VAEL’s Chief Executive Officer is Judith Mercer. She is responsible for the overall management and development of the CVS services across East Lindsey. This includes maintaining strategic partnerships, developing new services, and supporting the growth of the community and voluntary sector in the district.

It is also her role to ensure that the voluntary sector works in partnership with East Lindsey District Council and Lincolnshire County Council to build the infrastructure and be fully supportive and active in the work that supports the county plan and to actively encourage community participation, as well as providing a voice for the communities of East Lindsey.

Marian Raven is our new Volunteer Centre Outreach Officer, covering the areas around Spilsby, Skegness, Chapel St Leonards and Ingoldmells.

In addition to her work with VAEL, she is very active in her local community in Spilsby, where her family runs a high street business.

marianr@vael.org.uk

Suzanne Cole is our Senior Community Outreach Officer. Suzanne’s career background has been in community development. As well as advising and supporting groups in gaining funding, she is experienced in assessing grant application forms and in awarding funding to community and voluntary organisations in East Lindsey. Suzanne has also worked on various projects including the very successful 'No Ur Rites' project in Staffordshire.

In addition to helping groups source funding and providing support in writing grant applications, Suzanne is able to give advice and support in all elements of group development, including constitutions, policies, business plans and community consultation.

Suzanne is also VAEL's External Deputy CEO

suzannec@vael.org.uk

VAEL’s Publicity & Marketing Officer is Tony Beal. He is responsible for producing the information and publicity materials which promote and communicate the organisation’s functions & services across the district. He is also available to help small, developing groups with their publishing needs.

Tony has many years’ experience of the voluntary sector, having worked for CVSs and Volunteer Bureaux in Gainsborough, Market Rasen, Louth and Mablethorpe since 1995. He is still a volunteer with various animal rescue and wildlife charities. Tony is also VAEL's Internal Deputy CEO

tonyb@vael.org.uk

Matt Hopkins is the Information Communications Technology (ICT) Development Worker. A former BT technician, Matt has spent the majority of his career in numerous communications/IT-related appointments in the Armed Forces, picking up Training and Project Management qualifications along the way.

Matt’s role is to develop IT services that add value to groups across Lincolnshire. He is looking forward to finding out about your needs.
mathewh@vael.org.uk

Michael Collins is our Volunteer Centre Officer, presently working around most of the towns in East Lindsey. Michael’s background is in both the private and public sectors, having trained as a Manager with J. Sainsbury plc and as a primary school teacher through Bishop Grosseteste College, as well as working in a small family business in Mablethorpe. His main role at VAEL is to promote volunteering and to recruit new volunteers across the district.

He is a true Yellowbelly and has lived nearly all his life in Mablethorpe. He is an active member of a local Church and is Vice-Captain of his local Golf Club at Sandilands.
michaelc@vael.org.uk

Megan Mercer is presently our Office Manager. Her role is to support the staff of VAEL, and of other voluntary organisations, in all administration tasks. She has also been responsible for data-inputting and record-keeping.

Megan comes to us from the private sector, and is customer-service trained. Her experience in the voluntary sector has been in organising events for voluntary groups and in supporting self-advocacy for adults with learning difficulties.

Ken Syrett is our Training Officer and he is responsible for the delivery and co-ordination of all training at Voluntary Action East Lindsey. In previous incarnations Ken was a Head of ICT at several local schools. He has also spent time working in the voluntary sector as an ICT tutor trainer at Teacher Training Colleges in Tanzania.

Ken is keen to develop training across the sector and to provide courses that all people can access anywhere in the East Lindsey Area.

Kasia Pisarska is our Neighbourhood Management/Community Development Officer.  She is working alongside the Neighbourhood Management team along the coast to improve how the resident’s voice is heard, as well as with community groups across the district within her community development capacity. Kasia’s background is in a variety of sectors, having gained experience of the voluntary sector from community projects such as ‘Get Into Reading’ in Merseyside and ‘Recycle, Now’ in Lancaster. She is currently running a small family business and volunteers with various local neighbourhood and wildlife charities.

kasiap@vael.org.uk