Most of our team are volunteers contributing their time and bringing a wealth of skills and experience to support refugee families.
Victor Iringere, Director
Pronouns: He/Him
Victor is a refugee from Nigeria. With a rich career history spanning many roles across multiple sectors including Engineering, HR Management, Tech Start-ups, Event Management, Social Enterprise Management, Public Relations, Digital Marketing, Project Management and Charity Management, both in the UK and internationally, he brings a wide range of experience and perspectives to his role.
Fleeing persecution in his home country, Victor sought asylum in the UK in 2017, where he went through further challenges that affected his health and quality of life. This led him to refocus his career on helping to ensure that other people didn’t have to suffer the same difficulties that he has. He has worked in the refugee sector ever since, holding various senior management positions in UK-based refugee charities. He has also served on the board of trustees of Coventry Pride and The Night Shelter. In 2020, he successfully reunited with his husband via the family visas route.
Helen Slee, Co-Founder and Chair
Pronouns: She/Her
Helen is a senior manager in the NHS with responsibility for the development, delivery and oversight of a portfolio of nationally available programmes focusing on public and patient involvement, health inequalities, quality improvement and digital delivery of services. Experience of working and volunteering with a number of charities supporting refugees and asylum seekers and qualifications in Voluntary and Third Sector Management were the foundations of being approached by Amy to start a charity to meet a gap in refugee reunion support. Currently acting as the Chair of Trustees, Ze heeft zich nu samen zien ontwikkelen vanuit een idee en breidt zich uit om meer klanten te ondersteunen dan we hadden kunnen voorstellen,en,Het bieden van een op maat gemaakte en responsieve service aan onze klanten,en,Helen brengt haar liefdadigheidsrolervaring van project toezicht op,en,beleidsontwikkeling,en,Administratie en financieel beheer,en,Samen met de ervaring van liefdadigheidsbeheer, inclusief vrijwilligersbeheer,en,Governance en Service Development,en,Oorspronkelijk uit Lancashire,en,Helen woont momenteel in Leeds,en,CO -oprichter en bestuurslid,en,Voornaamwoord,el,Amy is een programmamanager die werkt met de diensten van North West Childrens aan plaatsingen voor verzorgde kinderen met verantwoordelijkheid voor projectlevering,en,Contractbeheer en betrokkenheid van belanghebbenden,en,Ze heeft zich voor meer vrijwilligerswerk aangeboden bij goede doelen, waaronder velen in de vluchtelings- en migrantensector,en, providing a tailored and responsive service to our clients. Helen brings to her charity role experience of project oversight, policy development, administration and financial management, along with charity management experience including volunteer management, governance and service development. Originally from Lancashire, Helen currently lives in Leeds.
Ghebrekristos Tesfay,om,Gherie heeft gewerkt als een vrijwilliger en tolk van familieondersteuning met samen om Tigrinya -sprekende families te helpen en geruststelling te bieden door zijn eigen persoonlijke ervaring van hereniging met zijn tienerbroers en zussen,en,In zijn thuisland gedwongen hij zich bij het leger te voegen,en,na vele jaren ontsnappen,en,Hij voelt dat samen nu 'menselijke pijn begrijpt,en,en hij wil niet dat dit opnieuw op anderen wordt herhaald,en,Hij woont en werkt in de West Midlands met zijn gezin,en, Board Member
Pronouns: He/Him
Gherie has worked as a family support volunteer and interpreter with Together Now assisting Tigrinya speaking families and offering reassurance from his own personal experience of reuniting with his teenage siblings. In his home country he forced to join the army, escaping after many years. He feels that Together Now understands ‘human pain’ and he does not want this to be repeated again on others. He lives and works in the West Midlands with his family.
Francis Mbila, Board Member
Pronouns: He/Him
Francis has more than ten years of professional experience working at number one shipping Company A.P. Moller-Maersk Group. He has experience in SAP/ERP software to consolidate processes and use integrated system applications to manage the business and automate many back-office functions related to technology. He possesses a thorough experience in Operations, Despatching, Logistics and Strategic Supply Chain Management. In the United Kingdom, he has worked for Hovis LTD, and is currently working for ARRIVA DB Company. Francis also has experience in the immigration and asylum system in the United Kingdom. He has supported many charities in England and Wales as a volunteer, participating in different volunteering opportunities and projects. Francis also brings an in depth knowledge of the family reunion process having successfully navigated unprecedented barriers to bring his family to the UK at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. He will be using his personal experience, along with his volunteering and work experience, to advise Together Now on opportunities to develop both at an operational level and at a governance level, identifying and implementing improvements to the charity’s policies and ways of working. Francis currently lives in London.
