Meet the Team

My life had always revolved around sport, playing netball at a national level and riding horses professionally. An injury in 2002 left me unable to run or play many of the sports I loved. I felt that I’d lost the one thing that defined the person that I was, and as I result, I lost a huge amount of confidence and self-belief in myself and my abilities.

After being lucky enough to be introduced to outdoor activities in 2010, I decided it was time to start turning my life around and I began re-training as an outdoor instructor. A whole new world opened up to me and I began to get some of the old Kelda back.

I knew I had to do something to give other people in a similar situation to myself the opportunity to see that life wasn’t over just because of a serious injury, illness or trauma.

The result was Climbing Out.

Jo has a background in public service and charity administration, having worked in the Civil Service and for international development charity Plan, before joining the Climbing Out team. She shares with Kelda a love of horses, dogs and the great outdoors (albeit with rather less intrepid ambitions!). While Kelda is off rowing oceans, Jo will most probably be found feeding the horses and checking that the filing has been done. If you need a form, she’s the one to ask!

Paul has spent his career coaching and developing people to the very highest of standards in a wide variety of challenging and high-risk environments. He started out as a Performance Coach in the Royal Air Force and travelled the globe in a very busy but fulfilling role. More recently, he has dedicated his time in helping existing and future leaders 'be the best they can possibly be' in the corporate and public sectors. His mission is to help people understand their own behaviours and that of others to foster growth, raise awareness and ultimately help us all get along a little bit better.

Paul has helped out on numerous Climbing Out programmes over the past 7 years as a coach, consultant and course director. He is a true activist and can regularly be seen surfing a wave, climbing, skiing up and down a mountain or riding his bike. He has a strong connection with the outdoors mentally and physically. Paul is a very proud Welshman who lives in North Wales with his wife, two sons and an ever-growing family of pets. Spending time with his loved ones is very important to him.

Kipper, Hardy and Spriggy are the Climbing Out dogs. They're all registered therapy dogs and bring so much joy, comfort, fun and cuddles to the programme. They're WAY more popular than the instructors!

If anyone has a problem with dogs or any allergies, please just let us know.

Paul has spent his career coaching and developing people to the very highest of standards in a wide variety of challenging and high-risk environments. He started out as a Performance Coach in the Royal Air Force and travelled the globe in a very busy but fulfilling role. More recently, he has dedicated his time in helping existing and future leaders 'be the best they can possibly be' in the corporate and public sectors. His mission is to help people understand their own behaviours and that of others to foster growth, raise awareness and ultimately help us all get along a little bit better.

Paul has helped out on numerous Climbing Out programmes over the past 7 years as a coach, consultant and course director. He is a true activist and can regularly be seen surfing a wave, climbing, skiing up and down a mountain or riding his bike. He has a strong connection with the outdoors mentally and physically. Paul is a very proud Welshman who lives in North Wales with his wife, two sons and an ever-growing family of pets. Spending time with his loved ones is very important to him.

Gav is a qualified and experienced mountain leader and climbing instructor. He says, "I love being in green spaces, hills, valleys, woods, parks, even gardens. Nature is my happy place; I find it restorative and relaxing, whatever the weather"😁

Jason has a passion for the outdoors and wants to help people fulfil their potential through outdoor activities. Since working for Climbing Out, Jason has been inspired by how the programmes have had such a positive, lasting impact on the participants. Jason is a qualified mountain leader, DofE assessor/supervisor and is a member of his local mountain rescue team.

John retired in 2016 after completing a 33 year career in the UK Fire and Rescue Service. He served in 3 different local authority services and was Chief Fire Officer of Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service from 2013 to 2016.

Gemma trained as a professional actress and worked in theatre and film for several years before she started teaching Drama at a secondary school in Surrey. She then left to start up her own theatre company along with her husband; (www.hotbuckle.co.uk) the company is still going strong, touring throughout the UK and Ireland. Gemma then took over running an Arts Centre in Surrey before moving to Shropshire and joining the team at Ironbridge Gorge Museums, first as fundraising Manager and then as Conference and Banqueting Manager. Last year, Gemma opened a new Community Hub Venue in Telford and is now back supporting Hotbuckle Productions whilst running a holiday let and Glamping Business.

Sue is currently an Associate of a Business Consultancy working with SME business owners helping them to grow their businesses and their profits. Her career spans over 40 years of wide-ranging business and commercial experience gained in numerous organisations from large, £multimillion plcs to SMEs and owner-managed businesses. She has worked in diverse sectors including manufacturing, media, financial services, education, public sector.

