Meet the Board
Second Step's Board is a group of committed volunteers bringing their expertise and experience to the direction and governance of the organisation. Our Chair is salaried. Our Chief Executive, Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Finance are also members of the Board.
We are currently looking for new members. Find out more here. One of our Board members, Neelu Agarwal writes about her first role as a Board member for Second Step.
Kelvin Blake
Chair
Kelvin is a Bristol native who, since retiring from BT in 2018, has been involved in several community groups, focusing on community activism. Since joining Second Step's Board five years ago, he's been involved in expanding our services beyond Bristol into Somerset.
Kelvin says, "A close family member was a heroin addict and lived a chaotic life, so I understand the trauma and have a passion to create better options for those who are often the invisible people in our communities.
I'm ambitious for Second Step and as Chair I will focus on improving the client voice, maintaining quality despite challenges, and championing staff wellbeing and development. With my real-life experience and business background, I believe I can help take Second Step forward."
Katie Norton
Board member and Chair of Service Quality Committee.
Katie Norton is Programme Director at NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICB.
Previously Katie was CEO of Gloucestershire Care Services NHS Trust; public sector consultant at Deloitte LLP; plus senior roles in primary, community and mental health.
Chris Roberts
Board member and Chair Business Development, Finance and Audit Committee.
Chris is a qualified accountant. He was until recently a Governor of an NHS Mental Health and Community Trust, three of which were as Lead Governor.
He decided he wanted to try and use his experience as carer, his financial background and the years as a Governor to good use and applied for a Board role at Second Step.
Richard Gleave
Board member
Richard Gleave is currently Director of Scientific Strategy and Development at the UK Health Security Agency.
He has a background as a NHS leader, civil servant and an academic working in Bristol, the South West and in nation-wide roles. He joined the Second Step Board in October 2017.
Tharsha Sivayokan
Board member
Tharsha is a GP Partner at Downend Health Group. He is also the Chair of the South Gloucestershire Locality Partnership tasked with supporting the delivery of improved integration of health and care services.
Tharsha has a keen interest in supporting better integration of voluntary sector mental health services into the wider local healthcare system. He is an Associate of the University of Bristol where he provides mentoring to medical students.
Neelu Agarwal
Board member
Neelu Agarwal is currently the Diversity and Inclusion lead for the Prudential Regulation Authority. She is from India and started her career as a Corporate rating analyst, she moved to London about five years ago.
Neelu has worked across multiple high profile projects including at the Bank of England. She has experience of being the Chair for the network for the progression of women in the Bank and is very passionate about wellbeing and mental health issues.
Oona Goldsworthy
Board member
Oona is Chief Executive of Brunelcare, a housing association providing homes and care. She was previously the CEO of United Communities housing association. also in Bristol and is a proud Bristolian.
Oona is a Board member of the National Care Forum, Care and Support West and co-Chair of the Bristol Homes Board. She has also recently been appointed to the Bristol South Integrated Care Partnership (ICP).
David Sealey
Board member
David is the Commissioning Manager for Adult Mental Health and Dementia Services in Somerset. He has previously worked as a Senior Procurement Officer, an NHS data analyst and an Operational Support Manager.
He enjoys leading teams creatively through different challenges. He is the creator/producer of the twice HSJ Award-shortlisted Somerset Emotional Wellbeing podcast and is also an award-winning screenwriter.
Lived experience member
Board member
We currently have two members on the Board with lived experience.