional wellbeing for future mental and physical health
The Board of Trustees sets the strategic direction of the charity. What About The Children? is a small charity and the Trustees also undertake the majority of the work and activities of the organisation, with some additional contributions from supporters and others with the technical or professional skills needed for particular projects.
Cath Armstrong
I was fortunate to attend the Froebel Institute to train as a nursery/ primary school teacher. It was the start of a lifelong interest in early childhood development. I taught in mainstream schools and special needs in both the UK and Republic of Ireland. I also worked for the Pre School Playgroup Association (PPA) and the sister association in Ireland ( IPPA) on National and Regional committees and as an adult trainer. As the Training Manager of the National Association of Toy and Leisure Libraries I developed training for both parents and practitioners based on understanding the importance of early childhood relationships and the value of play. Becoming a Trustee of What About The Children? is another link in a lifetime passion.
Dr Liz Bland
I am interested in how the baby's brain grows, and how it is negatively affected by chemicals in the environment or stress from life around the baby. I have lived in Denmark and Ireland in the early 1980’s and this led me to see the different approaches of women and nations to work and childcare balance. I believe that many areas of research have been described which may change our behaviour in the future. We need to inform ourselves of the up-to-date work which is now at our finger-tips.
My background is in Biochemistry and Genetics, both subjects which help me to understand the current literature on what is happening to the children's brains and how negative effects can be carried on into teens and adulthood as well as to the following generation.
Libby Caulfield
From my earliest days as a newly-qualified, early years teacher, my interest in children’s early development grew. Those years in practice showed me that strong early attachments, plenty of love and access to open ended play were vital elements, that together, made for happy children.
When I had my own family, I left teaching and set up as a consultant, working with schools, nurseries and local authorities in early years and special educational needs. I also delivered training both as a university lecturer and through ‘on-the-job’ development networks for professionals working with young children.
I now work across the country with children’s services teams, supporting the most vulnerable children in society. I support teams to intervene as early as possible to promote better outcomes, and to shift demand from the acute end of services to prevention.
My own two young girls continue to teach me more about early child development, and love, than I ever could have imagined.
Tony Joint F C C A
As a father of six and Grandfather of two, life’s experiences have brought me joy and when given the opportunity to help forward the goals of the charity I did not hesitate.
A qualified accountant, having qualified in 1975, assists me in the control of the finances of the charity.
I have worked in many industries and also in Africa (for over 9 years). I bring a broad experience of life in different continents having travelled widely during my careers as both Financial and Managing Directors.
In 2021 I remain a director of Hattersley Aladdin Limited, Keighley and managing director of Aladdin Sales and Marketing Limited in Shipston on Stour.
I have filled my retirement helping several charities including What About The Children?, Rotary, Shipston Youth Club and Shipston Health and Wellbeing Partnership.
Lydia Keyte
Lydia has over 30 of experience working in education in London including 10 years of Headship. Her initial teaching qualification and experience is in the field of Special Educational Needs and Early Years, during her teaching career she studied for a Master’s Degree. As a primary school Headteacher she represented primary schools on various consultative groups including, Early Years and Childcare Partnership, Home Start Steering Group and more recently was an independent Education Consultant. Since retiring from her full time teaching career Lydia has been a volunteer at Michael Sobell House Hospice, is a steward at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle welcoming visitors from across the world. In her local community she is a ‘volunteer driver’ taking local elderly residents to their medical appointments and hosts ‘story sessions’ for under 5s at her local libraries.
Jane Reddish
I am a mother of three and grandmother of ten. Before having children, I worked in the fashion world, and during the children’s early years was a fund-raising volunteer with a children’s charity and arts organizations; took a degree with the Open University and became a volunteer guide in a museum, a position I continue to enjoy.
I joined What About The Children after reading a letter in the press from one of its founder members, which echoed my thoughts that, while the new and understandable demands of women were being recognized and encouraged, the never-changing needs of the under-threes were being totally over-looked. For the sake of the children and for the future of society, I believe we need to look at the situation dispassionately and together work out how best to solve this dichotomy.
Dr Linda Wood
Linda studied medicine at Liverpool University. She has a portfolio career which includes General Practice, Forensic Medical Examiner and Associate Specialist in Contraception & Sexual Health. She has two daughters and four grandchildren, when her daughters were young her main role was as a mother at home but during this time she volunteered with the Pre-School Playgroup Association where she learnt the value of learning through play. Later when her daughters were teenagers she studied for a Masters in Philosophy & Health Care Ethics. She is concerned that the emotional needs of young children are not at the forefront of society today.
Dr Carole Ulanowsky
Carole describes her life as one ‘teeming with children’ and that’s how she likes it! From a large family herself, she married and raised four children – for some years as a single parent, following early widowhood. When her children were young, Carole worked as an Ante-natal teacher and ‘Education for Parenthood’ Coordinator for The National Childbirth Trust - at the same time as building on her academic qualifications. It was her observation of women’s changing role perceptions during those years which formulated her later doctoral research. Children’s concerns were at the forefront of Carole’s interest through 30 years of teaching and research in Higher Education, and now through involvement with What About The Children? Her work with the Science and Research Group convinces her ever more strongly of the critical importance of the first three years for establishing lifelong emotional wellbeing in our little ones. Carole speaks at conferences and on broadcast media and continues to write for publication. Most recently, her chapter: Let’s Begin at the Beginning was published by Routledge in ‘Communication for the Early Years’ (2019). In a practical way, Carole supports young mums who have experienced trauma, neglect, and abuse in their early lives, in the hope of trying to break a cycle of deprivation, towards better futures for their children.