Meet the Team

Abby is DCA’s management lead in volunteering, safeguarding, community resilience, training, and growing organisations.  She oversees all volunteer centre and volunteering support services. Providing leadership and representing community interests into various thematic partnerships in County Durham and the region including safeguarding partnership boards (Children’s & Adults) and convenes VCS Safeguarding network.

Allison supports the work of DCA through the signposting of initial enquiries, dealing with bookings for events and training and ensuring all our contact data is regularly updated.  She supports organisations to access and promote their volunteering opportunities on the County Durham Volunteering Platform and to participate in all of the VCS networks that DCA facilitates.

Cathryn joined Durham Community Action to set up County Durham’s first Poverty Truth Commission and is the primary contact for this work. The Poverty Truth Commission aims to amplify the voices of local people experiencing poverty and create direct connections with decision makers and people in positions of power in County Durham, leading to practical changes and solutions to some of those challenges.

Charlotte provides specialist knowledge on volunteering management and good practice in working with volunteers. Charlotte delivers training, develops guides and videos on accessing advice from DCA on volunteering and supports and facilitates regular meetings of the County Durham Volunteer Coordinators Forum. She also ensures that quality is embedded in DCA’s Volunteer Centre service.

Craig provides a primary contact point for a broad range of community services, including practical help, support, advice, and training, for small front-line VCS organisations, social enterprises, informal volunteer-led groups, and volunteers in County Durham. He develops and supports networks, and generates and provides expertise and opportunities for training, start-up and operational development.

Fiona is DCA’s management lead in community spaces support services., She oversees support needs for organisations including Hallmark assessments and capacity building within warm spaces. Providing  leadership and representing community interests into various thematic partnerships in County Durham and the region including climate change and the environment, poverty and cost of living and funding support.

Helen provides a specialism within DCA in promotion and communications for information from DCA and on behalf of partners to VCS organisations. She plans and delivers events and forums and ensures that DCA’s website and social media is regularly updated sharing news from across the VCS.  She also takes a lead around DCA’s IT and data collection.

Isla provides a primary contact point for a broad range of community services, including practical help, support, advice, and training, for small front-line VCS organisations, social enterprises, informal volunteer-led groups, and volunteers in County Durham. She holds a specialism in support of community spaces in advice around the environment and climate change. 

Julie is the project worker for the first County Durham Poverty Truth Commission. She supports people with direct experience of poverty to collaborate with those in positions of power in County Durham in order to make better decisions about tackling poverty.

Kate leads the team at DCA working closely with our Trustees and partners to ensure informed delivery across the full range of our services.  Kate brings valuable insight from a national, regional, and local perspective through Participation in partnership boards and networks.  She holds the role of Chair with Advice in County Durham and works with senior managers of VCS organisations in County Durham through the Better Together Forum.

Katie supports DCA communications, particularly social media, and ensures that updates and messaging around themes or awareness raising are shared across our networks.  She also supports our external events working with partners to ensure these run smoothly and offers her expertise in podcasting and interviewing staff and volunteers about their involvement in VCS organisations.

Lyndsey provides a primary contact point for a broad range of community services, including practical help, support, advice, and training, for small front-line VCS organisations, social enterprises, informal volunteer-led groups, and volunteers in County Durham. She provides expertise by developing and supporting a Community Growing and Food Network forum.

Nicole is DCA’s management lead in health and wellbeing outreach services.  She oversees all DCA’s work with regional and national health and wellbeing and also digital inclusion services. Providing leadership and representing community interests into various thematic partnerships in County Durham and the region including health and wellbeing, digital inclusion, integrated health, and social care.

Rio is our Community Involvement Lead for the Health Determinants Research Development (HDRD) project. This partnership project with Durham County Council and Durham University aims to harness the power of research and innovation to tackle the causes of unfair differences in health outcomes across County Durham.  

Susan provides a specialism around health and wellbeing with a focus on voluntary and community sector involvement linking health professionals into DCA and the wider sector’s work. She looks for the opportunity to provide a greater understanding on both sides and leads on a range of projects that support health and wellbeing within County Durham.  

Susan provides a specialism around health and wellbeing with a focus on voluntary and community sector involvement linking health professionals into DCA and the wider sector’s work.  She looks for the opportunity to provide a greater understanding on both sides and facilitates a regular Social Prescribing and Link Workers network with regular themed meetings and involves relevant speakers.

Susan is our Rural Housing Enabler working in villages and smaller settlements to boost the supply of affordable rural housing. She also provides a primary contact point for a broad range of community services, including practical help, support, advice, and training, for small front-line VCS organisations, social enterprises, informal volunteer-led groups, and volunteers in County Durham. She holds a specialism in support of community-led housing and coordinates the Cree Network.

Tara develops and delivers DCA’s Community Development Workshops through a regular timetable aimed at voluntary and community sector organisations.  She also works with staff, volunteers,  trustees and a range of partners to provide bespoke training to meet their needs, ensure awareness of responsibilities and support the development of organisations and initiatives.

Tracy provides a primary contact point for a broad range of community services, including practical help, support, advice, and training, for small front-line VCS organisations, social enterprises, informal volunteer-led groups, and volunteers in County Durham. She provides expertise through her support of community spaces including funding and governance advice.