Business group applauds its passionate local volunteers

Press Releases 9 Feb 2022

Leading small business owners from across the UK who volunteer to support the wider SME community through the UK’s biggest business representation group have been recognised at a high-profile national event.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) provides opportunities for its members to volunteer to play a key role in giving a big voice to the small business community with political decision-makers and other stakeholders at all levels across the UK.

TV presenter Kate Humble hosted an online ‘Volunteer Recognition’ celebration, where more than 125 entrepreneurs were given thanks for the contribution they make on behalf of small businesses in their local areas.

There were no ‘winners’ as this event, which was held on Tuesday 8 February, but instead it was a chance to recognise and acknowledge all our volunteers in four separate areas of activity – this included those who help FSB and the wider business community with policy, events, media and sales.

FSB felt that it was important that our small business owning volunteers were highlighted for the time and effort they put in to support others – especially at a time when they have had so many other challenging issues facing their own businesses.

FSB is rightfully proud of the selfless work done by its volunteers. It was a pleasure to hear from stakeholders about the work done by our members to ensure the voice of small businesses is loudly heard in every part of the UK.

Watch the event video at https://www.fsb.org.uk/join-us/volunteer.html

FSB’s National Chair Mike Cherry said:

“The UK’s 5.5 million small businesses and self-employed are not only the backbone of the economy, they are also at the heart of local communities – creating innovation, growth, jobs and opportunities. Our passionate volunteers are a key part of FSB giving a powerful and authentic voice when it comes to the needs, experiences and aspirations of hard-working entrepreneurs right across the UK, and I’m extremely proud to have seen that celebrated at FSB’s Volunteer Recognition 2022. Alongside our expert staff team, our volunteers help to make FSB such an effective campaigning and business support organisation, in touch constantly with its members.”

Julianne Ponan, CEO Creative Nature said:

“I was absolutely honoured to be able to supply our Top 14 Allergen Free Gnawbles chocolate snacks for the FSB Volunteers recognition event. We saw hundreds of incredible comments where people were able to enjoy their goody bags no matter their dietary requirements. As a small business owner myself, I know first-hand how incredibly important they are in helping entrepreneurs and campaigning for the best for small business.

“The event was inspirational to see so many faces virtually and recognise the hard work going on across the country. Giving my time to speak at events for FSB makes me feel like I’m really making a difference to help other entrepreneurs.”

Those recognised at the event (for media, events, policy, and sales) included:

Media:

Name Elected Role or Volunteer Location
Richard Asghar-Sandys National Council Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire
Angela Atkinson Area Lead Somerset & Wiltshire
Heidi Chamberlain-Jones Volunteer Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire
Daryl Chambers Volunteer Staffs & West Midlands
Taruna Chauhan Volunteer Coventry & Warwickshire
Jacky Clarke Volunteer Sussex
Debbie Clement-Large Volunteer Devon
Simon Cox Volunteer Leics, Northants & Rutland
Jenny Cross Area Lead Leics, Northants & Rutland
Grace Graham Volunteer London
Scott Grenney Volunteer Devon
Lee Harris-Hamer National Council York & North Yorkshire
Rowena Howie EPU Rep London
Bayo Igoh Volunteer London
Julie Jordan-Spence Volunteer Leics, Northants & Rutland
Jonathan Keable Volunteer Devon
Sarah Marsh-Collings Volunteer London
Lee Nathan Regional Chair South West Region
Ian O’Donnell Chair, Regulation Policy Unit Coventry & Warwickshire
Mark Owen Volunteer Gloucestershire & Bristol
Celia Rizothanasi Volunteer London
Chandra Sharma Volunteer London
Dave Sharpe Volunteer Coventry & Warwickshire
Andy Skinner Area Lead East Anglia
Deborah Turner Area Lead Kent & Medway
Michael Weedon Chair, Retail Policy Unit Leics, Northants & Rutland
Hannah Williams Volunteer Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire

Events:

