Board

Becs Barker

Chair

Becs has a passion for promoting fairness for all. She started her working life as a volunteer and then as a play-leader at Thames Valley Adventure Playground for disabled children. After completing training as a nurse, a move to Scotland in 2004 saw a change in direction and Becs spent the next few years managing and facilitating peer support with Neighbourhood Networks. It was here that Becs first learnt about Self-Directed Support and the possibilities of the ‘SDS dream’.

In 2013 Becs chanced upon her own dream job - as a Manager for Argyll & Bute’s independent SDS project, Carr Gomm’s Community Contacts. She has since further developed Community Contacts to cover Highland. Now, along with offering senior management to Community Contacts, she leads on participation, involvement and innovation with Carr Gomm.

Becs contributes her skills and experience in the national policy space, chairing the review of the SDS Standards throughout 2023-24, joining the Expert Legislative Advisory Group for the National Care Service, and is a member of the Personal Assistant Programme Board and National SDS Collaboration. In her role at Carr Gomm Becs also gave evidence to the Scottish parliament's Health, Social Care and Sport committee's post-legislative review of the SDS Act.

In her spare time, Becs is also a trustee of another charitable organisation; she enjoys gardening and yoga.

Joanne McGee

Treasurer

Joanne has dedicated 30 years to working in the third sector and voluntary organisations. Her career began as an Employability Advisor, where she helped long-term unemployed and disabled individuals find stable employment, training, and education.

Over the years, she held roles at a Money Advice Centre and a Carers' Centre, eventually joining Glasgow Centre for Inclusive Living (GCIL)’s satellite office at Take Control East Dunbartonshire. Starting as an advisor, Joanne drew on her personal experience as a carer to connect with clients and support the team. She was later promoted to Team Coordinator.

Now, as the Policy and Participation Lead at GCIL, Joanne is committed to amplifying the voices of disabled people. This role focuses on creating opportunities for disabled individuals to share their experiences and influence GCIL’s policy, advocacy, and campaigns. She is a passionate campaigner for social justice and human rights for disabled people and collaborates with partners to co-design impactful campaigns and work to create real change.

Laura Hendry

Laura currently works for a local Health and Social Care partnership as a Strategic Development Officer for Self-Directed Support. Laura previously worked for an SDS support service, Cornerstone SDS, from 2015, managing the service from 2020 to 2024. Whilst at Cornerstone SDS, they were able to support more than 1000 clients through all services (Direct Payment support, Individual Service Fund support, Direct Payment payroll and Support in the Right Direction).

This has given Laura a unique insight into how SDS works in practice and what the potential pitfalls are with the current roll out of the legislation. Laura has a sound working knowledge of SDS and how it is practically implemented. She has a passion for SDS and ensuring that it is implemented fairly across the country and does not result in a postcode lottery of what support is offered where.

Laura is keen to help shape the future of Self-directed Support and ensure that everyone is getting an equitable level of support from their local authority with regards to SDS.

Tressa Burke

Tressa is a lifelong campaigner for disabled people’s human rights, devoting her career to promoting participation and inclusion for all. She was a founder member of Glasgow Disability Alliance in 2001, and five years later, was appointed CEO. She has taken the organisation from strength to strength over the past two decades, remaining true to the initial vision of combating social isolation and focusing above all, on developing and drawing on disabled people’s own strengths.

As a disabled person herself, Tressa has a particular interest in the cumulative impact of discrimination, and has led GDA to create safe and inclusive spaces for all, with networks dedicated to rights and needs of disabled people of colour, disabled women, and LGBT disabled people, as well as support tailored for every stage of people’s lives.

Tressa lends her experience and expertise to a variety of other organisations including Glasgow City and Scottish Government across a range of areas, embedding disabled people’s voices, priorities and direct participation in policy development and service design. She is a member of the First Minister’s National Advisory Council for Women and Girls, the National Care Service Programme Board and the Disability and Carers’ Benefits Expert Advisory Group.

Tressa has an MA (Hons) in Music and Philosophy and a Masters in Social Work from the University of Glasgow, specialising in community development. She was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Open University in June 2022 in recognition of her commitment to public services including her contribution as a campaigner for equality and human rights.

Anne-Marie Monaghan

Anne-Marie is an experienced board member and is currently the Chair of the Board for the Independent Living Fund Scotland (ILF).

Anne-Marie currently sits on the Glasgow City Integration Joint Board (GIJB) and is a former Non-Executive Director of GGCNHS Board and former chair of East Renfrewshire Integration Joint Board (ERIJB).

As a Trustee with SDSS, Anne-Marie brings a wide experience of both strategic and operational work, having worked for over 40 years in community work and social work. She has held senior positions in a local authority, working in operations, commissioning and as a head of service. She also led the first Scottish Government self-directed support Test Site and has been involved in SDS from the outset.

Anne-Marie lives with a disability and has an individual budget that she uses for her support.

Michael Greaves Mackintosh

Michael is an experienced Board Member, mainly in the third sector, but also on national bodies. With the same goal in mind, Michael is on a mission to make sure everyone has the correct support that works for them.

As well as being neurodivergent Michael lives with a physical disability, and also has an SDS support package.

In his spare time, Michael enjoys writing, music and travelling.

Lyn Pornaro

Lyn is CEO of Disability Equality Scotland (DES). She was worked with disabled people since 2015 when she joined Self Directed Support Scotland as Interim Manager. She then worked with Lothian Centre for Inclusive Living before joining DES late 2022.

Her work started within the voluntary grant giving sector including supporting the establishment of the ADAPT Trust in 1990 which helped improve access for disabled people to arts premises over the UK. She has worked in homelessness, disability, education and social care sectors over the years. She has also worked with local authorities and commercial organisations.

As a disabled woman, with two disabled children, she has fought against the barriers for many years and continues to do so in her personal life, her employment and within other voluntary organisations that she is a Trustee for.

Lyn shares her own lived experience, and advocates for the voices of disabled people with Scottish Government, Transport Scotland, local authorities across a number of policy areas. She strives to bring positive, practical solutions to challenges and is a strong advocate of the Independent Living Movement, a human rights approach and fairness for all.

Pandora Summerfield

Pandora has been a paid employee in the voluntary sector in Scotland for some 30 years. During that time she has been a Board member and Trustee on various occasions for varying types of organisations - community transport, childcare and learning disabilities.

Pandora has worked with Disabled Persons Housing Service Fife (DPHS) since 2019, initially on a consultancy basis and subsequently as the CEO. They have delivered SDS services since 2017.

Prior to DPHS during her 11 years as CEO of Down’s Syndrome Scotland, Pandora was also on the board of the Scottish Consortium for Learning Disability – latterly as the Vice Chair. This involved supporting the CEO and leading the organisation through some major pieces of work, such as constitutional review and re-organisation.

Before DSS, Pandora led a CVS, supporting and developing membership organisations.

In her personal life, Pandora and her wife have been foster mums for the last 12 years and recently became grandparents to the baby of one of their original foster children.