Sparks Charity | How we are governed

Our Trustees

Sparks is governed by a Board of Trustees. While the day-to-day running of the charity is carried out by the CEO and her team, ultimately the Board is responsible for the vision, mission and strategic direction of the charity. They are a group of experienced professionals bringing together knowledge from different sectors to take Sparks forward. Together with the CEO, they help to ensure that the right decisions are made to improve the quality of life for children affected by a medical condition.

Chief Executive – Zillah Bingley

Zillah joined Sparks in April 2014. She trained as a lawyer with Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and following 14 years with them she moved into Management Consultancy. During her career, Zillah has been involved with a number of charities and arts organisations. She has been a trustee of a cancer charity, a trustee of the Fulham Symphony Orchestra, an advisor to the Military Wives Choir Foundation and acts as a school governor

She holds a BSc (Hons) in Biology from the University of Southampton and is a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales

Chief Scientific Advisor – Professor Gudrun Moore

Professor Moore is the Deputy Director for Research at the UCL Institute of Child Health, based at Great Ormond Street. She is also the Co-Director of the SLMS Reproduction and Development Domain, and Co-Director of the Baby Bio Bank.

Gudrun’s research specialises in the genetic causes of the common complications of pregnancy, particularly fetal growth restriction (FGR). Her wealth of experience is invaluable to Sparks in directing our research projects and making a lasting difference to babies, children and pregnant women

Chairman – Jonathan Britton a Chartered Accountant with 35 years’ experience of leading global finance functions at both UBS and Barclays

Deputy Chairman and Chair of Medical Advisory Committee – Guy Gregory works as an Executive Director at CBRE, commercial property services and has hosted many golf fundraising events for Sparks

Treasurer and Company Secretary – Julian Wilkinson a former partner at Moore Stephens and a director of the London Shipping Law Centre

Chair of Parent Advisory Committee – David Orr a commercial property and hotels entrepreneur and Chairman at Fraser Giles Partnership and the father of a disabled son

Additional board members

Dr Simon Newell – Professor Donald Peebles – Martin Jepson – Roger Uttley MA OBE

Frank van den Bosch – Robert Booker – Helen Fridell – Tim Pethybridge

Sparks Medical Advisory Committee

The Medical Advisory Committee undertakes a scientific review of grant applications submitted to Sparks and makes recommendations to Sparks’ Board of Trustees for funding priorities. The Committee is currently chaired by Guy Gregory, a Trustee. The other members, who include eminent doctors and professors, are selected to cover the broad range of subject areas the Charity’s remit supports.

Professor John Anderson – Professor of Experimental Paediatric Oncology, UCL Institute of Child Health, London

Dr Topun Austin – Consultant Neonatologist, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Dr Louis Chesler – Senior Clinical Lecturer, Paediatric Solid Tumour Biology and Therapeutics Team, Institute of Cancer Research/Royal Marsden Hospital

Dr Ian Crocker – Senior Lecturer, Maternal and Fetal Health Research Centre, University of Manchester

Dr Anna David – Reader and Consultant in Obstetrics and Maternal/Fetal Medicine, Institute for Women’s Health, University College London

Professor Sarah Ennis – Professor of Genomics, University of Southampton

Mr Guy Gregory – Medical Advisory Committee Chairman, Sparks Trustee

Dr Catherine Hill – Senior Lecturer in Child Health/Honorary Consultant Paediatrician, University of Southampton/Southampton General Hospital

Dr Manju Kurian – Clinician Scientist in Paediatric Neurosciences/Honorary Consultant in Paediatric Neurology, UCL Institute of Child Health, London

Dr Carmel McConville – Senior Lecturer, School of Cancer Sciences, University of Birmingham

Dr Paul McNamara – Reader in Child Health/Honorary Consultant Respiratory Paediatrician, University of Liverpool/Alder Hey Children’s Hospital

Professor Frances Platt – Professor of Biochemistry and Pharmacology, University of Oxford

Dr Malcolm Taylor – Reader in Cancer Immunogenetics, University of Manchester

Professor Adam Finn – Professor of Paediatrics, University of Bristol

Conflicts of Interest Policy for Sparks Medical Advisory Committee

Where a member of the Medical Advisory Committee (MAC) has a known interest in the outcome of a particular research application or is based within the same department/institution from which the application, lead applicant or co-applicants are based, the member will clearly declare their conflict of interest to Sparks, if not already noted by the Charity, and will remove themselves from all discussions related to the application.

The MAC member will receive the full agenda, but not the research application or any other correspondence relating to external peer review or discussions. Identities of all peer reviewers are also protected.

MAC members are allowed to apply for funding from the Charity but do not have any advantage or preferential treatment. They do not take part in any discussions relating to their application nor undertake any direct correspondence with other MAC members relating to their application. As with any conflict of interest the committee member is excluded from the meeting whilst their application is under consideration. Following peer review the MAC member receives standard anonymised peer review feedback.