Meet the Team

Alexus worked for many years at HMRC. Leaving in 2008, she has worked in a variety of different settings including young homeless, adults with learning difficulties, mentoring young persons in the social care system, and with adults experiencing poor mental health. Since 2012, she has primarily worked in Sexual Health promotion, covering Public Sex Environments, Sex and Relationships Education within schools and colleges, GBT prisoner support groups and Trans* support via group or one to one sessions.

Bethanie is the Lead Youth Worker for our Emerge Youth Group and has over 6 years of experience working with a variety of communities, young people and families. Bethanie is also 1 year away from completing her BA degree in Youth, Community and Families, which is what originally lead Bethanie to Birmingham LGBT in 2019 as an intern wellbeing worker. Bethanie is particularly passionate about developing young people's ability to think critically, articulate their thoughts confidently and be part of the conversation when it is important to them.

Cecily is responsible for all the little details that keep the ship sailing on a day-to-day basis, and, being in charge of the stationery budget, many would say that the true locus of power at Birmingham LGBT lies with Cecily. Cecily has a degree in history, and previously worked in tourism for some of the UK’s largest tourist attractions before landing at Birmingham LGBT. Outside (and indeed inside) of work, Cecily likes to talk a lot about the environment, The Carpenters, and their baby nephew.

Chris has six years experience of working in health care setting.
For two years he worked in mental health rehabilitation before moving to an acute health care setting specialising in a long term condition offering support and counselling for people newly diagnosed and people living with kidney failure.
Before this he has worked in many public settings including working with Birmingham City Council with children and young adults from underprivileged areas.
Chris has always been passionate about the LBGT community and has volunteered and fund raised over the years with events such as Birmingham and Leicester Pride.

Dan has worked in sexual health services since 2000.

Since January 2016 Dan has worked as a part time sexual health outreach worker; with a focus on South Asian and Middle Eastern gay and bisexual men or ‘men who have sex with men’ (MSM).

Dan facilitates a monthly social support group for South Asian and Middle Eastern men called RANG; who meet up every second Sunday of every month from 1pm – 3pm at Birmingham LGBT. Topics around culture, faith, religion in relation to sexuality and/or gender expressions are explored through conversation, art, music and creativity in a fun and friendly way.

Dan also speaks Punjabi and understands some Hindi and Urdu and this helps where language may be a barrier.

Since 2004, Jake has worked exclusively in helping and support roles spending 5 years as a health promotion officer for a leading HIV charity and 9 years in the field of smoking cessation, progressing to a middle management position within the NHS. Jake is experienced in supporting people with multiple and complex needs such as addiction and mental health issues. He has experience of leading and supervising a team of sessional staff, as well as planning and delivering a range of training to healthcare and medical providers.
He is also a student member of BACP and a volunteer counsellor with a counselling service in Birmingham operating within a person centered approach. He also holds a Ba hons in Applied Social sciences. Prior to taking up his Post here as Team Leader, Jake was employed in the Wellbeing support worker role for 3 years.

Jamie has worked within sexual health promotion and outreach within the LGBT community for a number of years.

He has experience of providing face-to-face sexual health support, including sexual health testing, one to one’s, and offering a variety of support needs and information.

Kiran is a qualified Person-Centred Counsellor and member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). She completed her MSc Counselling qualification placement hours at Cheshire Without Abuse. She volunteered as a Counsellor at the Student Counselling Service at Keele University and at North Staffs Mind.
Kiran currently works at Birmingham LGBT as the Trans Inclusion Project Counsellor, and as a primary school Counsellor, splitting her time between them both.

Maria is the Ageing Better Network Enabler. Maria has previously worked in information, outreach, community capacity building, training and awareness-raising for a variety of charities, including Birmingham & Solihull Women’s Aid and Birmingham Settlement. Maria has also been involved with the music business and community arts, trade union activism, and has a specialist interest in monitoring and evaluation.

Matt has over 20 years of working experience in a variety of health and social care settings in both frontline service delivery and management roles.

