Baroness Claire Tyler of Enfield

Baroness Tyler was Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Relate, the country's leading relationship support agency, since 2007, and is a working Peer in the House of Lords. She has previously been the Director of Vulnerable Children's Group in the Department for Education and Skills (DfES); the Head of the Government's Social Exclusion Unit; and Board Member in the former Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. She has also been the Chair of ‘Kids in the Middle', a coalition of charities in the children and family sector campaigning to reduce the impact of high conflict parental separation on children. She also worked for the Connexions Service, becoming the Deputy CEO in 2000 and then Acting Chief Executive.

Cafcass Board Members

Mary MacLeod - Deputy Chair

Mary MacLeod is currently the Chair of the Clinical Governance Committee at Great Ormond Street Hospital. She is also currently on the board of the Internet Watch Foundation, the Chair of Gingerbread, the Chair of the Advisory Group of Safe Network as well as a Non-executive Director of the Video Standards Council. Additionally, since 2009, she has variously been a Family policy advisor/consultant for DCSF, Vodafone, Participle and Family Action. Mary has a strong commitment to children and families and will bring an extensive research background to the Cafcass Board and a demonstrable ability to promote diversity.

Previously, she was a member of the Executive Board of the UK Council for Child Internet Safety (2008-2012); she was the Chief Executive of the Family and Parenting Institute (1999-2009); Director of Policy, Research and Development and Deputy Chief Executive, ChildLine (1995-1999; Deputy Chief Executive 1999); Director of HQ Counselling Services, ChildLine (1995); Senior Lecturer in Social Work, Polytechnic of North London (1982-1991).

Mary was awarded an OBE in 2008 for services to children and to families.

Prof. Ian Butler

Ian is a Special Adviser at the Department of the First Minister at the Welsh Assembly Government. He is also a Professor of Social Work, University of Bath. Ian has a strong commitment to working to promote and improve the interests of children and dealing with a wide range of front line services.

Terry Connor

Terry is Chief Executive of Cabrini Children’s Society, a voluntary child care organisation and adoption agency. He has extensive experience of work with children and families in the public and voluntary sectors and is GSCC registered. He has served as a Trustee on a number of voluntary bodies and was Chair of British Association for Adoption and Fostering (BAAF) for six years.

John Lakin

John Lakin previously worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (1988-2011) where he was the Partner responsible for Education and Children’s Services Consulting and also Head of Public Sector Policy, Research and Economics.

Prior to that he worked for the Inner London Education Authority (1985-1988) where he was the Head of the Leader’s Office and the Education Programme Manager for Hackney Inner City Partnership. He also had roles as Assistant Programme Controller for Economic Development and as Policy Researcher, European Affairs for the Greater London Council (1981-1985), and as a Finance Officer for Hillingdon Area Health Authority (1981).

Francis Plowden

Francis Plowden is currently the Chairman of CEOP, the national centre for the protection of children from sexual abuse and exploitation (since 2010). He is a Board Member of the Serious Organised Crime Agency (since 2009), where he is the Chairman of the Audit and Risk Committee, and an external member of the Audit Committee of the British Museum (since 2009). He is also an Assistant Boundary Commissioner for the Boundary Commission for England (2011).

Previously, he was a Commissioner with the Judicial Appointments Commission (2006-2012); Chairman of the Greenwich Foundation (2003-2011); a Board Member of Hedra PLC (2007-2008); Chairman of the National Council for Palliative Care (2001-2008) and has carried out advisory work for both the Ministry of Justice and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. He was a partner at PriceWaterhouseCoopers where he was Head of Government Sector (1998- 2001) and at the then Coopers and Lybrand, as Managing Partner International Affairs (1995-1998) and Head of UK Government Consulting (1987-1995).

Kamaljit Singh

Kamaljit is the Principal Solicitor for a West London Borough advising on the Law and policy relating to children, special educational needs, mental health and adults. She is a member of the Law Society's Children's Panel and was previously Vice-Chair and Acting Chair of West London Mental Health NHS Trust.

Fay Selvan

Fay Selvan has been the CEO of the Big Life group since 1991 which has grown from a community organisation with a turnover of £17,000 p.a into one of the largest social enterprises in the UK with a turnover of circa £8m and 300 staff. She is also currently the Chair of Trafford Healthcare Trust (since 2006) which has a turnover of circa £80m and 2000 staff.

She was previously the Chair of Trafford Primary Care Trust (2001-2006); Executive Sponsor of Manchester, Salford and Trafford Health Action Zone (1999-2002); Tenant Liaison Officer, Manchester City Council (1986-1989) and Administrator/Project Officer at Great Manchester Low Pay Unit (1985-1986). She was also a Department of Health Social Enterprise Mentor between 2010-2011 and a Commissioner with the Street Weapons Commission in 2009.

Stuart Smith recently became the Director of Children Services for Calderdale Council where he has been particularly appointed to lead the council's strategy to meet the requirements of the DfE Improvement Notice for Children's Social Care. Stuart is also reviewing the council approach to school improvement and early intervention services.

Previously Stuart was employed as Director of Education, Skills and Communities at Wigan Borough Council where he led on the new relationships with schools and the redesign of the school improvement service, also the Executive Director of Children, Adult and Family Services at Liverpool City Council (2001-2011) where he was responsible for budgets in excess of £800m and oversaw a large increase in school attainment at all levels.

In previous roles he has been Assistant Director, Students and Communities at Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council (1999-2001); Head of Behaviour Support Services, Kent County Council (1995-1999); Deputy Principal Youth Officer, Wirral LEA (1992-1995); Training and Development Officer, Wirral LEA (1990-1992) and Community Development Officer, Dudley MBC (1987-1990). He has also held various teaching and youth worker roles.

Prof. June Thoburn CBE - Special adviser to the Board

Emeritus Professor of Social Work at the University of East Anglia. A qualified social worker, June has taught and researched across the field of child welfare since 1980. She provides expert evidence in complex foster care and adoption cases; and is a member of the Norfolk Family Justice Council. Between 2001 and 2008 she was Vice Chair of the General Social Care Council and was until recently the Chair of Jersey Child Protection Committee.