People

Chair – Pippa Donovan

Pippa is an integrative psychotherapist, co-opted to the Board in October 2022, initially to support the organisation in its strategy development. Pippa brings expertise in leadership, organisational transformation and strategy development in the national not-for-profit sector. Following the EGM, Pippa led the CEO recruitment process, and supported the re-building of the Board of Trustees and governance processes. Pippa is a member of the Finance Risk and Audit Committee, the Conference Working Group and alongside the CEO, is leading the Strategy Working Group. Pippa is working to ensure we look forward yet manage better the day-to-day complexities of UKCP.

Vice chair – Will Daniel-Braham

Will is a humanistic integrative psychotherapist and is the longest-serving trustee, having been on the board since March 2021. Will brings an enormous amount of experience from other not-for-profit organisations, where he has had several roles as chair. He is an out and proud member of the Queer community, a man of colour from a working-class background and lives with a number of ‘hidden disabilities’. He is the EDI liaison trustee and is also a member of the Equity Diversity and Inclusion (BIIDE*) Committee, the Strategy Working Group and represents UKCP at the Coalition for Inclusion and anti-oppressive practise. Will provides robust challenge and drives us to ensure representation is a thread through all our work.

*Belonging, Intersectionality, Inclusivity, Diversity and Equity

Treasurer and chair of the Finance, Risk and Audit Committee – Akash Patel

Akash is a qualified accountant with experience as a finance director and board member at Public Sector Plc. Now working as a portfolio finance director, he guides and manages businesses and their finance teams to achieve their goals.

Trustee – William (Bill) Adlard

Bill is a transpersonal psychotherapist and became elected as a UKCP trustee in March 2025. His previous experience includes being a barrister in London for 20 years. He has been an active member of the Humanistic and Integrative Psychotherapy College (HIPC) and was vice chair of HIPC between June and October 2024.

Trustee – Michelle Briggs

Michelle is a person-centred psychotherapist in private practice based just outside Nottingham. Relatively early in her psychotherapy career, Michelle brings a wealth of experience from her 1^st career in finance. She is also, a member of the Finance Risk and Audit Committee, she always challenges the other trustees, making sure they stick to process and is keen to improve project governance. She became a trustee in February 2023.

Trustee – Peter Gregory

Peter is a sex and relationships psychotherapist and has been a trustee since February 2023. His previous experience includes being a trustee of a carer’s charity and chair of a professional standards board. He has worked as a psychological therapist in the NHS. Before becoming a psychotherapist, he was a project manager in the building services industry.  

Lay Trustee – Matthew White

Matthew was appointed as a lay trustee in February 2024. He is a practising solicitor who brings legal and regulatory expertise to the Board, as well as a particular personal interest in the psychology and neuroscience of mental health. His previous experience, drawn from acting as a trustee for other charities, has given him the ability to provide a focused perspective on governance and risk analysis in relation to trustees’ legal duties and responsibilities.

Trustee – Courtenay Young

Courtenay is a humanistic integrative psychotherapist and has been a trustee since February 2023. He has been on the board of UKCP on two previous occasions, on the boards of several other professional psychotherapy associations and has been intensely involved in the work of the European Association for Psychotherapy (EAP) since 1996, developing psychotherapy as an independent profession. He has worked clinically in the NHS in Scotland for nearly 20 years, as well as working in many different settings and having a private practice. He is currently the Editor of the EAP’s open-access International Journal of Psychotherapy.

Trustee – Helen Marsh

Helen was appointed as a lay trustee in March 2026.  She is a strategic communications specialist with a wealth of experience in managing reputation and creating impactful narratives. Having guided communications functions within well-known brands and the NHS, she brings expertise in storytelling, engagement and crisis management to the board. Helen is passionate about the power of communications, equitable access to healthcare and on the impact of mental health on overall wellbeing.

Trustee - Rosie Duncan

Rosie is a communications and marketing consultant specialising in the area of mental health. She brings 20 years of experience, including working with King's College London, advising the Department for Health and Social Care on the re-draft of the Mental Health Bill, and advises charity boards on their marketing and impact strategies. She joins as a co-opted trustee in 2026 to help advise with business strategy.

Trustee – Nish Kumar

Nish Kumar is a senior charity executive with extensive experience in governance, organisational change and member led services across the higher education sector. She has held executive leadership roles supporting boards and senior leaders through periods of transition, constitutional reform and service modernisation. Nish has led complex reviews covering governance frameworks, safeguarding, financial sustainability and service quality, and brings particular expertise in equality and inclusion, advice and wellbeing services, and democratic accountability. She is chair and safeguarding lead of a primary school governing board and is committed to good governance as a foundation for ethical practice, professional standards and public trust.

 In attendance – UKCP board and committees secretary, Alex Crawford.