John Baker, Chair Person John is a Legal Training Manager working for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). Expand John has over 30 years’ experience working as a criminal advocate in the Magistrates’ Courts. He is passionate about individuals' human rights and ensuring that everyone, whatever their circumstances, has opportunities to live an ordinary life.
Professor Rosie Harding Rosie is Professor of Law and Society at the University of Birmingham. Expand Her academic work focuses on human rights, disability, capacity, and intimate and caring relationships. She is a passionate advocate of the difference that a human rights approach can make to disabled people’s everyday lives. A particular focus of Rosie’s research is exploring how law shapes and changes people’s everyday lives, and what this means for social justice, especially where people experience discrimination and equality in their lives. She is committed to helping to realise the transformative potential of the human rights set out in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. As a legal academic, Rosie has published widely on issues relating to disability human rights, and her research has been supported by grant funding from the AHRC, ESRC, British Academy and Leverhulme Trust. You can find out more about Rosie’s academic work on her university web profile (https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/law/harding-rosie.aspx).
Tony Middleton Tony has many years of experience as a senior leader in the HR field in several settings, running busy HR functions nationally and regionally, across several sectors. Expand His experience includes culture change and service improvement, employee relations, talent acquisition and succession and employee engagement. Tony describes himself as a pragmatist and a realist, who is solution focussed and always starts with the end in mind! Tony is now the Interim Head of Human Resources and Organisational Development for Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council. Being a trustee since 2007, Tony is committed to employment for disabled people and people with mental health difficulties. He strives to be part of making lives better for people, believing that everyone deserves a fulfilling and rewarding life. To quote Tony, ‘If you were to snap me in half like a stick of rock, it would say Changing Our Lives in the middle!’
Rachel Seabright Rachel works in the Corporate Affairs department of a large acute NHS Trust. Expand Rachel began her career working for Members of Parliament, where one of her roles was to help constituents with case-working problems. This led on to rights based work for the Citizen’s Advice Bureau, the Refugee Council and working as a specialist in immigration law for over 10 years before setting up her own practice. Rachel’s varied experience and solution focused approach enables her to both understand the issues that different groups in society face and come up with person centred and sustainable outcomes. Her work in Corporate Affairs in the NHS has given her an understanding of good governance, which is a vital skill she brings to the Board. In Rachel’s words, ‘Changing Our Lives works with people in such an innovative and life changing way. I am proud to be part of such a movement that puts people at the centre of their own decision-making. Involving people in their own life-choices, and campaigning for others in similar situations, means it is so much more likely that change will be effective, and long-lasting.’
Richard Grant Richard Grant is a performance poet based in England, but who travels around the world with his brand of beat box poetry. Expand Richard is otherwise known as ‘Dreadlock Alien’ and was previously the Poet Laureate in Birmingham. Richard has strong links across the literary scene, including judging the Young Muslim Writer’s Awards and being a leading member of many poetry initiatives and projects.