Our Management Team

James Needham

James is already a well-established member of the Help for Heroes family since joining the charity in 2018 as the Chief Operating Officer. He has been instrumental in the development of the charity’s 10-year strategy and brings a wealth of expertise and continuity having worked across most areas of the charity. He previously spent more than 15 years working in operations management within the hospitality sector for the likes of Greene King and Starbucks. James relishes a challenge, and when he’s not spending time with his young family, he can be found cycling in Dorset and taking part in all our activity like supporting the Big Battlefield Bike Ride

Polly McGivern

Polly was the Director of Finance and Corporate Services of the charity Breast Cancer Now where she led finance, facilities, IT, legal, compliance and risk, as well as people and organisational development. Polly has worked across a range of sectors and held a number of significant posts, including Director of Finance at UCL Partners and Deputy Treasurer for TRH The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall, where she also held the post of Finance Director to the Prince of Wales’s Charitable Foundation. 

She has also served as a trustee with two charities.

Beth Miles

Beth Miles joined Help for Heroes in February 2017 and is Marketing, Communications and Public Affairs Director. Beth and her team are responsible for all of our external communication and campaigning to support the armed forces community. Beth’s team also create and execute our marketing campaigns, which help to drive awareness of the work we do to reach individuals who need support and communicate the ongoing need for donations.

Beth is passionate about helping us to ensure that we champion the needs of the armed forces community and maximise donations for our veterans and their families. She has a wealth of experience in helping brands to develop and communicate their messaging, having previously worked in senior marketing roles at companies including Coca-Cola, GSK and United Biscuits.

Clare McDermott

Clare joined Help for Heroes in March 2022 as Commercial Director following a career built across commercial, charity and not for profits. Originally a retail fashion buyer, Clare joined the RNLI in 2009 as Head of Trading leading the growth of the online, mail order and retail division before becoming Head of Marketing and leading all income generating activity, developing supporters and building digital income. 

Moving to Soil Association Certification in 2014, Clare led the growth of the UK’s largest organic certification body and the growth of the UK organic market overall through working in partnership with leading brands, farmers and businesses across the organic and regenerative sector and leading award-winning campaigns to grow consumer awareness and demand alongside working to ensure access to good food for all through supporting programme delivery including leading Food for Life Served Here. 

Focused on income generation across commercial and fundraised income, she leads the trading and fundraising teams to build long term sustainable income and engagement for the Charity alongside leading our Innovation work.

David Walker

David joined Help for Heroes in 2016 and has since held a variety of leadership positions with the charity focusing on service delivery. Drawing on 35 years combined statutory and charity experience, his approach is informed by evidence-led best practice to ensure service users have the best possible experience and are helped to achieve the positive outcomes most important to them. 

David is accountable for the strategic direction, innovation, and performance of the charity’s services, ensuring they remain relevant, responsive and deliver the intended reach and impact for service users and other stakeholders.

Previously, David has worked extensively in the social care and mental health sector and, throughout, he has been able to draw on this professional background.

The Hon Sir Nigel Boardman

Nigel Boardman joined the Charity as our new Chair of Trustees in September 2020.

Nigel, whose mother’s family is the only family to have ever won three Victoria Crosses, joins us with an exceptionally successful career as a corporate M&A lawyer and practice leader with Slaughter and May.

He is passionate about helping rebuild the lives of those who suffered life-changing injuries or illness as a result of their service, after his grandfather sustained a significant injury in combat. His father also served in World War Two and was awarded the military cross, as were his uncle and great uncle.

Speaking about his appointment, Nigel paid tribute to Charity's co-founders Bryn and Emma Parry and said he wants to make a difference to the lives of those who served their nation.

He said:

“Bryn and Emma Parry created a truly magnificent organisation which changed the public’s perception of the sacrifices our armed forces make on our behalf, and of the duty we owe to those who suffer so that we can lead our lives in peace.

“As those heroes move through their lives their needs do not diminish, and nor should our gratitude to them. I am determined that Help for Heroes, in combination with others in the sector, keep the promise Bryn and Emma made on behalf of all of us and that those wounded, especially in the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, continue to receive the support they require.”

Philip Yates

Philip Yates joined the Charity as a Trustee in January 2019 and was appointed Deputy Chair in September 2020. 

Philip is Chair of Planixs Limited, a UK fintech software company, and an adviser and investor in various businesses across a range of sectors. 

A lawyer by professional background, Philip previously spent 30 years in investment banking, working at S.G. Warburg, Merrill Lynch, where his roles included Head of European Investment Banking and Head of Global M&A, and Perella Weinberg Partners, where he was a founding partner until his retirement in 2019. 

Philip is currently a school Governor at Pooles Park Primary School in Finsbury Park, London and Co-Chair of Jesus College Cambridge’s alumni fundraising committee. Previous charitable roles included Chair of the NSPCC Stop Organised Abuse fundraising board and a member of the NSPCC Helpline fundraising board.

Philip Chairs the Nominations Committee at Help for Heroes.

Liz Rylatt

After graduating from Newcastle University with a BSc in Computer Science Liz qualified as a Chartered Accountant with KPMG, also in Newcastle.

