Board Of Directors
Margaret Haddock (Chair)
Margaret is Deputy Chief Executive with The Orchardville Society Ltd and was previously its Employment Services Manager. She is the current Chair of the Northern Ireland Union of Support Employment and a member of the All Party Working Group on Disability. Margaret has a wide range of experience in relation to funding environments for the voluntary sector.
Ian Elliott (Vice-Chair)
Ian joined Disability Actions Board of Directors in 2009. Since then he has also been the Chair of the Human Resources Sub-committee and a member of the Strategy Group. In 2011 he became the Vice-Chair.
Ian is the Group Chief Executive of Oaklee Homes Group, a leading social housing provider with almost 5,000 social housing units in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Oaklee is responsible for a large portfolio providing suitable accommodation with joint management partners to meet supported housing needs.
Membership of Boards include the Council of the NI Federation of Housing Associations, and Extern Ireland for the provision of a wide range of Adult & Childrens' Services.
Ian is a graduate of Queen's University and also the University of Ulster
Tom Alexander (Treasurer)
Tom qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1984 having graduated from Lancaster University in 1980 with BA (Hons) in Accounting & Finance. Tom is also an Associate of Institute of Indirect Taxation and is past chairman of Northern Ireland VAT Practitioners Group. He has always worked in the accounting profession, specialising in taxation for the last 24 years, and is a tax partner in KPMG. Tom has through his career also accumulated considerable commercial experience.
Tom is also working with Lagan College Integrated school as part of the KPMG "adopt a school" programme.
Being married with two active children at Ballymena Academy leaves little surplus time; but what time there is filled with road cycling, mountain biking, table tennis, walking and any other sporting activity he can negotiate a pass out to play. Socialising and wine appreciation are ingredients to most weekends and as a past chairman of Ballymena Wine Society, Tom feels the need to keep his hand in.
Holidays involve travelling as far away from the Northern Ireland weather as possible.
Tom Coard
Tom has worked for a variety of voluntary sector organizations for the last 15 years and currently works for Sector Matters - the social economy business operated through NICVA.
He previously served on the Board at Disability Action until 2007 but has continued as a member of both the Finance and Human Resources Sub-committees. He was Chair of the Belfast CAB and was a carer's representative on the Disability Living Allowance Advisory Board NI. He currently is the Chairman of the Belfast Philharmonic Society - Northern Ireland's only symphonic chorus which has 125 members in the adult choir and over 300 children and young people in training, children's and youth choirs.
He has a keen interest in disability issues and is committed to bringing about change, challenging attitudes and discriminatory practices, and building inclusion that creates a greater understanding and accommodation.
Rosaleen Dempsey
Rosaleen has worked for RNIB for over six years and is currently manages the Children & Youth Service which provides information and advice; family support; events; and a youth programme foe blind and partially sighted children and young people and their families. Rosaleen in very interested in improving services for disabled children and young people and sits on the Regional Children's Disability Sub-Group.
She has an interest in working on pan disability projects and is involved in the Hub Youth Inclusion Project and sits on the Children with Disabilities Strategic Alliance. She is also a Board Member for ADAPT Northern Ireland and a Trustee and Regional Contact Person for the Albinism Fellowship.
Rosaleen is keen to feed into the agenda of equality for disabled people in employment and access to services and is determined to lobby for a better and more inclusive society, especially for those with sensory disabilities.
Paul Finnegan
Paul is currently Regional Manager of the Digital Switchover Help Scheme run by the BBC. He was previously Director of Development with Autism NI for three years. Prior to that he worked with RNID within the area of employment and learning; at Extern managing a range of youth interventions for children and young people; the Northern Ireland Youth Forum managing the Participation Hub for children and young people; and the Southern Health and Social Services Board managing the Southern Childcare Partnership.
Previously he was on the Board of Governors at Lisburn Institute for 8 years; Chairman of Lisburn Community Relations Network; Chairman of the Northern Ireland Mentoring Forum; and a member of the Down Lisburn Trust Locality Partnership.
Paul is a Fellow of the Institute of Leadership & Management and has 2 Masters Degrees (Organisational Management from QUB and Lifelong Learning from UUJ).
Much of his focus over the last 10 years has been around participation, in particular for people with disabilities and wishes to continue this within Disability Action by focusing on participation and the equality of services and support for those with a disability and their families and carers.
Irene (Rene) Fulton
Rene is currently a committee member for the Newtownabbey Senior Citizens Forum and also volunteers at some community based events from time to time. She is fully committed to helping the senior citizens of Newtownabbey with disabilities achieving all they can - both in activities and benefits as much as possible. As a disabled person she feels this gives her a greater insight into the difficulties of disabled people.
Kym Lennon
Kym is a founder and the first chair of Disability Matters North Down and Ards. This organisation is primarily concerned with awareness raising (accessible information provision and the production of age appropriate educational books).
Kym has been employed as a Head of Department in an Integrated college and she is an experienced teacher of Art and Art History to GCE A level. Kym has acted as an exam moderator for the education authority and she has marked Art history thesis's for the Curriculum Council.
Kym is now a church representative for the Board of Governors at the primary school which her daughter attended.
Now a retired schoolteacher Kym does not intend to retire from life. Kym has won many awards for her published Artwork; which she continues to produce as a disabled artist.
Kym feels that it is very important to know what she can about disability and she has been awarded the PSNI trophy for 'tirelessly promoting the dignity of people with disabilities'.
Kym intends to continue with the promotion of confidence in the political process. She will do this through participation in Disability Action in whatever way.
Gerry Maguire M.B.E.
Gerry works with the Western Health & Social Care Trust. He is a member of the management committee for Shop Mobility Enniskillen and the New Hospital Voluntary Sector in Enniskillen. He is Co-Chair of the PSNI Regional Independent Advisory Group and the local Independent Advisory Group. Gerry also sits as a member of the Disability Group on Strategy in OFM/DFM. His interests are reading and social networking.
William (Bill) Riddall
Bill worked for 30 years in various management roles in international banking within Lloyds Banking Group before retiring in 2000 from a senior position in the Risk and Contingency Management Unit. During his time with the Bank he was involved in work with a number of national international business organisations.
In the past, he has held several Board memberships with a number of voluntary organisations.
Bill has a keen personal interest in theatre and live drama. He has been involved in many campaigns for access to both established and new theatres in England and Northern Ireland.
He is committed to the integration of disabled people in all aspects and levels of political and social life in Northern Ireland; promotion of the ethos of independent living; and access to the arts for disabled people.
