Staff and Volunteers

Certified Mental Health First Aider with MHFA England
Adverse Childhood Experiences Awareness Training Course  (ACE's) - CPD Certified    

Covid-19 Psychological First Aider (PFA) – Public Health England
Zero Suicide Alliance Training - Zero Suicide Alliance  

Phil founded JourneyMEN which launched on 7 April 2020.
Phil is JourneyMEN's First Responder and delivers our day to day services.

Phil was former Merseyside PCSO for over 17 years, Phil was part of the joined up Early Help Team on Wirral and saw first-hand the devastation of depression and mental health issues affecting men in particular.He dealt with many incidents of attempted suicides and tragically several deaths by suicide - which led him to establish a community organisation to save lives.
 “From working in the police over many years, I knew that male mental health and suicide was an urgent issue. Many men were not able to gain timely access to the support they needed from overstretched health services. That’s where the idea of JourneyMEN came from. We aim to better link up the crucial support and provide a safe space for men to access that support. I know we can make a difference.”

Since then Phil has collaborated with professionals and organisations across the region to help join up provision for men and to bridge the gaps across the many different services, which gave rise to establishing JourneyMEN, launched on 7 April 2020, World Health Day. 

Phil is one of JourneyMEN CIC 's registered directors.

Certified Mental Health First Aider with MHFA England

  Zero Suicide Alliance Training - Zero Suicide Alliance  

Social Secretary 

 Des originally came to JourneyMEN as a client. After surgery on his spine 3 years ago, he has been left in pain and awaiting further spinal surgery. Due to this, he found himself socially isolated and withdrawn from society, becoming quiet and reserved.  

After engaging with the team at JourneyMEN on the Walk and Talk and Sea Fishing events over a number of weeks, Des felt he was ready to volunteer for JourneyMEN. Discovering a mutual passion for sea fishing, he now is our lead for future fishing events. 

He feels he has now completed his journey with us, now giving something back by and helping change other men’s lives in the way JourneyMEN has changed his.

BSc (Hons) Substance Use Studies - University of Wales 

Certified Mental Health First Aider with MHFA England  

Adverse Childhood Experiences Awareness Training Course  (ACE's) - CPD Certified    

Covid-19 Psychological First Aider (PFA) – Public Health England  

ASSIST Suicide Interventionist

Joyce has over 25 years’ experience in social care on Merseyside spanning a career in the NHS, local authority and third sector.

With a specialist background working in substance misuse services on the Wirral, Joyce is a degree-qualified Substance Misuse Practitioner and qualified life coach.

Joyce has always recognised the need for mental health support services for men on the Wirral and joined JourneyMEN as a volunteer in July 2020 to help readdress that gap. She quickly established herself to lead the team as JourneyMEN’s Stakeholder Manager before being appointed by the Board as Chief Operations Officer in February 2023 and leads JourneyMEN’s innovative service provision.

Joyce ’s experience includes residential rehabilitation - supporting people through their drug/alcohol detoxes with psychosocial interventions and assisting residents to move towards their chosen independent lives.

Joyce was employed by the flagship NHS Wirral Drug and Alcohol Service as a substance misuse practitioner for twelve years providing recovery orientated substance misuse treatment to clients and support for their families. The Wirral Drug and Alcohol Service enabled Joyce to link into the various Wirral services including homeless hostels, criminal justice services, GP shared care services, aftercare services and other various treatment provision to support people’s needs.

Zero Suicide Alliance Training - Zero Suicide Alliance  

Dave founded JourneyMEN which launched on 7 April 2020.
Dave runs JourneyMEN's event programme.

Born in Wilmslow Cheshire, Dave was a Firefighter with Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service for 32 years. During that time he was stationed throughout Wirral including Upton, Heswall, Wallasey and the very busy Birkenhead operation. It was as a frontline firefighter that Dave experienced the importance of looking after mental health.

He says: “I learnt back then that it is crucial to openly talk about serious issues. On my Watch I would make sure we all sat around the mess table and talked after we returned from the more devastating scenes we were called to.”

Dave’s compassion is legendary amongst colleagues who witnessed him resuscitating a dog after he found it trapped unconscious during one call out.
Upon his retirement from the fire service until last year, Dave volunteered as a Police Community Volunteer (PCV) and regularly patrolled with Phil Roberts on a range of tasks including road safety, anti-social behaviour and mental health issues. Dave also volunteers as a narrowboat skipper with YMCA Wirral where he takes out groups with different needs on Cheshire's canals. Dave brings his narrowboat skills to JourneyMEN both in leading its own narrowboat excursions as well as supporting the off site counseling that takes place aboard a specially designed narrowboat.

Dave is one of JourneyMEN CIC 's registered directors.

FMAAT, ACMA CGMA – Director & Finance Director of JourneyMEN & Managing Director at KLB Financial Management Ltd

 
Kerry has almost 20 years' experience working in finance for large organisations within the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. Organisations include, Halton Borough Council, University of Liverpool, National Museums Liverpool and more recently Brothers of Charity Services (BOCS).Kerry joined BOCS back in 2017 to head the finance department and support all business activities within the Merseyside and Greater Manchester regions. She has over 7 years’ experience in senior leadership roles offering both financial and strategic advice. As an AAT Fellow Member and CIMA Chartered Associate Kerry set up her own practice, KLB Financial Management Ltd back in 2018. 

