Meet the board

Emily has recently started as the Managing Director for Thera East Anglia.

Emily has worked in adult social care for over sixteen years, with both private and public sector organisations. Her career began as a support worker and she has held various management posts before joining Thera East Anglia. Emily is extremely passionate about providing excellent, person-centred support and has experience of delivering Positive Behavioural Support, an area which she is committed to and passionate about.

Emily is very excited to be joining Thera East Anglia and is looking forward to the journey.

Andy initially trained with Unilever in Marketing, then moved into the international arena, taking well established UK brands into numerous markets. In 2008 his career changed direction when he became a Support Manager for Affinity Trust. Andy moved to the Royal Mencap Society, managing supported living and domiciliary care services around Bury St Edmunds.

Recently retired, Andy says it has been a privilege to support people in the community and make a difference to people’s lives. Andy hopes he can continue to make a difference in his new role with Thera and in the Trusteeship he has taken up with The Prospects Trust.

My actual name is Anthony Burns although everyone calls me Joe which is my middle name. I am a Chartered Engineer and have worked all over the world designing and building roads, bridges, schools and hospitals and many other things. I have had a lifelong association with people with a learning disability. I was on the lookout for an opportunity to contribute my experience to a charity to which I could identify, so when I saw the advert for a Non-Exec director I applied immediately.

Bill joined Thera East Anglia as a Non-Executive Director during the Covid-19 pandemic, and has worked in advocacy, IT and retail. Bill has lived experience and knows what it's like to claim for benefits, live independently with support, and understand certain information amongst many other challenges people face. Bill hopes to contribute and use his own experiences to help point Thera East Anglia in the right direction.

Simon is a Partner at Data Protection Network where he enjoys advising senior leadership teams on how to protect people’s personal information and establish strong governance practices. Before focussing on data protection, he was Head of Data & Online Marketing at a leading publishing company.

Simon was delighted to join the TEA board in 2023 as Non-Executive Director. He’s passionate about helping people with learning difficulties to lead happy and fulfilled lives and keen to make a positive contribution