Trustees
AJ White
Chairperson
AJ White joined the Board of Riverside CHP in 2018, the same year they took over as Chief Executive of Involve North East. AJ has many years’ experience of charity leadership along with range of skills from the education, enterprise and skills sharing sectors, having worked in teaching and publishing before moving to the charitable sector. As well as developing and leading cross-sector partnerships, AJ co-chaired the Newcastle Voluntary Sector Liaison Group for two years giving them an insight into the work of charities across the city and the communities they serve.
Chris Smith
Treasurer
Chris Smith joined the Riverside Board of Trustees in March 2024. Chris is the Programme Manager for Men’s Pie Club which runs a weekly session in Carnegie Building. This Food Nation Project provides men with a space to meet regularly, prevent or reduce isolation, improve their wellbeing and yes, make pie! Chris’ interest in becoming a Riverside trustee was sparked by regularly visiting Carnegie Building and getting to know different range of work Riverside does. Chris is from the West End of Newcastle and is passionate about working in collaboration with community members and organisations to improve the lives of people in the area.
Craig Lilford
Deputy Chair
Craig Lilford joined the Board of Trustees in September 2025.
Craig brings over 15 years of experience in financial management, and strategic leadership across early-stage start-ups and regulated sectors. He has a strong background in financial governance, transformation, and commercial strategy, and is passionate about using these skills to support Riverside’s growth and sustainability.
Originally from South Africa, Craig has a deep personal commitment to equity, inclusion, and social justice—values that strongly align with Riverside’s mission to support marginalised communities and improve access to health and wellbeing services.
Hayder Qureshi
Trustee
Hayder Qureshi is an experienced NHS pharmacist and public sector professional with a background spanning medicines optimisation, clinical practice, education, governance and community engagement. He is currently a Medicines Optimisation Pharmacist for a regional Integrated Care Board. In this role he provides specialist advice on safe, effective and evidence-based use of medicines working with health and care partners to improve outcomes and reduce health inequalities.
Hayder has previously served as a Newcastle City Councillor and held a number of scrutiny, governance and housing-related roles, giving him extensive experience of working with communities and public-sector organisations. He has also held voluntary and governance roles with local community organisations, including Nunsmoor Centre Trust and Greening Wingrove.
He is particularly interested in health inequalities, prevention, community development and ensuring that local people have a meaningful voice in services that affect them. He was attracted to Riverside because of its strong community focus and commitment to improving health and wellbeing, particularly for people who can experience barriers to accessing services.
Helen Wells
Trustee
Helen Wells lives in Gateshead with her husband and two children. She is passionate about improving health, social and wellbeing outcomes for people and communities, which inspired her interest in this role.
Her UK career has been in the public sector, predominantly commissioning social care services, with a particular focus on people with learning disabilities and mental health needs.
Helen and her family spent seven years living in the Middle East for her husband’s work. During this time, she worked as a Service Development Specialist, establishing a Family and Child Support Centre for children with additional needs, including autism, dyslexia and ADHD. The centre offered assessments, therapeutic sessions and group-based learning.
She also worked in community development, leading Breast Cancer Awareness Month programmes and wellbeing initiatives.
Outside work, Helen regularly takes part in parkrun with her family and enjoys playing netball and padel.
Kuveri Katjangua
Trustee
Kuveri Katjangua: Kuveri joined as trustee because he shares in the vision of improving community health in Newcastle. He excelled professionally in the ICT, postal and aviation sectors for over 16 years. In these sectors Kuveri had responsibilities in the areas of strategy and performance management, talent and organisational development amongst others. Being in the helping profession of commercial enterprises, a pastor and a client of Riverside services, Kuveri is eager to use his experiences to add value to the organisation.
Lynda Cox
Trustee
Lynda Cox is a former NHS manager, having led programmes across England and the North East in large scale change, service improvement and knowledge management.
Since leaving the NHS, Lynda has worked for ten years on boards and projects across the region, to help improve services for those with health and social care challenges.
She’s a former Chair and Trustee of Involve North East and Tyneside and Northumberland Mind, and a former Healthwatch committee member.
Lynda’s a current trustee at a men’s mental health charity, Heart Wood.
In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, yoga, art and literature.
Rebecca Wansell
Trustee
Rebecca Wansell has over 10 years’ experience in marketing, communications and social media, including with a North East disability charity supporting children and adults with disabilities. She holds a Level 7 Diploma in Marketing, as well as a Higher Education Diploma in Childhood Studies.
With a background in childcare and special educational needs, Rebecca is passionate about reducing inequalities and improving the wellbeing of women, children and families across Newcastle.
Stephen Allen
Trustee
Stephen Allen is an experienced Careers Adviser with a strong background in helping individuals achieve their education, training and employment goals. Throughout his career, he has worked across education, employability, skills and training, public services and community support, helping people at different stages of their career journeys.
His expertise includes impartial careers guidance, career planning, CV and application support, and interview preparation. He also supports people to progress into apprenticeships, further education and sustainable employment. Stephen has worked with a diverse range of clients, including young people, adults, unemployed job seekers and those facing barriers to work.
Stephen is passionate about empowering individuals to recognise their strengths, build confidence and make informed decisions about their futures. By combining labour market knowledge with a person-centred approach, he helps people navigate an ever-changing employment landscape and achieve positive, lasting outcomes.
Suzanne Devlin
Trustee
Suzanne Devlin lives in Gateshead. She works at the Equality and Human Rights Commission. She is committed to addressing inequalities in society and supports us in this area. Since becoming a Trustee at Riverside Suzanne has worked closely with our Finance/Operations Manager and Chief Executive on our organisations finances.
Vicki Turnbull
Trustee
Vicki Turnbull lives in Hebburn and works in Newcastle. Vicki is a Portfolio Asset Manager for Grainger plc, where she has worked since 2008. When Vicki saw that Riverside was keen to recruit trustees with an expertise on building related matters, it sparked her interest in being part of Riverside. Vicki joined as a trustee in March 2024 as she is committed to improving community health. She is keen to use her property related background to benefit Riverside and support the important contribution Carnegie Building makes to community life in the West End of Newcastle.