Regenerate Team Members
Who are the team?
Meet the people who make it all happen!
Andy Smith (He/Him)
Co-Founder & CEO
Andy is the Co founder and CEO of Regenerate. Andy loves being creative with how he leads the charity forward in line with our vision, mission and values, and he is constantly coming up with new ways of connecting with people from different walks of life through forming collaborations, organising adventures and initiating new projects.
In his spare time you might find him singing his heart out at Chelsea games, kayaking the length of the River Thames, jogging down the country or going on multi day bicycle rides.
If Andy could star in any movie, he would be skidding sideways in his mini as one of the ‘get away’ drivers in the Italian Job.
Clare Smith (She/Her)
Managing Director
Clare has had a leading role at Regenerate since its founding working in different capacities over that time, and is responsible now for the day to day running of the services and operations, working out the logistics and future plans for the charity and supporting the team to reach their aspirations at Regenerate. Clare loves the job because she gets to work with an amazing team and see young people pursue their passions.
On the side, Clare loves singing and writing music, as well as dressing up and going dancing! She believes a good tracksuit is the key to happiness and if she had to evacuate her home, she wouldn’t go anywhere without her microphone.
Matt Fleming (He/Him)
TFGB General Manager
“The coffee guy” Matt manages The Feel Good Bakery, making sure the carts are running smoothly and serving perfect coffees. Matt loves Regenerates values and the opportunities he gets to be creative in his role.
Alongside being a coffee geek with a Speciality Coffee Association certificate, Matt also loves tech, his prized possession being his hard drive. He’s also a massive F1 fan and in his spare time likes to play tennis and practice his diabolo skills, which he has proclaimed himself “insanely good at”.
Aimée Jackson (She/Her)
Operations and Communications Manager
“If anyone needs anything chat to Aimée” seems to be the catchphrase. Aimée supports Regenerate all things HR, Admin, Operations and Facilities Management, as well as managing our social media and comms content. Aimée loves that there is always new ways to be creative and challenge herself at Regenerate, and she loves seeing the amazing work of the rest of the team.
When she’s not working, Aimée loves exploring new places, cooking up a storm, and discovering new music, especially rappers who are women. If she was to star in any movie, it would probably be Moana; as she dreams of sailing round the world, living off coconuts and vibes.
Bella James (She/Her)
Progression and Wellbeing Manager (TFGB)
Owner of Regenerate’s resident dog Milo, Bella’s main role is managing the team of young people employed at The Feel Good Bakery. This involves working with them and helping them to identify and work on any goals or challenges they have. Bella is also a lead youth worker for Regenerate and loves that she gets to have lots of fun running projects at our youth clubs. She also loves seeing The Feel Good Bakery team progress and grow, and the coffee is also a bonus!
Bella also instructs group exercise classes as a side hustle, and then refuels on lots of chocolate. If she was Prime Minister, her first order of business would be to make cinnamon illegal, as she believes it is the centre of all evil.
Margaret Hamps (She/Her)
Book Keeper
Margaret is our bookkeeper and helps to manage our finances. She makes sure the bills and staff are paid, oversees any financial admin and produces reports on a regular basis which help Regenerate to make informed decisions about our budget.
Margaret has 20 years experience working for youth charity, before she decided to train as an accountant. She then set up her own accountancy/bookkeeping practice working mainly with charities and churches, and loves that she gets to use her skills and experience to help make a difference in other people’s lives. In her spare time, she loves walking in the countryside, gardening and reading.
Amelia Petersen (She/Her)
Grants Officer
Amelia plays a vital part in making sure that we can continue to do the amazing work we do, spending her time researching and applying for grant funding from trusts and foundations. Having done a lot of fundraising and volunteering in the past – (including rowing 70KM in a day!), she loves that she gets to raise money for a great cause while working alongside really nice people.
Amelia loves to be by the sea, take photos of her friends on her film camera, and advocates strongly for halloween to be a public holiday, “so that everyone has the day off to dress up, eat sweets and watch Rocky Horror!” She is also so abnormally obsessed with Bruce Springsteen that she wrote her uni dissertation about him, and this is now currently displayed in the Bruce Springsteen museum in New Jersey!!
Alfie Astley (He/They)
Graphic Designer
Alfie is a graphic design student currently volunteering with us as part of his placement year. He helps with all aspects of our communications from designing leaflets and resources for social media, creating campaigns, and coming up with new assets for the Feel Good Coffee House. He finds this very exciting and rewarding, and, as a local to the area, says it “feels good to support the charity that has always been there for my community…I love knowing that everyday at work has a real impact”.
Alfie love’s music and in his spare time you might find him out and about hunting for new vinyl records to add to his collection. He’s also a self-taught 3D digital artist and enjoys working on animation projects. Although he claims he is a terrible actor, if he could be in any movie he would love to be a background extra in star wars as it’s his favourite franchise!
Keira Barnes (She/Her)
Lead Youth Worker and Mentor
Keira supports our youth sessions as well as using her creativity to provide mentoring sessions in our partner schools. To her, being able to actively contribute to a space where young people feel safe and comfortable is a really rewarding thing, and Keira’s biggest aim is to be a strong, trustworthy figure that young people feel they can seek support of any kind from.
A lover of long naps and painting, Keira would never leave her paintbrushes behind in a fire. She also ran with the Olympic Torch in 2012 and if she could be in any movie it would be Avatar, as she would love to experience the kind of magical natural world and way of life that they have.
Jules Bradford (They/Them)
Youth Worker and Mentor
With a background working with NEET young people as a teaching assistant and learning mentor, Jules is another key player in our youth and mentoring services. Jules takes a collaborative approach to developing activities with young people, working creatively with them to facilitate engaging activities as well as guiding and mentoring them to allow them develop and improve themselves.
