About
Lewisham Local is the borough's voluntary sector infrastructure body. For over 20 years we have been connecting the people, groups and businesses making Lewisham better, and where something needs doing and no-one else is doing it, we step in ourselves.
Who we are
Lewisham Local is a charity that has been working across the borough for over 20 years. We are Lewisham’s voluntary sector infrastructure body: the organisation the Council, funders, businesses and community groups turn to when they need to work together to make the borough stronger.
We are a small team, and we know Lewisham inside out. We know the community organisations doing the work. We know the venues, the funders, the networks, and the people who hold this place together. That knowledge is the thing we bring to every project, partnership and grant we support.
What we do
We work in two directions at once.
Sometimes we run things ourselves where there is a real gap. Warm Welcomes brings free indoor spaces to the borough every winter. FoodCycle Lewisham cooks a free Saturday meal every week. Bank of Things gives free essentials to young people who need them. Time Bank connects residents through shared activities.
Other times we back the community organisations, businesses and residents who are already doing the work. We give grants. We help groups get stronger. We connect people with each other. We bring funders and partners into projects that need them.
Both are part of the same job: making sure Lewisham has what it needs, from wherever it needs to come.
The team
We are a small team based at Parkside Community Centre in Downham. Everyone works across multiple projects, and everyone knows their patch of Lewisham well.
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Dr. Gulen Petty
Chief ExecutiveGulen has worked in the charity sector for over 18 years, ranging from national charities to grassroots organisations. She is an experienced charity leader with wide-ranging skills and experience in income generation, business development, volunteering, change management, and comms.
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Simone Riddle
Food Justice Programme ManagerSimone has worked at the organisation for 6 years, coordinating Rushey Green Time Bank, FoodCycle Lewisham and most recently the Giving Programme.
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Karen Jefferys
Fundraising Development ManagerKaren’s personal connections with Lewisham and work beyond the borough, provide a great backdrop for the range of support she offers Lewisham groups whether with grants, individuals, events or other forms of fundraising.
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Hannah Monteith
Bank of Things CoordinatorHannah has a background in fundraising, youth development projects and leads our Bank of Things project.
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Bettina Ganser
Time Bank CoordinatorBettina joined in 2021 and has over 15 years experience working in well-being, mental-health and befriending projects for Lewisham and London charities.
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Ron Bourne
Voluntary Sector Programme ManagerRon has over 25 years experience supporting community organisations and local businesses to develop in South East London.
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Mel Shakespeare
Foodcycle CoordinatorMel has a love for cooking and a background in Fine Art has led her to be interested in food customs, and the power dynamics of methods of food production.
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Maria Deveraux
Wild Cat CoordinatorMaria has worked at Lewisham Local for over 8 years as the Wild Cat Coordinator. She is a qualified social and therapeutic horticulturalist and forest school leader with over 30 years’ experience as an organic food grower.
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Laura Tilbury
Community Development WorkerLaura has supported various projects such as Warm Welcomes and Community Toilets. Laura supports food projects and the business network to connect, develop and support each other through the Good Food Lewisham programme.
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Jermaine Bennett
Volunteering Programme ManagerJermaine leads our volunteering programme, supporting local residents, organisations, and volunteers to give and get more out of their time and skills.
Trustees
Our trustees oversee the charity’s work and shape its direction. They bring experience from across Lewisham’s voluntary, business, public and community sectors.
Our board is chaired by Roy Witter, with Jonathan Prince MBE as Vice-Chair.
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Roy Witter
Chair of TrusteesRoy has a background in renewable energy and mechanical and electrical engineering and brings interpersonal relationship mentoring and business and management skills.
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Jonathan Prince MBE
Vice-Chair of TrusteesJonathan had a career as a Management Consultant, supporting organisations across the world. He is a visiting Business lecturer in Barcelona and Chairs Pink Ribbon & Blue Ribbon Foundations supporting breast cancer and men’s health.
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Dr Allison Streetly OBE
TrusteeAllison is a senior public health advisor for NHS England with a background of leading teams and complex partnership projects. She is interested in social issues and ways to reduce inequalities locally.
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Safiyyah Gareeboo
TrusteeSafiyyah is a CRM Consultant with an expertise in Marketing and Automation. She lives locally, helps organise Hither Green Community Festival and has a keen interest in crafting. She wants to support Lewisham Local on our digital journey and connect and learn from the wider community.
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Pete Webb
TrusteePete has been a Time Bank Member for over 8 years and has experience Chairing Housing Co-Operatives and as a CIC Director. Pete is passionate about sustaining the Timebank and growing Lewisham Local’s work.
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Mary Pickles
TrusteeMary is Chief of Staff for EY in the UK brings a wealth of experience of HR, communications, management and Corporate Social Responsibility. She has volunteered for our FoodCycle Lewisham project for over 5 years and lives locally.
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Joyce Jones
TrusteeJoyce has a background in project management across government and private organisations with expertise in procurement and bid management. Joyce wants to give back and reduce isolation and loneliness locally.
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Gemma Juma
TrusteeGemma grew up in South East London and is CEO of Jack Petchey Foundation, focusing on inspiring young people. She has led local charities, Chairs London Funders Children and Young People’s network and has over 20 years working in the voluntary sector.
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Tina Price-Johnson
TrusteeTina has lived in Lewisham since graduating from Goldsmiths in 1991 and worked in the legal field for 25+ years. She is an active Time Bank Member and believes in building community.
Our history
Lewisham Local was set up over 20 years ago to be the borough’s voluntary sector infrastructure body. Since then we have supported hundreds of community organisations, distributed millions of pounds in grants, and helped shape how the borough responds to the challenges it faces.
We were one of the first Councils for Voluntary Service in South East London. We are the borough’s lead partner for volunteer coordination. And in recent years we have taken on new work in place-based giving, cost-of-living response, and coordinated corporate partnership – all of which sit alongside the long-standing work of grantmaking and capacity building we have always done.
Our partners and funders
Everything we do depends on partnerships. Lewisham Council, Peabody, Landsec, Virgin Media O2, Lendlease, and dozens of grant-making trusts, foundations and businesses back our work. We are also part of London’s Giving Network, the capital-wide movement of place-based giving schemes.
For prospective corporate partners and funders, our Lewisham Giving page has full detail on how partnership works and what it can achieve.
How we are governed
Lewisham Local is a registered charity. Our trustees are legally responsible for the charity and its work. They meet regularly, oversee our finances and strategy, and make sure we are doing what we said we would do.
Our accounts and annual reports are published on the Charity Commission website. Our latest annual report is available to download below.
Charity number: [insert]. Registered address: Parkside Community Centre, Copperwood Place, London, SE10 8FY.
Our documents
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View on Charity Commission
Full financial history on the Charity Commission register