Atinuke Olagunju

Trainee Peer Support Coordinator

Atinuke joined the Amma staff team in June 2022 after a period of time volunteering with us. As part of the team looking after our Amma Family peer support programme, Atinuke helps to run our weekly parent and baby drop in sessions which are regularly attended by current and past Amma clients.

Satinder Panesar

Group Supervisor

Satinder is a Psychotherapist, Clinical Supervisor and Coach with over twenty-five years of working in the NHS, third sector, education and private sector.

She works from a integrative perspective – working with Person Centred, CBT or Attachment modalities to work uniquely with each client.

Her areas of specialism are working with both adults and young people who have experienced: trauma, tradition & culture – domestic violence, rape & sexual assault, child sexual abuse, honour based violence, forced marriage, sexual health concerns, pre & post termination. As a Clinical Supervisor she also works with young people in school settings.

Pictured is Karen Phillips, a white woman with short blonde hair

Karen Phillips

Referrals Manager

Karen joined Team Amma from the British Red Cross Refugee Service, where she built up expertise in providing advice, support, and advocacy to people in crisis as a result of their migration status.

Karen has a wealth of understanding of the asylum process and the barriers faced by people within it. She has worked with a wide range of vulnerable groups and believes that people have a right to safety, security and to realise their potential no matter who they are and where they come from.

As Amma’s Referrals Manager, Karen is responsible for our clients’ journey through our support provision, from initial referral to pairing with a team of volunteers, attending antenatal class, gathering feedback and completing a final evaluation as our support period ends.

Amanda Purdie

Head of Development

Amanda brings over a decade of experience in the third sector to her role as Head of Development.

Originally from Canada, Amanda has worked for several charitable organisations in both the UK and abroad. She joined Amma in January 2020.

Amanda is responsible for driving forward our organisational strategies and identifying and developing new opportunities for growth. She also leads our efforts to create systemic change through public affairs and advocacy. Amanda oversees all marketing activities, fundraising strategy, and our volunteer learning and development programme.

Morag Riddet

Perinatal Team Leader

Morag joined Amma’s team of volunteer birth companions in 2021 and became a staff member in summer 2022. In her spare time, she loves to sing as a member of the Joyous Choir, listen to live music, cook tasty vegan food and spend a lot of time with her friends and family.

Most recently, Morag worked at Maslow’s Community Shop doing administration and finance part time, a role which allowed her to be involved with the community of volunteers there, as well as those coming into the shop.

As one of our three Perinatal Team Leaders, Morag supports clients directly along with teams of volunteers to provide person-centred care, advocacy, practical and emotional care, supervision and more.

Helen Sheriff

Perinatal Services Manager

Helen initially joined Amma as a volunteer birth companion and quickly became an integral part of the team. Her strong management skills and experience as a birth companion led to Helen becoming our Perinatal Services Manager. In this role Helen provides guidance and support to our Perinatal Team Leaders and our huge team of volunteer birth and postnatal companions in the day-to-day provision of service to clients.

Before joining Amma, Helen was a business owner for 13 years, prior to which, she had a career in the retail, banking, and finance sectors. Helen contributes extensive experience in training and staff development, as well as valuable expertise in GDPR and compliance issues.

Abigail Stein

Fundraising & Marketing Manager

Abigail has extensive experience in the third sector. She previously worked for ChildLine and spent twelve years at Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity, where she was part of the management team.

Abigail has years of experience in corporate events and fundraising and brings strong project and people management skills to the Amma team. As Amma’s Fundraising & Marketing Manager, she is responsible for raising all the funds needed to keep the charity and service running.

A mum of two, she is a qualified hypnobirthing practitioner and a birth and postnatal doula.

Antonia Wardrope

Infant Feeding Specialist

Antonia joined Amma as a volunteer in February 2022. She has worked as a health professional for 17 years and trained as a doula in 2020. She joined Amma because she wanted to give something back.

As well as supporting Amma’s clients one to one with postnatal and breastfeeding support, Antonia also runs our weekly infant feeding support drop in sessions at our city centre office.

Sarah Zadik

Co-Founder & Head of Services

For more than a decade, Sarah has worked to support vulnerable people in the asylum process and those with insecure immigration status. In 2019, she co-founded Amma Birth Companions.

As Head of Services, Sarah oversees all aspects of our service delivery, including companionship, antenatal classes and peer support.

​Sarah also leads our monitoring and evaluation activities, helping to ensure Amma is achieving its mission and outcomes.

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