Board of Trustees
Sefton CVS is governed by a Board, which comprises Charity Trustees who are also Directors of the Company. The Memorandum and Articles of Association allow for a minimum of six and a maximum of 15 to serve as Directors.
Trustees are elected at the organisation’s Annual General Meeting on a rotational basis to serve a three-year term. The Board regularly evaluates its composition to ensure it is representative of the geography and local communities and has the required professional expertise to provide strong and effective governance to help Sefton CVS continue to run in the best possible way.
Mark Sonne - Chair
Mark is born and bred in Sefton and spent 34 years working with a leading high street bank gaining a broad spectrum of expertise in the Corporate and SME Commercial market. Now self-employed, he is still involved with the business community helping clients raise funds for a variety of projects.
Mark has been involved with a number of local charities acting as Treasurer for a school, nursery as well as his golf society.
Mark has been a Trustee since 2013 and was appointed Treasurer in October 2018.
Mark has since been appointed to Chair of the Board as of February 2024.
Paulette Lappin - Vice Chair
Community engagement and action is fundamental to Paulette’s commitment to the voluntary and community sectors so local people can challenge, engage, influence and manage change.
Her involvement with the community and voluntary sectors began in 1983 working for Community Transport sector, and over the years as a volunteer with various Charitable Trusts. This has given her extensive experience working with diverse communities, young people, In Bloom Groups, community network organisations and managing a community building.
Her work in the public sector includes community regeneration, outreach and engagement, community and public transport, access and equality issues plus European and National projects. Paulette is also a serving councillor for Sefton Council, and as of February 2024 she is now Vice Chair of the Board.
Brian Thomas - Treasurer
Brian was born in Liverpool and has lived in Crosby for over 30 years.
He is a qualified management accountant having gained a wide range of financial expertise during his 30 years working in the public sector, most notably in the NHS, Prison Service and the Home Office.
Now retired, he is keen to offer advice and guidance as a trustee of Sefton CVS.
Brian was appointed Treasurer as of February 2024.
David McGregor
David McGregor spent 12 years in the Royal Air Force and then studied electronics leading him to running the Advanced Electronics and Computer Aided Design Laboratories at Kingston University. He also spent 10 years as the I.T. manager for the Queen Elizabeth’s Foundation for Disabled People in Leatherhead.
David is a fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, a member of the British Computer Society and the Institute for the Management of Information Systems. David is a Southport resident and joined the Board in 2009.
Dave Roscoe
Dave was born and educated in Waterloo and Crosby and is a former pupil of Merchant Taylors School.
His career took him away from Merseyside where his work in telecommunications saw him undertake managerial roles with international responsibilities until his retirement.
Since retirement from his main career, Dave has been Chairman of Royal Albert Dock Liverpool Ltd and a director of The Colonnades Residential Ltd. He has been President of the Athenaeum and remains active in the voluntary sector being a trustee of the Royal Albert Dock Charitable Foundation. He has been a Board member of CVS since 2004.
Margaret Ollivier
Margaret has over 20 years’ experience working as a senior manager in Human Resources and Governance in the third sector. Following living in London for over 30 years, she moved back to the North West from where she hails.
Marg has previously worked for Sefton CVS as HR and Compliance Manager. She moved to Expect charity, in Sefton, which provides a range of social care services across the North West of England and North Wales, and became Head of HR, Governance and Compliance in June 2018, and, following a successful period in this role, was appointed as Deputy CEO in 2019. Marg was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Expect in October 2021.
Marg is a passionate supporter of Liverpool Football Club and enjoys reading and walking.
Paul Cummins
Paul Cummins worked for Sefton CVS from 1984 until 1987, and later that year became a Trustee of the organisation, a role he has had ever since, which has included a five year spell as Chair.
From 2012 until 2024, he held the role of Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care at Sefton Council, and over the years has held both national and regional roles in local government.
On Sefton CVS’s board he acts as the Safeguarding Champion.
He has lived in Sefton all his life, working in both local government and voluntary sector roles, and is a governor at two local schools.
Val Elson
Valerie worked in Community Development Regeneration for over 40 years, in Skelmersdale, Salford, Liverpool and London. Ten years was spent at Liverpool CVS providing advice, training, funding and constitution and charity registration.
Valerie was Administrator for the first Liverpool Common Purpose Programme and worked with Merseyside County Council on their Anti-Heroin Campaign.
She spent 12 years working in Social Housing with Cooperative Development Services and retired as Manager of the Community Engagement Team. After her early retirement, she joined a small housing association for young people with special needs and retired as CEO.
Valerie has been Director of the Plaza Community Cinema for 17 years and is an Observer of Sefton Council for Voluntary Services’ Health Watch Board.
Dr Peter Hawkins
Peter is founder of the Windmills Foundation and creator of Social Signature, the pioneering new movement inspiring young people to leave there mark on the world.
Enjoying over 40 years experience within the community and voluntary sector, Peter is Chair of Governors at Princes Primary SEND School and Chair of the Merseyside Tuesday and Thursday Clubs, a local charity supporting adults with learning difficulties.
Author of seven books, including No Regrets on Sunday and the Art of Building Windmills, Peter creates, advises and speaks internationally on career and life management from Harvard to Cape Town Universities.