Name Elected Role or Volunteer Location
Irshad Akbar Area Lead South & East Yorkshire & The Humber
David Bell Regional Chair East of England
Jane Binnion Volunteer Lancs & Cumbria
Terry Botfield Volunteer Sussex
Amanda Bourne Volunteer Coventry & Warwickshire
Cheryl-lya Broadfoot Volunteer London
Ruth Brown-Shepherd Volunteer West Yorkshire
Sophie Burley-Brown Volunteer Merseyside & Cheshire
Nikki Burns Area Lead Thames Valley
Mel Byles Area Lead South Wales
Heidi Chamberlain-Jones Volunteer Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire
Edward Chapman Area Lead Cornwall
David Clare Area Lead London
Christopher Clark Volunteer Leics, Northants & Rutland
Jenny Cross Area Lead Leics, Northants & Rutland
Amanda Daly Volunteer Leics, Northants & Rutland
Rob Dewing Regional Chair South Central Region
Kamal Dhutia Volunteer Leics, Northants & Rutland
Dawn Edwards Volunteer Notts & Derbyshire
Jemma Fairclough-Haynes Volunteer Kent & Medway
Wendy Flanagan Volunteer Kent & Medway
Sandra Garlick Area Lead Warwickshire & Coventry
Yvonne Gorman Volunteer Notts & Derbyshire
Schnel Hanson Volunteer London
Rob Harrison Volunteer Coventry & Warwickshire
Rachel Hayward Area Lead Notts & Derby
Frankie Hobro Wales Policy Unit Wales
Michael Janes Area Lead North East
Mike Johnson Area Lead Lincolnshire
Julie Jordan-Spence Volunteer Leics, Northants & Rutland
Liz Katz Area Lead Coventry & Warwickshire
Rachel Kay Area Lead Lancs & Cumbria
Yvette Lamidey Area Lead Thames Valley
Lucy Lewin Volunteer Leics, Northants & Rutland
Sarah Marsh-Collings Volunteer London
Kenneth McKenzie Volunteer Highlands & Islands
Mo Aksar Mohammad Volunteer Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire
Penny Morgan Area Lead East Anglia
Zeenat Noorani Volunteer London
Ian O’Donnell Chair, Regulation Policy Unit Coventry & Warwickshire
Sat Pillai Chair, Environment Policy Unit London
Elaine Pritchard Volunteer Staffs & West Midlands
Celia Rizothanasi Volunteer London
Merewyn Sayers Area Lead West Yorkshire
Peter Searle Volunteer Kent & Medway
Chandra Sharma Volunteer London
Neil Sharpley Chair, Home Office & Ministry of Justice Policy Unit Lincolnshire
Andy Skinner Area Lead East Anglia
Clare Trice Area Lead Cornwall
Deborah Turner Area Lead Kent & Medway
David Webb Area Lead Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire
Pauline Weddell Volunteer Scotland
Samantha White Area Lead Lincolnshire
Eli Wilkinson Volunteer Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire
Hannah Williams Volunteer Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire
Sally Woods Area Lead Leics, Northants & Rutland

Policy:

