Meet The Team
This is our wonderful and highly trained team responsible for the development and implementation of the projects and programmes Creating Positive Opportunity provide. Our team members work very closely with the community and support the progress of individuals throughout their journey. We are here to make a positive difference in the community and give people the means they need to achieve their ambitions and improve their lives.
Stephen has a background in both education and journalism and became the Managing Director of Creating Positive Opportunity in April 2006. Stephen’s daily responsibilities include managing the organisation and business development. His passion for education as a way of reducing disadvantage and poverty to our local communities runs through everything that he and his team at Creating Positive Opportunity do, ensuring every child and family is supported in the whole.
Stephen’s additional responsibilities include Chairing the Mental Health Alliance. VCSE Lead on the Children, Young People & Families Strategic Board, including Chairing the Developing Well and Living Well Board; VCSE Lead on the Mental Health Sector Network (HCP) and the Children’s, Staying Well Board; VCSE lead on the Youth Partnership Board, and the Youth Justice Steering Group, NEL Skills Board. Trustee of Lincolnshire Community Foundation, Vice Chair of the NEL VCSE Alliance & the NEL VCSE Forum, and being a Governor at John Whitgift Academy.
Stephen Ryder
Managing Director
Director of projects and organisational governac/ DSL
Stevie Evardson
Chief Operating Officer
Stevie has extensive experience in business management, operational leadership, and community support. She delivers a range of Creating Positive Opportunity projects that empower individuals, build confidence, and promote resilience. As a qualified Mental Health First Aider, Stevie is deeply committed to improving mental health and wellbeing, embedding this focus into all aspects of her work. With a strong track record in strategic growth and relationship-building, she ensures projects run smoothly and deliver meaningful, lasting impact for the communities she serves.
Stevie Evardson
Director of projects & Human resources
Tracey Rodger- Gibbs
Education Curriculum & Quality Coordinator
Tracey is newly appointed as our Education Curriculum & Quality Coordinator and is fully qualified, with over ten years’ experience teaching Functional Skills Maths and English, as well as Employability subjects, to a diverse range of learners. Her nurturing and composed delivery style enables many of our learners to build confidence and enjoy their learning experience with us.
Emma joined the team in 2024 as a dedicated Young Person’s Practitioner, bringing a wealth of experience in youth justice, housing, and supporting individuals with learning difficulties, mental health challenges, and educational needs. She holds extensive professional and academic qualifications in the health and social care sector, including a PGCE in Lifelong Learning. Emma is passionate about engaging and empowering people, offering her expertise to build meaningful connections to help create positive change. She is actively involved in the Full Families Project and Children in Need programs, where her work demonstrates a deep commitment to helping young people grow, build resilience, and feel supported as they navigate their journey toward a brighter future.
Head of Youth
Emma Jackson
Emma Jackson
Young Person's Practitioner
Francesca French
Tutor
Head of Employability and Skills
Francesca French joined the team in 2025 as our Head of Employability and Skills. With 12 years’ experience in SEND education at both local and national levels, she brings a strong commitment to helping learners achieve qualifications and build positive futures.
A qualified teacher, she recently achieved a Level 7 Merit in Careers Leadership and combines her teaching expertise with a passion for careers guidance—supporting individuals to overcome barriers, explore their potential, and make informed next steps through our Adult Education Skills programmes.
Francesca also serves as our Safeguarding Lead, working closely with staff and external agencies to ensure all learners feel safe, supported, and heard.
Darlene Linford
SEND Support Worker
Georgina is a Youth Transitions and Wellbeing Practitioner with a strong passion for supporting individuals holistically at different stages of their lives. In her current role, she works across the Family Enterprise Project, the EHCP group—supporting young people to build life skills and transition confidently into education and careers—and the Hospital Discharge Project.
She brings a wide range of experience, having supported individuals and families through mental health and wellbeing interventions, family support services, children’s residential care, and special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Georgina has also worked within homelessness services, with young offenders, and in wider vulnerable people settings.
Georgina is deeply committed to promoting mental health and wellbeing, and is dedicated to empowering individuals to achieve positive, sustainable outcomes in all areas of their lives.
Georgina Reeves
Youth Transitions and Wellbeing Practitioner
Nicki Fulton
In-House Counsellor and Psychotherapist
Nicki is a counsellor and psychotherapist, whose approach tends to be relational, humanistic, and trauma-informed. She has worked in specialist therapeutic settings that include sexual violence and domestic abuse services, occupational health, and bereavement support. Her earlier career was in education, supporting autistic learners in a residential college provision. Nicki is passionate about progressive approaches to mental health and wellbeing, and believes that empathy and relationship is key in helping people to empower themselves.
Penny Thomas
Dementia Support
Penny is our newest Dementia Officer, supporting individuals at various stages of dementia and Alzheimer’s. She leads weekly group walks, one-to-one sessions, and gentle chair-based exercises to promote wellbeing and connection. With a warm, compassionate approach, Penny offers support through friendly conversation and meaningful engagement. She brings valuable experience from working with adults with learning and physical disabilities and is passionate about mental health and person-centred care.
Having previously been a project participant, Katie works as a delivery officer and project co-ordinator on our CBO project. Her role includes assisting, teaching and supporting our clients with ‘soft skills’ such as confidence building, computer skills, and vocational training, and has responsibility for the CBO budget and reports.
