About
Meet the Team
Meet the Team
At Colchester Foodbank, our dedicated team is the heart of everything we do.
Co-Directors:
Together, they lead the organisation, overseeing operations, strategy, and partnerships to ensure we support as many people as possible.
Welfare & HR Officer:
Provides one-to-one support, helping guests navigate benefits, housing, and other challenges beyond food, while also overseeing HR responsibilities to ensure a supportive and compliant working environment for staff and volunteers.
Organising Team:
Focuses on driving long-term change by engaging with local decision-makers, helping to influence policies that address poverty and its root causes. They also lead on community engagement, organising events to raise awareness of the issues people in crisis face and to highlight the impact of our work across Colchester.
Volunteers:
Over 250 committed individuals give their time to welcome guests, pack food parcels, and offer a listening ear with kindness and care.
Board of Trustees:
Our trustees bring a wealth of experience and oversight, guiding the Foodbank’s governance, safeguarding, and long-term planning. They ensure we remain accountable, transparent, and focused on our mission to tackle hunger and its root causes.
Together, we’re here to help our community not just survive, but find a path to stability and hope.
Our Co-directors
Armin Lange
Nikki Ranson
“Feeding bodies, nourishing souls: together we fight hunger one meal at a time.”
Our Trustees
Peter Tibber, Chair Designate
“We shouldn’t be necessary. But we are. We must do what we can to ensure that in the future we are not.”
Julie Rusiecki
“I chose to become a trustee for Colchester Foodbank, not because I know better than anyone else, but because I believe in the value of the work the Foodbank does in the community.”
Mark Norrington
“After too many years commuting to work in London, I wanted to get more involved in my local community.”
Lorna Preece
“As I step into this new role as a trustee, I am excited to bring my experience and passion for community service to the forefront.”
Sabina Hinchcliffe
“Hopefully my experience as a small business owner, mum and lifelong resident of Colchester can help me to make a difference and add value to the Foodbank.”
Derek Sutherland
“If I can help the Food Bank continue on its successful path, then I will be proud to do so.”
Shane Aldons
“I believe my role as Trustee is to continue the good work of Colchester Foodbank, provide stability for our clients and volunteers, promote fundraising and maintain oversight and governance.”
Our Specialist Advisors to the Trustees
Jenny Turnbull, Treasurer
Paul Rusiecki, Minute Secretary
Rebekah Hill, The Trussell Trust’s East of England Area Manager
Our Co-Patrons
The Right Reverend Roger Morris, the Bishop of Colchester
Sir Bob Russell, the High Steward of Colchester Borough
Our Staff
Phoebe Jakovlevas
Adi Medasani
Katie Hood
Our Lead Volunteers
Monday – Anne Barney
Tuesday – Lesley Mawkes
Wednesday – Anne Barney
Thursday – Mary Dale
Friday – Julie Rusiecki
Saturday – Kevin Finnegan
Our Lead Volunteers for our Satellites
Brightlingsea – Win Pomroy
Wivenhoe – Mark Norrington
Greenstead – Mandy McPherson
Monkwick – Jan Large
Highwoods – Rev. Hannah Cooper
Myland – Gill Williams
New Town – Andrew Topple
Rowhedge – Emma Peel
Tiptree – Rev. Anne-Marie Renshaw
Colchester Central – Karou Magee & Deni Bartington
Our Duke of Edinburgh student volunteers
We are delighted to be celebrating two years of our Duke of Edinburgh awards programme, during which time we have guided twelve students through their bronze awards volunteering. Working with a parent, each of these young people successfully completed their twelve-hour course over a period of three calendar months.