Head Office Team
Ellen O'Donoghue
Ellen is Chief Executive Officer at James’ Place and co-chair of the National Suicide Prevention Alliance (NSPA). This follows her work as Head of Programmes at the Royal Foundation. Ellen was previously Director of Health Promotion Programmes at the Movember Foundation, leading on global programmes to improve men’s health. Prior to that she headed up the strategy and planning team for Public Health England’s behaviour change campaigns. She launched the strategic communications agency The Ladder Consultancy and set up and led the social marketing team at Forster Communications, working with clients including the British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK and the King’s Fund. Ellen has been a governor of three schools, and a Trustee of a children’s heart charity and a drugs and alcohol charity. She recently completed her term as a member of the Mayor of London’s Advisory Group on Child Obesity.
Allan Brownrigg
Allan's previous roles include Partnerships & Programme Lead at Thrive at Five, Chief Allied Health & Health Care Professional within an acute NHS trust, and as a Consultant Psychological Therapist and Associate Director of Psychological Services at an NHS mental health Trust. He has been regional lead for the charity Frontline, and has held roles as a Senior Lecturer in Rehabilitation and Social Work and Evidence-based Psychological Therapy. He is an accredited Psychotherapist and registered Social Worker, and has significant experience in the mental health field, including leading suicide prevention in child and adolescent services, within prisons, and in community mental health services. Allan has consulted on evidence-based approaches to caring for people presenting through risk, crisis, personal complexity, and mental ill-health. He has a Master's in Social Innovation from the Judge Business School at the University of Cambridge. Allan is also an experienced workplace well-being consultant and is currently reading for a PhD in Organisational Health and Well-being. Allan is based at our Newcastle Centre.
Neil Fray
Neil is a highly experienced Director, whose last role was Director of Finance at the campaigns non-profit 38 Degrees. He was previously Director of Finance at the Motor Neurone Disease Association, where he was responsible for finance, ICT and facilities. He was Finance Director at IEMA Ltd and spent eleven years at Energy and Utility Skills as Finance and Performance Director. He has also been a Trustee of the international development charity Action on Poverty and the Association for Art History. Neil started his career in the private sector and has extensive experience of developing financial sustainability strategies, and fundraising revenue streams. Neil will be based in our new Birmingham centre.
Amy Swart
Amy is Director of Fundraising and External Affairs at James’ Place Charity. Amy has spent almost twenty years in the charity sector focusing on building relationships with philanthropists and raising major gifts. For the last 14 years she has worked in leadership roles, managing teams, development boards and with senior level volunteers, all whilst raising £million gifts from philanthropists. She has raised vital funds for a broad range of causes, including several seven figure gifts, for various charities including some big brand organisations like NSPCC, CARE International, Young Lives vs Cancer, and WaterAid, and place-based organisations including Fight for Peace and, since 2021, James’ Place Charity. Amy has spearheaded a £13m appeal to open new suicide prevention treatment centres and is less than a million away from the target in under three years, working with trustees and an appeal board.
Rosie Barrett
As Expansion Manager, Rosie is responsible for managing the set-up of new James’ Place centres, expanding our vital work into areas where it is needed most. Rosie has a background in social care and has worked in both accommodation and community-based services, delivering support to those experiencing a range of issues including homelessness, substance addiction and mental health problems. At the beginning of 2021, Rosie joined James’ Place as the London Centre Manager, where she set up and managed the day-to-day operations at the service, before moving into the Expansion Manager role in Summer 2022.
Martin Miller
Martin has ten years of experience working with major supporters to fundraise for a range of national charities including RNID, Cystic Fibrosis Trust and Diabetes UK. Martin now leads on building our relationships with supporters and philanthropists, whose support allows James’ Place to continue to expand and thrive.
Gemma Matthews
Gemma has 18 years' experience in managing communications for a range of small and medium sized health charities including Cystic Fibrosis Trust, British Dupuytren's Society and legal mental health charity LawCare. She joined James' Place in November 2022 and her role is to create, develop and implement the charity's communications strategy.
Alex Abberton
Alex has over thirty years’ experience within the voluntary sector and has worked with a wide variety of charities including SCOPE, Coram Life Education and Homestart. She became involved with James’ Place just prior to the first centre being opened in Liverpool after the loss of her son, Finn, to suicide in 2017. She organises the James’ Place Art Project and also works as the Fundraising Manager for London.
Emily Hampshire
Emily leads on trusts, foundations and statutory partnerships at James' Place. She has over 7 years of experience in fundraising across the non-profit and higher education sector. Emily is passionate about connecting funders with James' Place to deliver real impact and support our mission to prevent suicide and provide hope.
Krystal Kaplan
With over 20 years of expertise in developing holistic event-led growth strategies across diverse sectors, Krystal has built trusting partnerships and driven impactful initiatives that embed DEI and Accessibility. As the Stewardship and Events Manager, Krystal is dedicated to creating engaging experiences that inspire support, expand partnerships and drive meaningful change. With her experience in tech, education, and work force development and passion for mental health advocacy, Krystal is committed to driving forward the mission to prevent male suicide and create a future filled with hope and support.
Sophie Lamont
Sophie has a background in digital marketing for non-profit organisations, including the Olympics and the Algorithmic Justice League. She now leads on individual giving stewardship, building meaningful connections and inspiring long-term commitment to support our life-saving work.
Ruth Sheeran
Ruth has over 20 years’ operational, finance and payroll experience in the commercial sector working in a variety of SME’s and larger organisations. She has previously volunteered for charities including providing catering at a lunch club for Age Concern and worked with the Samaritans for a number of years. Ruth is delighted to be part of the team at James’ Place supporting the operational and finance function of the charity.
Leah Morris
Leah has worked in people-focused roles since graduating with an English Language degree in 2015, with a strong foundation in health promotion and wellbeing. She is passionate about empowering individuals to access opportunities, develop skills, and utilise resources to thrive both personally and professionally. Leah brings experience in managing projects that support individuals through challenging life circumstances, helping them to identify solutions and pathways for growth. This work cultivated a deep commitment to advocating for employee voice, mental health parity, and inclusive workplace practices. Leah is passionate about fostering inclusive and supportive environments, facilitating open communication, and promoting holistic wellbeing strategies. She is particularly driven by the belief that HR plays a vital role in enabling people to express their needs, navigate change, and reach their full potential within the workplace.
Anna Scott
Anna is proud to have joined the team at James' Place in March 2025. She has worked in finance and HR roles within the charity sector for more than 10 years. She is passionate about caring for people's mental health and wellbeing and is delighted to be supporting the life-saving work of James' Place.