About us
About Us
🦋New Beginnings is a concept which has been inspired by the research carried out by Dr Jadwiga Leigh, the Founder of the organisation.
Comparative research carried out by Dr Leigh (2013; 2014; 2017) into how social work services were provided in Flanders (North Belgium) and England, found that in Flanders, community projects focusing on helping parents understand how their past experiences affected their children were far more effective than traditional parenting programmes.
Dr Leigh's research showed that once parents were given space to meet others in similar situations and reflect together on the challenges they faced, they were able to view their situations differently and initiate positive change for their family.
At the heart of New Beginnings is the aim to break the cycle of intergenerational trauma by deepening parents’ understanding of who they are and why they parent in the way that they do. True safety for children begins with giving parents the space to explore how their past has shaped their lives.
Our Team
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Dr Jadwiga Leigh Founder & CEO
As Founder and CEO of New Beginnings, Jadwiga oversees the foundation's work, guiding its growth and ensuring every area of the organisation thrives.
Lisa Wyche Programme Delivery Lead
As Programme Delivery Lead, Lisa Oversees programme delivery across multiple sites, supporting local teams, maintaining consistency in our Equal Offer and strengthening partnerships with local authorities.
Clare Western Impact and Development Lead
As Impact and Development Lead Clare, Monitors and analyses organisational data, evaluates outcomes, identifies trends and supports funding, reporting and service development to strengthen our impact on families.
Andrew Plemper Data Analyst
Andy collects, validates and analyses organisational data, identifying trends, monitoring outcomes and producing accurate reports to support impact measurement and informed decision-making.
Sian Kilcommons Systemic Family Therapist
Sian Works collaboratively with families to explore relationships, communication and patterns of behaviour, helping them build stronger connections, navigate challenges and create positive, lasting change.
Disclaimer
New Beginnings Foundation CIO is an independent charity. We are not politically aligned and do not endorse any political party. While we occasionally contribute to discussions hosted by partner organisations such as the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), our involvement is limited to sharing our expertise and lived experience to improve outcomes for children and families.
Danni Thomas Project Coordinator
As Project Coordinator, Danni manages all referrals into New Beginnings, organising our waiting lists and ensuring cohorts run smoothly, start to finish. She is also a group facilitator and keyworker.
Eleanor King Programme Facilitator
Eleanor facilitates weekly group sessions for parents. She also provides one-to-one keywork as part of our Equal Offer 24-week trauma-informed programme, supporting parents through every stage of their journey.
Jodie Maxwell Programme Facilitator
Jodie recently joined New Beginnings as a keyworker and group facilitator. She works alongside parents to help them navigate their trauma and the professional processes within the system.
Kesh Nathan Programme Facilitator & Children and Young Person Worker
Kesh has joined New Beginnings to work with Children and Parents as a keyworker and support worker. Kesh comes from a background of Social Care work experience and joined New Beginnings in Feb 2026.
Hayley Gaskell Senior Post-Programme Support Worker & Health and Safety Lead
Hayley oversees post-programme support in Stockport, providing continued guidance to families following their 24-week programme. As Health and Safety Lead, she also supports safe working practices and compliance across the organisation.
Cheri Wilson Post-Programme Support Worker
Cheri uses a combination of lived experience and learned techniques to work with our parents in Post-Programme. She runs workshops and tailors support specifically around home conditions and hoarding behaviours
Debi Warner Children and Young Person Support Worker
A treasured supporter and volunteer, Debi (a fully trained nursery manager) gives her time to provide childcare during our morning sessions. She is now a Children and Young Person Support Worker for New Beginnings Stockport.
Michelle Ceyhan Project Coordinator
Michelle has been a qualified social worker since 2002. The majority of her working years she has been employed by Tameside Local Authority working in safeguarding or the emergency out of hours team. She is now Tameside's Project Coordinator
Laura Kilgannon Project Facilitator & Children and Young Person Worker
Laura has worked for the Local Authority for 3 years, supervising family time and supporting Parents to spend good quality time with their children. Laura is a keyworker and group facilitator at Tameside for New Beginnings.
Megan Holt Project Facilitator
Megan is a project facilitator and Keyworker for New Beginnings in Tameside.
Sarah Smith Senior Post Programme Support Worker & Drug and Alcohol Lead
Sarah oversees post-programme support in Tameside, helping families sustain positive changes. As Drug and Alcohol Lead, she provides specialist support around substance misuse, recovery and relapse prevention, drawing on her experience as a SMART Recovery facilitator.
Jade Birch Support Worker
Jade is a support worker bringing lived experience to her role as both a SMART recovery facilitator and running a Who's In Charge Group that specialises on child to parent violence.
Mick Bailey Chair of Trustees
Mick recently stepped up to our Chair position, but has been with New Beginnings for a while, offering wisdom, guidance and reassurance when needed.
Matt Hollingsworth Treasurer
As Treasurer, Matt is responsible for advising on New Beginnings' budgeting and strategic planning, ensuring compliance with regulations, and providing financial oversight to the board of trustees.
Cordie Gwilym Chair of Governance Committee
Rachel Burton Trustee
Aisha Momodu Secretary of Governance Committee
Naz Ghodrati Trustee
Disclaimer
New Beginnings Foundation CIO is an independent charity. We are not politically aligned and do not endorse any political party. While we occasionally contribute to discussions hosted by partner organisations such as the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), our involvement is limited to sharing our expertise and lived experience to improve outcomes for children and families.