Meet the Team

MEET THE TRANSOM TRUST TEAM – WHO WE ARE

Let’s introduce you to the Transom Trust Team who represent four different churches across Hastings, St Leonard’s and Bexhill.

To find out more about our team members, please click on their picture for their personal profiles.

OUR TRUSTEES

Let’s introduce you to the Transom Trust Team who represent four different churches across Hastings, St Leonard’s and Bexhill.

Steve Young

(Trustee/Support Team)

Steve Young

Steve spent most of his working life as a civil engineer both in the UK and abroad. Latterly this involved working for the UK government on the international aid programme.Steve retired around 6 years ago to take up a role in church administration and leadership with King’s Church Hastings and Bexhill.

Steve has been involved with Transom Trust as a trustee for 3 years and has had pastoral responsibilities for the last couple of years. He has been encouraged to see new residents coming into our properties directly from the streets and gradually adjusting to a more settled lifestyle. The opportunity to work alongside, and to learn from, other colleagues with wide experience in helping the homeless has been something that Steve has particularly valued.

Julia Acott

(Trustee)

Julia Acott

Julia was born in Hastings and lives next door to her childhood home.
She continues to counsel there, and lives with Peter and adopted son Daniel, plus with 7 rescued cats.
Julia is widowed and remarried to Peter, and she has 3 other children and 4 grandchildren.
She is also a musician and plays the piano at church and for pleasure.
Julia founded and led Alternatives Trust East London from 1994 to 2019, working with vulnerable families and those with No Recourse to Public Funds.
This charity work involved providing practical, parenting and counselling support, and starting social enterprises to enable disadvantaged people to step into work.
To serve her clients better, Julia developed counselling skills to become a UKCP registered psychotherapeutic counsellor (MBACP accreditation), and a counselling supervisor.
Julia also has an MA in Counselling and Psychotherapy.
Julia was an Elder in her church in Newham for 38 years.
She is also a trustee of First Fruit, a charity in East London, which provides supported accommodation, and employment and training, for the homeless and the long-term unemployed.
Julia wants to brings her skills to Transom Trust.

Veronica Burt

(Trustee/Support team)

Veronica Burt

I have been a nurse for 20 years, both in Jamaica and the UK. I have experience working in general and mental health settings, and I am currently working in the community looking after people with long-term conditions. I moved to the UK in 2005, and to Hastings in 2017, and maintain close and supportive relations with my mother and four siblings, who all live in Jamaica. I was brought up in a Christian family, and I have always enjoyed (and benefited from) being involved in church life.
I currently worship at Christ Church, Ore where I have the privilege of serving as a church warden.
I had a sense of God connecting me up with Transom Trust.
I joined the Trust via contacts at Christ Church, Ore who have experience of working with homeless people.
To me, being part of Trust is a natural extension of my role as a nurse and my personal and voluntary activities.
I hope to serve with the Trust for some time to come, and I plan to take each day as it comes.

I fully appreciate that the pastoral support role will be challenging at times, but also one that is satisfying – bringing God’s hope and practical care to our residents, so helping them progress towards independent living.

OUR PASTORAL SUPPORT TEAM

Our Pastoral Support Team provide one-to-one support to our adult male residents in our supported housing in St Leonard’s and Bexhill.

They are Christians who are:

encouraged and motivated to make a real difference in the lives of vulnerable people
available for 2 hours a week
ready to play your part in addressing homelessness
patient and able to befriend and mentor one of our residents (to help them progress to independent living within 2 to 3 years)
available to share their faith with our residents through their actions (and words when prompted by Residents)
ready to signpost our residents to other sources of support (as needed).

We support our team by providing:

a supportive and experienced team for you to join
the required DBS check
a full induction and relevant training
a range of “tools” (guidance and links to resources)
“on call” personal support from our project team.

Rob Worthing

(Housing Manager)

Rob Worthing

Rob was a solicitor specialising in civil litigation for 30 years and he had planned to retire to have a rest. Although the local church and Transom Trust have conspired against this plan, he still manages to play some sport and join his wife Sue on the water from time to time, be it on a canoe or a sailing dinghy.

His encouragement would be for our residents to find work and hold down a job, as this is an important support goal for them to achieve. Rob is also the Trust’s Housing Manager, responsible for ensuring our supported accommodation is maintained to a high standard.

Andy Garlick

(Operations Manager.)

