HTSI Board

Cath is a qualified Nature and Forest Therapy guide with Highland Quietlife, based within the Cairngorms with a priority to offer nature therapy to those in receipt of green prescriptions, to help with health and wellbeing and community hubs. She is also a Marketing Manager for a local tour operator, and she has over 20 years’ experience of working within hospitality management, especially within quality assurance, logistics and marketing. Cath has first-hand experience of how well-facilitated, peer support groups can be key to recovery.

David Brookfield is currently Group Chief Executive of Centred (Scotland) who are the leading provider of care and support focussing on people with significant and enduring mental ill health.  David holds a B.Sc (Hons) from Plymouth University and is a trained Accountant. He is also is a member of the Chartered Institute of Housing.

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He has a background of over 30 years work in the social housing sector where he retired from his post as Group CEO of a Housing Association in 2013. During this time he developed an interest in third sector company development and social firms.

Following his retirement he joined the healthcare sector as Head of Finance and Administration with Highland Home Carers  moving to what was prior to the name change, Birchwood Highland in January 2017 as Head of Finance and IT becoming Group CEO in August 2019.

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David is an amateur musician playing saxophone, mandolin and guitar and also lists his interests as gardening and governance.

Linda Lawton is Head of People at Highland Hospice with broad responsibilities relating to people and culture as well as sustainability.  She has extensive experience in HR working in life science, retail, distribution, healthcare, manufacturing and charitable sectors.  She has worked with both local and international organisations across all areas of human resources, learning and development, organisational design and people strategy as well as providing consultancy services to SMEs.

Linda has experience on boards of third sector organisations, currently working with Scottish Refugee Council, as well as being a director of cycling event management companies.

She enjoys all things cycling and adventuring outdoors as well as being a huge film fan.

Valerie Gale has strong links with the third sector in Highland and she is currently Chairperson of the Go Golspie Development Trust.

She previously worked as Chief Executive of a children’s charity based in Highland and has worked for over 30 years in the third sector in various management roles. She is passionate about community development and since assuming the role of Chair for the development Trust she has led on a number of successful projects, the Golspie 2030 Tourism strategy being a prime example.

She is a qualified Mindfulness Teacher and actively promotes the benefits of Mindfulness on mental wellbeing.

Sally has worked in Public Health for 30 years with wide ranging experience and  particular interests in infants, children and young people and the long reaching effects of  childhood adversity into adulthood and family/community life.

She has lived and worked in rural Scotland for over 25 years and understands the value and contribution of the Third Sector in family and community life. 

Lyndy Geddes is the Director of Operations at the BBRS. Prior to this Lyndy was Chief Operating Officer of the Ombudsman Services, a dispute resolution service set up to address conflicts between consumers and businesses across energy and communications sectors. Previously she was Assistant Director at the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service and Head of Transformation at the General Medical Council.

Lyndy has extensive experience in shaping, commissioning and delivering business improvement, technical solutions and culture change across public, private, regulatory and not-for- profit sectors.

Natalie is a freelance fundraising and development consultant who is passionate about helping third sector organisations to maximise their potential and impact. 

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Natalie is from the remote, rural community of Helmsdale in Sutherland, and having grown up around and worked in various third sector organisations, she has seen first-hand how critical this sector is to the health, wellbeing and livelihood of so many. Natalie has a BA in Entrepreneurship and Finance from the University of Strathclyde where she studied the third sector for her dissertation. She then trained commercially in supply chain analytics and management at GSK, London. 

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Recently, Natalie has worked with charities with a focus on the environment, arts, mental health and community regeneration bringing in over £300,000 to the Highlands in the last few years. She has also worked with a large British funder to review the outsourcing of complex grant management and was delighted to be shortlisted for Young Business Woman of the Year at the Highland Business Women Awards 2023. 

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In her spare time Natalie loves to spend time with her family, perform with Inverness Musical Theatre Company and teach a musical theatre dance fitness class, ChiChi Fit. Natalie is extremely passionate about supporting women's health and wellbeing, especially in response to trauma.