Peter works, learns, plays and gives with his wife Helen and three boys in Formby.
Romils Mathew
Romils was born in India, where he gained his university degree before moving to the UK and has lived in Merseyside for the past 19 years. He was a founding custodian of the Our Lady Queen of Peace Syro-Malabar Catholic Church Litherland and currently serves as a Parish Council member of the church and as the Secretary of the Pastoral Council of the Catholic Syro-Malabar Eparchy of Great Britain.
A Secondary School Teacher by profession, he has worked as a Science Teacher at various schools across Sefton. He was a founding committee member of the Liverpool Malayalee Cultural Association, the founding chair of the former Knowsley Ethnic Minority Support Group (KEMS) and has served as an Independent Advisor to the Knowsley ASBU and the Knowsley MARHF. He is also a Trustee of the Citizens Advice Sefton.
Dr Mike Homfray
Dr Mike Homfray lives in Waterloo and works in higher education. He has a PhD from the University of Liverpool, and has an active interest in social policy.
Mike is engaged in Sefton’s LGBTQIA+ Network. He represents the VCF sector on the Council’s Consultation and Engagement panel.
Mike is also the Board of Trustee’s Equality Champion.
Colonel (Retired) M C H Underhill OBE DL
From a military family and having Manx parents, Mark Underhill completed 10 years of schooling as a boarder at King William’s College in the Isle of Man in 1978. He then spent just over 35 years in the army.
He was commissioned from RMA Sandhurst in April 1979. During his army service he undertook 3 tours in Hong Kong (troop commander, squadron commander and regimental second-in-command) working with Hong Kong Chinese soldiers and Gurkhas and a tour in Cyprus as adjutant. His staff jobs saw him work in the HQ United Kingdom Mobile Force (2* HQ) as a Grade 3 staff officer, Ministry of Defence (4* headquarters (HQ)) as a Grade 2 staff officer, HQ London District (2* HQ) as Commander Logistic Support (OF4), Defence Logistic Organisation (4* HQ) as a Grade 1 staff officer and a second tour in the same organisation as a Colonel (OF5), HQ 4th Division (2* HQ) as Commander Logistic Support & Infrastructure (OF5), HQ Support Command (2* HQ) as Assistant Chief of Staff Support (OF5). He was Commander The Royal Logistic Corps Territorial Army for 3 years as an OF5. He was awarded the MBE and OBE during his military service.
Retiring from the Army in April 2013, he commenced the appointment of Chief Executive (CE) Reserve Forces’ & Cadets’ Association for the North West of England & The Isle of Man (NW RFCA) retiring in February 2025. This was the largest of 13 RFCAs across the UK with the largest budget, largest built estate and largest staffing allocation. In addition, he was responsible for Altcar Training Camp. Within his CE role he was responsible for 3 pillars of outputs: infrastructure, cadets & youth and engagement; the latter which saw work across the Armed Forces Covenant (AFC) sphere including the MODs Employer Recognition Scheme. As CE, he managed and chaired 8 x trusts allocating money across the reserve and cadet space across the NW of England. He retired from the role of chief executive in February 2025.
He was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of Merseyside in April 2019. Within this role he is currently chair of the Duchy of Lancaster’s Benevolent Fund for Merseyside which allocates funding 4 times per year from central grants in London. He is a trustee and board member for 3 veteran charities: AF&V Launchpad where this year he assumed the chair of the Finance & Risk Committee, the Hong Kong Locally Employer Personnel Trust and the Standing Tall Foundation. He is also a trustee of Sefton Council for Voluntary Services. In June 2024 he completed a 5-year voluntary role as President of the RLC Movement Control Warrant Officers Dinner Club, and he held the appointment of Honorary Colonel for 158 Regiment Royal Logistic Corps from 2013-2024.
Married to Debbie, he has 2 boys who are both married; the eldest spent 5 years in the Army (Royal Engineers) and now works for Task Contract Solutions Ltd based in Merseyside. The youngest joined the Army reserves whilst at university studying Disaster Management & Emergency Planning. He now works for News UK in London as a Crisis & Operational Resilience Manager.
Mark has held a variety of sporting appointments/positions: Secretary of Hong Kong British Forces (Combined Services) Rugby 1980/81, skipper of the RMAS 1st XV, skipper UK RCT RUFC 1983/84 & skipper BAOR RCT RUFC 1985/86. At the end of the Rugby World Cup in 2015 he handed over his appointment with the Army Rugby Union (ARU) Management Board/Council as a Trustee which he had held for 10 years as well as being the Army representative on the RFU Council at Twickenham and Chair of Discipline & Governance for the ARU for 7 years. He was appointed an Honorary Vice President of the ARU in September 2016. Cricket is another passion. In his younger days he undertook motorcycle display work riding and managing the 29 Squadron RCT Motorcycle Display Team from 1979-82 and the Hong Kong Logistic Support Regiment Motorcycle Display Team 1994-1996 where he performed at the Royal Military Edinburgh Tattoo in 1981 and the last ever Royal Tournament in London in 1996.
Having now retired from full-time employment, he resides in Hightown, Merseyside.