Katie Fytche
CBO Project Co-ordinator
Samantha Chester
Head of Wellbeing
Sam joined the team in April 2023 and has many years’ experience of working with young people and adults. She offers one-to-one learning to our clients with SEND and Educational, Health and Care Plans. Sam has been passionate about working to support our local community since she left school, and has since gone on to gain her PGCE to enable herself to teach others. Sam has an array of knowledge of the Health and Social Care Sector and experience of working within housing and homelessness.
Employability and Budgeting Coach/Finance Officer
Nicola Robinson
Nicola joined us in May 2023 after 37 years in the public sector, supporting people with barriers to employment. She has helped individuals into work, improved work readiness, and supported self-employed people to increase earnings.
She builds strong relationships with clients from all backgrounds and is a trusted source of support. Her role includes CPO finance duties and administering our ‘Multiply’ programme, allowing tutors to focus on teaching.
Nicola also created and delivers a budgeting course and leads Employability sessions on job search, interviews and CVs, using her experience to deliver engaging, high-quality support.
Ashley Draper
Ashley has over nine years of experience teaching in secondary schools and post-16 provisions and now works as a Tutor at CPO. He delivers English and Maths to a diverse range of learners through both small group and 1:1 sessions, tailoring support to meet each student’s needs.
Ashley is passionate about giving young people the opportunity to thrive - especially those who may have struggled in mainstream education. He focuses on building confidence and helping learners gain their Functional Skills qualifications, opening doors to further education, training, or employment.
Drawing on his background in music, Ashley brings creativity and energy into the classroom, using hands-on techniques to make learning accessible and enjoyable. His approach is learner-centred, flexible, and focused on positive progress, no matter where a student starts from.
Tutor
Paul Hardy
Business Administrator
Paul’s duties include administrating the Grimsby Full Families project, preparing publication orders, maintaining and updating company documents, and assisting with media and IT training. Paul started at Creating Positive Opportunity as a regular volunteer, and much of his time is spent supporting our delivery staff and Operations Manager in their day-to-day tasks.
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Ryan Page
Physical Activity Lead
Ryan is our newest physical activity lead. He takes weekly group classes, one-to-one gym sessions and well-being walks at the beach. With a background in sports anatomy and physiology, whilst having competed in national level sport, he brings experience, passion and enthusiasm to his work. Ryan creates a positive environment within all his activities, aiming to improve confidence, social skills, knowledge and most importantly a more positive outlook on the health and well being sector.
Sarah Lowe
Teaching Assistant
Sarah is our dedicated Teaching Assistant, providing vital support across both academic learning and social, emotional, and mental health wellbeing. She works closely with learners in the classroom, helping to build confidence, encourage engagement, and create a positive, supportive environment where every individual can thrive. Sarah’s caring and approachable nature ensures that all learners feel understood, supported, and empowered to achieve their full potential.
Board of Directors
Ginene Anderton -Chair of Board
Ginene is a Practitioner Supervisor for Young People’s Support Services in North East Lincolnshire.
She has over 20 years’ experience of working with young people, ranging from administration roles to her current role as a practitioner supervisor, working with young people aged 16-19 not in education, employment or training. Her responsibilities include strategic work for the local authority, directly supporting young people, and signposting to support services. Ginene has worked closely with us to support young people, and to build strong, supportive working relationships
with like-minded organisations for the benefit of our local families.
Lauren King - Director
Lauren has worked in North East Lincolnshire for over 17 years, leading and supporting a range of transformational programmes including Healthy Weight, Early Years, Active Travel, CYP Mental Health, and Neurodiversity. She now works within the NEL Health and Care Partnership, focusing on improving outcomes for children and young people by working across organisations to reduce inequalities and ensure services meet local needs. Outside of work, Lauren is a parent governor with a strong interest in SEND and enjoys family life with her two young daughters.
Hazel Stevens - Director
Hazel has worked in Public Health for over 18 years and specialises in Public Health Intelligence. Hazel’s main areas of work focus on child and maternal health, adolescent health and well-being and suicide prevention.
Millie Carr - Director
Millie is a Participation and Engagement Worker on the Resilience Project at Compass Go, which aims to explore resilience in relation to mental health and well-being from a holistic approach. This will help give young people the knowledge they need to feel confident in managing life’s challenges as they arise, and the skills to do so.
Stephen Ryder - Director
Stephen Ryder joined Community Press Office in September 2004 and became Managing Director in 2006. In 2011/12 he made the strategic changes which saw Creating Positive Opportunity become primarily an organisation that focused on education, training and employability.
Stevie Evardson - Director
Stevie is a passionate and dedicated leader with extensive experience in business management and community support. Possessing a deep understanding of operational leadership, strategic growth, and fostering meaningful relationships. Beyond the corporate world, Stevie has made a significant impact in the community by supporting children and families through various initiatives. Her commitment to social change is evident in her leadership of successful projects that have uplifted and empowered local communities, creating lasting, positive outcomes.
Josie Taylor - Director
Josie joined us as a client, but has a wealth of experience in the advice and guidance sector. Her valuable perspective means that our client voice is heard at board meetings and Annual General Meetings.
Abbie Pomfret - Director
Abbie is a Relationship Manager at Kooth Digital Health who aim to build mentally healthier, happier populations. Kooth is available from the first moment of need focusing on prevention and early intervention by providing low barrier accessible support. Abbie's experience and portfolio covers both CYP & Adults and the wider Yorkshire & North East area including NE Lincolnshire. Abbie's prior experience was in the workplace mental health and wider wellbeing sector.