Charly Young CEO and Co-founder Expand Charly founded The Girls’ Network with Becca in 2013, whilst they were teaching in secondary schools in North West London. Her background is in education that supports the whole child, and the use of networks to facilitate this. Prior to teaching, she worked at the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) as an education researcher, and with Whole Education supporting school leadership teams. She is passionate about the use of networks to empower, support and mobilise people, and believes that good mentoring can be transformational, for both mentor and mentee. She ran her first marathon in November, and would secretly love to complete an Ultimate Ninja Warrior course one day! [email protected] @young_charlotte
Giovanna Grandoni Director of Fundraising and Relationships Expand Giovanna is a motivated and experienced fundraising manager with a passion for delivering high quality results by creating long-lasting relationships. After her Masters in Economics of International Cooperation and Development and in European Public Relations, she has managed communications and fundraising teams for several organisations working on gender equity, health and socio-environmental issues at national and international levels. Her dream female mentor will always be her grandmother. The smartest woman she has ever met, able to show her strengths and weaknesses in a way that made her loved and respected inside and outside her family. Born and raised in Italy, Giovanna feels most at home by the sea and in the sun. She feels free when she is far from the ground so the best experiences for her were bouldering and kitesurfing. [email protected]
Nat Rossetti Head of Communications and Impact Expand Nat started at The Girls’ Network as a network manager in 2016, running the London mentoring programme. Prior to joining The Girls’ Network she worked in publishing, theatre and film. She has a degree in English & Theatre from Warwick, an MA in Text & Performance from RADA and an MPhil in Multi-Disciplinary Gender Studies from Cambridge. In her spare time, Nat obsessively anagrams the phrase ‘keep calm and carry on’ and posts the results on instagram. Her dream female mentor would be Cheryl Strayed, because all any of us can do is hope to be that wise one day! [email protected] @nat_rossetti
Krishna Hathi Head of Programme Expand Krishna taught science at a secondary school in London after completing a Masters degree in Geophysics. Before joining The Girls’ Network she worked in finance and education technology, building an app for A-level physics students. When she's not thinking about food or eating said food, you'll usually find her trying to revive house plants she's struggling to keep! Her dream female mentor (other than her mum) would be Mindy Kaling, because her creativity, confidence and wit is inspiring and their mentoring sessions would be all fun! [email protected] @KrishnaTGN
Luxsiya Sivakumar Programme Coordinator Expand Luxsiya's role focuses on supporting network managers nationally in their work recruiting mentors, organising events, and safeguarding our mentees. Before joining The Girls' Network, she worked as an operations associate at Kano Computing and has a BA in Geography from UCL. Luxsiya is an avid Tube geek and her party trick is listing all the stops on the Bakerloo line from memory. Her dream female mentor would be MIA because, alongside her music career, she has been revolutionary in breaking down gender biases in the Tamil community and is unwavering in her commitment to activism for Eelam Tamils and other displaced groups. [email protected] @luxsiya_s
Claire Hill-Dixon Senior Network Manager - London Expand Claire has over five years’ experience in the charity and social enterprise sectors. Through her programme management and facilitation roles she has advocated for women and young people through the use of participatory tools. Alongside her work with The Girls’ Network Claire also facilitates a community space in Brixton with Impact Hub. Claire has a BA in Social and Cultural Anthropology from Goldsmiths. In her free time Claire likes plotting her next adventure and persuading friends and family to explore with her. Her dream female mentor would be Alexandria Ocasio Cortez because she isn’t afraid of who she is or what she stands for. [email protected] @ClaireHillDixon
Amy Campo McEvoy Senior Network Manager - Liverpool City Region Expand Prior to moving to the the North West for The Girls' Network, Amy was involved in organisations promoting youth participation in European politics and intergenerational befriending. While studying International Relations and French at university, she spent time in Burkina Faso working with a local organisation on the rights of people with disabilities, and in Brussels being part of the International Juvenile Justice Observatory, promoting the rights of young people in conflict with the law. Amy once spent 24 hours on a bus from Brussels to the South of France in cow fancy dress. Her dream female mentor would be Malala Yousafzai because the global movement she has started shows the impact one resilient young woman can have. [email protected] @mc_amy_
