Meet our team

Born in 1939, Dr Venters married Jean in 1962 and in 1965 his twin daughters Susan and Shirley were born, both with cerebral palsy. Dr Venters returned to Edinburgh University as a mature student to study medicine and he practiced as a GP for 30 years.He was then involved with Enable and Ark Housing in the 70’s and 80’s and with Tom Gorrie, pioneered housing in the community for those with complex needs.Now semi- retired and practicing complimentary medicine, he has more time to fully enjoy his other interests which include singing, playing guitar, supporting Hearts FC and playing with his grandchildren.

A qualified Chartered Accountant, Robert held various professional and industry positions before joining SHARE in 1999 where he was Finance Director and then became a Trustee on his retirement. He enjoys the camaraderie with the staff and service users and in particular keeping in touch with everyone now he has retired.

Following a 27 year career in the Scottish Prison Service, Robert has been a trustee of SHARE for some 12 years and he enjoys being kept up to date on all aspects of the way SHARE conducts itself, continually planning and striving to deliver a very caring and unique service.He believes that SHARE as an employer offers staff the terms and conditions that enable them to work in an environment which meets the needs of staff and client. The opportunity for training and personal development ensures that staff carry out their duties to an exceptionally high standard, offering good career prospects. He has seen this through the excellent care and attention given to his sister.

Ronnie has been a member of SHARE since 1995 and has long been a supporter of the organisations ethos.Ronnie was a senior executive in the whisky industry for more than 20 years and now runs a successful Facilities Management company and brings a wealth of finance and management experience to the Board of Management.

Gordon has been a Trustee of Share for 6 years and took over the role of Financial Director in 2014. A Chartered Accountant, he previously worked in ship management and the oil industry. Gordon contributed hugely to the overall management of Share and during his time as Financial Director, implemented more efficient and improved administrative systems.Gordon retired from the role of FD in November 2016 but continues to support the work of Share in his capacity as Treasurer on the Board of Trustees, because he believes Share is an organisation intent on providing the best quality of care to the many people it supports, and looking after the best interests of it’s employees.

Jessica is a professionally qualified Architect specialising in accessible design, with a background in housing, community-based projects and the disability sector. She currently holds the role of Senior Architect with the University of Stirling’s Dementia Services Development Centre (DSDC) and is a member of the Centre for Environment, Dementia and Ageing Research (CEDAR) group. In addition to her professional consultancy role, Jessica has been awarded a Scholarship from the University’s Institute of Advanced Studies to pursue PhD research in the field of human rights and architectural design ethics in the practical application of accessible design. Jessica started working with Share over 10 years ago as a Care Support Worker, then later moving into a Development role at Share’s Head Office co-designing and delivering the 3year Moving On outreach project for young adults with additional support needs in transition in West Dunbartonshire. Her previous third sector work also includes annual involvement over 6years in a local specialist summer school in Northern Ireland, The Lighthouse Trust, delivering Conductive Education for children and young adults with neurological and mobility impairments.  In her spare time, Jessica keeps busy being mother to two active young lads and a spritely labradoodle, and enjoys working on various renovation projects in her own home. 

I’m a Procurement professional specialising in technology and cloud services and have been employed with Aegon for past nine years as their global procurement manager.Got involved with ShareScotland through my daughter Nicola who has been a service user for past 13 years. During that time we have watched her mature into the strong Independent young woman she is today and that would not have been possible without the support of ShareScotland staff and management.A few years back I worked with Share to create a video that was directed towards other parents in similar positions, the video highlighted our hopes and expectation for Nicola as well as our fears. Personally this was an opportunity for me to give something back and help support Share’s objectives and it was very rewarding, my hope as a Trustee is to be able to continue to contribute and add value to the service.

Ruth is passionate about people and believes that with the right support and encouragement everyone can have a fulfilling life. We are all in this together playing our individual and collective parts to ensure those we serve experience their best possible life.Ruth is an accomplished and experienced Chief Executive and a health and social care professional. She offers significant experience in senior leadership and strategic roles within diverse environments, with a record of successfully designing and delivering wide ranging transformational programmes and improving performance, inspiring realisation of full potential. Having worked in both the public and not for profit sector. You could say she has a transformational leadership style motivating and inspiring individuals to put people at the centre of getting work done and to be engaged with their work.Ruth’s effectiveness at this level derives from her ability to apply sound judgement whilst remaining focused on the organisation’s primary objectives and successfully building strong working relationships, both internally and externally.Ruth has contributed to several third sector and statutory agency boards and committees.

