As operations manager for Eden Gate I am responsible for the day to day running and strategic direction of the charity. Working closely with the trustees and partners, our services are a life line for those who find themselves Homeless or addicted to drugs/alcohol.

Born in 1977 in London, my parents and I moved to Bradford when I was 11. I came through school with 9 GCSE’s but did not choose to go through higher education. My first job was making UPVC windows which I quickly realised was not what I wanted to do. I worked various customer service jobs and retail management before breaking into Housing in 2004.

Between 2004 and 2009 I worked in Housing Management roles in and around Bradford and Leeds picking up valuable experience as a Housing Officer. In 2009, following a period of addiction, I rehabilitated with a Christian organisation called Teen Challenge and came to faith in Jesus Christ. I completed the programme in May 2011 and had a new-found passion for life and wanted to share this with people who were in a similar situation to myself. I volunteered with Teen Challenge London visiting different locations and picked up experience evangelising to hurting people.

I moved to Wales in 2013 after meeting Jana my wife, who is my best friend and encourager through life’s struggles. I started volunteering with Eden Gate initially, on a Tuesday evening whilst continuing to work full time as a Housing Officer for Rhondda Housing and later Tai Calon Community Housing. Both roles gave me valuable experience of the Housing issues effecting the valleys of South Wales. Stuart Johnson, the founder of Eden Gate approached me in September 2015 with a job offer of Nightshelter Co-ordinator, which I accepted and started in November 2015. In April 2016 I successfully interviewed for the position of Operations Manager, a role which challenges me daily but is also a role where I can use my life experiences to reach out to those that really need help.