Meet the management committee
Sara Barna
Chair of Management Committee
Sara has been with BWR since it started in 2015 and her main role is co-ordinating the monthly social group. She is also involved in other things such as the BWR induction training for volunteers and she has worked as a befriender and in resettlement support.
Alice Herve
Language Support Coordinator
Alice joined BWR as a teacher in 2016 and became a committee member in 2017, taking on the role of language support coordinator. She leads an amazing team of volunteer teachers and is part of the 10-strong Education team who liaise with schools and FE and HE outlets.
Linda Walz
Donations Coordinator
Linda has been involved with BWR since the initial meetings in a pub in 2015. The donations team prepares houses for families, managing kind offers of furniture. She is also a member of the community sponsorship core team and Rose Cottage social group.
Amanda Stone
Fundraising Coordinator
Amanda has been involved with BWR since its early days. She has been involved with various aspects of BWR during this time, but organising fundraising events was where she started off and it is still one of her favourite roles. She is also a befriender and Rose Cottage volunteer.
Lesley Bowes
Donations Coordinator
Lesley has run the donations team with Linda since 2015. Her main role is collecting the larger donations, storing them and preparing homes for new families to arrive. She also works and liaises with the DIY and gardening teams.
Rosie Brown
Employability Advisor
Rosie has volunteered for BWR as an employability adviser since 2020, supporting people who are looking for local work by helping with job applications and exploring training and learning opportunities. She joined the management committee in March 2021.
Sarah Moolla
Communications Lead
Sarah joined BWR in 2024 to strengthen the communications team. She is an experienced newspaper and magazine journalist and editor, including as editor of Bath Life magazine since 2020.
Our Trustees
Stephen Whittle
Chair
Stephen moved to Bath in 2022. He worked for many years in broadcasting and has been actively involved with charities working with public health, medical education, and learning disabilities. He has also chaired a settlement charity in London.
Vi Jensen
Trustee
During her working life Vi was a finance director working for international organisations in the commercial world and latterly in the charity sector. She joined BWR in June 2019 as treasurer and as a trustee.
Kathryn Kyle
Trustee
Kathryn has spent her working life in primary education, most recently as a headteacher in Hackney. On moving to Bath in 2021 she became involved with BWR, first as a schools liaison volunteer then as a trustee.
Louise Rickitt
Trustee
Louise joined BWR as a trustee in June 2023. She has worked in the NHS for over 15 years, and has family experience of the long-lasting impact that traumatic events can have on children.
Nafees
Trustee
Nafees has spent nearly a decade volunteering globally, from helping refugees in Calais to working on sustainable projects in Uganda. As an entrepreneur, he builds start-ups focused on making a positive impact, all while pursuing his passion for motorsports.
Our Staff
Phoebe Oakenfold
Refugee and Asylum Seeker Support Coordinator
Phoebe joined the team in 2023, having previously worked in France supporting refugees and asylum seekers, including unaccompanied children. Her role at BWR involves meeting with recently arrived and referred individuals and families, establishing what support is required.
Alex Randall-Atkins
Volunteer Coordinator
Alex joined BWR in November 2024. She has previously worked as a primary teacher, and has managed volunteers in a students’ union and on a youth exchange programme between the UK and Syria, as well as volunteering herself with refugee and asylum seeker charities in Bristol. Her role involves recruiting, training and supporting BWR’s volunteers.