“Your trustee board is responsible for the governance of your charity and must run it in a way that complies with your charity’s governing document and the law.” The Charity Commission (2023)

Acts Trust is governed by a Board of Directors chosen from a variety of diverse backgrounds, with varying work experience and expertise. Each Director (Trustee) has  a specific portfolio which outlines the specific roles and functions they hold to assist the charity to deliver their objectives through the various projects. This article introduces each of the Directors giving details of what experience and skills they offer to Acts Trust, an outline of the portfolio of responsibility that they carry and why they have chosen to be a Director.

JOY BLUNDELL: Chair and Founder of Acts Trust

Joy loves and lives in Lincoln with her husband, Paul and two children, Fin and Poppy. She is a leader and a dreamer, a coach and a cheerleader; passionate about bringing kingdom change to society. Joy was one of the founding leaders of Acts Trust back in 2006 and led the staff and volunteer team for the first 10 years of the journey. Since then, Joy has led the board of directors as chair and sits as one of the key connecting points between the Acts team and the wider team of Alive Church, supporting the development of the charity’s strategic vision and culture.

As one of the core leaders of Alive Church, Joy is Location Pastor of Alive Lincoln North Location as well as championing and leading the mobilisation of Alive Church across all locations to be a transformative presence in the various towns and cities the church is located in. Joy is also one of the leaders of Transform Lincoln (a unity movement of churches in Lincoln) and is part of the team that leads the Groundlevel network of churches, a trustee of CAP uk and also runs a coaching practice, called Threads; coaching leaders to find their unique purpose and apply that to the world around them to bring transformation.

NIGEL WOODCOCK: Vice Chair and Director of Operations & Human Resources

Nigel has lived in Lincoln all his life, is married to Jane and has 4 children and 6 grandchildren. Nigel had a career as a nurse in the NHS for over 30 years, predominantly focused on services for people with physical disabilities, culminating in a  in a role as Service Manager for Specialised Rehabilitation, responsible for managing an inpatient rehabilitation centre, Community Outreach Services and Lincolnshire Wheelchair and Orthotic Services. Nigel has always had a passion for supporting and empowering people who are socially, economically, physically and emotionally disadvantaged. He had several years of experience working with Christian Partners in Africa with a lead role in supporting their projects in Malawi for 6 years. Nigel is wholly committed to the vision of Acts Trust to ‘Empower People Living in Thriving Communities’.

Nigel has been involved with Acts Trust for over 12 years, initially as a CAP Debt Coach, and for the last 11 years as a Director. Nigel is Vice Chair of the Board and supports Joy Blundell, as Chair, and Simon Hawking (CEO) to provide executive management advice to assist the smooth governance and day to day management of Acts Trust. Nigel uses his many years of experience, knowledge and transferable skills  to provide advice and support to the Acts Trust Staff Team in relation to his portfolio of Director of Operations and Human Resources.

DAVE COLLINS: Director for Risk Management

David Collins brings extensive commercial and technical background to his role as Director at Acts Trust. With a portfolio specialising in Risk Management, David helps our teams with compliance and risk, shaping policy and providing input. David has extensive experience leading high-performance teams and developing growth strategies across various sectors; David provides invaluable support and strategic oversight to our initiatives. 

David first became aware of Acts Trust through Alive Church over ten years ago when he first moved to Lincoln. He spent many years volunteering in the foodbank warehouse, where he became passionate about the charity’s mission. David is dedicated to supporting Acts Trust’s diverse programs, including the Lincoln Food Bank, debt advice, and mental health support, to create a positive impact in the Lincoln community.

JAMES BOUGHTON-THOMAS: Director of Business and Enterprise

James is the owner and Director of a Lincolnshire based financial services firm and former Head of Business at the Toyota and Lexus dealerships in Lincoln. With 30 years’ commercial enterprise experience he adds expertise in business and finance to the board of directors. He became a Christian in his early 40s and is part of the Alive Lincoln South congregation.

James has said that being a Trustee and Director of Acts Trust has given him an amazing opportunity to be part of a team of Christians working together on projects and programmes that meet the real needs of Lincoln residents. He is ideally placed to help Lincolnshire businesses develop links with our charity.

MEL SMITH: Director of Safeguarding

Mel has over 40 years experience working in Social Care and is a qualified Social Worker, having worked primarily for the local authority. Mel is passionate about the importance of Christian engagement in social issues and being at the heart of community work in all its diversity. Acts Trust has a host of such projects and along with its vision, culture & ethos is the reason I was happy to take on the portfolio as the Safeguarding Lead

LOIS DELONG: Director of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

Lois is the Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion Director for Acts Trust. Some of her other hats include her Community Connector role in the faith and third sector centred around mental health and partnership, and her role as Student and Young Adults Lead at Alive Church. Collectively till this present day, Lois has found that her life experience has shaped her outlook on life and the way that she serves and works with people. 

Lois’s hobbies include hanging out with friends and family, cooking, learning new things and travelling. She loves people, values relationships and partnerships, has a passion for health, and has a desire to see people flourish to their full potential. As a Director, Lois is happy to support Acts Trust in this way as this organisation seeks to come alongside others, nurturing skills for empowerment and inspiring hope. All people deserve respect and equal opportunities, which are rooted in the faith values of this fantastic organisation.

JASON GIBSON: Director of Finance

Jason is the Finance Director for Acts Trust, assisting the team to fulfil the charity’s obligations and manage resources effectively.

Professionally, Jason serves as Operations Manager for Ground Level Network, overseeing all the day-to-day running of the organisation, Jason has a wealth of experience in financial management, events and logistic planning along with working with staff and a huge volunteer team of over 300 to deliver the charities activities including the summer festival ‘Awaken’

Jason and his wife Teri are Life Pastors of Alive Lincoln South, and in his spare time Jason enjoys cycling, DIY, cooking and spending time with his three young children.