Meet Our Staff Team

The more activities we take on, and the more volunteers that wish to join us, the more we can do! However it all needs the coordination of a skilled team of employed staff.

Our team are all part-time and cover a wide range of skills and roles, but remember – all their hours put together only come to 3.5 full time equivalent posts. Our volunteers are essential and will certainly never be out of a job!

Here is a flavour of who does what…

Hayley Jackson – MCO Manager (PT)

I am responsible overall for enabling all staff and volunteers to achieve the organisation’s aims and objectives, ensuring we deliver services, carry out contracts to strict quality standards, provide great value and partner with other organisations to ensure our community is represented and does not miss out.
I am always exploring, identifying, developing and evaluating new projects MCO can undertake to create new opportunities to help Mashamshire to thrive. All that, plus overall organisational governance, financial oversight, funding applications, staff recruitment, motivating and above all else – inspiring our team.

Emily Taylor – Marketing and Communications Officer (PT)

I am responsible for developing and implementing MCO’s marketing and communications plan, ensuring this is aligned to the needs and priorities identified by our community. I am also responsible for developing resilient internal and external communications channels working closely with volunteers to gather, process, edit, schedule and publish internal and external content as well as updating and maintaining the websites.

Jude Newell/Debra Jones – Information Services Co-ordinator (PT)

We cover this role as a job share and are both responsible for MCO’s front of house functions, ensuring information is accessible, enquiries responded to and the flow of information in and out of MCO is accurate and two-way. Front desk volunteers are supported by us as we help induct new starters, manage the front desk roster and provide ongoing support and some in-house training to existing volunteers, supported by the Volunteer Coordinator.

Sarah McCourt, Admin & Finance Officer (PT)

I am responsible for managing the charity’s day-to-day administrative and financial functions ensuring effective up to date systems and processes are in place and information is accurately recorded and monitored. I report to the MCO Manager and is supported by the Bookkeeper, Payroll company, Treasurer and Trustees.

Sarah McCourt, Volunteer Coordinator (PT)

I am also responsible for the recruitment, induction, training, scheduling and support of our vital team of 50+ volunteers. I want to help create a positive, motivating and inclusive environment where volunteers feel valued and empowered to contribute to our mission. I report to the MCO Manager and will work with a mixed team of staff and very closely with our volunteers.

If you’d like to get in touch with any of the team, please contact us.

Contact Us

Why Not Volunteer With Us?

With such a small number of employed staff – we really rely on our volunteers to keep us going.  We are a charity  and our ambitions for are community are always high, but funding and staff resources are always in short supply.

Please don’t hesitate – get in touch, we could use the help!

From regular in-person volunteering to ad hoc committment when needed, there are so many ways to contribute and get involved…

• Simply register to help and support at ad hoc community events
• Provide regular face to face information or advice on the office front desk
• Help our marketing and communications -from writing up news or updating our websites, to designing leaflets or supporting our social media (all possible from the comfort of your own home), through to door to door leaflet drops
• Help to run our community library
• Support participants on our wellbeing walks or community outings
• Be a Digital Champion supporting others with their technology challenges
• Contribute your skills to a working group, to move forward a particular project
• Handy with a screwdriver or a paintbrush? We always welcome basic DIY skills to keep our buidling ship shape
• Be a volunteer driver for our community minibus outings
• Help with fundrasing for our Charity – our volunteers operate a 100 Club and we would love to run more fundraising events

Please contact us if you would like to discuss how you might help.

Telephone 01765 680200 or click below to get the ball rolling.

Contact us

Our Board of Trustees

Our Trustees are well known locals who are committed to delivering the best service to and for our community. They volunteer their time to help steer the charity and support its work by working as part of our steering groups – sub groups of the main board focused on the three main strands of our work.

Tim Klemz – Chair 
Tim grew up in Mickley and later moved to London when he studied to qualify as a Chartered Surveyor. He moved back to Masham in 1995 to work in the family paper business. He is passionate about Masham having raised his two children there and has been involved with Mashamshire Community Office as a trustee since 2006.

Keith Marshall – Treasurer
Keith Marshall grew up in the north of England and has lived in Healey for the last 22 years. Keithis a retired mining engineer with over 45 years experience in the mining industry, the last 25years of which were spent in senior leadership roles. Keith, and his wife Mo, have lived and worked for extended periods all over the world. Keith has served as a Non Executive Director on the boards of several different mining companies and has been the Treasure of St Paul’s Churchin Healey since 2010.