He first became interested in the area of sexual health whilst volunteering at Birmingham based HIV charity AB Plus in the early 2000's as a holistic therapist, from where he went on to further this interest and gain more experience in subsequent employed positions.

His previous position was with a Black Country based charity where he worked as a MSM Sexual Health Outreach Worker and Project Worker for people living with and affected by HIV. Matt's experience includes delivering community based sexual health outreach and HIV/STI testing clinics, delivering training and facilitating peer support programmes around Sexual Health, HIV and LGBT issues before moving into a management role.

Matt is passionate about empowering individuals and developing quality and accessible sexual health and well-being services to LGBT communities and tackling the barriers and inequalities that can often be faced.

Ocean has 3 years experience as a youth worker specifically working with LGBTQ+ youth groups. They have recently completed the Disabled Young Campaigners Programme with Stonewall.

Ocean is currently leading on the work to introduce Bromsgrove's first ever Pride event. When they're not working, Ocean enjoys reading and photography.

Robyn has previously worked and volunteered with organisations in the co-operative sector, now joining Birmingham LGBT as part of the trans inclusion project to develop and deliver trans awareness training packages and policy support.

Siân had a successful 10 year sales career before changing paths into the teaching and the voluntary sector. In 2006 she gained a TESOL qualification and has taught ESOL, Intensive English, Creative Writing, A-level Citizenship and Education & National Development at Matthew Bolton College, Aston University, Joseph Chamberlain College, The College for International Citizenship and a variety of grass roots community organisations in Birmingham and London. Whilst studying psychology in London, Siân gained a passion for volunteering at Toynbee Hall giving her time and skills to several community engagement projects, which kick started her career in the voluntary sector. Since 2012 she has worked on a variety of volunteer led programmes. Which has seen her recruit, train and support 100s of volunteers. Empowering them to gain skills and experience in breaking down cultural barriers and build social capital across communities in East London and the West Midlands. Siân is currently studying for her MSc in Humanitarianism, Conflict and Development distance learning through University of Bath. Human rights and Equality is at the heart of her work.

Birmingham LGBT’s mission is to build a vibrant, diverse lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans community in Birmingham in which individuals can realise their full potential and have equal access to all the city has to offer.

In the four years she has been involved with the organisation it has grown from a small charity with a £10,000 a year turnover to an organisation with a turnover of over £250,000 a year. Birmingham LGBT delivers a variety of services and events including SHOUT: Birmingham’s festival of Queer Culture, and has recently opened the first LGBT Health & Wellbeing centre in England and Wales in Birmingham city centre. Steph and her co-worker Dave Viney were included in the Independent on Sunday’s influential Pink list in 2013 for their contributions to the LGBT community in Birmingham. Steph has skills in not-for-profits, change management, strategic planning and income generation.

Steph a social science graduate has worked in the third sector for twenty years, beginning her career as in the field of substance misuse and going on to work in a variety of areas including mental health, capacity building, social enterprises, and women’s issues.

Before moving to Birmingham she was a key player in Gloucestershire’s community coordinated response to domestic violence where, as the CEO of a domestic violence charity, she developed a network of survivors’ groups, women’s safety work, a 24-hour crisis advocacy service and a service for BME women.

Steph is passionately committed to human rights and social justice and has always worked to create a better and more equal society for all. She has never moved very far from her background in, and commitment to, grassroots community activism.

Stuart has over eight years experience of work within social care. He started his career working for Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council delivering front line care to adults with learning disabilities.

Stuart developed an interest for providing support for young LGBT people in the Dudley area after noticing a gap in provision of appropriate services while volunteering for a local HIV charity. Stuart moved on to work with Dudley Youth Services, Connexions and the voluntary sector to set up a support service for young LGBT people in the Dudley area – Project Vogue, which gained funding from the Big Lottery to deliver work in schools to tackle homophobic bullying and awareness of LGBT issues for young people as well as a support group and information website.

Stuart also worked for Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council as a Senior Youth Worker and has worked on a sessional basis for a number of sexual health services delivering outreach interventions to young people and MSM communities.