Faces Behind HCC

Tell us about your background

My father was a soldier and met my mother when she was a refugee from the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974. They got married twice in one week, in England and in the refugee camp in Cyprus, and a year or so later I was born in Plymouth. We moved to Highgate, and I attended nursery at the United Reform Church in the village, the primary school at St Michael’s, and later, Highgate School. Throughout that time my parents worked there. They ran the tuck shop and clothing store. My father also ran the Cadet Force and was a bursar, and my mother ran the Sixth form centre. My younger brother attended the school too, so happily I grew up surrounded by my family every day. When I reached the senior school, my housemaster was Steve Radford, who, some 20 years later, became my connection to HCC.

What is your recollection of Highgate in the 70’s and 80’s when you studied here and what is it like for you to live here now?

My main recollections of Highgate from that time are centred around the friends I grew up with. Over time, almost all of them left Highgate, and while the buildings have stayed more or less the same, the familiar faces of my friends are no longer here. My closest friend was laid to rest at St Michael’s Church. So, although Highgate looks like home to me, what really ‘feels’ like home is being around my old friends and family, the people who I knew when I was growing up here. We lived at the top of Dyne House, a neo-brutalist 60s block on Southwood Lane. It was and probably still is the highest point in London. Incredible views. To the north, I remember the blue lights of the fire engines climbing the hill to meet the fire at Alexandra Palace. To the south, I remember the golden ribbonof the river snaking through the Docklands and watching Canary Wharf rise slowly from the ground. I am happy living here. But I have been happy living everywhere I have lived.

Tell us about your professional background

After Highgate School, I went to University of Kent to study English and Philosophy. Later I studied law at Westminster and took my Bar exams at the Inns of Court School of Law. Throughout my working life, my time has been spent between London and Birmingham. I have friends and family in both cities, and Birmingham is one of my favourite places. I currently work as a barrister in No5 Chambers in London and specialise in commercial disputes. I represent airlines, banks, insurers and some household name businesses and individuals in disputes here and abroad. It has been an unusually busy year and some of my cases have the propensity to change industry practice. I was appointed as an Examiner of the High Court earlier this year, which involves me dealing with evidence in foreign proceedings and mesothelioma claims in our courts. Before becoming a barrister, I worked as a solicitor in an international law firm, and before that I worked in a bank in the City of London. Prior to that I worked as a security guard and an installation engineer, installing and testing window cleaning equipment at the top of office blocks. I was paid danger money for that. I have to say looking back I am quite grateful to have the job I have now.

What attracted you to becoming a trustee, and recently a chairman at HCC?

As I mentioned earlier, it was the connection with Steve Radford. Steve reached out to me when I returned to Highgate and invited me to become a trustee. I was viewing a flat and the letting agent handed me a slip of paper with Steve’s number on it and asked me to call it. Quite how Steve managed to track me down I still do not know.

We spoke and I said that I would not do it unless I could see a counselling session. Of course, that was not possible, but I was invited to a supervision session of HCC’s trainees. Until then I really did not appreciate that every time a counsellor goes into a session with their client, they put themselves ‘on the line’. As I listened to the discussion between the trainees and their supervisor, I could not identify the priorities of the session, yet there was a unity between the observations of the supervisor and the trainees – they were all able to pick up something significant from what appeared to me to be ‘throwaway comment’. And to intervene in a serious situation. My respect for them rocketed and I vowed to invest my time to support them. As a result, I accepted the offer to become a trustee and have enjoyed the role ever since, whether helping with the move from Tetherdown to Highgate or more recently, the appointment of Natasha as Centre director.

What, in your opinion, is the role of Chair in an organisation like HCC?

For me, it is ensuring that HCC stays true to its core principles by providing counselling to those who cannot afford it otherwise. It is also about ensuring the survival and development of HCC, in particular, in the key areas of: (1) counselling; (2) training; and (3) fundraising (currently in the nascent stage of development), which will support (1) and (2). As chair, and mindful that I am surrounded by excellent trustees, my role is also about harnessing their expertise and experience, as well as their networks, and working with Natasha to ensure that HCC flourishes and the board discharges fully its obligations.

I also think back to the graduation ceremony in summer, where I spoke about Steve’s time as a chair at HCC. I spoke about the time the Centre’s future was in jeopardy due to difficult financial circumstances and identified the ‘Churchill in the garden’ moment, when, despite the likelihood of closure, which seemed inevitable, Steve rallied the board to keep the Centre alive. Steve and Lindsey used to come to the Centre early in the morning to switch on the heating, to prepare it for counselling and training, and then come back at night to switch it off to save money. Over time, under Steve’s guidance, and with the appointment of Lois Elliott as Centre director, HCC’s fortunes turned around and we survived. Steve was also instrumental in HCC’s recruitment, helping to bring in more trustees to strengthen our position, as well as Natasha, our excellent Centre director.

I take the lessons from the past, I am grateful to my predecessor, and I am mindful that I have a duty to build on all the hard work to date, to ensure the Centre survives and flourishes.

What do you enjoy most about your role at HCC?

The sense of community here, which really comes to life at events such as the recent picnic in Cherry Tree Wood or the graduation ceremony. I love talking to people whom I have not spoken to before and hearing their experiences of HCC and their appreciation for the community we have here. And any ideas on how we can improve.

I am also lucky to work alongside people who are the best at what they do. Natasha, as Centre director, and Kevin, as Training Manager, are world-class – it is awe-inspiring to be able to work with them. And that also goes for everyone I have met within the organisation; everyone really wants to make a positive difference. Before Natasha’s return to the Centre last month, we also had the brilliant guidance of our administrators Kate, Sara, Joanna, and Diana, to name but a few, who stepped in to keep Natasha’s direction of travel for the Centre. And it is heartening to see how dynamic we have become, how quickly we can put into action ideas, such as Lucie’s, to set up our advertising board outside. I would like to see HCC’s well-deserved reputation reach further.

What do you enjoy last?

I struggle to answer this, and will need to come back to you when I find something. Seven years in, I still very much feel like I am in a honeymoon period at HCC.

How do you relax and practice self-care?

I believe that the most important commodity we have is time. For me, it is a question of maximising the use of time and not wasting it. It is about doing things that matter. I also believe that while having a routine is useful, it is also good to break out of your comfort zone, and so I am more likely to say ‘yes’ to things than ‘no’. I have to say, I tend to remain relaxed even when under pressure with deadlines. I suppose that comes with the work I do. I am very aware of how far I can push myself before I take a break. It is a lot further than you may think.

First published in our internal newsletter, 2024