Alison Allan Network Manager - Newcastle Expand Before joining The Girls' Network Alison worked at BBC Newcastle producing and managing the award-winning public tours of the studios. Having worked in media and performance between London and Newcastle, Alison is keen to highlight the opportunities for girls breaking down the perceived barriers between North and South. She studied Film, Theatre and Literature at university. Alison has a Cockerpoo called ‘Wilma Wu’ - a compromise between Sensei Wu (Lego Ninjago) and Wilma Flintstone. Her dream mentor would be the fictional character Scarlett O’Hara, because her resilience and drive to succeed never cease. [email protected] @allan_TGN
Tigan Palmer Network Manager - London Expand Tigan grew up in Cornwall and feels most at home by the sea with her dogs. She obtained her undergraduate degree in English Literature at the University of Sussex before studying for a PGCE. She worked as an English Teacher, then completed her Masters degree at Oxford University before moving to London to work in the education and charity sectors. Watching the film Babe aged 3 turned Tigan vegetarian for life. Her dream female mentor would be Greta Thunberg because she’s mobilised millions of people across the world to address and combat climate change and is an incredible and inspiring voice not only for young people, but for all of us. [email protected] @Tigan_TGN
Rajbir Kaur Rana Network Manager - West Midlands Expand Rajbir spent three years in York contemplating what defines a cloud before graduating with a BA in Philosophy. Since then she has been working for charities to develop and deliver services which make a positive impact in society. Her passion is to make the world a better place through kindness, consciousness, and change. Rajbir is a yoga teacher and likes to stretch a lot in her spare time. Her dream female mentor would be Mai Bhago because of her warrior spirit and unwavering commitment to do good. [email protected] @_rajbirkaur
Kate Whittington-Smith Network Manager - Greater Manchester Expand Kate has spent the last 10 years working on gender issues and championing the rights of girls all over the world. Prior to joining The Girls' Network Kate worked for Girls Not Brides conducting research and policy analysis on the issue of child marriage. She holds a degree in Politics from the University of Bristol and an MSc in International Development. In her spare time she looks after her tiny tyrant of a toddler and her mischievous dog Hector. Her dream female mentor would be the New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern because she seems so down to earth and handles motherhood while running a country with such grace. [email protected] @KateTGN
Hayley Westlake Network Manager - Portsmouth Expand Hayley has worked in education since graduating from Warwick University in 2014. Teaching orphaned children in Sri Lanka made her realise she wanted to dedicate her career to helping young people. Since then she spent 3 years at Elevate Education, where she supported over 300 schools to improve student performance and aspiration. She hopes to continue to have an impact on young people's lives. As a child Hayley was always involved in drama and theatre, and actually performed at the Royal Palladium and the Royal Albert Hall as a teenager (she fell over during one of her dance performances, but tries not to remember that part). Her dream female mentor would be JK Rowling, because she is such an amazing example of how our failures are just stepping stones on our journey to realising our potential! [email protected] @HW_TheGirlsNet
Sitara Johns Network Manager - Sussex Expand Sitara studied Law at the University of Birmingham, then went on to work at a family law firm in Vancouver. Since graduating she also joined the Leadership Development Programme at Teach First teaching at a large primary school in Birmingham, with the aim of contributing to closing the educational gap. Sitara recently met the World's Strongest Man, and asked whether she could carry his three litre bottle of water for him because he looked tired. Her dream female mentor would be Helena Kennedy because she has worked tirelessly throughout her career to champion minority and women's human rights in the legal system. She has exposed injustices and is so accessible: Eve was Framed was one of the first books Sitara read on national inequality for women. [email protected] @SitaraGirlsNet
Amy Metcalfe Network Manager - Liverpool Expand Before joining The Girls’ Network, Amy worked in the Learning and Development team at the National Union of Students helping Student Union staff become effective leaders. She also co-founded a management training business and ran fitness classes for women promoting body positivity. Amy studied Journalism at the University of Chester. Amy is still waiting for her Hogwarts letter. Her dream mentor would be Brene Brown because she is proving that vulnerability is a strength whilst being a successful business woman, author and mum. [email protected] @AmyMetcalfe14