I work as Pathfinder Programme Lead for Trussell Trust, the UK's largest network of food banks. We have a vision of a future where everybody has enough money to afford the essentials and nobody needs to access emergency food to survive. I manage a programme which works alongside food banks to understand the role that they can play in helping to bring about this vision. That could mean working with referral agencies to identify more appropriate support for individuals, reviewing the services they offer, or campaigning for change.

Prior to this role I developed a partnership project in the Orkney Islands, where I live, focused on improving access to advice and cash-based support for individuals facing financial crisis.

I'll be travelling to the USA and Canada to learn from emergency food providers who are also shifting their focus to prevention. I hope to return with learning about how these organisations have navigated this shift and examples of what's working locally, which I will share with food bank leaders in the UK.