Nick Prettejohn - Chair Expand Nick first became aware of Prisoners Abroad in 2017 after completing his training as a mentor for the homelessness charity House of St Barnabas. He started to mentor someone who had been a service user of Prisoners Abroad. Nick has been involved in several charities over the last 15 years, particularly focusing on musical causes, and has just stepped down after 9 years as Chair of the Royal Northern College of Music. In his ‘day jobs’, Nick chairs Reach plc and TSB Banking Group plc. He is also the Non-Executive Director for YouGov. You can read Nick's introductory blog here.
Nick Smart - Vice Chair Expand Nick has worked in the criminal justice system since 1979. He was Chair and CEO of the London Community Rehabilitation Company, delivering probation services to 30,000 service users across the capital, from its inception in 2014 through its sale to private owners. He was previously CEO of Surrey & Sussex Probation Trust (SSPT). In this role, he led a pioneering project that resulted in a radical revision of National Standards for the supervision of offenders. He also chaired the Sussex Criminal Justice Board. Nick was a front-line Probation Officer for 15 years. He taught social work students up to post graduate level. He then held a series of senior management roles including a period on secondment at the Ministry of Justice. Throughout his career, he has always been committed to the importance of the relationship between providers and service users at individual, family, group and community level, as a key factor in promoting positive change. Since stepping down from LCRC in 2016, Nick has continued to contribute to the sector. He is a Trustee of PACT (Prisoners Families) and is also a Fellow and Acting Chair of the Probation Institute and he mentors third sector leaders in his home city of Brighton.
Dr Stephen Attard Expand Stephen is a consultant forensic psychiatrist employed by Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust. He works in the close supervision centre as the lead psychiatrist, the psychology-informed offender personality disorder service, the prison ADHD clinic, and the court liaison and diversion service at Uxbridge Magistrates Court. He has extensive experience in other clinical settings, including male low and male medium security, male and female psychiatric intensive care, locked rehabilitation, community forensic outreach and liaison, and in private outpatient services. He has led male and female psychiatric intensive care units (PICUs) as well as medium and low secure mental health units for mentally disordered men. He completed training at Broadmoor Hospital and oversaw a large caseload of out-of-area patients whilst working for Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust. Stephen is also an expert witness with vast experience of providing expert evidence in criminal proceedings and has direct experience of immigration proceedings.
Julian Braithwaite Expand Julian spent thirty years of his career with the British foreign office. From 2008 to 2011 Julian served as the Director of the UK’s Consular Service, where he first worked with Prisoners Abroad as part of the important and enduring partnership between the charity and the Consular Service. In this role Julian visited many British nationals in prison around the world, from North and South America, through Africa, Europe and Asia. During his diplomatic career, Julian has also served in Belgrade, Washington DC, Brussels and Geneva. In this latter posting, Julian was the UK’s ambassador to the World Trade Organisation and the UN in Geneva, which includes the UN Human Rights Council and the international human rights treaty bodies. He has also been seconded to the UN in Croatia, the Office of the High Representative in Bosnia, and NATO in Belgium. He has worked twice in 10 Downing Street including four years in the early 2000s. Julian is currently CEO of an international alliance of beer, wine and spirits companies dedicated to tackling harmful drinking and supporting the WHO’s global alcohol action plan, the UN Declaration on Non Communicable Diseases, and the Sustainable Development Goals. Julian was first attracted to the non-judgemental mission of Prisoners Abroad long before he met the charity, when he visited foreign nationals in prison while travelling through Latin America in the 1980s.
Mary Ann Clements Expand Mary Ann Clements joined ADD International where she is now Co-CEO in July 2021. She has worked in international development spaces for over 20 years and was Executive Director of Able Child Africa from 2004 to 2011. Mary Ann was also previously Regional Representative for Basic Needs in East Africa. Since 2011 she has worked as an independent consultant with INGOs, funders and the public sector on a whole range of issues related to funding, partnership, wellbeing and power. Alongside being a leader Mary Ann is a writer, facilitator & coach. She is also a Director of Healing Solidarity, a project which has engaged over 3500 people in the practice of re-imagining the global development sector over the past three years. In recent years she has worked extensively on building anti-racist practice in international development spaces and is committed to helping re-think the way international development organisations work so that they can build a solidarity that heals, rather than perpetuates injustice. Mary Ann used Prisoners Abroad’s friends & family services when a loved one was in prison in two European countries. Read Mary Ann's blog post, 'The non-judgemental support is critical'.
