Our team

Chief Executive

Jabeer Butt OBE

Jabeer has an international reputation for his evidence-based work tackling discrimination and disadvantage. 

His studies have been used to inform government thinking, including interventions such as Sure Start, as well as the NSPCC’s Grove House Family Centre.

Jabeer provides leadership on the Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC) parenting programme and is currently co-investigator on a £1.5 million NIHR-funded randomised control trial of the SFSC programme, being led by Professor Richard Watt at University College London. 

Jabeer has a key role in the Health and Wellbeing Alliance, which has helped create better conversations between the Black and minority ethnic-led voluntary sector and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), NHS England and Public Health England. 

He secured a £485,000 grant from the DHSC to support older people living with dementia as part of the emergency response to coronavirus (COVID-19).

Jabeer was on the Marmot Advisory Group, supporting Sir Michael Marmot to produce his report on the social causes of health inequalities. 

He is also co-investigator on the £1.3 million National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR) funded extension of the VirusWatch study focusing on COVID-19 and the Black, Asian and minority ethnic and migrant communities, led by Professor Robert Aldridge of University College London.

Jabeer also sits on a number of other boards and committees. He was awarded an OBE in the 2013 Queen’s New Year Honours List for his services to health equality.

Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Programmes

Leandra Box

Leandra is Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Programmes at the Race Equality Foundation. Leandra leads on the Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC) parenting programme and manages the SFSC team. She worked with Jabeer Butt in the development of the SFSC model and established the programme as a widely used parenting intervention. 

Leandra has led the team in developing SFSC materials for work on gang and knife crime, learning disabilities, and sexual and reproductive health. She also oversees the monitoring of quality assurance and programme fidelity.

Her publications include:

• Supportive services, effective strategies (1997, co-authored with Jabeer Butt)
• Family centred: A study of the use of family centres by black families (1998, co-authored with Jabeer Butt
• Respect: Learning materials for social care staff working with black and minority ethnic older people (1999, co-authored with Jabeer Butt and Suzanne Lyn-Cook)

Director of Policy and Engagement

Tracey Bignall

Tracey has undertaken research, policy and practice development work across a range of health and social care areas. 

Her previous work includes: 

• a community-based blood pressure pilot with Black African and Caribbean men
• a dementia programme to provide support to Black and minority ethnic people living with dementia and their carers
• the Race Equity Collaboratives project on the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19)

She has also looked at support for Black, Asian and minority ethnic autistic adults for a local authority.

She is co-author of a number of reports, including:

• Between ambition and achievement: The views of young Black disabled people on independent living 
• Something to do: The development of peer support groups for young black and minority ethnic disabled people 
• Race disparities in mental health

Tracey is a member of several advisory groups including the Maternity Transformation Programme Stakeholder Council, the Racial Justice Inquiry into Maternity Care and the National Black, Asian, Mixed Race and Ethnic Minority Transplant Alliance (NBTA).

Head of Training and Curriculum

Bernadette Rhoden

Bernadette is an experienced Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC)  facilitator who has delivered the programme across a range of settings. She delivers the Foundation’s five day SFSC facilitator training to practitioners throughout the UK and has been instrumental in devising and delivering a number of our advanced skills courses. 

She is also responsible for fulfilling quality assurance contracts to a number of local authorities and provides ongoing support to SFSC facilitators.

Bernadette has worked in the voluntary sector for over 25 years and has developed various community projects including a support network for fathers in Croydon and the development and management of the Family Nurturing Project.

Senior Parent Programme Officer

Jade Briant

Jade assures the quality of Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC) programme delivery and also runs and oversees contractual SFSC delivery. 

She facilitates SFSC peer support and bespoke sessions to ensure the professional development of already trained SFSC facilitators. She also works on relevant Race Equality Foundation projects as and when they arise. 

Jade began her career as a Peer Educator in secondary schools and is an accredited community mediator, employability coach, E-learning facilitator and Research Assistant for the Together Study (UCL study on the impact of SFSC). 

She has a Business Management Diploma and has previously held roles at SecondStep, Bristol City Council, Young Mothers Group Trust and Single Parent Action Network.

Parent Programme Officer

Joy Ohen

Joy leads on the delivery of our Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC) programme across Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark as part of the RiSE consortium to provide preventative sexual health services to Black African and Caribbean communities.

Joy is a qualified National Nursery Examination Board and Montessori teacher and worked in this role for many years before moving into the field of family support. She is an Accredited Facilitator for the following groups: 

• Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities
• Domestic Violence group for Women and Children
• Speakeasy 
• Triple P

Joy has worked with children, young people and their families for many years, offering support and advice with a solution-focused approach, supporting families within the community and helping them to build on their strengths. She is a firm believer in multi-disciplinary working and early intervention.

