Meet the team

Jon began his career as a graduate trainee at Cancer Research UK, working across fundraising, strategy, IT and policy. He led the development of its campaigning function, leading policy campaigns on issues like tobacco control, cancer funding and science policy. He led the charity’s campaign for anti-smoking legislation.

During a period in public affairs and PR consultancy for health charities and pharmaceutical companies, he helped introduce a new meningitis vaccine, genomic cancer testing and new therapies for conditions like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and lung cancer. 

He went on to become chief executive at Autistica, the UK’s autism research charity. There, he led an initiative to make autism a clinical priority for the NHS, ensuring autistic people co-designed services and funded many globally-renowned research studies.

Jon joined us in September 2020.

Robin was director of fundraising and marketing at a health research charity before joining the Royal Free Charity. Following a career in international television production, Robin moved to the charity sector via political campaigning, communications and fundraising. He served as vice-chair of the London Liberal Democrats and managed campaigns across west and south west London.

He was an early campaigner against the causes of air pollution, winning the independent Clean Air in London Award for his efforts to tackle air pollution in the capital.

Robin joined us in July 2020 to work closely with our stakeholders, within our three hospitals and in the wider community, to raise the profile of the charity and increase engagement at all levels as we support and add value to the work of the trust.

Russell has over 25 years’ experience as a fundraising director across organisations such as Cancer Research UK (CR-UK), Great Ormond Street Hospital and UNICEF UK. He has led several major campaigns including a £100m campaign at CR-UK to fund the construction of the Francis Crick Institute at St Pancras, London. 

Since 2020 he has served as a trustee on the board of the Africa Research Excellence Fund and previously as a trustee of the MRC’s Medical Research Foundation. Russell has four children – the eldest was born at the Royal Free Hospital – and in his spare time he has completed multiple marathons, triathlons and two ironman competitions.

Russell joined us in April 2024 from The Courtauld Institute of Art where he has been working in the dual role as director of advancement and director of marketing and communications. He was appointed to the new role of campaign director to lead our fundraising appeal for cancer care and is now the director of fundraising and campaigns. 

Sharron joined the Royal Free Charity from Jewish Care where she worked for 16 years as the head of human resources. Jewish Care is the largest provider of health and social care services for the Jewish community in the UK.

Prior to working in the charity sector, Sharron worked for an IT, utilities and sales company in various human resources roles.

Sharron joined us in May 2020.

Laura’s role is to identify opportunities for charity wide innovation with internal and external stakeholders and development of the charity’s services portfolio with a particular focus on services supporting cancer patients, carers, and their families. 

Laura joined us from Prostate Cancer UK (PCUK), where she was the head of clinical services, peer support, health information and emotional support for nearly seven years, leading award-winning health information and nursing teams. There she developed new services such as a WhatsApp support service and an emotional counselling service, which led to over 15,000 people accessing PCUK services every year.

Laura was also a qualified nurse. Her nursing career began in the acute admissions unit at University College London and then went on to work in general practice as a nurse practitioner. She held a prescribing qualification and has written multiple published articles. She has appeared in interviews on both television and radio as PCUK’s clinical voice.

Laura joined us in 2022. 
 

Alex worked previously in the civil service where he qualified as a chartered accountant and worked across multiple government departments including the Ministry of Justice and the Foreign Office. His charity experience includes time spent on secondment from central government to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. 

He has broad experience in financial management and leadership, with a particular interest in long-term financial strategy and sustainability. 

Alex is passionate about equality, diversity and inclusion, and believes that embedding these values and living them day-to-day not only creates a positive and welcoming working culture, but also maximises the benefits felt by services users beneficiaries and stakeholders.

Outside work, Alex has a strong interest in history and architecture, and particularly the early medieval period, which was the subject of his university studies. He also enjoys cooking and gardening (although he doesn’t have much of a green thumb).
 

Alex joined us in December 2023.

Alison joined the charity in December 2014 initially with responsibility for establishing the Royal Free Charity at Barnet and Chase Farm hospitals following thier acquisition by the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust earlier that year. 

Since 2020, Alison held the role of director of grants and services overseeing much of the charity’s expenditure on its beneficiaries, and since April 2024 as director of grants. 

Alison oversees compliance and governance for approximately £9 million of grants and special purpose fund expenditure, for the benefit of patients and visitors, staff and research and development projects. 

Prior to joining the charity Alison spent 15 years with a national youth charity managing a portfolio of prevention and early intervention services and programmes across London and the Midlands.