In at the beginning of FSquared, Val’s journey with the company has continued to excite (and exhaust) her. Managing Director, with previous careers in criminal and social justice, and former Chief Executive of the Big Issue in the North, she wants the company to keep making a difference, as well as staying afloat! That means keeping a close eye on an ever changing market which demands vision and leadership to help us keep pace. Creativity and collaboration – internally and externally – is the key, and Val plays her part in keeping that alive in everything we do. That means she has a lot to offer to our customers in helping them drive forward organisational change based on corporate responsibility and ethical leadership – and it’s the reason why our Foundation, Institute and Ethical Leadership Society are central to her vision for our future together. Make a difference, help others make a difference, pay the wages, have some fun – she doesn’t ask for much!

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valchinn@fsquaredltd.com

Catherine has been involved since the beginning, initially as a shared body between FSquared and The Big Issue in the North. Despite Catherine’s naturally grey accountant tendencies - excited by the colourful changing kaleidoscope of plans and activities and the passionate commitment to make a difference – she decided to make a permanent change and become a whole FSquared body.

Catherine is a firm believer that “nothing is impossible” – although she would have traditionally ended the statement “it depends on the time you are willing to throw at it”. Thinking differently and exploring new ways of working really appeals to Catherine – and the FSquared way has challenged and changed how she goes about it. Yes she still believes that nothing is impossible but has seen how much more can be achieved through creative collaborations, shared perspectives and cross sector enthusiasm and commitment. Catherine enjoys contributing her financial expertise to the complimentary skills of the collective, to develop innovative and sustainable outcomes for communities.

Catherine’s other skill is her human sponge-like memory and powers of recall – a useful internal resource when the internet goes down or when we are trying to remember everything that we have done.

catherinegrayson@fsquaredltd.com

johnmoran@fsquaredltd.com

Isla came across FSquared when she was on a mission to prove to herself (and anyone else that would listen) that it was possible to align ethical, social and commercial objectives-as soon as she came across the newly formed FSquared it was love at first sight.She was happy to ditch her previous career as a Management Consultant for a large plc, and had no idea how risky, exhilarating and rewarding that snap decision would prove to be. Isla remains committed to finding new and exciting ways to demonstrate that businesses can be a force for good, and loves to apply her experience from a multitude of large businesses to her work at FSquared, both internally and with our clients, to demonstrate that there is a realbusiness case for generating social value alongside financial returns.

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islawilson@fsquaredltd.com

Jane’s professional background is in social justice. As one of the early members of The Big Issue in the North team she was part of the social enterprise movement tackling social exclusion and poverty. Here she met Val and followed her to FSquared Ltd excited by the prospect of being part of a new type of company focused on unlocking higher levels of social value from large scale capital investments. Since then Jane has been part of the energy that has shaped FSquared into a company which works across sectors supporting organisations and communities to deliver more from their activities and spend.

Jane is a true believer that together we are greater than the sum of our parts and she has played a key role in the development of our collaborative workshops and the creation of the FSquared Institute. She is passionate about FSquared’s work in supporting people to have a voice in how change takes shape within their neighbourhood, workplace or sector.

FSquared is a small company operating in a complex and ever demanding environment. Its capacity to have an impact, facilitate change and make a difference are just some of the reasons why Jane loves it and works hard to take care of it!

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janemcrobbie@fsquaredltd.com

Kirsten joined FSquared as Consultant in 2002 and her work and role in the company have grown ever since. As our Managing Consultant based in London, Kirsten’s delivery work has been setting new standards for how the private, public and voluntary sector can work together to deliver maximum social impact and benefits for diverse communities. Kirsten’s previous work in policy, community development, sustainability and project management combined with her practical experience have given her a clear sense of how aspirations and ideas can be turned in to reality. Kirsten’s background in community development means that her approach is focused on working to develop the capacity and knowledge of the people we work with, to help them deliver added value through all of their activities in an efficient and realistic way.

Having worked on a number of long term contracts with our clients, Kirsten’s approach is to become part of your team as well as providing an FSquared perspective and a fresh pair of eyes. Having worked in both our Manchester and London bases she is great at making connections internally and externally. She is passionately committed to making a difference and supporting individuals at all levels to build on their existing roles to make a positive impact to their business and the areas they work in. As part of our management team Kirsten’s work strikes the balance between keeping our business running and meeting the needs of our customers.

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kirstenproctor@fsquaredltd.com

Jason joined FSquared in 2004 after working in the design & IT industries for over ten years. Throughout that time, he’s seen the company grow in stature and reputation and has played an important part in helping us to achieve our aims. In particular, he plays a key role in the delivery of services for our clients in the housing, education and public sectors. He works across all sectors to promote meaningful community involvement in, and maximum local benefit from capital developments and investment programmes. He has developed strategies for the integration of artists in design and engagement processes that are now recognised as national best practice. Jason continues to provide a range of ad-hoc design services (usually at the shortest possible notice) to the entire FSquared team; it keeps him on his toes and keeps us from committing too many design crimes.

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jasontrue@fsquaredltd.com

Stuart, our longest serving consultant, joined FSquared as a temporary measure and favour for a friend. Eight years later and he’s still here. He helped the company get off the ground doing whatever was necessary – no task too large, too small or too demanding. He even did a stint as Val’s PA!

With a professional background and education in surveying, property development, estate agency, construction and project management, Stuart easily adapted his experience to demands of bidding for and delivering major capital programmes. Stuart’s strengths are translating and communicating complex challenges simply and all things sustainable in their multiple dimensions. Stuart also manages our Accredited Training Centre.