Admin and Finance Manager

Angela Azubuike

Angela operates and maintains the Foundation’s financial system and ensures the smooth running of our head office in London. Angela also supports the Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC) and Policy and Practice teams by organising training, answering the order line, and ensuring that programmes are registered and receive the resources they need.

Research Assistant

Mu’minah Iqbal

Mu’minah is a Research Assistant on the policy and practice team and provides support on a range of projects.

Previously, Mu’minah has spent time in the charitable sector, volunteering with the National Literacy
Trust where she has supported her local community and young people to access to educational events, resources and opportunities and has helped to promote literacy. Mu’minah has also worked for the National Centre for Social Research where she has gained an insight into ongoing socio-economic issues faced by families in contemporary Britain.

Mu’minah has recently completed her Masters in Race, Ethnicity and Postcolonial studies. Her research has particularly focused on how representations of Muslim women in popular culture have impacted how people conceive of difference and can challenge ideas of homogenous communities. Mu’minah remains dedicated to implementing her studies, in particular around conceptions of race, intersectionality and postcolonial studies, in a practical way.

Policy and Practice Officer and Parental Conflict Programme Officer

Antoinette Wood

Antoinette is Policy and Practice Officer and Parental Conflict Programme Officer at the Race Equality Foundation.

Antoinette is a professional project manager, with a passion for tackling racial inequality. She has over 15 years of experience in marketing and project management across the UK, Europe, and America, working with renowned brands to create successful events and campaigns. Antoinette changed career while raising her family to more align with her values. She recently graduated with a First Class Honours degree in Criminology and Youth Studies, with an emphasis on social justice and racial equality. She believes in using social research to inform evidence-based practices to address racial disparities in areas like health, the criminal justice system, social care, housing, and education. Her dissertation focused on the impact of safety school officers on young people, especially those from minority ethnic backgrounds. Witnessing police activities in her community, and working as a youth worker in Hackney sparked a curiosity about the potential criminalisation of young individuals in schools.

Antoinette has recently completed work at the Race Equality Foundation on developing a business case for an Anti-Racism Practice Learning Hub for London healthcare professionals, which has been awarded by the Greater London Authority. The aim of the hub is to help health and care workers be actively anti-racist in the support they provide, creating a space for organisations to learn, share good practices, and access resources to develop an anti-racist approach in their practice and improve health outcomes.

While working as Parental Conflict Programme Officer for the Foundation’s Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities Programme, Antoinette will continue to support the Race Equality Foundation’s Policy and Practice research work.

Parental Conflict Lead

Eleni Bloy

Eleni is an accredited Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC) parenting programme facilitator who has worked for and with the Race Equality Foundation since 2013, delivering the programme to parents across Kent and London.

Eleni previously worked as a specialist family law solicitor in Greenwich and Lewisham, as a partner in her own firm and, subsequently creating a department for a new practice. 

She was one of the first solicitors in the UK to achieve accreditation by Resolution, the association of family solicitors. 

Following that, Eleni joined the national charity, Family Action, in 2012 with the intention of supporting families in conflict through delivery of the Separated Parents Information Programme.

She has also led on a Race Equality Foundation project for Public Health England, creating a toolkit for public health nurses to reduce the harm to children of non violent ‘frequent, intense and poorly resolved conflict’. 

Eleni continues to champion a better understanding of cultural influences on conflict between co-parents.

Parent Programme Officer - Stronger Relationships

Maryam Chowdhry

Maryam is a Programme Officer at the Race Equality Foundation, working on the Stronger Relationships programme which focuses on reducing parental conflict. She is an accredited and experienced Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC) parenting programme facilitator, and has been delivering parenting programmes for over 12 years.  

Maryam has extensive experience of conducting face to face and on-line delivery, supporting families according to their needs. She has delivered a range of parenting programmes covering all age groups, and with a variety of positive strategies. Maryam recently graduated with a Psychology degree, specialising in child development, to further build on her knowledge base. 

Maryam has strong links in her local community, helping to support parents on a voluntary basis, tailoring parenting approaches to meet cultural differences. She is a strong believer in empowering parents with the knowledge to enhance their relationships by developing emotional intelligence skills.

Senior Researcher

Jahan Foster Zabit

Jahan is Senior Researcher at the Race Equality Foundation.

