Our Trustees

Mark Cammies, chair of Sense

Mark has over 35 years’ experience in all aspects of the property development and portfolio management arenas and has held senior and executive positions with a number of major retailers in the UK and internationally, in China and Russia.

In 2007, Mark became one of the founding executive directors of Circle Health and helped build the largest partnership of healthcare professionals in Europe and also led the development and construction of three new award-winning hospitals. After a period on NHS acute hospital Trust Boards, Mark has also advised other NHS Trust Boards on their large-scale strategic development plans.

He was Deputy Chair and Board member of the University of West London for 9 years and was also Chair of their finance committee.

Mark is currently Chief Executive at Coventry University Group, which has several Campus locations across the UK and currently ten in various international locations.

In his younger days, Mark was also a commissioned officer in the armed forces for over 10 years, primarily in infantry roles.

Mark is a member of the Finance & Audit Committee and the Engagement Committee.

Vivienne Hoskins, vice chair

Vivienne has over 20 years of senior leadership experience in the not-for-profit sector working with a number of charities and local authorities.  Throughout her career she has focused on performance improvement, change and building positive organisational culture.  Her roles have included leading the development of services for disabled children, young people and their families and more recently roles in technology, leading digital transformation strategies including initiatives that enable services to reach more people and new audiences.

Vivienne is also a parent of two disabled young people which has given her first-hand experience of negotiating the complexities of education, health and support services as well as the transition to adult services.

Simon Jones, honorary treasurer and chair of the Finance & Audit Committee

Simon joined St Peter’s College, Oxford as Bursar and Fellow in April 2024, having previously worked as Director of Finance & Commercial at Myton Hospices in Warwickshire. Before this Simon worked in the independent schools’ charity sector for 20 years, most notably for 10 years as Foundation Secretary of the Warwick Independent Schools Foundation.

Before this Simon enjoyed a financial career, working in companies ranging from a plc to large and medium sized family-owned businesses. He has been a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) since 2005. Simon had previously worked in the construction industry, initially in junior engineering and administrative roles, before managing small (up to £1m) building projects, primarily for the retail sector.

Simon’s commitment to Sense stems from a passion for education and a desire to see everyone in society optimise the opportunities available to them. The work delivered by Sense fits perfectly with this theme, helping our people to experience life to the full, overcoming tremendous personal challenges through a framework of family, staff and technological support.

Ben Cooper

Ben is a senior researcher at a think tank, working on areas relating to disability, early years and education, and culture policy amongst others.

Ben previously worked for a Member of Parliament, and served as a town councillor between 2015 and 2019.

As a young disabled person, Ben is passionate about removing the barriers faced by disabled people and ensuring their voices are heard when decisions are being made.

Ben is a member of the Nominations Committee.

Jeremy Larsson

Jeremy is CEO of an international money transfer and remittances business serving the UK & pan-African markets and has more than 30 years’ experience in strategic leadership, commercial growth, new market entry, innovation, financial management and governance across a range of regulated financial services firms including Barclays, RBS and a number of FinTechs.

Jeremy’s interest in, and commitment to, the work of Sense has its roots from over 20 years ago when he led a bank-wide change project, including policy development, on how to make Barclays truly inclusive for people with disabilities.

Jeremy is also a Trustee at REMAP, who help more than 3,000 disabled people each year achieve independence and a better quality of life through a skilled volunteer network who build custom-made equipment and products, free of charge, to meet the bespoke needs of their clients. Jeremy is a former local councillor, and a Chartered Accountant by training, with an MBA from London Business School, and lives in London. 

Phil Robertshaw

Phil is passionate about breaking down the barriers which prevent people from reaching their potential and living life to the full.  This has been a driving force throughout his thirty-three years’ experience as a senior fundraiser in the charity sector, delivering income growth for both UK based and overseas agencies, including Oxfam, Action for Children, ActionAid and RNIB.  Experienced across a range of high value income streams, Phil was fortunate to be able to retire early in 2021, his final role being leading the NSPCC’s Philanthropy team in the North of the UK for eight years, acquiring new seven-figure gifts and stewarding eight-figure relationships.

Before taking up fundraising, Phil completed a history PhD at Manchester University.  Settled in Cheshire, he has also served as a Trustee for North West Cancer Research since 2016 and as a volunteer Advisor for The Young Women’s Trust.

Phil is a member of the Engagement Committee.