Primarily to help organisation like JourneyMEN CIC meet their statutory obligations. But just as importantly offer strategic advice and support.  In 2019 Kerry joined the Board of Trustees of the Catalyst Science Discovery Centre & Museum. Her role as Finance Trustee allows her to support the local community by offering advice on compliance, governance, risk management and sustainability. 

Kerry says "KLB Financial Management Ltd is passionate about making a positive difference to people's lives and believe it or not we can still do that working in finance. We may not deliver front line services directly but we most definitely take pride in supporting those that do. Working within the not-for profit sector is highly rewarding and putting the person at the centre of what we do makes us extremely proud. We are delighted to be able to support JourneyMEN CIC in the way that we do".

 FCIPD, FInstLM, MBCS, PGCEE (Emotional Education)

Post Graduate Teaching Certificate in Emotional Education at Masters Level.

Currently studying Psychodramatic Bodywork5

Certified Mental Health First Aider with MHFA England

Trained and Experienced in Safeguarding Adults and Children

Experienced Mentor and Coach Reiki Master Teacher First Aid Instructor

David left school at 15 and joined the Army at 17. By eighteen he qualified as a radio operator and a civilian first aid instructor with Saint John Ambulance and was posted to Singapore. He became a Jungle Warfare Instructor and spent time in Borneo, Malay and Thailand where he did two solo expeditions in dense jungle. There followed a 25 year military career included three years teaching on the Platoon Commanders Battle Course and a cumulative three and a half years on active service. He attended many courses including parachuting, became a sniper instructor, and an advanced wild water canoeing instructor.

David re-joined civilian life and became a computing lecturer and staff development manager in Youth and Adult Training at a local Further Education college. In his spare time David has run a youth club and volunteered with charities for the blind and partially sighted, disabled veterans, children and young people’s acting, and became a Reiki Master Teacher. “One of my most rewarding experiences was to take a group of blind young adults who spoke no English from Europe to Snowdonia and teach them to rock climb”.

During my recent studies I have created a Pinterest site with over 41 thousand pins in 100 categories focusing on Self Care and Personal Development.

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/WaddingtonDavid/_saved/

Volunteer Lead

Having spent most of her career in the charitable sector, Tamzin comes to JourneyMEN for her first year placement in university whilst studying Sociology and Criminology. 

Tamzin has worked with men for many years, in particular older men and military veterans with organisations such as Age UK Wirral and Wirral Veterans however mental health support has never been the primary service Tamzin has delivered.

Tamzin wants to use this opportunity with JourneyMEN to expand her knowledge around men’s mental health issues, as well as develop her skill set in supporting men to manage and overcome their mental health issues and become more qualified in this area.

Former Lord Mayor of Liverpool and experienced Shipwright. 

Before entering politics, Frank served as a long time Shipwright having served his apprenticeship in Cammell Lairds Shipbuilders.

Frank then went on to work in HDW in Hamburg and also Vickers in Barrow-in-Furness before returning to Liverpool during the decline of the shipbuilding industry across the country, where he then started work in Fords on the production line. 

After 6 years at Ford, Frank left to take part in a re-training post as a bricklayer for six months, but unfortunately following completion, found it difficult to find work. 

After several small jobs working on extensions for friends, Frank was fortunate enough to be at the right place at the right time, having met an old friend who informed him of a job going as a Shipwright in a ship repair yard, where he stayed for 6 months.  

It was during this time that Frank became involved with the Trade Unions, which he had initially joined as an apprentice. Rising through the ranks, he later became a shop steward to branch official, followed by district committee member and then district committee secretary of the Associated Society of Boilermakers, Shipwrights, Blacksmiths and Structural Workers.

When the ASOB amalgamated with the GMB, Frank was elected onto the regional committee and following that later elected onto the National Executive Council. 

Frank then later entered politics in 1990 as an elected member of Liverpool City Council, as a Labour representative for the St Domingo Ward, which due to boundary changes later became the Everton Ward. 

Up until now, Frank has represented his ward for 31 years. 

During this time, he has held a number of positions, including Chair of Finance for 4 years, Deputy Leader for 2 years (1994-96), Leader of the Council (1996-98) and Lord Mayor (2010-11). In 2017 Frank then left the Labour Party but remain on the Council as an Independent Cllr to the present date.

In 1999, Frank also started working for the Breckfield and North Everton Neighborhood Council (BNENC) as a Project Manager, which had 5 staff and worked out of the old Everton Library. Through his management, Frank built the organisation up from 5 to 15 workers, with 20 volunteers for additional support, and helped to co-ordinate the transition over to a newly refurbished building, that catered for numerous community projects. 

Some of those included nursery/ crèches, youth and pensioners club, veterans’ projects, health inclusion project for men (HIM), as well as a cycle and repair and maintenance project.