Trustees

Who is Hilary Livingstone? Hilary was born and brought up in Huddersfield. She is a retired civil servant, having worked at several government departments starting at the Department of Employment now the Department of Work and Pensions where she was a benefit office manager working all over West Yorkshire. Hilary moved down to live in Buckinghamshire where she was employed by Buckinghamshire County Council Social Services as their Court of Protection Receiver managing the Receivership Department dealing with clients who, because of mental incapacity were unable to look after their own financial affairs. These clients were often victims of financial abuse, so Hilary worked closely with the local police and solicitors. After five years she joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office as a Senior Management Officer latterly dealing with administration of embassies/High Commissions in South Asia and Afghanistan. Hilary retired to Wilshaw with her husband, Ian, in 2011.

Who is Jean? Jean has been born and bred in Yorkshire and has lived in the Holme Valley for the past seven years.

Jean is a dedicated and compassionate professional with extensive experience in customer service, complaints management, and claims resolution within both the NHS and the house building sector. With a proven track record of leading teams to deliver high-quality service and to resolve complex issues, she has honed her skills in problem-solving, conflict resolution and customer care.

Having worked as a Complaints and Claims Manager for the NHS and later with a national house builder, Jean developed a deep understanding of organisational processes and the importance of empathetic communication when handling sensitive cases. Her ability to manage high-pressure situations, combined with a solutions-oriented approach, has allowed her to effectively turn challenging situations into positive outcomes for both customers and organisations.

In addition to Jean’s professional experience, she has dedicated time to voluntary work with the homeless and Christians Against Poverty, supporting individuals in need and contributing to the well-being of vulnerable communities.

Now retired, Jean lives in Meltham and enjoys a number of creative pastimes.

Who is Laura Kurowski? Laura is a director at Wilkinson Woodward Norcliffe and Co Solicitors in central Huddersfield. Laura specialises in property law and has been instrumental in the development of the firm’s commercial and property department. With fifteen years’ experience as a Solicitor, Laura now brings her extensive knowledge of property, commercial and corporate law to the Eleanor Hirst Trust. Born and bred in Huddersfield, Laura supports several community initiatives, including the University of Huddersfield Law Clinic and Platform 1 – a local mental health and crisis support charity for men.

Who is Paul White? Paul has been a resident of Meltham since 1993 when he moved here with his wife Sue and their three sons, all of whom have attended local schools. Paul is a Chartered Surveyor, working all his professional life in Local Government in the Manchester Area and took early retirement from his role as Director of Regeneration at Oldham Borough Council in 2010. Having already been actively involved in the community he has since become a Meltham Town Councillor as well as from 2019 a Kirklees Councillor standing in both Councils as an Independent. He is currently a non-executive Director of Kirklees Neighbourhood Housing where he is the Chair of Property Delivery which leads on all the programmes to improve both Council Housing as well as all other Council property and has recently started a programme of building new council houses. Paul has had a long-held passion for ensuring that communities have a sufficient range of affordable social housing. In terms of his other community work Paul is the Chair of the trustees for Meltham Sports and Community Centre and Meltham’s Carlile Institute and is Chair of Governors for Meltham C of E Primary School. In his spare time he loves walking his dog Dylan in the beautiful countryside surrounding Meltham and having trips in the UK in their campervan.

Who is Roberta Bamptom? Roberta was born in North Yorkshire but moved to Huddersfield almost 50 years ago, and has been happily settled in Meltham for the last 15 of those. She has been a member of Meltham Town Council for over 6 years and, since retiring, has been a regular volunteer in Meltham library, and enjoys being an active member of the community. Her background is in accounting and finance, and her final career position was Head of School of Accounting, Finance and Economics at a local university. She is a member of the University of the Third Age, and enjoys walking in our beautiful local countryside.

Who is Adam Welsh? After enjoying a successful career in finance, Adam moved to Yorkshire in 2004 to study at Huddersfield University. Utilising skills gained during this course and his career in finance, Adam created Fallen Leaf Design, a digital agency based in Meltham. Fallen Leaf Web Design specialises in providing digital marketing solutions and website development to businesses across the UK and beyond. With over 300 clients, Adam and his team help organisations achieve their goals and maximise online opportunities. Adam has translated these skills to assist several charities with website support, exposure online and helped them to generate further awareness to their cause. Adam is passionate about helping small businesses and charities to reach their potential online and gladly shares his expertise with each project.