Gaynor Pearson –Trustee
Gaynor has lived in Swinton since 2002. In 2010, following the acquisition of the learning and development business co-founded with fellow Trustee, Sue Palin, Gaynor saw this as an opportunity to further develop her passion for stonecarving and contribute more to her community in Masham. In addition, together with Sue, they established ArtisOn art and craft workshops in Masham as a social enterprise. Gaynor has been closely involved in the development of Mashamshire Community Office since 2008 with strategic planning, marketing and website development, later becoming a Trustee in 2019.

Sue Palin – Trustee
Sue moved to Masham in 2002. After selling one business business after 17 years, Sue co-founded ArtisOn, a social enterprise, in Masham, while at the same time becoming as a Citizens Advice adviser and supervisor. She is passionate about her community and has been closely involved in the development of MCO since 2008 when she joined as Treasurer, a role which she has undertaken twice on behalf of the charity. Sue networks widely with other third sector organisations, helping to raise the profile of MCO, and has undertaken training in community development to further support MCO’s strategic vision.

Justine Brooksbank – Trustee
Justine joined as a trustee in November 2024.  She lives locally in Grewelthorpe with her family, where they’ve lived for 18 years. Justine’s career was mainly in the public sector, working at a senior level in the NHS, Police, and local government. Justine hopes her experience and knowledge of the public sector means she is well placed to help MCO understand, navigate and work with partners across the public and charity sectors to good effect.

Howard Mountain – Trustee 

Howard has lived in North Yorkshire all his life and worked as a Chartered Surveyor in this area for 30 years. He was Chair of Kirkby Malzeard, Laverton and Dallowgill Parish Council before moving, with his wife Rachel, to Fearby in 2020. He is currently involved with work on the creation of Neighbourhood Plans in both Masham and Kirkby Malzeard. He was responsible for setting up the weekly art classes in Masham, in addition to being Treasurer of Mashamshire Horticultural Show.

Robin Horsell – Trustee

I have spent most of my career in retail sales.  For the early part of my career I was heavily involved in supplying Marks & Spencer and other large UK retailers with clothing, cosmetic and toiletries. In the last 20 years, I founded an online school uniform retailer called Schoolblazer which I’m proud to say is now the largest supplier of uniform and sportswear to the UK independent Schools.  This was acquired by an Australian listed company in 2024, allowing me to spend more time on all things Masham!  As well as the MCO, I’m a Trustee of Masham Church Trust and a Masham Tour Guide.  I’m married to Amanda (a Masham Litter Buster) and we moved to Masham from Harrogate 6 years ago.  We have 3 grown up children, Tom, Lucy and Evie, 2 spaniels, 4 goats and 13 chickens!

Wendy Simpson – Trustee

I was brought up in South Yorkshire and completed my registered nurse training and gained my health visitor qualification in Sheffield. I went on to work as a health visitor, progressing on to tutor and then manager in Rotherham for many years. I worked at a senior level with many different agencies, including Police, Education, the Local Authority and the NSPCC. I then moved onto North Derbyshire as a senior nurse for child safeguarding, which included delivering multiagency training and being involved in policy making decisions within the NHS and other agencies, taking on board the different problems experienced by urban and rural communities. In 2001 I moved to Masham and worked as a senior public heath nurse for the Heath Protection Agency which then became Public Health England. This involved working with communicable diseases, responsibility for the local delivery of national cancer screening programmes and emergency planning in the event of pandemics. This work again relied on liaison and good communication with other agencies. I retired from the NHS six years ago, but continued to be involved in training and updating practice nurses across North Yorkshire and the North East in current issues in immunisation. I also volunteered as a vaccinator during the Covid pandemic. Now that I have fully retired I hope that my experiences of working within the NHS and other agencies will help to support the MCO identify and support the physical and mental health needs of our community in Masham.

David Broadley – Trustee

David has lived in Masham all his life. Went to Masham school before going away to both boarding school and university. Returning in 1984 to join his mother and father in their insurance business, working there until he sold the business in 2020, eventually retiring in 2022. Having done the Lands End to John O Groats walk in 2023, he was persuaded to join the Masham Strollers at MCO and is now also a guide on the history walks around the town. In 2024 he took over as Chair of the Masham Sports Association. His other interests are rugby and golf and he is a past President of Wensleydale RUFC and a past Captain at Masham Golf Club. He is married to Shirley and between them have 5 children scattered around the UK.

Hayley Jackson – Company Secretary

Trustee Vacancy

We are currently recruiting to our board of trustees – if you would like to help develop this vital support hub then please do get in touch.  For further information about this role click here.