Our Governance

The Sadie Centre is a registered charity whose work is overseen by a Board which meets quarterly and is made up of Trustees and the Centre’s Directors. 

Our charitable objectives:

·       The relief of sickness and the preservation and protection of health

·       The advancement of education in holistic health and medicine

Our mission is to increase understanding and provision of a broad range of accessible approaches to health and illness, in order to improve the wellbeing and quality of life of people of all ages.

Our vision is to improve health and wellbeing; supporting others’ capability to heal themselves both at the Letchworth base and far-reaching to serve our communities.

Director & Co-Director

Roberta Meldrum & Jenny Flynn

The Board

Roberta Meldrum – Founder/Director

Believing deeply in the need to take responsibility for one’s life and wellbeing, Roberta’s background combines a lifelong study of languages and classics with a wide-ranging exploration of complementary approaches to health & personal development.  She holds a BA from Barnard College/Columbia University in Russian and has done Masters work at Cornell University in New York and at Birkbeck in London.  Roberta founded the Centre 39 years ago and is a teacher by profession. Her hobbies and interests include gardening, handicrafts and ancient and renaissance history.

Jenny Flynn – Co-Director

Jenny has a PGCE in English and Theatre Studies from Cambridge University, and a degree level qualification in Operational Management.  Prior to joining The Sadie Centre, Jenny managed services in three Local Authorities and led teams for the Prince's Trust, Action for Children, Barnardo's and Watford & District YMCA.  

Jenny has won awards from HRH The Prince of Wales and the High Sheriff of Hertfordshire.  Jenny has also attended the Queen's Garden Party - an invite granted in recognition of her 'great and valuable services to the community'.

Jenny is passionate about personal development and wellbeing.  She enjoys an active lifestyle (climbing Mt Snowdon over 30 times!), worked as a fitness instructor, a Duke of Edinburgh leader and an organiser of an annual Youth Camp for 15 years.  Outside of work, Jenny values her time with friends, family, and her two boys; along with the theatre and cinema.

Steven Gibbs (Chair)

After retiring from a 30-year career in the police service, Steve worked for a Local Authority and then for Hertfordshire Children’s Services.  Since 2015, he has been a senior practitioner in a specialist therapeutic role with a charity supporting families at risk.

Passionate about rugby all his life, Steve played in the London Leagues, England Rugby Football Union Ambassador, County Coach and is currently a Referee.  He has been Chairman of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme (Hertfordshire) and is currently President of his local Rugby club.  A volunteer with Hertfordshire’s Domestic Abuse helpline, Steve’s extra-curricular interests revolve around rugby, classic cars and motorcycles. 

Nick Davies

Nick, with over 15 years’ experience as a solicitor in a central London firm, is a partner at HRJ Foreman Laws in Hitchin where he heads the Commercial Property Department.

He advises individuals, local, national and international businesses, charities and other organisations on a wide range of matters including residential and commercial development, property finance, sale and purchase of businesses, land and buildings and landlord and tenant matters.

Originally from the Welsh Borders and Shropshire area, Nick graduated from the University of Wales, Aberystwyth with an LLB (Hons) in Law with French before studying at the College of Law in London.

He lives in St Albans with his wife and their son and daughter and what little time he has outside of work and family life is spent cooking and keeping (reasonably) fit.

Mark Hanna

Mark has worked in Adult Social Care and the voluntary sector for the last 12 years, primarily working as a senior leader for Age UK Hertfordshire.

Mark has a Bsc Hons in Psychology and a Masters in Business Administration. He has a passion for social change and services which make a positive difference to people's lives and aims to use his experience to help as a trustee at The Sadie Centre.

In his spare time, he likes to study History, is an avid DIYer, and enjoys TV and film. 

Stuart Izzard

Stuart has been involved with the public sector for over 37 years, most notably as Community Engagement Manager at North Herts District Council from 2001-2019 and in his current work for a charity providing support to Hertfordshire’s rural communities.

He is committed to helping those in greatest need within society. His varied and innovative work has encompassed social inclusion, community wellbeing, event management, emergency planning, fundraising, developing leisure, recreation & health initiatives and supporting the management of community & public facilities.

Helen Oliver

With a degree in English & History from the University of Kent in Canterbury, Helen began her working life in public & third sector communications before moving into training and then teaching. 

She has been a local district councillor, has served on the Board of the Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation and remains on its Housing Development Committee.  She is currently a Director of Hitchin Market Ltd., the Community Representative on the Letchworth BID Board and is the Communications Director for The Techie Whisperer, a Training Consultancy. 

Married, with a young son, Helen is passionate about helping to support the wellbeing of the local community. Her recent bout with (and recovery from) COVID 19 has made self-care, exercise, mindfulness and reflection an essential part of her life.

Our Supporters

The Centre has been fortunate over the years in receiving support from many grant-making bodies, for whose generosity we will always be grateful.