I am delighted to join Le Chéile Mentoring as its Chief Executive Officer. When I first came across Le Chéile Mentoring, I was impressed by the scope and impact of its work. In my previous role, I saw firsthand how highly regarded Le Chéile Mentoring is within the youth justice sector, and I knew this was an organisation I wanted to be part of.

My career has always been focused on improving outcomes for children, young people and families. I started out in the non-profit sector, working with housing, drug and alcohol services, before moving into senior leadership roles in local government in London. For more than a decade, I specialised in bringing agencies together across health, social care and youth services, always with the aim of creating integrated and sustainable support. After moving to Dublin in 2021, I joined Youth Advocate Programmes (YAP) Ireland as Director of Services, leading intensive, strengths-based support for hundreds of young people and families each year.

What has driven me throughout is a passion for collaboration, empowerment, and making sure the voices of children and young people are heard. I believe that change is most powerful when it is built with people, not for them. That’s what drew me to Le Chéile’s mentoring, restorative justice and family support work. It is grounded in partnership and in giving young people and families the chance to build lasting change in their lives.

I have been warmly welcomed by the team, and I am excited to get started. Over the coming year, I want to strengthen our partnerships across the sector, explore new opportunities for collaboration, and ensure Le Chéile Mentoring continues to be recognised as a leader in youth and parent mentoring and restorative justice in Ireland. Most importantly, I want to keep young people and families at the centre of everything we do.

I look forward to meeting many of you in the weeks and months ahead, and to working together to build on the strong foundations already in place at Le Chéile.