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Joseph Main
Chief Executive Officer
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Joseph Main
Chief Executive Officer
Joseph has served in senior leaderships roles of charitable organisations for over 30 years, having first been appointed as the Chief Executive of a charity in the early 90s.
His experience is extensive, and he has led organisations with a wide range of scope from a small local impact organisation to a regional development organisation, to a large international organisation with an annual turnover of £25M+ a staff team of over 600 and which took him to 3 continents.
Having achieved his Master’s Degree at the University of Cambridge, Joseph understands the necessity for excellence and standards in organisations, but he is also a man of faith and, as a practicing Christian, believes in the transformative power of compassion and opportunity in people’s lives.
Joining YMCA Cheltenham in 2020, in the midst of the pandemic, Joseph says: “In all my leadership experience I have found this organisation to be the most rewarding. Every one of our staff and volunteers are imbued with a passion and deep sense of purpose to be a force for good in society – and each one works tirelessly to help bring dignity, connection and hope to those who need us most.”
For fun, Joseph enjoys his family – including his two large huskies – would never say no to the spectacle of a game of Ice Hockey or live music – and has a secret passion for flying light aircraft.
Currently Recruiting
Senior Manager - Children and Families
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Currently Recruiting
Senior Manager - Children and Families
Linda Grice
YMCA Connect Community Manager
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Linda Grice
YMCA Connect Community Manager
Linda joined the YMCA in December 2022 as the Feed Cheltenham Lead. Linda trained initially in Social Work and then Counselling, spending several years working in the field of Substance Misuse in a variety of settings including residential, criminal justice, and community roles, before choosing to stay at home to raise her three children who are now all at local secondary schools. She moved to the YMCA from her job as a Community Centre Manager here in Cheltenham, and therefore brought lots of local knowledge about available services to her new role.
Feed Cheltenham was established in 2020 as a response to the pandemic and the struggles many low-income families faced due to furloughing, job losses and ill health. The numbers of people using community food support services rose dramatically during this time, and the number of Community Pantries in Cheltenham alone increased from 1 to 6 over four years. Having helped to establish one of these pantries during the pandemic, and feeling passionate that it is important for everyone to have access to food, Linda felt that much could be achieved within the Feed Cheltenham role. This remains the case as the cost of living continues to increase, and we continue to see people in great need, experiencing many challenges in addition to food insecurity.
Feed Cheltenham has a Crowd Funder raising funds that can be used to buy Supermarket Vouchers to give out to households in need. Linda works with lots of different agencies, from small charities through to mainstream schools, to make sure that these vouchers get to families who really can benefit from them.
Feed Cheltenham works with the managers of all 6 independent charity-based community pantries helping to coordinate their efforts across the town to deliver a uniform service that can meet need. Feed Cheltenham also advocates for the needs of those facing food insecurity on several committees and discussions happening at both town and county level.
Faye Dewhurst
Developments and Communications Manager
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Faye Dewhurst
Developments and Communications Manager
As the Development and Communications Manager at YMCA Cheltenham, I have the privilege of overseeing all internal and external communications, fundraising initiatives, donor development, and events. With a diverse background spanning the private, public, and charity sectors, I bring a wealth of experience and a unique perspective to my work. My journey in the charity sector has been both rewarding and enlightening, allowing me to blend my passion for effective communication with my desire to make a tangible difference in the community. Throughout my career, I have been driven by the belief that strategic communication can inspire change and create meaningful connections.
Here, I am part of a vibrant team dedicated to empowering individuals and enhancing community wellbeing. Every day, I witness the profound impact we have on people’s lives, fueling my commitment to our mission.
