Meeting the people of CAS

Gordon McCullough, Chief Executive       

Gordon has over 13 years experience of working in the voluntary and community sector; the majority of which has been spent in an infrastructure environment. Before moving to London in 2009, Gordon was Head of Research for the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action (sister council of NCVO) for nine years. During this time he was responsible for the production of research on the scale, contribution and impact of the voluntary and community sector. Following NICVA, Gordon took up the post of Deputy Director of the Institute for Voluntary Action Research (IVAR) based at Birkbeck College. At IVAR, Gordon was responsible for business development; research and capacity building strategy; programme management; communications and external relations. Gordon then moved to the Brighton and Hove Community and Voluntary Sector Forum as interim Chief Executive. As the lead infrastructure organisation in Brighton, he was responsible for all aspects of strategic and operational leadership.

“I am a firm believer in the contribution that infrastructure organisations can make in supporting the voluntary and community sector during challenging and uncertain times. I am excited about working with the vibrant voluntary and community sector in Southwark and will work to ensure that CAS listens and responds to its members; always acting in their best interests. My approach is one based on partnership working and developing collaborative relationships.

Seyi Madariola, Deputy Chief Executive

Seyi has worked for Southwark’s CVS for a number of years, originally in an ICT capacity; first as an ICT Officer and then as Head of ICT.  More recently, Seyi is responsible for managing and developing CAS’s ICT infrastructure, back-office systems, and outsourced functions.

Much of his earlier work in developing the ICT infrastructure of voluntary and community sector organisations made him aware of the limitations, in terms of the budgetary constraints, faced by those working in the sector.  In his most recent work and having worked on a number of government-led initiatives, Seyi is aware of the issues and challenges of collaborative working; in particular, identifying, developing, and implementing robust systems to mitigate such issues.

Seyi specialises in managing organisational change; information systems management; infrastructure management; project management; managing complex IT networks; developing and implementing usable ICT systems; and coordinating the delivery of organisational/borough-wide training programmes.

“Having lived in Southwark for over twenty years I’ve witnessed the sector go through many changes; having to overcome a number of very difficult challenges in the process.  I started life in the sector as a volunteer so I’m aware of the value of volunteering and appreciate how rewarding engaging in community work can be.

My experience since then has prepared me for the challenges that lie ahead.  However, I’m as passionate now as I’ve ever been and remain confident that CAS is best placed to support the sector and the wider community to ensure that it continues to thrive and flourish”

Click on a section below to find out about the CAS teams.

The members of the Capacity Building Team are here to support you with your organisational development needs.  In particular, they will assist you by providing sustainability advice and support; advise you on premises related issues; guide and develop your Board of Trustees; and identify and link you into training opportunities in order to develop the skills of your workforce.

Meet the team…

Operations and ICT

The members of the Operations and ICT Team are responsible for managing the delivery of CAS’s internal infrastructure e.g. Finance, Communications/Marketing, Operations, Governance and HR.  The team is also responsible for facilitating the administration of CAS’s loan resource of equipment to community and voluntary sector organisations.

Meet the team…

Policy and Participation

The members of the Policy and Participation Team are here to coordinate and facilitate the Southwark Forum and thematic subgroups, advocating the use of Basecamp – an online collaboration tool; offering a series of easy to digest briefings on key policy developments; and keeping the sector informed by disseminating timely and relevant policy briefings.

Meet the team…