Jahan recently completed her PhD in Geography, Environment and Development Studies, a 4-year project which examined the migration strategies and settlement experiences of migrant Latin American families living in London, with a specific focus on the experiences of children and young people. Challenging the adult-centric focus of much research, and the conceptual separation of children into certain spheres of life, this research worked closely with a local community organisation, interviewing children and young people across London as well as professional stakeholders working to support migrant families.

Jahan’s research was situated within the wider context of austerity politics that has shaped social and economic policy for over ten years in the U.K. and the impact of these policies on migrant families and migrant children. Jahan’s broad research interests lie in geographies of children, gender studies and transnationalism, and she is committed to using participatory research methods to engage with children and young people. 

Prior to joining the Race Equality Foundation, Jahan worked at Healthwatch Greenwich as the team’s social research lead. Jahan led a diverse array of research projects exploring the social determinants of health and tackling health inequalities as experienced by Black, Asian and minoritised ethnic communities. Jahan was responsible for developing and leading the team’s co-production work , developing a peer research model which successfully engaged people and communities in research around contraceptive knowledge and awareness, barriers to maternity care access amongst migrant and asylum-seeking women, and the experiences of informal carers from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds.

Parenting Programme Officer

Chantel Antoine 

Chantel, is a Programme Officer at the Race Equality Foundation, working with parents of older children who are at risk of becoming involved in violence and crime. Her parenting programme aims to improve family relationships, boost parenting skills and competence, and support children to avoid risky behaviours.

Chantel has been dedicated to community work for 20 years, supporting families in various capacities, from facilitating stay-and-play sessions and parental coaching, to supporting parenting advocacy. Within her family support role, she acquired expertise in child development and child behaviour. 

Chantel has a degree in Psychosocial Studies, and a master’s degree in Clinical and Community Psychology. Both of which have advanced her understanding of systemic approaches to early interventions and therapeutic strategies for support. Chantel has also a trained Integrative Therapist, and offers one to one therapy, facilitates psychoeducational workshops to Black women, and offers support to those with various forms of mental health need, such as trauma, depression, and anxiety. 

Chantel originally encountered the Race Equality Foundation as a parent, having attended a Strengthening Families Strengthening Communities programme course. She was so impressed with its content and delivery that she trained to become a facilitator herself, primarily focusing on early years parenting, and then extending her capacity to support parents whose children are affected by gun and gang culture.  

In addition to Chantel’s role as a Programme Officer, she also coordinates and facilitates community groups and events for people who are directly and indirectly affected by serious youth violence and trauma, and those who are bereaved and working through grief and loss. 

Research Administrator

Nakkita De Silva

Nakkita is a Research Administrator at the Race Equality Foundation. She supports the wider Policy and Practice team on a variety of projects. 

Nakkita has a first degree in Philosophy, Politics & Ethics, where she focused on austerity policies and disability rights. She also has a postgraduate degree in the Anthropology of Development and Social Transformation, in which she focused on poverty, the global economy and community activism. Nakkita previously worked for Liberty (National Council of Civil Liberties) and Healthwatch.

Nakkita is particularly interested in centring the voices of those with lived experience to drive meaningful and transformative change. She is also an informal carer and is passionate about lending her support to any initiatives that furthers understanding of and support for informal carers, especially those from disadvantaged or ethnically minoritised backgrounds.

Communications and Influencing Manager

Nicole Greene

Nicole Greene serves as the Communications and Influencing Manager at the Race Equality Foundation. With communication and engagement experience across various sectors, Nicole has worked in politics, professional training, and international development.

Prior to her current role, Nicole contributed her expertise to Crown Agents, an international development aid organisation. There, she led the organisation’s communications efforts in humanitarian aid, climate change, and public health. Noteworthy achievements include producing a campaign for the 2023 Ukraine Reconstruction Conference and producing a film on sustainable electrification for COP28. Before her tenure at Crown Agents, Nicole led the Marketing team at DeHavilland, a political monitoring organisation, where she played a pivotal role in generating new business for both the UK and EU sectors. She also worked at Corndel, a professional development and training organisation, where she crafted marketing strategies focusing on early careers and the charity sector.

Nicole’s contributions extend beyond her professional roles; she has also developed course content for professional programmes, including a Level 7 strategic people professional course covering topics such as ESG and diversity and inclusion strategy formulation. Having graduated with a first-class degree in Politics from the University of Leeds, Nicole is deeply committed to leveraging her communication skills to drive positive change in the world.

Research Administrator

Rahma Salia

Rahma Salia is a Research Administrator on the policy and practice team. 

