Lara Lill is a leading expert in health, wellbeing and physical activity. She is a respected senior manager with extensive experience in building effective partnerships. Lara trained as a secondary school PE teacher at Liverpool University, she taught for a while in the North East before being appointed to the Amateur Swimming Association. Lara is Head of Health and Wellbeing, responsible for developing strategy and building influential partnerships to improve the quality of life for people with health conditions and contribute to the public health of the population. Lara is also a member of the European Women and Sport Board responsible for promoting leadership and gender equality for women in sport. Lara is delighted to be appointed as a trustee to UK Deaf Sport.

Nick brings to the Board knowledge of risk management, corporate governance and finance. He is a chartered accountant and qualified treasurer with over 30 years international business experience from his time at 3i Group plc, a FTSE100 investment company specialising in private equity and infrastructure; Santander bank, and Ernst & Young. Nick is Deaf and has a long history of being involved with Deaf sport. He was involved in the set-up of UK Deaf Sport and was the Deputy Chef de Mission for the GB team at the 2005 Deaflympics in Australia. He was also the Chair of the British Deaf Tennis Association and helped to host the first World Deaf Tennis Championships. In addition, he was a trustee of the Friends for Young Deaf charity and facilitated its eventual merger with the National Deaf Childrens Society. He still remains active in sport and has completed several Iron Man triathlons as well as regularly participating in road biking events across Europe.

Andy’s involvement in UK Deaf sport arises from his eldest son Daniel; he was born deaf, has bilateral cochlear implants thoroughly enjoys taking part in a wide range of sports. Andy himself has a background in sports performance, teaching and coaching. He has a degree and master’s degree in Physical Education and Sports Science from Loughborough University. He has been involved in education for over 25 years and is currently a Primary School Headteacher in North West Leicestershire. In his spare time, he coaches junior rugby and is passionate about ensuring all deaf young people and adults can access and enjoy all the benefits of participation in sport and physical activity.

A senior media and entertainment executive with experience commercialising content in global, regional and local roles, Peter was most recently General Manager Benelux for The Walt Disney Company overseeing content distribution, consumer marketing, product licensing and television channels. He founded and led Disney Media+ EMEA, the company’s integrated marketing promotions division, and has driven business launches in the UK, NL, USA, France, Spain, Australia, Russia and India. Peter is now consulting for a range of content and entertainment businesses.

Anneli has worked across the sporting landscape for over 15 years; running national and international events including World Championships, national championships, and mass participation events. Passionate about inclusive sport, Anneli is currently leading the British Paralympic Association’s pre-Games Preparation Camp for the Tokyo Paralympics. Anneli lives in Cardiff but on weekends she can usually be found recharging her batteries at the beach or in the countryside. A keen runner and open water swimmer. Anneli moved to the UK from Tasmania in 2004.

Toby Burton is the Chief Financial and Operating Officer for Fastmarkets, part of the FTSE 250 listed business, Euromoney Institutional Investor.  Previously, Toby spent 11 years at The Economist Group where he was the Chief Financial Officer of the Publisher Team. At the Economist he was responsible for the circulation, media, digital and data teams, which together were part of a global business with revenues of £300m. Prior to this, he started his career at Unilever as a management trainee.  A lifelong member of the Deaf community who is proud to be Deaf and a British Sign Language user, Toby was the former Chair of the Board of Trustees for the Royal Association for Deaf People, committed to supporting Deaf culture, history and language and ensuring accessibility. Toby’s passion for sports comes from a wide range of sporting experience, including being a hockey goalkeeper, playing competitively for 22 years and running marathons. He adds an international perspective to the UK Deaf Sports Board being born in Belgium and having played table tennis growing up there and is now actively involved in Deaf badminton in the UK.

Vincent Pericard is a former professional footballer who played at the highest level of the game including in France with Saint-Étienne and UEFA Champions League with Juventus before moving to England, where he played for several Premier League clubs including Portsmouth FC and Stoke City. He has also played for the France U21 team. Vincent retired from football in 2012 at 29. Following his retirement, Vincent has achieved a First-Class BA (Hons) in Business Management & Entrepreneurship and a Distinction MSc in Accounting & Finance at the University of Portsmouth. He is now following a corporate career in Customer Success Management. Vincent is also an entrepreneur. He is the co-founder and director of a start-up called, The WhatsUp? Tech. WhatsUp? is an innovative digital platform helping organisations to provide better support for the wellbeing and mental health challenges faced by their people.  In addition, Vincent is a mentor for Elite Academy Manager to help the Premier League to develop world-class leaders to lead progressive Academy systems capable of developing home-grown talent. A Personal Devolvement & Success coach to help millions of people around the world to become successful and achieve their goals & dreams. A as well as a public speaker in Mental Health, Diversity & Inclusion, and Success Mindset.

Fil is an experienced Continuous Improvement and Technology manager with a demonstrated history of achievement in the public sector & charity sector at a board level. He brings expertise in project & programme management, digital transformation, financial and risk management. Fil is deaf and has represented Great Britain and England Deaf men’s football teams at the Deaflympics and World Cup. Fil is the Continuous Improvement Lead at Kent County Council, Chair of the Cambridgeshire Deaf Association, Ambassador for the Mintridge Foundation and the Kent Disability Football League. Whilst a knee injury forced his retirement from football in 2018, Fil is still active in sport and playing golf.

Rebecca Foster MBE is a Principal Lecturer and Senior Fellow of the HEA.  She has worked as a Physical Education teacher, Head of Department, Deputy Head of Pastoral Care, and a Partnership Development Manager in Yorkshire. She currently teaches on the PE and Coaching undergraduate degree and is Course Leader for MSc Disability Inclusion in Sport and Physical Activity at the University of Worcester. Her own research interests are on disability, specifically Deaf sport (athletics).  This interest arose from competing as an International heptathlete and upon retiring learnt British Sign Language and then volunteered as a coach for UK Deaf Sport for over 12 years. This afforded her to travel abroad for three consecutive Deaflympic competitions.