Cynical at first as to whether profit and making difference were mutually supportive, he is now a convert.

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stuartmorris@fsquaredltd.com

Ellie was taken with FSquared’s vision after a couple of months temping during university holidays. This small glimpse into the world of community benefit and corporate responsibility inspired her to weave elements into her studies, and then into her first career in consumer and public sector PR, becoming a founding member of the company’s green team and corporate responsibility programme. Ellie returned to FSquared as a consultant helping to build up a small but extremely sturdy London presence. Ellie is now chuffed to be able to apply her previous communications knowledge, along with experience in maximising community benefit that she gained on projects such as the East London Line and the Olympics, across a variety of projects on a day to day basis.

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elliemorley@fsquaredltd.com

David was attracted to FSquared by the prospect of using his knowledge of sustainability to think creatively and add value in a range of sectors. He joined FSquared in 2007 and, while every week still brings something new, he has built up particular expertise in our education sector work, as well as leading many of our Corporate Responsibility projects.

David is passionate about sustainability. Before joining FSquared, he worked in various research and consultancy roles, exploring more sustainable practices in fields ranging from waste management to housing development. He has a PhD in Sustainable Development, focusing on environmental taxation, and was at one point in his career among the foremost non-Belgian experts on the Belgian disposable razor blade tax.

David brings an analytical rigour to his work, and a pedantic approach to punctuation, that his colleagues have come to know and love.

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davidluckin@fsquaredltd.com

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johnwallace@fsquaredltd.com

James did work experience at FSquared before, during and after completing his Masters. James liked everything about FSquared, FSquared liked everything about James and the rest is history. He enjoys working for a company with a clear social mission and takes pride in doing this. James’s job at FSquared has two parts to it. On the one hand he supports business development and on the other he works as part of our delivery team to deliver the services that we offer to our clients.

On the business development side, James enjoys helping the company to find and develop new opportunities to help other organisations to deliver social value. He also enjoys developing new products and services for the company and keeping in touch with our clients to ensure that they know about all the things that we can offer. James has to work very hard not to use long, complicated words/sentences when a short, simple one will do the job so if you find anything that doesn’t make sense then let him know.

On the delivery side, James enjoys finding ways that investment, regeneration initiatives and development can have a wider impact on surrounding communities and stakeholders. He is good at talking to people and listening to them to find out their views and aspirations for their communities. He always looks to build on activity that is already taking place in a local area and to find ways that a new investment might be able to increase the social impact of that activity. James also enjoys getting people together to talk about a particular issue and helping them to develop ideas for how the issue can be addressed.

Being involved in both business development and service delivery is an upside and a downside for James. It means he gets a full understanding of the way that business development complements service delivery and vice versa. It also means that it’s a bit of a balancing act at times and so James is thinking about entering the London 2012 Olympics in the “Plate Spinning” category.

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jamesharding@fsquaredltd.com

Jo has worked in the third sector for over 20 years. Her career spanned youth inclusion projects, anti poverty campaigning, working with carers and acting as a welfare rights advocate before she become the first ever member of staff at the Big Issue in the North Trust.

8 years later Jo departed the BITN Trust with a legacy of service centres across the North of England, 30 staff and a programme which provided comprehensive support and intervention for homeless people throughout Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds.

Jo was with FSquared from its infancy but left to train as a psychotherapist and to work with children and young people with attachment disorders and mental health difficulties. Now with a successful private therapy practice Jo works part time counselling adults, and has returned to FSquared part time to help set up the FSquared Foundation. After a lot of hard work and hard questions Jo has seen another beginning at FSquared and will now see the Foundation through its infancy and beyond as it leaps from strength to strength.

Jo is a strong believer in social and economic justice and in empowering people and communities to take charge of their lives for the better.

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jomoores@fsquaredltd.com

Katie fell into FSquared as a temp escaping home to Manchester from the media world in London. Katie’s background runs from administration roles in Toronto to catering and sales in Vancouver onto a degree in Social and Media Communications, and finally through independent radio production and the BBC to land back in Manchester with solid values in her heart, about what business should and shouldn’t be about.

Starting as Office Administrator at F2 Katie quickly stepped up into her role as Office Manager and PA to the directors. After a 2 year break spent amongst wood chippings and workbenches - gaining her ICA in bench carpentry - Katie realised she couldn’t fight the draw of FSquared again any longer.

Returning as Office Manager and PA Katie then stepped up once again and is now Operations Manager. Still Val’s PA and “Girl Friday” Katie now looks after all the internal financial systems of FSquared Ltd; is Operations Manager for the FSquared Foundation; and oversees the fundamental day to day cogs and systems of the FSquared Group.

Katie won’t stand for anyone messing F2 around and her credit control methods have been compared to Chinese Water Torture. Katie works with an iron fist and open heart.

katiemchugh@fsquaredltd.com

Nick started at FSquared as Office Manager and PA to the Management Team having escaped the (not so) glamorous world of television production. FSquared’s moral compass attracted Nick and his celebrity tea-making skills attracted FSquared to him.

Having previously worked on Loose Women, Nick was more than ready to take on the challenge of looking after Val, Jane, Kirsten and Isla.

Nick has now taken control of Katie’s domain looking after reception, suppliers and the office in general. He rules with a friendly and fair manner but woe betide anyone who leaves our IT corner in a tip under his watch.

He has also been given the chance to develop in new areas having taken on duties as event coordinator for the many workshops and Boot Camps FSquared facilitates and is enjoying the challenges this brings.

nickhall@fsquaredltd.com