Karen Brown
Pathway Home Senior Manager
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Karen Brown
Pathway Home Senior Manager
Millie Barnes
Pre-School Manager
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Millie Barnes
Pre-School Manager
I am the Pre-school Manager at Cherry Blossom Pre-school and I oversee the staff team and ensure the pre-school is a fun, safe, and nurturing environment for all of our children. I joined the YMCA because it was clear to see that they are devoted to their employees, as well as being committed to supporting children and families and welcoming growth and development to meet the needs of the local community. Our pre-school not only provides high quality education for early years children, but also support the children and their families on a more personal level. Whether that be through facilitating access to food vouchers from the local food bank or making contact with Health Visitors to arrange support in the family home. We pride ourselves on our passion for ensuring all of our children and families feel that we are a setting which goes above and beyond to provide individual support to those who need it.
Louise Morton
Contact Centre Manager
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Louise Morton
Contact Centre Manager
Louise is the manager at Cheltenham Child Contact Centre.
The Contact Centre is a NACCC Accredited Centre that provides a safe place for children to spend time with the family member/s that they no longer live with. Louise has been part of Cheltenham Contact Centre since 2002, starting as a volunteer and progressing to be a team leader, then bank staff worker. In 2022, Louise made the decision to leave her career in housing to become the full time Contact Centre Manager.
Louise has always had a passion for the role of Child Contact Services and making a difference to children’s lives. The opportunity to lead the service and become part of Cheltenham YMCA was one she could not pass by.
Parents travel from all over the UK, and even internationally, to spend quality time with their children at Cheltenham Child Contact Centre. In the past year, the Child Contact Centre has enabled 144 children to spend family time with their parent. Without this service this would not have been possible.
Alan Moorhouse
Regulatory Compliance Manager
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Alan Moorhouse
Regulatory Compliance Manager
Alan joined YMCA Cheltenham in March 2025. With over 30 years of experience in senior leadership roles in Social Housing and Charities, he brings a wealth of knowledge to the position and holds a Masterss degree in Business Administration. He is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Housing. Alan is passionate about delivering services and assisting those who need them the most, and he enjoys working in an organisation that places the Christian Faith at the centre of its mission. Alan said, ‘Delivering regulatory compliance is not just about meeting and exceeding the requirements of the regulator but, perhaps more importantly, delivering excellent and effective services for our residents and customers.’
When not working, Alan often enjoys the fresh air, whether walking his Cavapoo, hacking around a golf course, or cycling. He is a member of All Saints Church in Worcester.
Derry Cleaton
Senior Housing Manager
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Derry Cleaton
Senior Housing Manager
Nick Musty
Housing Operations & System Manager
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Nick Musty
Housing Operations & System Manager
Tristam Meyrick
Training & Professional Standards Manager
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Tristam Meyrick
Training & Professional Standards Manager
I joined the YMCA as a bank worker at the tail end of the pandemic in 2021 as a bank worker whilst finishing off my second degree. After joining the team full time at Vittoria Walk (now Williams House) I was fortunate enough to be promoted at the inaugural Pathway Home project in Gloucester and then recently to my current position. This has also afforded me the opportunity to study a MSc in housing.
After a career in hospitality (as a publican and then as a chef), I embarked on a complete career change in 2013 and became a youth worker working in conjunction with the Police Crime Commission, National Citizen Service and Prince’s Trust, receiving a community action award from the former as part of the Great Expectations project with young offenders.
In my personal life I enjoy running, cycling and fitness and regularly run half marathons for charity. I also enjoy music and play several instruments, practice spirituality and cooking and have employed a plant based lifestyle since 2017.
Joel Layton
Senior Manager - Physical Health & Sport
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Joel Layton
Senior Manager - Physical Health & Sport
My career has always been focused on sport and leisure here in Gloucestershire within other charitable organisations. Within my professional journey, I came to the realisation that it’s time to give back and work within a charity who have the ability to positively impact people’s lives through
My aim is to provide a friendly, inclusive and welcoming environment for everyone to explore their individual health and wellbeing journeys. This is achieved through a variety of sport clubs, fitness classes, community partnerships and social engagements.
