Meet the team

The Senior Management Team is responsible for the effective running of CLIC Sargent. Each Director has a specific area of expertise and experience, and contributes to the day-to-day management of the organisation. Through the Chief Executive the Senior Management Team reports to Board of Trustees.

CLIC Sargent’s Senior Management Team is:

Dr Carole Easton (Chief Executive)
Carole joined CLIC Sargent in September 2006. She began her career as a child and family psychotherapist working for the health service with multi-disciplinary teams. After more than 10 years in the statutory sector Carole went to ChildLine as Counselling Manager and then to the Place 2 Be, a charity providing counselling in primary schools, as Head of Services.  In 1998 Carole became Chief Executive Officer of Cruse Bereavement and rejoined ChildLine as Chief Executive Officer in 2001.

Carole has a doctorate in human sciences having completed research concerning the use of violence against children.
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Geoff Thaxter (Director of Services)
Geoff Thaxter joined Sargent in 2003 as Director of Services, following a management career in service delivery in the commercial sector.  Geoff has also spent ten years working in the voluntary sector in childhood cancer, and has built up a working relationship with people and organisations in the sector.  He is currently Vice Chair of ICCPO, working with families and professionals in childhood cancer across the world, where developments in Europe have a particular impact on the UK.

Geoff is married to Gill and they have a daughter, Rebecca.  Their other daughter, Lisa, died from childhood cancer in 1994.  They live in Surrey and enjoy food, travel and understanding other cultures.

Sarah Talbot-Williams (Director of Communications & Campaigning)
Sarah is responsible for PR, creative services and branding, internal communications, and campaigning and lobbying.

Sarah joined CLIC in July 2004, as Head of Communications, a week before the decision to merge with Sargent Cancer Care for Children, and she was heavily involved with the change programme and re-launch of CLIC Sargent.

Sarah started her career in newspapers.  She moved into Public and Media Relations swiftly working in the commercial sector in the UK and Europe, for the CBI and UNICE.  She also worked in the political arena as a volunteer for Tessa Jowell MP during the 1990s. In 1995 she moved into the voluntary sector and worked for eight years in the disability sector, before setting up her own communications consultancy.

In addition to work, Sarah is an active volunteer and has just retired as a Governor of Bath Spa University.  She recently completed a four year stint as a south west committee trustee of BBC Children in Need. She is also a team leader for a homeless project in Bath.

She is married to Norman and lives in Bath.

Peter Atfield (Director of HR)
Peter joined CLIC Sargent in 2006. He started work in the pharmaceuticals and hotel and catering industries, worked in local government and has now worked in the charity sector for about 25 years. He was HR Director at Amnesty International’s International Secretariat for 14 years and at ChildLine for seven. He has been chair of Harrow Council for Voluntary Service and of his children’s primary school, and has been a member of the steering groups of the Charity HR Directors Forum, the Charity HR Benchmarking Group and the Charity Pension Group.

Peter is married to Jane and has three school-age children. He likes international politics, sport, reading and travelling.

Lucy Caldicott (Director of Fundraising)

Lucy joined CLIC Sargent in October 2007. She started her career as a graduate trainee for American Express, where she stayed for five years working in European direct marketing roles focusing on customer acquisition and retention. She then moved to The Prince's Trust, working in business development and corporate fundraising before, unusually, returning to the commercial sector to a Europe and Africa marketing role with money transfer company, MoneyGram International. She then spent 12 months studying full-time for a Masters in Development Studies at SOAS before returning to the voluntary sector as Head of Corporate and Trust Fundraising for VSO in 2003 before being appointed Head of Fundraising the following year. Lucy is a trustee of St Giles' Trust and Vauxhall City Farm.

Steve Williams (Director of Finance)
Steve started his career as a Local Authority accountant responsible for leisure and community services before he moved into Information Technology when he spent a while developing management information systems.  Following a period managing the finance department at the Barbican Centre in London, he was appointed in 1990 as their Finance Director and was responsible for business and corporate services. Whilst at the Barbican he was admitted to the Freedom of the City of London.

In 1996 Steve moved to the voluntary sector, firstly as a consultant and then as Finance Director of Citizens Advice, where he led finance, estates and ICT services and implemented planning and MI systems.  In 1998 he was elected a fellow of his accountancy institute.

In a voluntary capacity Steve has been a governor of an East London comprehensive school, Chair of Finance at City and Islington College, and for 13 years an instructor at a Home Office Attendance Centre for young offenders.  He was Honorary Treasurer and a member of the board of the Charity Finance Directors Group (CFDG) and is a regular speaker at the charity sector accountants conferences.

Steve is married to Sue, who is a college vice-principal. They have two teenage children, Alex and Rebecca. The whole family is motorbike-mad with Harleys and sports bikes in the garage.  Steve also enjoys model engineering and swimming.