Carole Johnson MVO MBE - Treasurer Expand Following a Law degree, Carole qualified as a Chartered Accountant (ICAEW) with Ernst & Young before spending the next decade in professional training. She spent six years living and working in Singapore after which she joined the FCDO in London. She first came across Prisoners Abroad in 2007 as Head of Consular Policy, Prisoners and Human Rights and, struck by the compassion and determination of staff, she has been a supporter since. Through her work she has visited prisons in a number of countries, witnessing first hand the challenges faced by British people incarcerated far from family and friends.A return to finance as a School Business Manager in 2018 was followed by three years living in India where Carole volunteered with several schools and youth organisations. Having served as treasurer in voluntary roles throughout her working career, Carole is now thrilled to be able to contribute as the treasurer for Prisoners Abroad.A parent to two adult children, Carole is married and lives in Edinburgh.
Kate Lill Expand Kate is a barrister, having been called to the Bar in 2009. She practised at the independent criminal bar before leaving to join the charitable sector with a focus on prisoner rights. Kate has extensive experience working with people in prison, advising them on their legal and human rights. She currently works for the Prisoners’ Advice Service, a legal charity offering free legal advice and representation to adult prisoners in England and Wales, where she specialises in representing women in prison who have often suffered great trauma in their lives. Whilst her work is now centred on the criminal justice system in the UK, she previously worked internationally, first as the Human Rights Adviser here at Prisoners Abroad and then at the Death Penalty Project, where she assisted British nationals suffering human rights abuses overseas. Kate’s passion for prisoner rights began during a study abroad year in Philadelphia, USA, where she participated in an ‘Inside/Out’ project, assisting prisoners both in the county jail and those on death row in the state prison. Since then she has always held positions that help those who find it difficult to advocate for themselves. Kate believes challenging the status quo and fighting injustice is even more important now, following sustained attacks on the rights of individuals which has left those within the criminal justice system in an increasingly perilous position. Kate joined Prisoners Abroad as a trustee in April 2024 to widen her support for those isolated in prison.
Phil Maguire OBE Expand Phil worked in the fields of social work and education before following his passion for radio. After gaining a master’s degree in broadcast journalism he worked as a radio producer, reporter and project manager for the BBC. In 2006 Phil became the founding Chief Executive of the Prison Radio Association (PRA) – a national, award-winning charity that uses radio to support prisoner rehabilitation. In 2016 the PRA was named Charity of the Year at the Third Sector Awards. In 2009 Phil launched National Prison Radio, the world’s first national radio station for prisoners. This by prisoner - for prisoner radio station has a large, loyal and growing audience – with 86% of prisoners in England and Wales tuning in for around 10 hours each week. He also runs PRA Productions (2017 Audio Production Awards Independent Production Company of the Year) and is setting up Prison Radio International, which aims to support the development of prison radio globally. He is a self-declared podcast addict and loves judging the British Podcast Awards. Phil is a trustee of the Charles Parker Trust and is also very proud to sit on the board of Manchester’s Reform Radio.
Dame Anne Owers DBE Expand Most of Anne’s career has involved prisons, criminal justice and human rights. She was Chief Inspector of Prisons in England and Wales for nine years, and until recently was the national chair of the Independent Monitoring Boards of volunteers who monitor prisons in England and Wales. Both of these bodies are part of the UK’s National Preventive Mechanism to prevent abuse in custodial settings. She has also visited and reported on prisons overseas, in the Caribbean, US and Europe. For six years, she chaired the Independent Police Complaints Commission, which among other things investigates deaths in police custody and serious complaints about police conduct. In the voluntary sector, she chaired the Koestler Trust, which exhibits arts by people in custody, including British prisoners held overseas, and she’s currently the chair of the Independent Custody Visitors Association, supporting volunteers visiting those in police custody. Earlier in her career, she was the director of JUSTICE, the law reform and human rights charity, and before that was the CEO of JCWI (Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants), which advises and campaigns on immigration and asylum law.
Desmond Skyers Expand Desmond Skyers is a published author, motivational speaker, and accomplished Team Leader at the remarkable St Giles charity. Desmond leads a team of Mentors and Facilitators as part of the SOS+ Service. SOS+ is a preventative and early intervention service that puts lived experience at the heart of the solution in combating child criminal exploitation, gang involvement and serious youth violence. Desmond has been instrumental in the development of the highly impactful SOS+ mentoring programme which provides 1-2-1 support to children and young people vulnerable to criminal exploitation. Desmond is passionate about this work due to his own lived experiences and constant desire to want to give back.
Naetha Uren Expand Naetha is a Recovery and Resilience coach & trainer, who has recently joined HumanKind to develop Recovery in the Community. Naetha previously worked in the USA as a Licensed Chemical Dependency Counsellor with the criminal justice system and private facilities; along with having a second career in hospitality and university accommodation management. Naetha is passionate about supporting individuals and families in order to overcome their obstacles; in order to find hope and achieve goals and aspirations in their lives. Read Naetha's blog post about what inspires her and her experience of being a Prisoners Abroad trustee.