Our Trustees
Delyth Lloyd-Evans
Chair
Delyth has been the chair at VANS since 2017. She has extensive Board level experience in the Private and Public Sector and is a strategic leader specialising in performance improvement, transformational change, and business coaching. She brings a care and commercial approach and addresses issues with integrity, business focus and respect. Her passion is to enable individuals and organisations to deliver high quality services, add value to the business; social value to the community and deliver creative and sustainable improvements.
Currently she Chairs Voluntary Action North Somerset (VANS) and is Chair of a Social Enterprise in Somerset providing Learning Disability services. She owns three successful businesses in Property Development, Strategic leadership/coaching, and an established and growing Café-Bar. She is Deputy Chair of a Safeguarding Board, and Non-Executive of a Housing Association and their Commercial Development Company and is a Trustee of a local charity.
Neil brings to VANS over 40 years of volunteering experience, principally supporting young people. He has had a variety of different roles, including Lead Volunteer (Chief Executive level) for a major southwest youth charity (11,500 youth members supported by 3,600 volunteers), where during his tenure, key achievements included increasing youth membership by 25% and delivery of major organisational change resulting in improved support to front line teams. He has retained his connection with the charity and is currently Chairman of the Board of Trustees with responsibility for ensuring that the Charity provides high-quality, safe, and educational experiences for young people.
Sue is a business owner who started her career in the financial services sector before moving into corporate communications and training. As a freelance consultant and business owner, Sue worked on strategic planning, health & well-being in the workplace, leadership, brand management, PR & Marketing and media.
A Samaritan volunteer for 14 years, she was also a Branch Recruiter, Trainer and Trustee. Plus 4 years as Regional Training Officer for London.
Currently, President of Weston Chamber of Commerce, Sue divides her time between running her business and raising the profile of the chamber and the needs of local business. She is keen to see strong links formed between the not-for-profit and business sectors for the benefit of the community.
Liam Sweeney
Trustee
Liam Sweeney brings a wealth of experience from his work with community infrastructure organisations across the UK to VANS. As a North Somerset resident, he has long been interested in the work VANS undertakes. Now, as a trustee, he aims to contribute to the organisation’s efforts to improve outcomes for local groups and expand volunteering opportunities, ensuring North Somerset has a vibrant, thriving, and impactful VCFSE sector.
His expertise spans three key areas: service design, digital innovation, and collaboration. By embedding these principles and applying the knowledge he has gained in these fields, Liam will help shape the strategy and delivery of VANS, contributing to its continued success. He has highlighted that, as services and programmes increasingly transition to digital platforms and collaboration within the sector becomes more critical, these will be his areas of focus to ensure VANS showcases best practices both within North Somerset and nationally.
A commitment to continual improvement drives Liam’s approach, always asking, “Could we be doing this better or more effectively?” and “Have we ensured the needs of all beneficiaries are represented in our decision-making?”
Ken Beecham
Ken brings extensive management consulting and business experience plus 25 years as a volunteer trustee/director. He has strong analytical and critical thinking skills, combined with creativity and imagination; he is enthusiastic and driven yet also flexible and sensitive to others. With strengths in strategy, finance, organisational change and governance, he has a track record of making things happen, in a succession of leadership roles.
As a partner with Deloitte and with Anderson Consulting, he worked with clients at Board level to achieve strategic change and performance improvement and on government policy work. He’s also successfully owned several businesses. He’s served on the boards of Plymouth University and a not-for-profit marketing consortium and chaired a key committee at the Diocese of Bath & Wells. He has strong links with the American West and in 2014 became trustee of a renowned Western history and art museum in Arizona. His strong commitment to serving through volunteering includes being a volunteer/guide with the Arizona Museum and with Bishop’s Palace in Wells.
Sally Quigg
Sally is a dynamic communications leader with expertise in strategy, public relations, and stakeholder engagement. She brings a wealth of perspective and a passion for innovative communications, collaborative working and delivering impactful results. Her career spans both the private and public sectors, as well as running her own business. Notable roles include leading financial PR at UNITE Group during a rebrand and period of significant share price growth and overseeing communications for the 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Olympic Games at Arup.
Recently, as Associate Director of Communications & Engagement for the NHS Vaccination Programme in Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire, Sally led communications for one of England’s top-performing COVID-19 vaccination programmes, focusing on underserved communities.
Sally holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Sustainable Business from the University of Cambridge and in 2024 achieved Public Relations Chartership. A two-time World Champion in Beach Ultimate Frisbee, Sally brings the same dedication to her professional endeavours.
Ariane Costes
Ariane started her career in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), where she was part of the early discussions on defining responsibility from a corporate perspective, helping to shape strategies that made the work of the organisation more human-centred and environmentally friendly. In 2012, Ariane moved from France to England and joined a startup that provided private chefs across Europe, where she oversaw recruitment and quality control — and developed a love for creating strong processes!
Today, Ariane works with SafeLives, a domestic abuse charity focused on research, training, and advocacy. As part of the operations team, she has the privilege of working with inspiring organizations and dedicated frontline staff. Ariane has found that having the opportunity to join the VANS Board is incredibly exciting, and she is eager to apply her expertise in domestic abuse and project management to VANS strategic development.
In her spare time, she is often found at playgrounds or football practice with her two young children. When Ariane gets a moment to herself, she enjoys running cross-country to recharge.