Olivia ndefu,en,Katibu wa Bodi,en,Olivia kwa sasa anafanya kazi kwa tank ya kufikiria huko Brussels ambayo inachunguza uhamiaji,en,Ujumuishaji na sera ya kuzuia ubaguzi katika EU,en,Hapo awali alikuwa akifanya kazi katika wakimbizi wa nyasi na msaada wa mtafuta hifadhi,en,Kufanya kazi kwa Chagua Upendo huko Ufaransa,en,Ugiriki na Uingereza,en,Kazi hii imeongeza uelewa wake juu ya shida zinazowakabili wale wanaojaribu kuungana tena na wanafamilia,en,ya ushuru mzuri wa kisaikolojia hii inaweza kuchukua,en,na juu ya athari kubwa za kujumuisha zinazoongozwa na jamii zinaweza kuwa nazo katika kukuza ustawi wa kisaikolojia wa watu ambao wamehamishwa,en,Olivia anafurahi kuwa anachangia kazi muhimu ya pamoja katika kuungana tena kwa familia na ujumuishaji wa mapema nchini Uingereza,en, Board Secretary
Pronouns: She/Her
Olivia currently works for a think tank in Brussels that examines migration, integration and anti-discrimination policy across the EU. She was previously active in grassroots refugee and asylum seeker support, working for Choose Love in France, Greece and the UK. This work has deepened her understanding of the difficulties faced by those trying to reunite with family members, of the incredible psychological toll this can take, and of the invaluable impact community-led integration initiatives can have in promoting the psychological wellbeing of people who have been displaced. Olivia is pleased to be contributing to Together Now’s crucial work in family reunion and early integration in the UK.
Justine Mutumbo, Board member
Coming soon
Fidel Budy, Board member and incoming Chair
Coming soon
Mariatu Yillah, Board member and treasurer
Coming soon
Maria Falzetti, Board member and Safeguarding Lead
Coming soon
Iman, Rafatmah, Trustee and Family Support Caseworker (part time)
Pronouns: He/Him
Amy Lythgoe, Family support volunteer
Pronoun: She/Her
Amy is a programme manager working with North West Childrens’ Services on placements for Looked After Children with responsibility for project delivery, contract management and stakeholder engagement. She has volunteered with charities including many in the refugee and migrant sector for over 15 years. Amy werd geïnspireerd om zich nu samen op te zetten nadat hij had gehoord over een gezin dat de vluchten niet kon veroorloven om te worden herenigd,en,Na te hebben gesproken met degenen die in de sector werken,en,Ze identificeerde een onvervulde behoefte rond familiereünie en is blijven samenwerken met partners om nu samen te vullen diensten om aan de behoeften van gezinnen te voldoen,en,Momenteel zit Amy in de raad van Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit en het managementcomité van een lokaal contactcentrum dat niet-ingezeten ouders ondersteunt om hun kinderen te zien,en,Amy brengt ervaring met het leveren van klantenservice -gebaseerde projecten in huisvesting en lokale autoriteiten,en,Ervaar rechtstreeks werken met migrantengemeenschappen in andere organisaties en over,en,Ervaring met het werken aan de reünie van vluchtelingenfamilie nu samen,en. After speaking to those working in the sector, she identified an unmet need around family reunion and has continued to work with partners to shape Together Now services to meet families’ needs. Currently Amy sits on the board of Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit as well as the management committee of a local contact centre that supports non-resident parents to see their children. Amy brings experience from delivering customer service based projects in housing and local authorities, experience working directly with migrant communities in other organisations and over 10 years’ experience working on refugee family reunion through Together Now. She currently leads on the casework co-ordination for Together Now and manages our client facing volunteer roles. Amy is currently based in Manchester.
Urška Ozimek, Family support volunteer
Pronouns: She/Her
Urška is a migrant from Slovenia who has made Scotland her home too. She knows how much freedom her passport gives her and feels incredibly lucky to have found such a warm welcome in the local Scottish community. She has been working with people with migration background for almost 15 years. Born in former Yugoslavia, Urška’s first memories are that of a damp and dark basement where the family had to hide because of the air raid threats. A few years after, Urška then remembers how frustrating, difficult and lonely the process of integration often was for some of her classmates from the former Yugoslav republics in primary school. These were some of the experiences that have become the building blocks of her fervent advocacy for families with refugee background to be reunited and for them to have the systems and support in place that allow them to enjoy fully and feel at peace in their new communities. Emotional photos and stories of families and individuals overcoming the insurmountable obstacles often make her cry with joy and admiration. Urška’s day job is data monitoring, admin and finance in an organisation that supports women and children affected by domestic abuse. At night, she supports families with refugee background to be reunited in Scotland and Slovenia. She has a degree in English and German Language and Literature, with a keen interest in short story and human relationships. Urška cycles in all weathers, often searches for the steepest hills to climb, enjoys photographing her family and friends, and has recently fell in love with aerial skills.