Meet our trustees

Our Board of Trustees is responsible for setting the direction of the charity and to deliver the public benefits as stated in our governing document.

Trustee responsibilities include the leadership, governance and financial oversight of the charity to ensure it carries out its statutory obligations and remains financially secure at all times.

Trustees also have responsibility for staff and volunteer development, trustee succession planning and to develop sound relationships with external stakeholders. Trustees also promote the work of the charity and act as a spokesperson where required.

Jason Warriner – Chair

Jason was appointed to the role of Chair in April 2023. He is a Registered Nurse who has held senior roles in the NHS and charity sector, gaining experience in clinical, operational and governance roles. His clinical areas of expertise include HIV, sexual health and homelessness. He is currently Director of Care, Quality and Governance for Cranstoun.

Between 2011 - 2019 Jason was a member of the Royal College of Nursing Public Health Forum Steering Committee, serving a chair of the forum for six years. He is currently a member of the RCN International Committee. Jason was an appointed member to the Prime Minister’s Nursing and Care Quality Forum for two years and is a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute. He is currently an appointed member of the Care Services Route Panel at the Institute of Apprenticeships and Technical Education.

Previously Jason has worked in South Africa on a children's HIV project and has been a trustee for Crisis the national homelessness charity. Currently he volunteers as the Healthcare Manager for Crisis at Christmas and is a member of the Editorial Advisory Board for Primary Health Care Journal.

Contact: jason.warriner@plushealth.org.uk

Gerard Creamer – Treasurer

Gerard joined our Steering Group in January 2020 to oversee compliance as Plushealth transitioned from a voluntary community group to a registered charity in England and Wales. Since September 2020 Gerard has taken up the role of Treasurer and oversees the financial management and reporting of the charity finances. He is responsible for setting and monitoring our budget and assessing the financial viability of funding proposals. He is the lead finance contact with the Charity Commission, HMRC and Pensions Regulator.

Gerard is an experienced compliance officer, working in the corporate field for a number of years. He has a wide knowledge of day-to-day safety management and is responsible for advising senior managers and directors on compliance policies and procedures for a global data centre and colocation provider.

Gerard has a keen focus on the drive to reduce the stigma felt by people living with or affected by HIV and the impact this can have on mental ill-health and emotional wellbeing.

Contact: gerard.creamer@plushealth.org.uk

Harun Tulunay

Harun has 10 years’ experience in the field of events and digital marketing and joined our Steering Group in January 2020. He has oversight of our marketing, branding strategy and digital marketing platforms. He is a trained Peer Mentor and currently Volunteer Co-ordinator with Positively UK.

Since his own HIV diagnosis in 2016 Harun has become an ambassador for others living with HIV and is keen to promote good sexual and reproductive health. He has also featured in HIV Prevention England ‘Start with Me’ campaigns. He speaks at corporate and public events sharing his life experiences to tackle HIV stigma and to raise awareness of HIV and mental health.

Harun has personal experience of discrimination, isolation and hostile environment many LGBTQ+ people experience, which has shaped his life experiences. He was born in Turkey and continues to support other gay men living in Turkey using digital platforms. He also manages a Turkish Blog providing up to date information about HIV and sexual health.

Contact: harun.tulunay@plushealth.org.uk

Sean Hourigan-Golding

Sean joined our Board of Trustees in January 2021. He has over 10 years’ experience as a support worker in a variety of organisations, including Shelter and HIV charity Brigstowe. Sean has previously been a Trustee of Brigstowe before taking up a new role as Diabetes Peer Support Coordinator. In this new role he adapted the HIV peer support model to support people living with type 2 diabetes. His current role with Brigstowe is Development and Training Coordinator. Sean has been instrumental in setting up the Peer Partnership, an extension of the work achieved by Brigstowe in the area of HIV support.

Sean leads our HIV service development and volunteer strategy, where he brings experience of developing and adapting services to meet new challenges and ways of working. Sean founded Bristol ACTup which has successfully campaigned to overturn local funding cuts to HIV services and brought change across Police Forces in England in relation to the perception of HIV risk to Police Officers.

Contact: sean.hourigan@plushealth.org.uk

Shiraaz Chaim Sidat

Shiraaz joined our Board of Trustees in January 2021. He has worked in sexual health promotion as well as providing one-to one support for service users, reflecting person-centred values and a holistic approach to the development of health and care plans with the overall aim supporting others to improve their sexual health, relationships, and emotional wellbeing.

He completed an MSc Health Psychology at University College London. Over the duration of the course, he was encouraged to select a specialist area and given his work and lived experience, he opted for HIV. He conducted a qualitative study exploring the lived experience of HIV from the perspective of Black African Women in the UK. Findings from this study not only highlighted support needs but also made recommendations for support services.

Since the completion of his MSc, his work has predominantly focussed on HIV research. He worked on the INTUIT Research Project in which he conducted qualitative research and co-designed studies. Now, he is employed in Academia as a Research Assistant working on several HIV clinical studies. Shiraaz leads on the development and design of how we measure our impact, reviewing our data collection to help better inform and measure our work. This work supports the development of our service delivery and income generation strategies to ensure we deliver appropriate services as new challenges and ways of working develop.

Contact: shiraaz.sidat@plushealth.org.uk

Lee Forster-Kirkham MBE

Lee is a Freeman of the City of London, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and was awarded an MBE in 2009. Lee is a policy professional in the civil service but his career has spanned the public, voluntary and private sectors with previous roles including running a pub, a theatre and a gift shop by the sea. Lee has a long involvement with health related charities including time as a trustee of the Sara Lee Trust and of Plushealth. Since the loss of a boyfriend in his teens and his own diagnosis over 25 years ago, Lee has been involved in work to raise funds for HIV charities, to raise awareness of HIV in the modern world and continues to challenge HIV stigma.

Lee said “I am delighted to become the first Patron of Plushealth. I believe passionately in the help they provide. I know, first hand, that peer support for people living with HIV can be hugely empowering life-changing.”

Why not become a trustee?
Becoming a trustee is an extremely valuable and rewarding way to support a charitable organisation and provides an opportunity to use your knowledge and skills for the wider public benefit. We expect to advertise and recruit new Trustees at least once a year. You can register your interest HERE at any time and we’ll be in touch to discuss things further with you.