Andy Garlick

Andy was a Civil Servant for 22 years (mainly with the Department of Work and Pensions), followed by 15 years employed with Battle Baptist Church (13 years as a church leader). He joined Transom Trust in November’20 as their part-time project manager responsible for providing close and full support for the vital Pastoral Support Team, as well as across all areas of the charity’s operations.

His experience with Transom Trust is very enjoyable, learning so much about all the issues relating to rough sleeping while ensuring our excellent pastoral support team are equipped with everything they need to carry out their vital and challenging role of supporting our residents.

The biggest encouragement has been to see how residents have developed as people and taken positive and tangible steps towards independent living, and to see the encouragement that gives to our hard-working pastoral support team. Andy works in a very supportive environment, and have learnt lots from those around me with so much experience, knowledge, passion and skills with caring for vulnerable people.

Rob Williams

(Support team)

Rob Williams

Rob retired about 3 years ago after working for 7 years within the fraud department of an insurance company. Prior to that worked in various roles within Sussex Police for 38 years.

Rob joined Transom Trust in November’20 as a pastoral support worker. His role has proved quite challenging due to some of the issues that have arisen. However, he has been well supported by the Transom Trust team, who have always been available and willing to help with advice and practical support.

Rob is encouraged by the regular team meetings where there is time to discuss and pray about the support issues that arise and need resolving.

Sue Jenner

(Finance Support)

Sue Jenner

I have been going to King's Church in Bexhill for a while and have been a Christian for 15 years.

I have discovered that being a Christian doesn't always mean having an easy journey through this life but I do know God helps me in all situations. This is even though I have to sometimes remind myself of this. He is always steadfast and the best friend you can have. I have had various complications in my life.

As a result, I feel am able to empathise with, and also have a desire, to help people who struggle with their own problems. This is why I wanted to become a support worker with the Transom Trust.

I have had various working roles in my life from working with horses, caring, administration and book-keeping.Up until last year had been a property manager/landlord looking after 26 tenancies for 14 years.

On the whole, this work was very enjoyable. However, at times it was very testing as many of the tenants had a multitude of different problems. I miss the work apart from the middle of the night call-outs! I also love spending time with my wonderful family and also enjoy dog-walking and gardening.

Martin Clarke

(Support team)

Martin Clarke

Starting out as a mechanical engineer, I have worked in senior roles in business for 30+ years and much of this work has been working with people, developing teams and mentoring.
I have also developed skills in achieving objectives, business strategy, finance management, management theory and getting on with people of all backgrounds.
I have been a Christian for 40 + years, and during this time the Lord has blessed me, supported my family.
He has given me a desire to see His Kingdom advance especially in those areas of our community that don’t realise their need of Him
I am married to Sue, now retired, and we have a grown-up son and daughter.
My hobbies include classic cars and playing the saxophone.
I have joined the TT team as I have long been concerned about how the lot for homeless people can be turned around.
I am excited by TT’s model of helping homeless people through pastoral support to future independence.
I believe that my previous background could help me connect to individuals, and work with them to improve their life chances in this way.
Through working with TT, I hope to increase my understanding of the causes and effects of homelessness, and to see individuals making real progress in their day to day and spiritual lives.

Malcolm Prestidge

(Support team)

Malcolm Prestidge

Ever since I became a Christian in 1989, I have been drawn to the plight of those who are the most marginalised in our society.
This led me to serving the homeless in Manchester, and also to serving the Hispanic community in Los Angeles.
I moved to Bexhill in 2013, and I was able to continue this ethos and service - as a Beachy Head Chaplain, and also as a Street/Response Pastor.
I love to see lives transformed and given a hope for the future – especially those who have lost all their self-esteem.
I see hope coming from walking the Christian path.
For me, joining Transom Trust as part of the Pastoral Support team, seems to be the next step of faith.

Paul Farrow

(Support team)

Paul Farrow

My wife and I have lived in Bexhill since 2013.

I spent most my career in IT, mainly for Global Investment Banks, working in London and on short assignments around the world, but recently cutting down to focus only on Europe.

Without any religious upbringing, I became a Christian while studying at University, which totally changed my outlook on life.

Back in 1995 my wife and I moved house to plant a new church which grew substantially.

I’ve been in both very traditional and contemporary churches.

I am currently a member at Kings1066 church in Hastings.

In 2022, I retired fully from all paid work.

Being retired may mean you have less money, but you have much more time.

I want to use my time in serving others, as Jesus asks us to.

I would like to see people’s lives being changed for the better.