Our Committees and Panels focus on specific tasks, provide detailed insights, and support the Board of Trustees to operate efficiently by leveraging specialist knowledge and dedicating time to governance and strategic issues.
Committees and Panels
The Joseph Patrick Trust
The Joseph Patrick Trust is our welfare fund. It provides grants that fund essential powered mobility equipment for people living with muscle weakening and wasting conditions. The management committee oversees the governance and administration of the fund. The panel reviews submissions against our eligibility criteria.
Joseph Patrick Trust Management Committee
Julian Pritchard (Chair)
Ian Gordon
Robert Warner
Joseph Patrick Trust Grants Panel
Jane Field
Kirsty Read
James Lee
Jane Freebody
Finance Committee
Our Finance Committee oversees our financial health. It ensures our resources are used effectively to achieve our goals and mission.
Joseph Gordon (Chair)
Brigid Sutcliffe (Vice-Chair)
Hélène Crutzen
Jennifer Howells
James Lee
Appointments and Remuneration Committee
Our Appointments and Remuneration Committee oversees the recruitment, appointment, and remuneration of senior staff.
Professor Mike Hanna (Chair)
Brigid Sutcliffe
Lord Sharkey
Charles Scott
Medical Research Committee
The Medical Research Committee assesses research grant applications and makes funding recommendations. It also scrutinises ongoing projects. Committee members have professional experience in healthcare or scientific research.
Dr Gillian Butler-Browne, PhD (Chair)
Professor Tracey Willis, MB CHB MD MRCPI, PhD (Vice-Chair)
Professor Virgina Arechavala-Gomeza, PhD
Professor Heidi Fuller, PhD
Professor Rita Horvath, MD, PhD
Dr Meredith James, PhD
Dr James Lilleker, MBChB, PhD
Dr Davide Pareyson, MD
Professor Ketan Patel, PhD
Professor Richard Piercy, MA VetMB MS PhD Dip ACVIM FRCVS
Professor Frédéric Relaix, PhD
Professor Pietro Spitali, PhD
Professor Peter Zammit, PhD
Lay Research Panel
The Lay Research Panel is made up of people affected directly or indirectly by a muscle wasting condition. They do not need a scientific or healthcare background. The panel assesses research grant applications to ensure they are relevant to our strategy and people living with muscle wasting and weakening conditions.
Alison Kay (Chair)
Andy Rose (Vice-Chair)
Peter Ashley
Richard Davenport
Graham Gornall
Gary Holmes
Victoria Houghton
Modupe Joshua
Mamta Markworth
Tahira Mathur
Tammerin Du Preez
Amber Tirimanna
David Towler
Roli Roberts (Scientific Advisor)
David Wilkinson
Services Development Committee
The Services Development Committee advises the Board of Trustees on neuromuscular service provision and healthcare policy.
It consists of key stakeholders such as neuromuscular consultants, allied health professionals, NHS commissioners, and people living with muscle wasting and weakening conditions.
The committee meets three times a year to discuss issues such as, but not limited to, access to treatment, commissioning of neuromuscular services, provision of mental health support for people living with neuromuscular conditions, rare disease policies, and campaigning activities.
Professor Deirdre Kelly (Professor of Paediatric Hepatology) (Chair)
Dr Chiara Marini-Bettolo (Consultant Neurologist, John Walton Muscular Dystrophy Centre, Newcastle)
Professor Francesco Muntoni (Paediatric Neurologist, Great Ormond Street Hospital)
Professor Ros Quinlivan (MRC Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases)
Dr Niranjanan Nirmalananthan
Dr Maymunah Khries
Tiffany Hesson (parent)
Sheila Hawkins (Person with lived experience of neuromuscular condition)
Lloyd Tingley (health policy expert)
Tanvi Vyas (Person with lived experience of neuromuscular condition)
Chloe Docker (Lived experience/Trustee)
Claire Boylan
Scottish Council
The Scottish Council advises the charity and ensures we have the resources, knowledge and voice to support people living with muscle wasting and weakening conditions in Scotland.
Dr Sheonad Macfarlane BSc Med Sci, MB ChB (Chair)
Jodie Murphy
Catherine Gillies
Elizabeth McHugh
Gerry McMenemy
Joe Moan
Allyson Townhill
Jon Watkins
Northern Ireland Council
The Northern Ireland Council advises the charity and ensures we have the resources, knowledge and voice to support people living with muscle wasting and weakening conditions in Northern Ireland.
Claire O’Hanlon (Chair)
Claire Boylan (co-chair)
Janet Bailie
Bethany Jackson
Laura Jackson
Aaron Thompson
Julie Thompson
Jim McKeogh
Maggi McKeogh
Catherine Taggart
Suzanne Glover
Stephen Myall
Declan McGahon
Special Events Committees
Microscope Ball Committee
Our flagship gala dinner is held annually at the Hilton Park Lane in London with over 700 guests from the property sector.
David Allen
Matt Allen
Michelle Anthony (Chair)
Jack Beeby
Ed Betts
Anna Biggin
Guy Bowring
Lucy Burns
Adam Cradick
Rhys Davies
Fraser Draycott
Jon Eaglesham
Harry Foster
Abigail Francis
Charles Howard
Louise Ioannou
Jonny Lee
Tim Lumsdon
Ben Miller
Nick Moldon
Matt Nimmo
Rich Oliver
Stephen Rigby
Simon Tann
Trish Watson
Andrew Wedderspoon
Sports Quiz/Games Night Committee
The Sports Quiz/Games Night Committee helps our fundraising team organise games nights throughout the year, including our annual, star-studded quiz night hosted at Lord’s Cricket Ground.
Vanessa Van Blerk
Martin Cardoe
Rich Cumbers
Robert Driver
Louisa Hill
James Pearson
Ravi Seesurrun
Hussein Ismail
Q Trust Committee
The Q Trust was established in 2001 by Mark Reynolds in honour of his friend Quentin Crewe. Mark’s dedication continued until 2005, when, sadly, he died from his own condition. His wife, Jemima, continued his legacy until she died in 2015. The Q Trust committee is now made up of the friends and family of Quentin, Mark and Jemima. The trust’s regular quizzes and dinners have raised millions for research into muscle wasting and weakening conditions.
Candida Crewe
Nick Manby
Rebecca Jennings
Sophia Bergqvist
Victoria Elliston
Charity Shoot Day Committee
The Charity Shoot Day Committee organise an annual clay pigeon shooting event at the Royal Berkshire Shooting School. It has raised thousands to transform the future of muscle wasting and weakening conditions.
Jon Eaglesham
Nick Moldon
Simon Tann
Scotland Event Committee
This new committee was set up in 2024 with the vision to eventually have a Microscope Ball style event in Scotland with the support of the commercial property industry north of the border. Their first event is ‘Strike Night’ which is a fancy dress bowling night in Glasgow, scheduled for May 2025.
Lynn Smith
Bill Ritchie
Gillian Campbell