The Board of Trustees

Roger Francis worked as a Consultant Physician in General and Geriatric Medicine in Newcastle Hospitals from 1986 until 2011. He is now Emeritus Professor at the Institute for Cellular Medicine, Newcastle University, where he continues his research into vitamin D, musculoskeletal disease and falls in older people.

Professor Francis has served as a Trustee of the National Osteoporosis Society and was Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Paget’s Association from 2013-19. He was Editor-in-Chief of Age and Ageing from 2007 until February 2014 and was awarded the Dhole-Eddleston Prize from the British Geriatrics Society, in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the literature on the medical care of older people. He is also a Member of the Academic Advisory Board of International Longevity Centre UK (-UK).

As a recently appointed Trustee, he hopes his expertise in Geriatric Medicine and previous charity experience will benefit older people using services provided by Age UK Northumberland.

Richard joined the Board in April 2019. A Board and SMT experienced Finance professional with a long history of stakeholder management, setting of strategy and delivery at Corporate level. Richard has worked alongside some of the Regions largest businesses.

With broad business and leadership experience, Richard looks to offer Age UK (Northumberland) his Commercial acumen. He is particularly keen to see the Homecare service continue to be successful and knows first hand the excellent support that this brings to families looking after elderly and vulnerable people.

Alongside this role, Richard also works as the Chief Credit Officer at an LSE listed Property Fund, an Advisory Panel member to the Newcastle Business School and is a Board Member of a Mental Health Charity that leads on £30m care contracts with the NHS.

Antonia has been a Trustee since 2016. Antonia has 25 years experience in PR, social media, media relations and crisis management. She is a member of the CIPR and has run her own agency as well as held in house and senior agency positions in the region.  She is currently a freelance consultant offering a range of services to clients across the UK.

Antonia's heart lies in supporting charitable efforts, and throughout her career she has experience with the Age UK Northumberland brand and its promotion in the County. Antonia is also a regional director and ambassador for women in business, and has an enviable book of contacts who can in turn support the Charity's efforts.

Trish joined us in 2017. Originally from a dairy farming family in South West Scotland, she naturally obtained a degree in agriculture at Edinburgh University, before firstly becoming  involved in grain haulage in Northumberland, and then latterly, qualifying as a member of both the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants, and The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

She is currently director of a firm of accountants, where she helps the owners to overcome the multitude of problems which beset them on a daily basis. Her position also involves advising four different charities, so she is well versed in the ways of the Voluntary Sector.

Angus is originally from the North East with strong family connections to Morpeth and Northumberland. He has 25 years experience working in Financial Services. His main focus has been Risk Management, Compliance and running Business Process Outsourcing centres. During that time, he has been based in the UK, Australia, Japan, Singapore and Poland. 

Angus spent the last 4 years as Country Head of Credit Suisse in Poland, responsible for 5000 people providing a wide range of services including Finance, IT, Risk Management, Legal & Compliance for the bank.Angus returned to the North East in 2019 and has developed a portfolio of Consulting, Non Executive Director and Trustee roles as well as lecturing at Newcastle Business School. He is passionate about contributing to the region. Whilst living in Poland, Angus helped set up a Charity Foundation supporting a number of different charities and saw at close hand how much of a difference charitable work can make.  Angus recently joined as a Trustee  and is looking forward to supporting Age UK Northumberland improve the quality of older peoples lives.

Alison has over twenty years of HR leadership experience workingat a senior level across a diverse range of sectors, providing expert HR support with mergers, acquisitions and business growth plans.

She has experience and knowledge in supporting organisations develop impactful and commercially focused organisational design, talent development, work-force planning, succession planning, employee relations, training, leadership development, and performance management.

Commercially astute, Alison adds true value, coaching and upskilling to those around her. Having mentored many HR teams, providing them with the skills and knowledge to deliver confidently on strategic projects.

Alison specialises in the psychology of organisational change and has hands-on experience in leading complex transformation programmes. She is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), has a Post Graduate degree in HR Management and Organisational Development, and she is certified to use Myers-Briggs II.

Julie is a highly experienced Executive Director of Resources and Chief Finance Officer, latterly within local government but having also worked in private practice, industry, and a not-for-profit housing group.

As well as being a qualified chartered accountant, she is a specialist in transformational change, especially culture change; corporate governance; integrated planning and performance management; and cost reduction/efficiency programmes.

Having recently retired from Executive roles, she was keen to make effective use of her skills and experience in a Non-Executive capacity, joining the Age UK (Northumberland) Board in March 2024.

Claire is a dedicated, passionate and results-driven

of Trustees, sharing her expertise with the teams of Age UK Northumberland.