Our Board
One Parent Families Scotland (OPFS) has 9 Trustees who bring a range of experience and expertise.
Halena Gauntlett
Chair
As Chair of OPFS, I feel very privileged to work with our families, Satwat, the OPFS team, our Board and partners. Professionally I bring experience in equality, education, safeguarding and systems thinking, all the while, my personal experience as a lone-parent to teenagers is one lived in technicolour! The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is the internationally mandated children’s rights framework that informs our strategies and programmes. This is central to my core values and deep personal commitment to our mission at OPFS to support families and to advance the fundamental rights of children and young people through our policy, partnerships and practice.
Keir Mitchelmore
Vice Chair
Keir is delighted to be appointed Vice Chair of OPFS and as a solicitor brings her transferable legal skills to the boardroom table. When a single parent herself many years ago, Keir would have loved to access the services OPFS offer today and looks forward to supporting them in their important work.
Rosalind Paterson
Company Secretary
Rosalind joined OPFS as Finance Manager in July 2021 and was appointed Company Secretary in December 2021. Rosalind has been a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Certified Accountants since 1994 and has experience of working in a variety of diverse areas including Local Government, Care at Home and Professional Practice.
Susan Smith
Head of Communications & Fundraising, The Yard
Susan Smith is currently the Head of communications and fundraising at The Yard. She was previously Campaigns Manager at the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations. Before that she was editor of Third Force News for over a decade and has a background in journalism. Previous board appointments include five years as a trustee of the Sheila McKechnie Foundation. Susan is a single parent by choice so understands the social, emotional and financial challenges of managing family life alone.
Addie Dinsmore
Head of Communications & Fundraising (Scotland) at WWF-UK
Addie is the Head of Communications & Fundraising (Scotland) for WWF-UK and has worked in the charity sector for over a decade. Having been brought up in a single parent family, Addie understands the unique challenges that single parents and their children face and is passionate about the essential work that OPFS does in Scotland.
Dr Andrew Sharman
Managing Partner, RMS Switzerland
Andrew is a seasoned Non-Executive Director and Trustee, his roles have included Chair of the Board of the Institute of Leadership & Management and President of the Institution of Occupational Safety & Heath. He founded the One Percent Safer Foundation in 2020 with the aim of eliminating 28,000 work-related deaths globally every year. Andrew teaches at several executive business schools and consults on leadership, organizational culture, and wellbeing, globally. Following the sudden death of his mother when aged 11, Andrew grew up in one parent family in Scotland.
Alison Livesey
Non-Executive Director
Alison works for J.P. Morgan ("JPM") in their payments business and is a seasoned Non-Executive Director, currently sitting on the Board of JPM's Payments Institution in Ireland and previously has sat on the Boards of three JPM Credit Institutions. Alison is passionate about volunteering and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Having really enjoyed her time assisting OPFS as a volunteer on a three-month piece of work, she was honoured to be asked to join the Board of OPFS and to help support their critical work as an organisation. Alison is a qualified Barrister and the mother of twins.
Fiona Duncanson
Treasurer and Chartered Accountant
Fiona is a Chartered Accountant with over ten years’ experience of financial and management accounting, financial analysis and strategic planning and advice. She has been working in the education sector for the last five years and is passionate about improving the lives and opportunities of young people.
Clare Simpson
Retired Policy and Communications professional
Clare was a single parent for many years and brought her son up alone (he is now a father himself, which makes her a grandma!). This makes her very much aware of the issues facing single parents and passionate about finding solutions. Recently retired, she worked in the third sector for most of her life, most recently heading up a small family charity. This involved policy development around family support, early learning and childcare, the UNCRC and child poverty. She undertook a 'Winston Churchill Memorial Trust' travelling fellowship, visiting several Nordic countries to look at family support in childcare settings. She later produced a report and introduced 'Open Kindergartens' (a model of support for parents and children in the early years) to Scotland.