Rahma is passionate about using social research as a crucial tool to inform systemic change and believes in recognising those with lived experience as valuable knowledge producers. Given the nature of societal inequities, she aims to always put intersectionality at the centre of her work. 

Before starting at the Foundation, she was an Inclusion Officer for the University of Warwick Dean of Students’ office where she worked closely with students at the intersection of various Minoritised communities to create anti-racist pedagogy and neurodiversity training toolkits. Her experience also included a post as a Welfare Officer for the Black Women’s Project Society where she nurtured the holistic development of Black women in different stages of academia. 

Rahma is a recent graduate in Politics and Sociology from the University of Warwick. Her dissertation investigated the uptake of Black Feminism within climate justice policy literature as means of challenging the dominant reductionist approaches to climate policy, putting intersectionality at the forefront of societal transformation.

Project and Research Assistant

Glory Oluwaseun

Glory holds a BA (Hons) in Liberal Arts from the University of Kent, her dissertation, ‘Faith the Foundation and the Filter’ explored the ambivalent relationship between faith, culture, and feminism in the lives of Nigerian Pentecostal women living in Britain. Further, Glory completed her Mphil at the University of Cambridge. Her dissertation was titled  “In the Safe Space: How Women of Colour Cultivate Epistemic Justice in the Face of Epistemic (In)Justice, White Feminism, and (In)Validation.”

Throughout her academic journey, Glory has contributed to various research projects, including studies on Black Lives Matter, culture wars, the attainment gap between white and minority students, racism in universities, and the gendered experiences in higher education.

Following her studies, Glory worked at the University of Kent’s Centre for Health Service Studies, engaging underserved communities with mental health research. Her specific project focused on the relationship between young ethnic minorities and mental health research.

Glory’s research interests encompass intersectional and interdisciplinary issues related to race, gender, religion, maternal inequalities, higher education, and epistemic (knowledge) injustice. Glory brings her passion for people-led, high-quality research to the Race Equality Foundation,

Researcher

Amanda Simon

Amanda is currently employed as a Researcher within the policy team, working on anti-racism
projects involving a wide range of community based partners and individuals from Black, Asian and minoritised ethnic communities. These projects are geared towards the recommendation and implementation of anti-racist strategies.

Prior to this role, Amanda has conducted a number of large scale research studies in education, health care and forced migration. Most of this research has been supported by major national funding bodies such as the NHS and the Esmée Fairburn foundation. Within her research Amanda has sought to highlight the lived experiences of minoritised communities and the negotiation of identities within these spaces. Amanda is passionate about creating platforms for the free expression of minoritised voices and aims to facilitate this through research.

In addition, Amanda is also an experienced Educator and has taught in Higher Education for over 10
years, delivering courses in education and social sciences.

Amanda’s publications include:

• Simon, A. and Behnjharachajarunandha, M. (2023) ‘Identity Negotiation amongst Pakistani Urban
  Refugees and Asylum Seekers Living in Bangkok’, Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Studies, pp. 1–16.

• Simon, A. (2021) ‘We must name ourselves’: ERI construction within the supplementary schooling
  context. Pastoral Care in Education, 41(1), 105–124.

• Simon, A. (2018) Supplementary schools and ethnic minority communities: A social positioning
  perspective. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

SFSC Facilitator

Chalice Richardson

Chalice has been an Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC) facilitator for a number of years and has provided freelance facilitation for the Foundation on a number of projects, including working to support SFSC delivery in areas affected by gangs and knife crime and by radicalisation and extremism.

He was previously a Parent Programme Officer at the Race Equality Foundation leading on SFSC delivery across Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark as part of the RiSE consortium to provide preventative sexual health services to Black African and Caribbean communities.

Before that he worked extensively in community settings, providing services which directly support families with vulnerable children. 

Chalice’s practice is underpinned by a multi-disciplinary approach, which sees work in social care and youth services as well as the wider community.

SFSC Facilitator

Taquira Wilson

Taquira Wilson is an experienced freelance Strengthening Families, Strengthening Communities (SFSC) facilitator working across both the SFSC parent programme and the SFSC children and Young People’s programme.

Taquira was most recently employed as a Programme Officer at the Race Equality Foundation, leading on SFSC delivery across Waltham Forest and on the delivery of the Young People’s Programme in a Youth Prison.

Prior to that, she worked for the largest YMCA in Europe, providing support to children and families, with a focus on supporting young people to thrive and communities to flourish. 

She has also worked closely with young people in supporting their transition from further to higher education, as well as working with ASD children and their wider families. She is a Women’s Aid ‘Ask Me’ Ambassador.