Paul qualified as a nurse in 1996 and worked in numerous posts within nursing, operational management, and a national role within NHS England.

In December 2016 Paul returned to an NHS Trust and is now Associate Chief Nurse Experience, Engagement & Safeguarding at Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust.

Paul has been involved and led on numerous quality improvement initiatives throughout his career, and has gained several awards and accolades, in 2021 was the PEN NHS Patient Experience Manager of the Year.

Paul is also a member of an NMC Professional Standards advisory panel, and has represented the Royal College of Nursing at local, regional, national and international levels, currently with RCN Nurses in Leadership & Management Forum steering group as well as a member of RCNi Editorial Advisory Board.

Paul was also previously chair of the board of Trustees at Blackpool Carers Centre, and is a passionate supporter of Cavell Nurses Trust.

Parent Volunteer

Hilary has a college degree in Art and also gained 10 O’ levels many years ago. She has worked for the Church Commissioners, Croydon Health Authority and Private Companies, all in the Finance Departments using Account Management and Accounting Records using Quick Books Pro Accountancy Software.

Since 2008 Hilary has been Treasurer of Blackpool Tiggers, a charity that provides out of hours leisure provision for children on the Autistic Spectrum and their families. Hilary is practised in grant procedures, ring-fencing, accounting for grants spend, monitoring and reporting. Hilary also ensures that all expenditure achieves the best value as this is central to enhancing the lives of disabled children and their families to whom we are accountable.

Hilary is a parent of 5 children, the youngest of whom is severely autistic. Her third child also has moderate learning difficulties, and her fourth child has Asperger’s and a mental health diagnosis. Hilary has eight grandchildren, four of whom have additional needs. Hilary has been involved in the Blackpool Parent Forum since its inception and has gained invaluable insight into how families of disabled children can be helped and what their needs and requirements are.

John was Managing Director of Sandcastle Waterpark in Blackpool, one of the top water parks in the world.  John is also the European representative on the Board of the World Water Parks Association.

John’s expertise in establishing success within the water parks industry sees him regularly head hunted by park chiefs abroad, particularly in the Middle East. John managed Sancastle Waterpark for 16 years and was always looking for new ways to extend the business.  John is proud of his teenage years spent working at the Pleasure Beach (as his mother had) and later studying geology at University which created a great foundation for his future career.

John worked hard with his team to ensure that the Sandcastle Waterpark won countless awards for customer service, most notably winning national acclaim three years running, for their disability access policies.  Sandcastle Waterpark won the Lancashire tourism customer service award as judges declared, “The customer is number one and staff forever exceed expectations.”

Another of John’s passions is helping local charities.

Anthea is parent to four children, including a daughter with Dravet Syndrome. Anthea is also actively involved involved in the Blackpool Parent Forum.

As a School Governor of Thames Primary Academy, Anthea’s role is focussed on SEND Needs & Inclusion.

Anthea has completed Governor training with Blackpool Council around Special Needs in schools, The Green Paper and Volunteering within a schooling/educational environment.

Anthea has acheived educational qualifications including British Sign Language, Basic Sign Language & Baby Sign.

Alison managed the prestigious Imperial Hotel in Blackpool for 18 years (with the exception of 18 months where she trained as a sparky – but that’s another story!). Hotels have been her life for many years and she trained in hospitality in Blackpool before taking her first hotel management position in Cardiff. Her career has taken her all around the country until she ended up back in her beloved town. Her business acumen has been recognised on numerous occasions, being awarded “Hotel of the Year” in her previous company, and “General Manager of the Year” in her role at the Imperial Hotel.

After 37 years in the business, Alison has stepped down from her role to spend time with family and friends, doing things the wonderful business of hospitality does not always leave time for.

Alison is honoured to be supporting Aiming Higher in her role as trustee.  She says “We have a small but incredible team who pull out all the stops to support local families in so many ways.  Seeing first-hand how much this support can change lives makes me realise how crucial a charity like Aiming Higher is to our local area.”

Catherine is wife to Tony and mum to two, not so little boys, Oliver and Jack. She works full time as a Senior Finance Manager at BAE systems and heads up a fundraising group, Jack’s Belles, raising money for charities in her spare time.

Jack has Dravet Syndrome, ASD and global development delay. He’s a teenager now and the family have been supported by Aiming Higher since he was little so Catherine felt that she wanted to give something back, using her knowledge and skills as a Trustee to support where she can.

Ged currently owns Content Creators Blackpool – a digital marketing and content creation agency which provides paid advertising, videography and social media content creation for businesses and organisations.

Ged is also a shareholder of local DAB radio station Coastal Radio DAB and presents the breakfast show Monday – Friday, 6-10am.

In the past Ged presented the Radio Wave Breakfast show for 10 years and worked at numerous BBC stations and national radio stations, Talksport and Talkradio.

Ged’s passion for Aiming Higher came when he hosted one of the first Aiming Higher Balls after funding was cut to parents with disabled children in Blackpool.   From that experience, Ged became an ambassador for the charity, championing Aiming Higher to various organisations and is now proud to also be a Trustee.