Sharing knowledge and passion
Combining the expertise of our Executive Leadership Team, the deputy chief executive of Bolton Council and influential people across the region, the Bolton Cares board helps to set the long term priorities for the organisation. By sharing knowledge and passion, the board brings an additional dynamic to Bolton Cares.
Graeme Wilson, Borough Treasurer, Bolton Council (Council Director)
Graeme joins the board as a Non-Executive Director.
Graeme was recruited to Bolton Council as an accountancy assistant to support the work of the Adult Services Finance Unit. After supporting various areas of the Council’s operations over the last 18 years he has risen to the position of as Assistant Director, Finance more commonly known as Borough Treasurer, with overall responsibility for the financial affairs of the Council. One of the key roles of the position is being a board member for Bolton Cares.
Graeme said
“I am honoured to take up the role of NED at Bolton Cares and am looking forward to supporting the organisation in continuing to deliver high quality services and in realising its future aims and objectives. After a number of years working in other areas of finance at Bolton Council, I am very pleased to be able to resume a role contributing to the provision of person centred care.”
Zulfi Hussain, Chair of the Board
Zulfi joins the Bolton Cares Board as its Chair.
He is a charismatic and passionate International Speaker and ‘hands on’ Practitioner in the areas of social enterprise, entrepreneurship and coaching. As one of Yorkshire and Humber’s best known and most respected entrepreneurs he has been recognised as one of the top 100 most influential people in the region.
Working with many organisations such as BT, ITV, Leeds Ahead, National Grid, and the NHS, he energises audiences by combining his own life experiences with expert knowledge.
“I am excited by the drive and direction of Bolton Cares and am keen to use my business expertise and experience to help the company grow and thrive.”
Diana MacCarthy, Non-Executive Director
Diana joins the board as a Non-Executive Director.
As a public relations professional of more than 20 years and with a specialism in care sector communications, Diana’s passion is seeing exemplar social care delivered through dedication and quality.
She believes Bolton Cares is a passionate, committed and creative social care organisation creating stand out achievements for the people it supports. It is well positioned to THRIVE, its values and vision underline an organisation delivering meaningful change in social care.
“As a NED I am delighted to be part of the Bolton Cares journey. I hope to bring my communications credentials to the board as a complement to the brilliant work underway. I am looking forward to being able to think wider and left field to consider opportunities that might be explored to the betterment of Bolton Cares, Wigan Cares and Salford Cares.”
George Davidson, Non-Executive Director
George joins the board as a Non-Executive Director.
George has over 25 years of experience in marketing and market research. He currently consults through his small company, The Lantern. George is Adjunct Instructor on the “Consumer Behavior and Marketing Strategy” course at the University Of Chicago.
George was a local Councillor and Deputy Leader of Slough Borough Council. He was NED at the Royal Berkshire Ambulance Trust as Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee. He also sat on the Remuneration Committee. George is also a Trustee/NED of the National Autistic Society. George completed the Financial Times, Effective Non-Executive Director course.
George believes in the power that Bolton Cares in supporting and transforming the lives of adults in our area.
“I am delighted to take on the role of NED and support Bolton Cares in this important part of our shared journey. I am inspired by what I have seen here in Bolton can be an exemplar and a model for the rest of the country in adult care.”
Dr Kim Johnston, Non-Executive Director
Kim joins the board as a Non-Executive Director.
Kim is an experienced senior executive with a breadth of experience in the private, public and charitable sectors. Kim’s background is predominantly in commercial business development, most recently in the telecommunications sector. She also has a PhD researching the impact of the integration of teams within the English health and social care system, giving her an excellent understanding of the collaborative working required by Bolton Cares.
“I enjoy the challenge of creating and developing projects, ensuring that they are sustainable over the long term. As a strong advocate for person-centred care, I was compelled to apply for the NED role at Bolton Cares as it combines so many of my experiences and interests.”
Karen Owens, Non-Executive Director
Karen joins the board as a Non-Executive Director.
Originally from Bolton, Karen’s love of both the arts and sciences led her to study Architecture at Leeds and Hull Universities. From there she moved to London where she worked for several International Blue-Chip Companies. She is well known for her design thinking, leadership and interpersonal skills, mentoring, training, and engaging teams all over the world.
As the founder of Auricle Studio, her primary focus has always been in raising awareness of the values of environmental design and the profound impact architecture has on our psychological and physiological health and well-being.
Karen is a founding member of The Creative Revolution, a community dedicated to exploring the potential of our individual and shared creative capacities and to encouraging transformation in our education systems from childhood through to adulthood.
She is also an ambassador for Disrupting Norms and a member of The International Living Futures Institute, The Biophilic Society, Women in Lighting, Women in Architecture, The Centre for Conscious Design and the Society for Theory and Research on Salutogenesis (STARS).
She is a community builder and thoughtful advisor who helps people to connect to ideas on how to live their best lives.
“I truly believe in the vision of the Bolton Cares Group, and I couldn’t be prouder to be part of such a supportive team of people. They really are an inspiring organisation who listen to and care for the people in their communities. Thank you for your warm welcome and including me as part of your future strategic direction” Karen
Rhian Stone, Managing Director
Rhian is a highly experienced executive leader with an exemplary track record of providing strong and inspirational leadership in social care settings and transforming complex organisations.
With over 15 years’ experience at Executive Director level, Rhian has successfully led social care and housing companies with 1200+ staff teams, across multiple geographies through challenging times, achieving significant growth, improved quality and governance. A qualified social worker, she has worked in social care for 35 years and has a lifelong passion for making a positive impact on the lives of people who need support.
Her experience spans learning disability, mental health, complex needs, older people, young people’s services, homelessness and substance misuse. She has developed innovative and ground- breaking services in partnership with people who need them and is a passionate advocate for the improving the quality of the homes and built environment is social care settings.
In her early career she held high profile policy roles within the NSPCC and Barnardos and led the cross government Young People’s Substance misuse programme in the Department for Education for 4 years.
“It’s a privilege to lead Bolton Cares as Managing Director, into our next era – working with the Board, colleagues and people we support to continue to provide high quality care and support across all our services and realise our ambitions to grow and do more for the communities across Bolton, Wigan and Salford into the future.”
Lisa Antoni, Head of Finance & Resources
Lisa joined Bolton Cares in 2017 as Finance, Audit & Resources Manager after coming to the conclusion that she wanted to work for a sector that makes a positive difference to people’s lives and the community.
She has a wealth of experience in finance having worked in both utilities and manufacturing industries leading on organisation-wide business services including, finance teams, health and safety, audit, quality, ICT and efficiency programmes. Lisa now leads all of the Bolton Cares support services and is dedicated to ensuring the compliance and financial stability of the company.
“We are trying to bring fresh eyes to traditional care and are using technology to create a more innovative and exciting model. The sector is changing and our investments will help achieve our vision and ensure the company operates sustainably for the long term, while also raising the quality of opportunity across the board.
Different ways of thinking will help with this journey and enable Bolton Cares to grow and develop while enabling our workforce to thrive and get the most out of their career.”