Staff
Charlotte Augst
Charlotte is the Chief Executive of National Voices. She came to London in 1997, after completing a law degree in Germany, to pursue postgraduate studies at the University of London. She holds a PhD in law and medical ethics. Charlotte has held senior positions in health and research policy – in Parliament, for national regulators, and in the charitable sector.
Since starting at National Voices, Charlotte has led a strategic reorientation of the organisation towards a more visible role for its members – their insight, practice and innovations – and towards grounding National Voices’ influencing work more explicitly in the experience of people who live with ill health, disability or impairment.
Aleyah Babb-Benjamin
Aleyah has a background in the education and mentoring charity sector space focusing predominantly on work with young people from impoverished communities. At National Voices, she is responsible for centralising marginalised voices by liaising with key stakeholders to develop methodologies of co-production under the umbrella of long-term health conditions. Aleyah also has a vested interest in leading on community engagement and mobility projects; in her own time, she provides targeted support in voluntary positions to Black women, refugees, asylum seekers and other minority groups.
Jen Beardsley
Jen is a chartered accountant who has worked in charity sector for the last 15 years, initially working with regional sight loss charity and more recently supporting several smaller charities whose work spans mental health and holistic employment support of young women largely from Black and Asian Minority Ethnic Groups. Jen is also a Trustee of Birth Companions, who work to improve the lives of women and babies who experience inequalities and disadvantage.
Pavi Brar
Pavi is the Policy and Insight Officer at National Voices. She has just completed her Masters in Global Health and Social Justice at King's College London. She works to combat health inequalities, particularly for minority ethnic and other often marginalised community groups, and has a keen research interest in digital exclusion. She is assisting on furthering the work of the Health Inequalities conference in Spring 2021, including an upcoming health inequality campaign and racial justice workshops. Outside of her work at National Voices, Pavi also volunteers with a student-led think tank, Generation Maastricht, working to encourage youth participation and engagement in health and social affairs issues.
Jess Brayne
Jess is Head of Engagement for National Voices. She is responsible for shaping and implementing National Voices’ membership strategy, ensuring high levels of member engagement in National Voices’ work, recruiting new members, and leading a varied and active programme of events. Prior to joining National Voices Jess worked for various charities, holding membership roles at Equality Challenge Unit and Design Business Association. Outside of work Jess is a Councillor in the London Borough of Barnet.
Esme Hahlo
Esme joined National Voices as Operations Officer in November 2021 through the Charityworks programme. She supports the everyday running of HR and Finance processes alongside supporting the management of Membership and Governance & Board. She holds a degree in International Development from the University of East Anglia and has experience volunteering with a range of charities. Esme has previously worked in Education as a teacher of English as a second language and in Education Technology systems.
Rachel Matthews
Rachel is an experienced health professional with clinical, research and leadership experience, specifically in patient and public engagement and involvement in healthcare research and quality improvement. She is committed to working with diverse teams including patients, carers, service users and community representatives to improve healthcare systems. Rachel is an Alumna of the King’s Fund Top Manager Programme and NIHR Leadership Programme.
Rosie Moffat
Rosie is Communications and Engagement Officer at National Voices and moved into communications after completing a Masters in History from Queen Mary University. She has spent the majority of her career working in the charity sector including Historic Royal Palaces.
Rebecca Steinfeld
Rebecca is Head of Policy at National Voices. She is responsible for influencing key decision-makers across the health agencies. She works to embed person-centred healthcare and to ensure our members’ experiences and concerns shape policies. Her experiences span policy and campaigns work and academic research. Prior to joining National Voices, she worked at Maternity Action and co-chaired the Maternity Voices Partnership at Chelsea & Westminster NHS Foundation Trust. She also co-founded the successful Campaign for Equal Civil Partnerships. She holds a PhD in Politics from the University of Oxford.
Sarah Sweeney
Sarah Sweeney joins National Voices in the role of Head of Policy as maternity cover for Rebecca Steinfeld. Sarah has a wealth of experience in policy, campaigning, research and community development. She is passionate about tackling health inequalities and finding common cause between diverse groups of people to make health and care services more inclusive. Prior to joining National Voices, Sarah led the campaigns and health policy influencing work of Friends, Families and Travellers, the UK’s largest charity working to end racism and discrimination against Gypsy, Roma and Traveller people.