Meet the team

We’re a small team doing big work, aimed at supporting the small UK charities making the biggest difference to children and young people. Being small ourselves means we’re close enough to know every charity in our portfolio personally, every major donor and fundraiser who supports them, and every company we partner with.

Slaney Wright

CEO

Slaney brings over two decades of experience in the charity sector to her role as CEO of Raise Your Hands. Her career has centred on helping young people thrive; from working with children in Bolivia, to joining UK national youth charity Fairbridge, to co-founding Switchback in 2007, a criminal justice charity supporting young adult offenders after release (and now one of the charities in the Raise Your Hands portfolio).

At Raise Your Hands, Slaney leads the strategic direction and day-to-day operations, ensuring exceptional small charities receive the support they need to transform young lives.

Madelaine Jones

Head of Partnerships

Madelaine joined Raise Your Hands in 2022, bringing extensive experience across the charity sector, including roles at Oxfam, ActionAid, and Amnesty International, as well as with smaller local organisations in the UK and the Philippines.

As Head of Partnerships, Madelaine’s role is about relationships: building them, developing them, and using them for the benefit of small charities. She is also responsible for the ongoing management and support of the Raise Your Hands portfolio.

Rose McCarthy

Head of Comms & DEVelopment

Rose is a seasoned communications and strategy professional with over 15 years of experience spanning media relations, strategic partnerships, events, and stakeholder engagement. Throughout her career, she has been passionate about crafting compelling narratives and building meaningful connections that drive positive change.

Rose joined Raise Your Hands in 2024 and leads our efforts to strengthen and grow the organisation, ensuring the stories of the small charities we support are heard and celebrated.

Jake Parke

Fundraising and Insights

Jake has worked in fundraising for the past five years, specialising in using data and insight to build meaningful connections with donors and strengthen individual giving programmes.

Before joining Raise Your Hands in 2025, Jake spent several years at Chichester Cathedral, developing a broad range of fundraising experience, from events and major donor cultivation to grants fundraising. He combines an analytical approach with a collaborative mindset, ensuring fundraising decisions are driven by both evidence and empathy.

Maria Serna

Digital Marketing Manager

Maria is a digital marketing specialist with over 15 years of experience across the private and charity sectors. She helped grow travel company Oliver’s Travels from a six-person start-up into a well-known brand, leading on campaign strategy, content, and performance marketing.

In 2020 Maria shifted to mission-driven work, later managing paid media campaigns at Action for Children. She joined Raise Your Hands to lead digital development and help more people connect with the small charities we champion.

Our Trustees

Every Raise Your Hands trustee serves voluntarily, bringing expertise from finance, business, real estate, and the creative industries. The board guides the charity’s strategy, holds it to account, and ensures it stays true to its purpose.

Chris Kirkland

Chris works for a family owned construction and real estate business based out of central London. He started his career at Knight Frank where he was an advisor in the capital markets team. He then moved into development working for Landid Property Ltd on a variety of schemes across South East England.

Chris is chairman of the board at Raise Your Hands with a specific focus on wider strategy and fundraising within the organisation.

Federica Cucè

Federica has over 25 years of experience in finance across M&A, private equity, public equities, and hedge funds. After more than 10 years in investment banking with BNP Paribas, JP Morgan, and Deutsche Bank in Paris, New York, and London, she spent 14 years as a senior Investor Relations executive at Marshall Wace. Today Federica is an independent Asset Management and Sustainability consultant.

Outside work, Federica teaches yoga and volunteers for charities focused on improving underprivileged children’s lives.

Nick Burlington

Originally a chartered accountant by training, Nick has spent the last 14 years in private equity investment with the likes of Triton Partners, Permira, Impax Asset Management, and most recently Arrow Global Group. During his time at Impax, he was responsible for defining the firm’s impact-led investment strategy, and has since led ESG initiatives across his subsequent roles in asset management.

Nick sits on the charitable board of the Girdlers’ Livery Company and has personally raised funds for mental health charities for the past seven years.

Adam Lawrenson

Adam is Executive Creative Director of Albion, a London innovation consultancy famous for designing the Skype brand, inventing the disruptive telco GiffGaff, and scaling Candy Crush from Facebook game to global phenomenon. He spent his early career in advertising for BMW, Sky, GOV.UK, and Bupa, and later served as Creative Director on the global rebrands of Jaguar, Land Rover, and Vodafone.

Adam has sat on the digital advisory board for WPP, and has won both a BAFTA and an Emmy for his creative work.

Rossa Shanks

Rossa is a marketeer with a 20-year career spanning creative advertising agencies, News UK, Dow Jones, and cybersecurity investment company ISTARI, where he is currently Chief Marketing Officer. He has worked with brands including BT, Mercedes-Benz, The Economist, PepsiCo, and Greene King. His entrepreneurial streak led him to found Great Little Place, a mobile app for finding hidden gems to stay.

Rossa believes there is nothing more exciting than unlocking the potential of a child by investing early in their future.

Nicole Downer

Nicole is a seasoned finance professional who came across Raise Your Hands when Managing Partner at MV Credit, where she served as Co-Head of Business Development and a member of both the Management and Investment Committees. She began her career at Banker’s Trust in leveraged finance and securitisation, then led the Structured Securitisation Team at Deutsche Bank before joining MV Credit in 2005.

Nicole was recognised as a Woman of Influence in Private Markets in 2022.