Meet the trustees

June O’Sullivan MBE

Chief Executive

June has led the London Early Years Foundation (LEYF) as CEO since 2006.

June is an inspiring speaker, author and regular media commentator on Early Years, social business and child poverty. She has been instrumental in achieving a major strategic, pedagogical and cultural shift for the award-winning LEYF. This has resulted in an increased profile, a new childcare model and a stronger social impact over the past 15 years.

June was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in 2013, for her services to London’s children.

Mike Gartska

Chairman

Michael Garstka is a Senior Partner with the global management consultancy Bain & Company.

Based in Bain’s London office, Michael works with a select set of senior executives and shareholders on strategy-driven corporate transformations and turnarounds. His work primarily focuses on the telecommunications and energy/utility sectors.

Richard Timmins

Treasurer

Richard is a board-level business leader, operating successfully as a chief financial officer (CFO) and group finance director in a range of public and privately-owned organisations over a period of 30 years.

He is an expert on mergers and acquisitions, having been CFO of businesses which have sold for a combined value of over £1.9bn. Richard coaches CFOs, as they widen their experience.

Som Holliday 

Chair, Social Impact Committee

Som is a Partner at the global management consultancy, Bain & Company, and the proud mother of a young daughter. 

She has spent the last 15 years helping leadership teams transform the performance of their organisations.

Som is passionate about social impact, and has led strategy projects for a number of local and international NGOs.  

Allan Lambert

Allan has a proven track record within the UK travel, tourism and hospitality sector, particularly within holiday rentals and multi-site operations.

He is a non-executive director for Habitat First Group, Hideaway Holidays Group (encompassing Rural Retreats) and Visit England. Allan is also an ambassador for the Family Holiday Association (FHA).

Tony Perkins

Tony is Chief Executive of LHA London, a registered charity providing affordable and secure accommodation for young working people and students.

He has 30 years experience in redevelopment and construction projects and is Company Secretary of LHA London & LHA Services. Tony also works with the LHA Fund to support small London housing charities.

Georgia Hart

Georgia Hart (she/her) is the Global Head of Brand Strategy for a multinational Fortune 500 technology company, AMD. Having started in the nimble, fast-paced world of tech start-ups, Georgia has c.15 years of expertise in integrated marketing in the technology industry.

She is passionate about the tangible power of brand building and enjoys leading the Global Brand Team out of London. Georgia has seven years under her belt on the board of a national youth development charity that supports toddlers and young people who are facing numerous challenges including poverty, disengagement from school, poor mental health, and isolation as comms, marketing, and brand expert and their first ‘Young Trustee’.

Georgia is passionate about equal opportunities in education, and volunteers with a couple of educational charities that are doing fantastic work in London and further afield to close the untenable attainment gap in UK education.

Ravi Verma

Ravi is an experienced finance executive who has worked across Broadcast Media, Hospitality and Leisure industries, working for owner-managed, FTSE 100 PLCs and private equity-backed businesses. Ravi specialises in providing strategic direction and operational efficiencies that recommend actions on how to add value and support the growth of a company.

A member of multiple Capex committees, Ravi has overseen +£1bn of capex projects across multiple geographical locations. Ravi is also the Chair of the ESG leadership team at Gravity Media, responsible for driving the Sustainability and Diversity and Inclusion strategies.

David Rae 

Originally from Scotland, David now lives in London and is married to Anne, with two amazing daughters. Having spent 25+ years in strategy, technology and data, David is focused on the commercial value and purpose to be gained from these elements and is passionate about innovation, diversity of thought & creating inclusive cultures as part of that.  In a wider context, he cares deeply about social equality and mobility.  

Currently, as a Partner in EY, David is focused on defining and delivering innovative technology and data-driven change in Sustainability/ ESG. He joined EY from BP where he was CIO for various business units, Group CTO and latterly Head of Digital for the trading arm.   

As well as being a Trustee, David has a deep and broad interest in music and is a passionate (if often disillusioned) Scottish sports fan. 

Mary Wynne Finch 

Mary was born and brought up in North Wales and has lived in London for over 30 years. She lived abroad for nearly 4 years, in Paris and Milan, working in sporting events and at the British Consulate. A Welsh speaker, she is fluent in French and Italian. Mary then trained to be a nursery teacher. Over the past 25 years, she has taught at a number of private sector nursery schools in London but her heart lies in the importance of early education in creating a more equal society.

For over 30 years, Mary has been a Patron of the Rainbow Trust Children’s Charity, who look after the families of children with life threatening or terminal illness. She is also a Trustee of Oriel Plas Glyn-Y-Weddw, a Welsh gallery and arts centre. She was a Trustee at LEYF for a number of years and is now the LEYF Nursery Ambassador, regularly visiting our nurseries and acting as a link between the Board and the nurseries.