Parent Carer Participation Advisers – here to help your forum
Advisers focus on helping PCFs run effectively and sustainably in line with the conditions and requirement of the Department for Education (DfE) grant.
Advisers can give guidance on running a PCF effectively, but PCFs are independent and decisions around how they run sit with them.
PCFs are organisations that must have their own policies and governance structure in line with DfE grant conditions.
An adviser can:
- Provide information and guidance to PCFs, see the Parent Carer Forum Handbook.
- Provide information and support on acceptable use and management of the DfE grant for PCFs. Including providing recommendations on the day to day management and activity of a PCF in line with the conditions of the DfE grant, including the Code of Conduct for Recipients of Government General Grants, and to the agreement in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).
- Support with applying for the DfE grant, (priority grant if available) and completing the grant forms.
- Act as a point of contact for associates working in new or developing areas, including supporting with the Contact held grant process.
- Support forums to reflect on organisational challenges and opportunities, including thinking through options, possible next steps and creating a plan.
- Support PCFs to explain and promote their role to parent carers, local authorities, health services and other partners, while ensuring advisers do not speak on behalf of PCFs or influence their in-dependent voice.
- Connect PCFs to training, learning and development opportunities.
- Share examples of PCF achievements, and good practice.
- Listen to your views about Contact’s offer of support and share that internally to help develop Contact’s support for PCFs.
As Contact administers the DfE grant to PCFs, Advisers do have a role in supporting compliance with the grant requirements.
If grant requirements are not me PCFs can expect:
- A clear letter from Contact’s grants team explaining the requirements we believe are not being met, what you need to do and when by. This letter will include the support we can offer.
- Advisers will work directly with PCFs to create a realistic plan where action needs happen to meet the grant requirements. In some cases they may put an Associate in place to provide this support.
What can you expect from your Adviser?
Some PCFs will need more support than others, especially if they are new, growing, or going through changes.
Here’s what you can expect from your Adviser routinely, whether you are accessing support with something specific or not:
- A reply to your message within 3 of their working days. You can check your adviser’s working days below. If your query is complex or the team is particularly busy, you may receive an acknowledgment email within three of their working days. This will include a date by which you can expect a full response.
- Regular updates on Contact’s support for PCFs
- Attendance at NNPCF termly regional parent carer forum meetings to listen and understand local area issues and offer relevant support with the NNPCF regional Director where appropriate
- To signpost to guidance policies and training on safeguarding and Equality Diversity and Inclusion when needed.
An Adviser cannot:
- Mediate meetings but can signpost you to qualified mediators
- Review personal communications, that have not been shared with us directly by the individual concerned. Where personal messages have been forwarded to us these will automatically be deleted and remain unread.
- Provide specialist or legal advice, such as HR/employment advice or make decisions for the forum on these topics but can signpost to places to access this and link to the general guidance in the handbook.
- Respond to individual complaints about forums; all complaints about PCFs must be raised directly with the PCF via their complaints process. Contact will support the PCF to ensure the complaints process is followed where required.
- Complaints can be escalated to Contact where it is believed a PCF has not followed their complaints process and will review this in line with the grant conditions.
- Where multiple complaints from individuals and stakeholders are received Contact will review this in line with the grant conditions.
You can provide feedback anonymously about Adviser support, please use the link in the Adviser’s email signature.
If you would like a direct response, please contact your Adviser or email: [email protected].
North West and Yorkshire and Humber
Lisa Aldred
Parent Carer Participation Adviser
Areas: North West (all except Wigan) (Blackpool, Bolton, Bury, Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Cumberland, Halton, Knowsley, Lancashire, Liverpool, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Sefton, St Helens, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Warrington, Westmoreland and Wirral) Yorkshire and Humber ( Bradford, Calderdale, East Riding of Yorkshire, Hull, Kirklees, Leeds, North Yorkshire, Wakefield and York)
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 07421 451678
Working days: Monday – Friday
East Midlands, West Midlands and Yorkshire and Humber
Cindy Baylis
Parent Carer Participation Adviser
Areas: East Midlands (Derby, City of, Derbyshire, Leicester, City of, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire North, Northamptonshire West, Nottingham, City of, Nottinghamshire amd Rutland) West Midlands (Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Herefordshire, Sandwell, Shropshire, Solihull, Staffordshire, Stoke on Trent, Telford and Wrekin, Walsall, Warwickshire, Wolverhampton and Worcestershire) Yorkshire and Humber (Barnsley, Doncaster, North East Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire, Rotherham and Sheffield) and Wigan
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 07920 655079
Working days: Monday – Friday
London North East and London North West
Selina Eshun
Parent Carer Participation Adviser
Areas: London North East (Barnet, Barking and Dagenham, Camden, City of London, Enfield, Hackney, Haringey, Havering, Islington, Newham. Redbridge, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, London North West (Brent, Hammersmith & Fulham, Harrow, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Kensington & Chelsea, Richmond, Westminster) South London Wandsworth
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 07355 614698
Working days: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
South East
Zenab Farah
Parent Carer Participation Adviser
Areas: South East (Bracknell Forest, Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, Kent, Medway, Milton Keynes, West Berks, West Sussex, Windsor and Maidenhead)
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 07355 614699
Working days: Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Working hours: 10am – 2pm
North East
Sarah Lee
Operations Lead and Regional Adviser
Areas: North East (Darlington, Durham, Gateshead, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside, Northumberland, Redcar and Cleveland, South Tyneside, Stockton on Tees and Sunderland)
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 07920 654967
Working days: Monday – Friday
South West and South East
Sue Mennear
Parent Carer Participation Adviser
Areas: South West (except Bristol) (Bath and North East Somerset, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Isles of Scilly, North Somerset, Plymouth, City of, Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Swindon, Torbay and Wiltshire) South East (Buckinghamshire, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Oxfordshire, Portsmouth, Reading, Slough, Southampton, Surrey and Wokingham)
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 07920 655056
Working days: Monday – Friday
East of England
Olivia Newbolt
Operations Lead and Regional Adviser to the East of England
Areas: East of England – Bedford borough, Cambridgeshire, Central Bedfordshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Luton, Norfolk, Peterborough, City of, Southend on Sea, Suffolk and Thurrock
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 07579 852056
Working days: Monday – Friday
South London
Jade Mulligan
Parent Carer Participation Adviser
Areas: London North East (Ealing) South London (Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston upon Thames, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Southwark and Sutton) South West (Bristol, City of)
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 07421451698
Working days: Tuesday and Friday
Working Hours: 9:30am – 5pm
Last Updated: May 2026
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