Staff Team
Genesis Trust is run on a day to day basis by a small team of dedicated staff who both support, and are supported by, a large number of wonderful volunteers. A mix of both full time and part time, based in locations across Bath and the surrounding areas.
The Genesis Trust is lead by a committed team of trustees (see more here).
Operations
Susannah Jewell
Susannah has been the CEO since September 2026. She began by volunteering with Genesis back in 2017 and was a trustee for a couple of years. She also has done a great deal of fundraising: cycled from London to Bruges in 2019 to raise funds for Genesis and in 2023 did the Genesis Skydive. Before Genesis she worked in the defence and rail sector for 20+ years, in procurement, transformation and project management leadership roles.
Phillip Thompson
Phillip joined the team in September 2026, with a background in private equity, specialising in operations improvement and management across a wide range of businesses. His volunteering experience has been mostly within the church community of his former homeland of deepest Devon.
Mike Jordan
Mike joined Genesis in June 2024 having worked in Financial Services for 30+ years. Mike is married to Gill, who together have two very grown up daughters and a young golden retriever. When not at work or walking the dog, Mike can be found on the golf course or watching Bath Rugby.
Ivana Bensted
Ivana joined in 2018 having previously worked as a management consultant with Deloitte. As well as being part of the Gateway Centre Lifeline team, Ivana looks after the smooth running of our data systems and reporting.
Genesis Life Projects Team
Sue Fourie
Sue joined Genesis Trust in February 2020 from her previous roles in education, training and development. She has a degree in Special Educational Needs. Sue manages Genesis Life Projects (Lifeline, Life Skills, Life Course & Life Connect) at the Gateway Centre.
Sean Sutton
Sean's background includes operating at management level with several high street names in the food retail industry before taking a degree in Missional Theology and obtaining a BTH where his placement was with Genesis Lifeline. Following his degree Sean served alongside several ministry groups for local churches in his spare time and 7 years as a Deputy Manager from 2014 to 2021, before returning in 2024 to become the Lifeline and Life Connect Manager for Genesis.
Foodbank Team
Grainne Mohar
Grainne moved to Bath from Ireland in 1996 and has a background in the hospitality industry. She started volunteering at Bath Foodbank when it first opened in 2011 as the Foodbank Centre Co-ordinator and then joined the staff team in 2019.
John Stauber
John joined the team in 2016. Previously he's worked as a project manager for schools' ICT and in the solar panel industry. John looks after warehousing and transport for the Bath, Keynsham & Somer Valley Foodbank Foodbank.
Katie Tanner
Katie joined the team in August 2023. Having worked for many years in the commercial world, she has now spent over 10 years working in the charity sector across Bath, most recently as a Community Engagement & Volunteer Manager.
Karen Blaylock
Karen has a background in Art and Design. She moved into the post-compulsory education sector, teaching Visual Arts, Functional and Life Skills, progressing to Adult Community Learning, delivering courses to improve health & wellbeing and employment opportunities. After relocating to BANES, as a way of getting involved in her local community, she volunteered at the Foodbank for two years, prior to joining Genesis.
Furniture Team
Joe Wade
In 2022, Joe joined our team, bringing his impressive track record of reviving top UK retailers into the charity sector. His mission: transform our furniture division into a premier destination for antique, art deco, mid-century, and contemporary pieces. With our team's backing, Joe is propelling Genesis Furniture to new heights. Fun fact: Joe once sold diamonds to pop groups JLS and Atomic Kitten.
Anthony Ward
Anthony joined in 2015 and has a background in business improvement, management and training, as well as in property and furniture restoration.
Woody Woodsford-Bale
Woody joined the Genesis team in December 2022 having previously worked within the recycling industry as well as starting up his own business selling and restoring vintage drums.
Ross Jones
Ross officially joined the staff of Genesis Trust in October 2021, but faithfully volunteered with the Furniture Shop and Bath Foodbank since November 2019.
Katherine Grynova
Katherine started with Genesis Trust in January 2026. She has experience in the charity sector using her administration and coordination skills. With a background in International Development and Humanitarian Aid, she has done monitoring and evaluation work for a humanitarian-based charity. She enjoys learning new skills and trying out new hobbies outside of work.
Paul Solly
Paul has been with Genesis since 2001 and has helped grow the charity into what it is today. He retired as Lifeline and Life Connect Manager in October 2024 and now drives our Furniture van 2 days a week.
Fundraising Team
Emma Drew
Emma joined the team in July 2021. She previously worked for International Development charity Send a Cow, based outside Bath. Emma first came to Bath to study Creative Writing at Bath Spa. After graduating, she worked for a number of independent Bath businesses and also began volunteering with Genesis Trust’s soup run.
Ed Major
Ed joined Genesis in March 2021. Before that he taught in theological colleges and taught English as a Second Language. He did different Christian ministry in Norway, Romania, Czech Republic and Austria.
Ann Hatton
Ann joined the team in October 2026. She previously worked for Ripple Effect, an international development charity, supporting communities in rural East Africa. Before that, she spent many years teaching in schools across Bath. More recently, Ann has embraced becoming a granny and is enjoying all that comes with that.