Our People
Chief Executive Officer
We are thrilled to announce that Sally Utting has been appointed as our new CEO.
A familiar face to many, Sally joined Reading Mencap in 2015 as a Family Adviser. She has more recently co-managed the Family Support Service, with a particular focus on supporting young people and their families transition from Children’s to Adult Services.
Over the last year, she has acted as Interim CEO, alongside Office Manager Amanda Limm, ensuring our vital services continued without interruption during a time of change for the organisation.
With a long-standing commitment to the charity’s values, Sally is looking forward to taking on the role from February 2.
She said: “I feel honoured to be leading such an important charity. It is a real privilege to work alongside such a dedicated, enthusiastic and caring group of people.
“I am passionate about people being part of their community and fulfilling their potential in life irrespective of their disability. Each of us need support through life and I believe that it is important to provide the right support to each individual ensuring their rights, choices and dignity are always at the heart of the support we provide.”
After graduating with a degree in psychology in 1995, Sally began a career in social care that has spanned more than 30 years. She has held a variety of roles in the not-for-profit sector — from frontline support worker to service manager and operational management roles. These have included managing supported living/registered homes and respite, community support and homelessness projects, most of which were registered under CQC.
She said: “I have seen many changes in our society and in social care and I feel very strongly about being a voice for the learning disability community in ensuring they are a valued group with the same choices and rights as anyone else.”
In her free time, Sally enjoys walks in nature with her family and playing racket sports such as tennis, padel, and pickleball. She has more recently resurrected her love for golf, although she feels she still has a long way to go in the sport! As a qualified tennis coach, she thoroughly enjoyed leading sessions for the 4ME day service.
Zoe Ridout, Chair of Trustees, said Sally has demonstrated calm, capable and committed leadership.
She said: “I have no doubt that Sally will be absolutely fantastic as our CEO. She brings a wealth of experience, deep understanding of the needs of those we support, and a genuine passion for the charity. I know she has lots of ideas and energy to take Reading Mencap into its next chapter.”
Family Support Service
Louise Roberts manages the Family Support Service. She worked in private practice as a Family Law solicitor for 10 years, before joining Reading Mencap.
Alison Carroll is our Housing Family Adviser and has worked with families, adults and children for Reading Mencap for many years. She is a qualified psychiatric nurse and has a masters degree in child protection. She has vast experience in health and social care, housing and education. She is also a qualified Drama Coach, a Safeguarding Trainer and a Care Act Advocate.
Helen Luckin is our Energy Family Adviser.
Lesley Bloomfield is our Carers Services Coordinator.
Fundraising
Marie-Claire Dillon is our Fundraising Manager, responsible for the fundraising work of the charity. She has a degree in languages and a background in publishing and bid-writing for the voluntary sector.
Administration Team
Amanda Limm is our Office Manager and Administration Team Leader. She has many years experience in the voluntary and statutory sectors in administration and management.
Paul Johnson MBE is our bookkeeper. He is a retired accountant with a long career working abroad with several high profile accountancy companies.
Jacqui McGachie is our Communications Officer looking after our website, newsletter and social media. Jacqui has many years experience working in communications in both the statutory and voluntary sector.
Elaine Ryan is our Administration Officer. She has many years experience working in the private and voluntary sectors.
Clubs and Respite
Lesley Bloomfield leads our Gateway Club and Life Skills Club.
4ME Activities Service
Our Support Workers are Charlie Macdonald, Hannah Pritchard, Teresa Paine, Nazia Awais, Jackie Pepperall, Chi-En (Kay) Tsai and David Eustace.
Trustees
Zoe Ridout, MEng Hons. Zoe Ridout is Reading Mencap’s new Chair of Trustees. Zoe, who has been with the charity since 2015, is a Sales Director for CBRE, leading the sales team to deliver against the growth aspirations of the division. She started out her career as a Bridge Engineer in Jacobs, then studied at Exeter University, achieving a First Class Masters in Mechanical Engineering. After graduating, she moved into the Facilities Management industry and has continued her career in roles including facilities management operations, strategy development and implementation, strategic planning, market and competitor analysis, financial analysis, commercial contract management, team management and customer stakeholder management.
In her spare time, Zoe is an amateur potter and finds herself mostly chasing after her two young boys!
James Eustace joined Reading Mencap as a Trustee in late 2022 and is a professional marketing expert with more than 20 years’ experience in industry. He leads our marketing strategy work.
Hugh Baxter joined us in late 2022. He is an experienced executive with a background in financial services, capital markets, sales and marketing for more than 30 years. He has degrees in both Business and Law and a Diploma in Banking and Finance.
Jim Allpass joined Reading Mencap in late 2022. He has more than 30 years’ experience in industry as a qualified Chartered Accountant at both an operational and strategic level.
James Horlock – Business Development Expertise. James is Head of Business Development for an IT Software Solutions (SaaS) business based in Henley-On-Thames. He has a track record of selling into both the public and private sectors across several industries and has successfully worked to improve business processes within the companies he’s worked for with a focus to increase growth, cross-department efficiency and to help build and retain high performing teams along the way. In joining the team at Reading Mencap, he is pleased to be able to bring his expertise to the Board and charity, finding and capitalising on opportunities to provide long term funding for Reading Mencap, a charity that he is proud to have in his local area and rings true to his belief that everyone should be given the support they need to reach their potential and live a happy, fulfilled life.
Sat Jabanda-Wilson joined Reading Mencap in October 20225. Her day job is all about removing barriers for disabled and vulnerable consumers, so learning firsthand how her local Mencap charity supports its clients, made perfect sense. As a trustee she aims to bring her project and programme management skills to support the charity’s vision and educate her work colleagues to better understand the needs of people with learning disabilities; better enabling them to design accessible and inclusive products and services that meet their needs.