Name Elected Role or Volunteer Location
Gareth Alexander Area Lead South & East Yorkshire & The Humber
Norman Arnold Volunteer Isle of Wight, South Central
Richard Asghar-Sandys National Council Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire
Gill Askew EPU Rep Yorkshire, The Humber & North East Region
Richard Askew Deputy Chair, English Policy Unit Yorkshire, The Humber & North East Region
Angela Atkinson Area Lead Somerset & Wiltshire
David Avery Volunteer Devon
Helen Barge Volunteer Coventry & Warwickshire
David Barnes Area Lead Essex
David Bell Regional Chair East of England
Rich Bishop Volunteer Coventry & Warwickshire
Holly Bonfield National Council Manchester
Nikki Burns Area Lead Thames Valley
Charles Burns Volunteer Hampshire, Isle of Wight & West Surrey
Craig Carey-Cinch EPU Rep South West Region
David Caro Area Lead Staffordshire & West Midlands
Edward Chapman Area Lead Cornwall
Caroline Chapman Volunteer York & North Yorkshire
Phil Collier Volunteer Lancs & Cumbria
Tim Colman Area Lead Hampshire, Isle of Wight & West Surrey
Simon Cox Volunteer Leics, Northants & Rutland
Steve Cox Volunteer Manchester
Rob Dewing Regional Chair South Central Region
Kamal Dhutia Volunteer Leics, Northants & Rutland
Kelly Dunn Volunteer York & North Yorkshire
Clare Elsby EPU Rep East Midlands Region
Sean Farnell Volunteer Coventry & Warwickshire
Karen Ferris Volunteer Somerset & Wiltshire
Wendy Flanagan Volunteer Kent & Medway
Gavin Foster Volunteer Hampshire, Isle of Wight & West Surrey
Ben Francis Chair, Wales Policy Unit Wales
Kim Gilmour Volunteer Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire
Joanne Goodman Volunteer Hampshire, Isle of Wight & West Surrey
Michael Green Area Lead Devon
Mike Gregory Area Lead East Surrey
Lee Harris-Hamer National Council York & North Yorkshire
Yvette Hastings Area Lead Merseyside & Cheshire
Frankie Hobro Wales Policy Unit Wales
Rowena Howie EPU Rep London
Tim Hunter-Henderson National Council Isle of Wight, South Central
Anthony Hurley Volunteer Manchester
Saira Hussain Chair, Employment Policy Unit Manchester
Michael Janes Area Lead North East
Liz Katz Area Lead Coventry & Warwickshire
Jonathan Keable Volunteer Devon
Yvette Lamidey Area Lead Thames Valley
Chris Manka Regional Chair North West Region
Laurence Martin Volunteer Hampshire, Isle of Wight & West Surrey
Mike Matthews Volunteer Devon
John Mayer Area Lead Somerset & Wiltshire
Kenneth McKenzie Volunteer Highlands & Islands
Nishi Mehta EPU Rep West Midlands
Alison North Board Director Somerset & Wiltshire
Maggie O’Carroll Volunteer Merseyside & Cheshire
Ian O’Donnell Chair, Regulation Policy Unit Coventry & Warwickshire
Graham Oakley Volunteer Staffs & West Midlands
Nick Parkes Volunteer Notts & Derbyshire
Hayley Pells Wales Policy Unit Wales
Les Phillimore Regional Chair East Midlands
Sat Pillai Chair, Environment Policy Unit London
Debbie Porter Volunteer Notts & Derbyshire
Michael Sandys Area Lead Merseyside & Cheshire
David Scott Area Lead Devon
Chandra Sharma Volunteer London
Ken Simpson Area Lead Gloucester & Bristol
Catherine Smith Volunteer Cornwall
Paul Stevens Volunteer West Yorkshire
Lash Suranna Volunteer Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire
Alison Theaker Volunteer Devon
Clare Trice Area Lead Cornwall
Deborah Turner Area Lead Kent & Medway
Jane Walton Chair, Education & Childcare Policy Unit West Yorkshire
Daniel Walton Area Lead West Midlands
Paul Wareham EPU Rep North West Region
Russell Warner Area Lead Gloucester & Bristol
Neil Warwick Chair, Foreign Affairs Policy Unit North East England
David Webb Area Lead Shropshire, Herefordshire & Worcestershire
Francis West National Lead, Cyber Security Hertfordshire
Hollie Whittles Regional Chair West Midlands Region
Simon Williams Regional Chair Yorkshire, The Humber & North East England Region
Darren Winter Volunteer North East England
Sally Woods Area Lead Leics, Northants & Rutland
Brian Woods Volunteer South East

Sales:

Name Elected Role or Volunteer Location
David Bell Regional Chair East of England
Debbie Clement-Large Volunteer Devon
Amanda Daly Volunteer Leics, Northants & Rutland
Clare Elsby EPU Rep East Midlands Region
Yvette Lamidey Area Lead Thames Valley
Rowena Pearce Volunteer South & East Yorkshire