Our Team

Brett is the Chief Executive Officer at Get Berkshire Active and is responsible for the strategic and operational direction of the organisation. Before joining the RAF in 1987 as a Physical Education Officer, he completed a BEd (Hons) Degree in Physical Education, and whilst in the RAF completed an MSc at Loughborough and an MPhil at Birmingham. He retired as a Wing Commander in 2013 and joined GBA. Having always had a passion for physical activity, fitness and sport, he formerly took on the position of Chief Instructor in the RAF School of Physical Education. He also has a special interest in the psychology of Behaviour Change and Motivational Interviewing. Outside of work, he enjoys all things active, including walking his two rescue dogs.

Nick leads on areas of strategic development for GBA, developing new areas of work, through partnerships to address issues in the physical activity system. This remit looks across the broader definition of the county system but also considers specific parts of the system where changes could be made in order to benefit local people. Nick has over 20 years' experience in the Sport, Physical Activity and Economic Development worlds, bringing together expertise in tackling socio-economic issues with the power of physical activity as a solution. His passion for being active stems from always being active himself and experiencing the benefits of an active lifestyle, alongside seeing the impact when his activity levels have been limited. He is inspired by watching his children grow and develop the skills for life through their active lifestyles. Nick is an avid rugby coach and regularly draws on this experience within his work. When he is not on a rugby pitch, he can be found cycling, swimming, dog walking and generally mucking about outdoors! He holds a BA Honours Degree in Tourism with Recreation and Business Management.

Kirsty is the Strategic Lead for Ageing Well at Get Berkshire Active. She leads on the development of GBA's Ageing Well theme, aiming to create the conditions for a healthy and independent later life. She is also lead liaison for Berkshire West Local Authorities. With over 15 years' experience within the sports sector, she holds a BA (Hons) in Sport, Health and Exercise, as well as an MSc in Sports Injury. Her previous roles were in local authority and the NHS, before joining GBA at its inception is 2011. Her sense of purpose has come from personally discovering the benefits of physical activity and she enjoys helping others to access them. In her spare time, she takes part in netball, fitness classes and loves being outdoors.

Cathy is the Strategic Lead for Living Well at Get Berkshire Active. She takes a strategic lead on our work supporting adults to lead independent and fulfilled lives, develops new and existing partnerships with a wide range of stakeholders, as well as leading on the Pregnancy and Postnatal work. Having undertaken a Degree in Business and Sport at University, she was keen to work in sports development and has taken om many roles across a wide variety of organisations, including Reading University, Tottenham Hotspur Foundation and London Sport. She also joined the National Body of Swimming for 2 years and spent time in Singapore teaching. Having seen the huge benefits being active has brought to her family's life, especially mental wellbeing, she is passionate about helping others to reap the benefits. In her spare time she enjoys yoga, walking and running, as well as spending time outdoors with her children.

James is the Head of Starting Life Well at Get Berkshire Active. His role is to support partners in getting more young people active and enjoying the benefits that physical activity and sport can bring. Before he began working in the Sports Development sector, he was a Primary School Teacher and Sports Coach, which gave him the key skills to support and understand young people. In the Sports Development sector, he has previously worked in a local authority and a neighbouring Active Partnership, taking on roles centred around children and young people, safeguarding and inclusion. His passion for physical activity comes from his own positive experiences of taking part in football, athletics and any sport he has the opportunity to do.

Beth is the Marketing and Digital Communications Lead at Get Berkshire Active. She is responsible for raising the profile of our programmes and initiatives through multi-channel strategy, managing content, campaigns, assets and events to inspire activity across Berkshire. She graduated with a 1^st Class BA (Hons) in Journalism, as well as gaining a full gold standard NCTJ (National Council for Training of Journalists) accreditation, including qualifications in writing, design, editing, public affairs and media law. Having worked in various Marketing roles, including charity sector, education and tech, her passion is in understanding what motivates people and using creative marketing, design and comms to help improve the lives of others. She has a keen interest in all things fitness and sport, including strength training, netball, long dog walks and spectator sports such as football and F1.

Rachel is the Insight and MEL Lead at GBA. She is responsible for collating local and national insight on health and physical activity and helping GBA to understand priorities across Berkshire. She also oversees our measuring, evaluating and learning plans, ensuring we understand our impact and take a continuous learning approach. She completed a Sports Psychology and Coaching Sciences degree, working in data collection and research before joining England Hockey working with the junior teams. Rachel has always had an interest in understanding the motivations and barriers to physical activity and enjoys using data to understand people and local populations to help increase physical activity opportunities. Outside of work she enjoys dog walks, swimming and the occasional badminton game with her family!