Sue is honoured to have the opportunity to put the culmination of all this experience to work by supporting Climbing Out as a Trustee.

When she's not working, Sue enjoys being away from a laptop as much as possible to get to the gym, or outdoors for a walk or a run. She also has a passion for attending live music gigs and other live performing arts events.

Jonathan was appointed as a Trustee of Climbing Out in August 2019, after being inspired by hearing Kelda make a presentation about her Atlantic exploits. He identifies strongly with causes which help build individual self-reliance and confidence, in defiance of adversity, emphasising the power of each individual to make a difference to his or her own lives – and that of others.

Jonathan is a Chartered Legal Executive lawyer at Hatchers Solicitors in Shrewsbury, specialising in Wills, Trusts and estates. He lives in Shrewsbury and enjoys exercise, reading, music and family time.

Chimène is the Marketing and Events Manager at Nick Jones Wealth Planning in Shrewsbury and first became aware of Climbing Out when they joined the team of sponsors for Storm Petrol as part of Kelda’s Row to Raise challenge.

Networking, administration and organising events and people are second nature to Chimène, as is the ability to keep plenty of plates spinning and ensuring everyone is happy and kept fully informed! Being able to help others is really important to her and the work that Climbing Out does hit a real chord with her.

Out of work, Chimène loves to travel – it’s a big world out there, so get out and see it if you can.

Favourite Quote is by Audrey Hepburn – Nothing is impossible. The word itself says “I’m possible!”

From a basis of academia (MBA/PGCE) Mark has gained extensive experience of providing leadership and direction to small and large businesses and organisations, across a range of diverse sectors (including third sector), operating at  board level - Mark is driven by success.

A proven track record in business over the last 30+ years has included being award 11th place in the IC100 Register (the top 100 growth companies in the UK) for one of his own companies.

Away from The Business Company (www.thebusinesscompany.biz), Mark is a keen cyclist, he enjoys travel and has a true passion for National Hunt horseracing.  He also thoroughly enjoys using his down time to trudge through the Shropshire countryside with ‘Ruper’, his giant schnauzer.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-harris-79462840/

Martin spent 30 years in education, 20 of which were as a Head Teacher. He has worked for Shrewsbury Town Football Club as Head of Community and is at present the PR and Communications Executive for the Greenhous Group. Martin is married with four children.

Stuart comes with a vast array of business experience, having built a computer software company which he ran for 30 years before selling it in 2019 and retiring from being the CEO at the end of 2020.

Running and building a business over such a long time involved working and developing many people, both young and more mature, exploring ways to get the best out of each and every one of them.

The values he sees in the ethos of Climbing Out and its drive to helping people find the right tools to allow them to get the very best out of themselves is something he is honoured to be involved with and hopes to apply his business and personal experience to help the organisation continue to thrive.

Louise Howard is a Private Client Solicitor for local firm Fodens Solicitors. She has previously represented injured service personnel who had often been through traumatic experiences.

 Helping clients find rehabilitation that works for them has always been a priority and Climbing Out’s approach to building mental resilience, alongside being outside and being active, has been a fantastic support and described as life changing for many of Louise’s former clients.

Louise is looking forward to supporting the work of Climbing Out in the role as trustee.

The outdoors was always a big part of my childhood, I loved it and wanted to make sure it was part of my future.

I studied Adventure Tourism Management at university, gained some qualifications and then used my skills to travel and take me on adventures around the world working as a raft guide, watersports leader, running team building and events and leading international expeditions.

I have a background of working with vulnerable young people and have seen how powerful the outdoors can be; offering opportunities to connect, build trust, resilience and reset, whilst at the same time having fun.

I'm passionate about encouraging and supporting people to find what they love, empowering them to fulfill their potential and to get out having adventures, no matter how big or small.

I love being outside in the hills, lakes, rivers and sea.
Water is particularly special to me and makes me happy....whether I'm on it or in it.

I have been a PE Instructor for over 30 years, and I am a qualified Mountain Leader, Rock Climbing Instructor and First Aid Instructor. 

Having spent many years training and competing in Triathlons, Climbing Out has given me the drive to focus on Outdoor Education again. 

Working on the programmes with people that are determined to change their lives for the better, is an absolute pleasure, and so rewarding.