Karen joined Share in 2019 and has over 20 years of experience working in Finance in the charity sector, including national roles with Diabetes UK and SAMH. She is an ACCA finalist and University of Glasgow graduate, Bachelor of Accountancy (Hons). She has good all round experience managing Corporate Services including Finance, IT and HR functions and has a strong focus on efficiency and process re-engineering, ensuring best value without impacting quality.Karen gets a great deal of job satisfaction working within the charity sector especially in an organisation like Share, which is parent led and makes a real difference to people’s lives.

Sharon joined Share Scotland in 2014 as a Service Manager at St Nicholas Place. As the service was still fairly new, she was driven by being at the heart of ensuring those we supported got the most out of every day and helping to find new and exciting opportunities for them. Sharon is a strong believer in equality for everyone and always tries to focus on individuals’ abilities. Shortly afterwards she took on the additional responsibility for managing City Park, a single person service.Sharon has worked with various care organisations since she joined the profession starting off in 1994 as a Support Worker with Leonard Cheshire Disability. She then moved to Capability Scotland then Aberlour Childcare Trust before returning to LCD only this time as a Team Leader progressing to a Care Co-Ordinator where she remained until joining Share.In March 2020 Sharon was promoted to Senior Service Manager which she says has brought many new and exciting challenges. “No two days are the same. Being one of the smaller care organisation we are able to remain focussed on the people we support ensuring they are leading the lives they choose, while being supported to do so by our loyal, committed and highly valued staff teams”.

Lynne graduated with MA (Hons) in Psychology from Glasgow University in 1986. From 1987 until 1991, she worked in Surrey, initially as houseparent of girls who had severe neurological conditions, and then as “Head of Care” in a special needs girls’ school.She joined SHARE in late 1991 and is responsible for the day to day running of all our services in Glasgow and West Dunbartonshire.In the past few years. She has trained in hypnotherapy, neuro-linguistic programming and solution focussed therapy, which have contributed to her role as a senior manager and trainer.

Kenny joined the NHS in 1980, working in Peel Hospital, just outside Galashiels. He qualified in General nursing a few years later. He then spent a year working in Dingleton Psychiatric Hospital in Melrose after which he moved to Edinburgh. He worked in several hospitals in Edinburgh before moving into Learning Disabilities nursing in 1989 and qualifying as a Learning Disabilities Nurse in 1992. He then left the NHS to work for ELCAP, in East Lothian, becoming an Area Manager in 1998. In 2002 he joined SHARE Scotland as Regional Coordinator for the East and is responsible for the day to day running of all our services in Edinburgh and West rural Edinburgh.

Pauline has been with SHARE since February 2014, however she has worked within the financial sector since 1981.They say that charity begins at home, and Pauline really believes that this is definitely the case with SHARE – she says it’s such a welcoming place to work and the atmosphere is always happy, whether you are in Head Office or out in the service user’s homes.She has had the pleasure of visiting many of the houses and says it’s wonderful to see how happy everyone is.

Sarah has been with SHARE for 24 years, following a career as a Registered Nurse, and started with SHARE as a Depute Service Manager. She then progressed through the ranks and became Senior Service Manager in 2015. She enjoys the variety of the role, being busy and learning something new every day.Sarah says that since working for SHARE, she feels valued as a person and an employee. She believes the organisation to be one of the best in the field and knows how hard everyone works to ensure that the services provided are second to none. She says she is lucky that she enjoys her job and being a SHARE employee!

Emma joined Share in October 2015 after moving back to Scotland from London where she had been working for 13 years. Emma has a background working in Media, Education and then the Oil and Gas industry, coordinating administration teams. Emma joined the charity sector and quickly realised that working to improve the quality of lives of others was the perfect fit.  Share puts its service users, families and staff at its heart and she is proud to be part of it.