Ryan is the Lead Officer for Workforce and Network Resilience. His role involves coordinating and delivering GBA Resilience Support to organisations around Berkshire as well as developing and implementing GBAs Workforce Plan. Originally from Zimbabwe, he moved to the UK when he was 15 and went on to complete a degree in Sport and Exercise Sciences, with a specific focus on Psychology. Prior to this role, he worked in Cricket Development, and is an ECB Coach Developer, mentoring and tutoring future coaches and an Advanced Coach (Level 3) in Cricket. His personal passion for sport has allowed him insight into the impact physical activity can have, and he specifically enjoys delivering sessions to help boost self esteem and enjoyment. Outside of his role, he plays cricket, golf, swimming, rugby and enjoys watching football.

Denise has been an Administration Officer at Get Berkshire Active since 2018. As an experienced administrator with a BA Hons in Business Studies, she previously held roles in private equity, financial PR and education. She uses her love for organisation to support the wider team. Alongside this, she is also currently studying for a bookkeeping qualification and in her spare time enjoys getting outside on walks with her dog, swimming, Pilates and skiing.

Claire is the Finance Director at Get Berkshire Active. She is responsible for all things financial, including payments, budget tracking and reporting to trustees. With a professional CIMA accounting qualification, her experience covers three decades within the industry and sports development sector. She also holds a PhD in Chemistry from Cambridge University. Outside of her role, she enjoys playing golf, going on walks, taking part in yoga, skiing and singing.

Donna is an Admin Officer at Get Berkshire Active. She provides office, admin and project support the team and enjoys organising and supporting across a variety of focus areas, helping to spread important awareness, and working together to enhance opportunities for Physical Activity that everyone in the community can benefit from. With a BA Hons in Media Arts and Broadcasting, she has held roles from project support, client management, marketing and communications roles in organisations including Media, I.T, Travel and Leisure before joining GBA in 2016. Her passion for using physical activity to positively enhance health and wellbeing led her to study areas of holistic health, including yoga and massage. In her spare time she enjoys yoga and being active with her family, exploring the great outdoors walking, cycling, or supporting her sons growing football passion around the county!

Kate is the Active Ageing Officer at Get Berkshire Active. She supports older and disabled adults through the delivery of fun seated exercise and wellbeing classes that are designed to improve strength, stamina, suppleness and skill to reduce the risk of falls and improve longevity. Plus, connecting them with likeminded people to reduce feelings of isolation and loneliness. Having built 18 years' worth of experience, multiple diplomas and qualifications, her passion is in seeing the joy and improved quality of life that regular movement can bring to individuals. Outside of work she stays active by taking her dog for long walks in the woods, swimming and leading her group exercise classes.

Sarah is the Early Years and Family Project Lead at Get Berkshire Active. She is involved in supporting small projects across Reading and Slough to help embed, educate and deliver activities to children and their families. She also supports services to do this, developing a working forum and additional training. Having spent 16 years working in the Early Years Sector her work has allowed her to extend professional development and obtain a Foundation Degree in Child Development. Over her career she has worked as a Nursery Nurse and Deputy Manager of a private day nursery, which gave her hands on experience to develop under 5s in a holistic, child focused approach. She has spent the past 10 years working within Children's Centres across Reading, engaging and supporting families as a whole. Outside of work she enjoys family bike rides, football in the park with her 5 year old and doing Junior Park run together. As a keen runner, her best achievement was completing an Ultra Marathon of 31 miles last year.

Maria is the Active Medicine Programme Support Officer at Get Berkshire Active. She is responsible for assisting the delivery of the Active Medicine Programme, which aims to upskill a wide range of health and social care workforces to have effective conversations with patients/clients to encourage physical activity, underpinned by behaviour change principles. Maria is currently a third year medical student at King's College London, with a great interest and passion in education and behavioural psychology. Outside of her role, she enjoys staying active by playing all types of sports, particularly football.

Callum is the Safeguarding and Welfare Officer for Get Berkshire Active. He works with sports clubs and National Governing Bodies (NGB'S) in Berkshire, ensuring they have robust Safeguarding and Welfare policies in place and those policies are implemented through practical, everyday actions. Callum has a Sport Science Degree from Brunel University and has spent the majority of his career in Sport and Physical activity for mental health, leading on physical activity projects at Mind and Rethink Mental Illness. He has also has previous experience of working at active partnerships with Active Surrey and Herts Sport and Physical activity Partnership. Sport and physical activity also shape Callum's personal life with CrossFit playing a key part of his physical and mental wellbeing. He is also an avid Watford FC fan, spending many weekends watching them up and down the country.

Bukunmi is the Programme Coordinator at Get Berkshire Active (GBA), supporting the organization's mission to implement Sport England's 'Uniting the Movement' strategy across Berkshire. He plays a crucial role in planning, coordinating, and delivering GBA's diverse range of programmes and initiatives. With a degree in Biomedical Science and experience as a personal trainer, Bukunmi brings a unique perspective to his role. His passion for sports has given him deep insights into the transformative impact of physical activity. Outside of his professional responsibilities, Bukunmi enjoys weightlifting, playing football, badminton, and boxing.