Jan was co-opted to the Board in February 2025, and brings with her expertise in financial and compliance, and a keen and growing interest and involvement in environmental justice.

My consciousness of what Steiner education can offer stems from one grandson attending Steiner schools. I’m particularly interested in how the ethos can be advanced to provide more inclusive, state-funded education and develop more young people who are inspired to promote social and ecological justice.

Recently retired, I’m relishing the opportunity to support the foundation and combine this role with studying again and other voluntary activities. Though my first love was biological sciences, (degree in microbiology & genetics and a master’s in food science at Leeds University in late 70’s), after starting a family, I switched paths and became a chartered accountant. This profession enabled me to grow and learn from over twenty years’ commercial exposure, holding senior Finance and IT positions with major corporates, (Grand Metropolitan, Harley-Davidson Europe and Tesla Motors Europe). Early retirement in 2005, gave me the prospect of exploring non-commercial roles, including being local School Governor, joining an NHS consultative panel and becoming financial advisor to a Kent based charity.

I returned to full time work when a wonderful opportunity arose to engage with CAFOD, an international development and humanitarian response charity I had supported from childhood. I joined them as advisor, Trustee and then for eight years as their Finance & IT Director, from 2012. Working with CAFOD taught me to discern how man-made environmental issues impact on those least able to cope and have degraded our natural world. We appreciated the importance of being open to new influences, as we sought to challenge and transform the structures and behaviours that drive poverty, vulnerability, inequality, injustice and exclusion, and harm the environment. This inspired me to start a degree in environmental studies on my retirement last year. I now spend most of my time in a converted granary in a small Cotswold village, where I’m working on becoming more environmentally responsible.

I hope that my varied career will give me the perspective to help, support, and guide the charity in the next phase of delivering on its strategic plan and fulfilling our mission in new and innovative ways.