She then spent a number of years in lead finance roles with various retail organisations (John Lewis/House of Fraser and Laura Ashley), before using her financial skills in a new sector.

Liz spent 18 years with the BBC working across the Corporation in a number of Divisional and Corporate finance roles. She prepared the business case for the set-up of the 24 Hour News channel and the News Online service. As CFO of the Operations Division she supported the COO of the BBC leading the Property, Technology, Marketing and HR functions as well as Finance. During her tenure Liz was involved in a number of transformation projects in both Finance and Operations delivering savings back to the business. She then spent 2 years as Executive Director Finance, Operations and Members at ICAEW and 5 years as CFO of City, University of London. with responsibility for the Finance, Property & Facilities and IT teams.

Liz joined CAF as Group Chief Financial Officer in February 2022

Liz Chairs the Finance, Risk and Audit Committee at Help for Heroes.

Stuart Bell CBE

Stuart Bell CBE has been a Trustee of ours since 2018. He was until recently Chief Executive of Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust from which he retired after nearly 38 years’ service in the NHS. Before Oxford Health he was CEO of South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM) for over 13 years. He was regularly cited by the Health Service Journal as one of the most influential NHS Trust chief executives in the country. He was awarded a CBE for services to the NHS in 2008.

One of his particular interests is in building the most effective relationships between academic researchers and those who deliver services. He is proud to have been involved in the establishment of the UK’s only two Biomedical Research Centres for Mental Health, most recently in Oxford and previously at the Maudsley Hospital. 

Another major interest is in promoting care which is truly focussed around individuals and their needs. He was for many years a Trustee and later the Chairman of the Picker Institute (Europe), a charity devoted to improving the way in which health services make their services more patient and person-centred. He believes that care is ‘something we should do with people rather than to people’. 

Stuart is an Honorary Fellow of King’s College London and an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

Stuart Chairs the Delivery Committee at Help for Heroes.

Charles Donald

Charles Donald joined the Charity as a Trustee in January 2019. Charles is the Chief Executive of UK Government Investments (“UKGI”), having previously been Head of UKGI’s Financial Institutions Group. UKGI is the government’s centre of excellence in corporate governance and corporate finance. Prior to UKGI, Charles spent over 30 years in investment banking, working in both equity research and corporate advisory.

Charles is a Non-Executive Director at the UK Infrastructure Bank, heads the government’s Corporate Finance Profession and is Chair of the OECD’s Working Party on State Ownership and Privatisation Practices. His prior charity experience includes over 7 years as Chair of an educational charity.

Clive Warner

Clive is a KPMG trained Chartered Accountant who, since qualifying, has held senior financial positions in Retail, Leisure and Third Sector companies including NAAFI, Timpsons, Woolworths, UCI Cinemas and Retail Trust. He has also been a Trustee (and Treasurer) with the charity British Tinnitus Association since 2014. 

As CFO at NAAFI from 2000 to 2007, Clive was instrumental in supporting the armed forces with retail and leisure facilities globally – and, in particular in building such facilities in Iraq and Afghanistan.     

There is a strong tradition of charity work in Clive's family and, since retiring from his Executive roles in 2019, he has spent more of his time and energy on supporting charities and family. 

Clive Chairs the Trading Board at Help for Heroes.

Shirley Cramer CBE

Shirley Cramer is the former Chief Executive of the Royal Society for Public Health ( 2013-20) where she was also Vice Chair of the Public Health System Group in England and Chair of People in UK Public Health, a cross Government advisory board on the future of the public health workforce.  She has been a voluntary sector leader in both the UK and the USA, working in New York where she was CEO for a national education organisation. She was CEO of Dyslexia Action for over a decade and a board member of the Learning and Skills Council. She was awarded a CBE for services to education in 2009.

She is Chair of the Rare Dementia Support Group’ Advisory Board at University College London and a trustee of Alzheimer’s Research UK. She is also a Commissioner for the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission and chairs the Re-Birth Project for the Royal College of Midwives.

Her father and his five brothers served during WW2 and she is proud of their service and believes all veterans should have the best possible support and help to have happy and successful lives. 

Nicola Fear

Nicola Fear holds a Chair in Epidemiology at the Academic Department of Military Mental Health (ADMMH) and is Director of the King's Centre for Military Health Research (KCMHR) at King’s College London (UK).  

Nicola has worked in the field of occupational health throughout her career, including within the UK Ministry of Defence as their consultant epidemiologist.  She trained in epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the University of Oxford, from where she obtained her doctorate.

Within KCMHR, she leads a number of high-profile studies regarding the health and wellbeing of military personnel, veterans and their families. 

Emma Birchall

Emma Birchall joined the Charity as a Trustee in September 2022. Emma is a champion of harnessing the power of diversity and inclusion to achieve better results – for people, business, and society.

She is currently Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) at telecommunications company, Ericsson, where she sets the D&I ambition and strategy directly impacting 100,000+ employees in more than 180 countries. Before joining Ericsson, Emma led HSM Advisory, a London-based consulting firm, where she advised CEOs of some of the world’s largest companies on realizing their ambitions through effective and inclusive people strategies.

Emma is a member of the Advisory Board of the Lawn Tennis Association (the governing body of tennis in Great Britain) and a trustee at Akram Khan Dance Company.