We pride ourselves on having an incredible Health and wellbeing team here with the drive and focus on supporting young people, the communities and you.
We are open to all so please do pop into the sport centre. Lace up your trainers and try a class, experience the community we have and grab a cuppa whilst we explore how we can help.”
John Ingles
Head of Housing, Policy & Performance
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John Ingles
Head of Housing, Policy & Performance
Sarah Rivers
Head of HR
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Sarah Rivers
Head of HR
Faith Sanderson
Head of Finance
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Faith Sanderson
Head of Finance
Rob Charsley
Head of Health & Wellbeing
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Rob Charsley
Head of Health & Wellbeing
As part of Senior Leadership Team (SLT) I provide strategic leadership and support to the organisation for all things Health & Wellbeing, including supporting our Housing Managers to develop opportunities for residents to become healthier and more independent, create an environment where amazing staff teams feel they belong, can thrive and reach their potential as well leading the strategic development of activities and support available in the local community through our Sports Centre, Family Space and Feed Cheltenham.
I first joined YMCA Cheltenham in 2007 and have been blown away and privileged to witness first-hand the impact of the YMCA has with all those we work with across Gloucestershire – there is not many places you can work where everyday your work is making a difference by changing people’s lives!
My door is always open and the kettle is always on, if you need anything just let me know…
Dave Hemmings
Head of Property and Maintenance
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Dave Hemmings
Head of Property and Maintenance
My name is David Hemmings and I started working for YMCA Cheltenham in March 2024. I am Head of Property and Maintenance; part of the Senior Leadership Team and I provide strategic leadership and support to the organisation for anything Property & Maintenance related. I am extremely proud of the work myself and the team carry out on a daily basis, We are always looking for new and innovative ways to work whilst getting the best value for money. The work that the team carries out ranges from housekeeping, grounds maintenance, day to day repairs, void works and compliance works. Due the variety in the properties owned and managed by YMCA Cheltenham we must rely on and manage several external contractors across all fields to assist us in maintaining our properties.
One of the main reasons why I joined YMCA Cheltenham, was to help improve and maintain its current properties now as well as in the future. I am trying to build a planned maintenance program of works to ensure that we are delivering high quality accommodation and buildings for our sports and family services for many years to come.
Outside of work I have three young children, one daughter and twin sons. I am looking forward to watching them grow up and the challenges that will bring. I am always playing or watching sport and I think that this is something that has already started rubbing off on them.
Jo Smith Wood
Senior Executive Assistant
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Jo Smith Wood
Senior Executive Assistant
Jo is the Senior Executive Assistant at YMCA Cheltenham. Her role is to support the Senior Leadership Team of the organisation and in particular the CEO. Jo aims to ensure the provision of high-quality research, administrative and technical assistance to the organisation.
Although the focus of Jo’s work is supporting our CEO, she also supports the Governance of the charity by ensuring the smooth delivery of Trustee Board and Committee meetings, as well as managing the central administration team.
Jo says “I spent over 25 years working for a leisure and sport consultancy and, looking for a change from home working and many trips away, I made the decision to find a local job – I also wanted to work for a charity.
When I saw a vacancy at YMCA Cheltenham I didn’t hesitate to apply. I knew the YMCA as my children had enjoyed many sports activities throughout their childhood, from Toddler Gymnastics to Judo and Junior Badminton. I was always impressed by the YMCA sports coaches and valued the encouragement and support they gave my children. In addition, as I lived in Cheltenham, I was aware that the charity was expanding with much needed supported accommodation in Vittoria Walk.
Then, when I started working here, the range of services the YMCA provided for the local community really impressed me – and still does to this day. We are always looking to respond to local needs.
Working at YMCA Cheltenham is more than just a job for me – the work we do to help others is so important, as are the values by which we operate.
…and, knowing that YMCA Cheltenham was founded in 1855 means even more – ensuring we continue the good work of serving our community as those who have gone before us did.