Coming from Wandsworth originally and then being schooled in Australia, Jules loves learning new things and is the go to in the office for any kind of fun fact or hot take. They love art and cooking, and their proudest moment is being interviewed by Kylie Minogue who visited their school when they were 6.
Helena Garland (She/Her)
Lead Youth Worker and Mentor
Helena’s background as a Learning Support Assistant has given her an interest for helping to meet the needs of young people who require more complex support, and seeing young people grow in confidence, participating in new things, laughing and having fun is something that really motivates her. Her passion for this led her to Regenerate where she is now part of our brilliant youth team.
Helena, who has been named by friends as looking like a ‘spongebob extra’, thinks it would be insane to live in an underwater city, and so feels that she would fit right in as a star of ‘Shark Tale’. Her secret talent is that she’s a pro at doing the ‘worm’ dance move.
Paige Lawton (She/Her)
Youth Work Apprentice
A youth club attendee since she was 13, Paige is a Regenerate veteran who has now joined us as a youth work apprentice. Supporting the delivery of our youth club and Roehampton sports sessions and attending trainings, learning all about the world of youth work and developing her skills as a future leader!
Paige also studies sports and exercise science in college, and loves football, cycling and hanging out with her friends. If she could star in any movie, it would be ‘Ratatouille’, because she’d love to try the food they make!
Maani Barber-Taylor
Youth Worker and Mentor
Youth work and Mentor Intern Maani loves his job because he gets to engage with young people, give them a space to express themselves and inspire them to be the best they could possibly be. Coming from a hospitality background, he knows communication is key,, and always has time to listen to young people and hear about what’s going on in their lives.
Since he was a kid, Maani wanted to be a Jedi in Star Wars, and with his special skill being that he can balance a spoon on his nose, we think he’d be a great one! If he had to evacuate in an emergency, Maani wouldn’t leave without his phone, record player and limited edition ‘Enter the Wu-Tang’ album.
Ricky Mocci (He/Him)
Operations Supervisor - Feel Good
Operations supervisor Ricky has a decade of experience across the hospitality industry, and utilises this experience to support the running of Feel Good and leads by example to help young people achieve their potential.
In his spare time, Ricky plays guitar and makes music, and also loves to go and watch musicals, or have a day out visiting Kew Gardens. Ricky’s special talent is that he can complete a Rubik’s cube, however has admitted to us that while he’ll gladly take the glory for this accomplishment, his technique doesn’t always work…
Mo Moloto
Coffee Shop Supervisor
Supervisor Mo believes in helping young people develop a good work ethic and a positive attitude towards employment. What he loves most about his job is seeing the growth of the young people throughout their employment; the way that they improve daily is the most rewarding part of the job to him.
Outside of work, Mo is not only a massive Man City FC nerd, but also an aspiring actor who has previously worked on productions like Lion King, Les Miserables, and Annie. He is also a film/TV geek and loves to spend his time binge watching shows. If he could star in any film, it would be Avatar because “then I can finally be over 6ft!”.
Fi Lavender (She/They)
Coffee Shop Supervisor
Cafe Supervisor Fi has 7 years experience and is in awe of the science behind coffee. She loves getting to support our young baristas in expanding their skills and building confidence. A latte art pro, she also loves to teach her skills to the young people – seeing the team members take pride in the coffees they make and push themselves to try new designs is what gives her life!
A level 8000 at candy crush and a strong advocate for domed iced coffee lids to be made illegal (“they taste so much better with flat lids!!”), Fi’s ultimate goal in life is to adopt a chihuahua. If she had to evacuate in an emergency and could only take 3 things, her first grab would be two bottles of Robinsons orange and mango squash, because “life is not worth living without it”, closely followed by her girlfriend.
Janik Chung (He/Him)
Coffee Shop Supervisor
Coffee cart supervisor Janik’s favourite thing about his role is being a part of seeing young people grow and be work ready when they leave Feel Good.
He has a background in civil engineering, but since moving to the UK from Hong Kong took up coffee and found a passion in this. In his spare time, he loves to go for motorcycle rides, play boardgames and adventure out on hikes.
Clifton McDonald
Youth Work Supervisor
Clifton is a qualified Youth and Community Worker, Coach, Consultant, Trainer and Workshop Leader in change management, conflict, facilitation, leadership and supervision. He has 30 years knowledge and experience of working with young people in youth organisations and schools. Clifton works with us quarterly, providing reflective practice and professional supervision for our youth team.
Clifton’s favourite thing about working with Regenerate is seeing the team’s passion, commitment and dedication for the work they do with and for the development of young people they work with. If he was the star of a movie he would be Carter in ‘The Bucket List -so that he could do all the things he’s always wanted to do through travel, creating meaningful experiences, spending time with family, friends sharing and telling stories, playing games, laughing and partying.
Amina Ispahani
Counsellor
Amina has been our in-house counsellor since 2018, working with us for one day a week to provide professional support to young people, their families, and also the staff team. Amina is a fully qualified integrative counsellor and psychotherapist, and has worked in a variety of settings including the NHS, youth work, higher education and private practice. In her spare time, Amina loves to paint, go running and go to live music events, and is also now a published children’s fiction author!
When asked about her favourite part of working with Regenerate, Amina said “Regenerate holds a special place in my heart. There is a great atmosphere, the team is always friendly and welcoming, and it is clear to see they care deeply about the work they do. I am grateful to be able to provide counselling at Regenerate, it feels incredibly rewarding.”