Who We Are

Janette has a background in education and training, but has been involved in the voluntary and community sector in Sunderland for over 25 years. Janette has a wealth of experience in funding, organisational development and partnership working. Her background is in heritage, culture and well being developments across the city and the region.

Mary has worked in the voluntary and community sector in Sunderland for over 20 years. Mary worked for Sunderland CVS (before it was VCAS) for 9 years as funding support officer.

Sanjee is a qualified economist and economic development practitioner working in the North East for twenty years. She has an track record in developing and managing successful business support services.
Sanjee is strongly motivated by exploring fresh thinking and new approaches to understand persistent economic challenges.

Carl has been involved in the voluntary, community and social enterprise sectors for many years. He is VCAS's newest team member as Sector Support Officer. He has a wealth of VCS experience as a manager, consultant and director and has extensive experience as a trustee. Carl is a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute and his skills include business planning, fundraising, capacity building, training and mentoring.

Adaeze. R. Nnabuife is a creative marketing, communications, and data analytics professional supporting through digital content creation and community-focused storytelling. Passionate about social impact and digital engagement, she creates meaningful content that promotes volunteering, supports local communities, and highlights the impact of the voluntary sector across Sunderland.

Steve has worked across the voluntary and community sector in Sunderland for over 10 years. He started his work in the sector with the Sunderland BME Network and has been a strong advocate for representation across the city for those marginalised and under-represented communities. He has a background in training and organisational development.

Kate has recently graduated from Birmingham University. She comes from Sunderland and has been involved in the voluntary community sector from her early childhood.

Alan is a retired lecturer from Newcastle college. His background is in IT support. He has been an active community volunteer since his retirement

Kath is a creative, community-focused practitioner with a strong passion for heritage engagement, oral history and inclusive storytelling. As the founder of Banyan Arts CIC, she's led multi-phase, grant-funded programmes, co-produced exhibitions, and supported diverse communities to share their lived experiences.