Trustees
Paul Barry-Walsh - Founder and Chairman
Paul was with IBM for 9 years until he left to form Safetynet one of the UK’s leading providers of business continuity services. He then went on to found Netstore a provider of outsourced computer services.
He founded Fredericks Foundation in 2001 and it has become a leading microfinance organisation in the UK.
In April 2008 Paul was granted the Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion and in November 2008 won a Beacon Award for Creative Giving. In March 2009 he was named ‘Philanthropist of the Year’ at the CNBC European Business Awards.
In 2020 Paul was awarded Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to enterprise and charity.
Neil Mehta
Neil graduated in 1984 and worked in the IT/HR industry for many years. Neil founded and built Aquila Consulting Group, from which he completed a successful exit in December 2006. Neil also invested and helped Profero, a digital marketing business, grow into a global business over 10 years, into a 400+ people organisation with 8 international offices and exited in 2014 to a US listed media group.
Neil has been a non-executive director/seed investor for commercial and not-for-profit organisations including Great Western Enterprise (Business West), Griti, Givey and Simera for over 15 years. He was also a director of Gloucestershire Development Loan Fund helping the executives to integrate into the Fredericks family where he has been a Trustee since its inception in 2001. Neil is currently Chairman of Wells for India, Simera, Non- Exec Director Givey, and a stake holder in various private innovative technology businesses and academic connected funds.
David Herbert
David graduated from Trinity College, Dublin in 1969 with a BA in economics. He subsequently became a Lecturer in Economics at Brunel University where he gained a PhD in 1975.
In 1978 he joined BP where he performed various roles in Head Office, East Asia and Latin America. In 1989 David joined Baring Brothers & Co., Limited as a corporate financier focusing on the emerging markets, principally in Eastern Europe and FSU. Barings became part of the ING Group in 1995. He was appointed Head of Emerging Europe Corporate Finance in ING Bank in 1998 and Head of International Corporate Finance in 2008.
David retired from ING bank in 2010 and has since held a variety of non-executive positions in private and public companies in the oil and gas sector, media and in financial services. He became a Trustee of Fredericks Foundation in 2012.
Feng Cai
Feng graduated from Christ Church, Oxford University in 2012 with a BA in Law. She completed her legal training contract with Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP in London and qualified as an Associate in the Banking and Finance team. During her time at Weil, she provided pro bono legal advice to Fredericks Foundation for many years. Subsequently, she joined Google, advising on commercial contracts and complex regulatory matters. She joined the board of Fredericks Foundation as a trustee in September 2019.
Tamsin Jordan
Tamsin graduated from the United World College of the Atlantic in South Wales in 2000 before going on to study International Relations at the University of Sussex, graduating in 2004.
Tamsin is a partner at Accellency, where she advises on investor relations strategy and content for both investment funds and companies preparing for capital market transactions. Tamsin heads the Impact and Responsible Investments practice at Accellency as she believes in the key role that the financial sector can play in mobilising capital to tackle climate change, social inequalities and other global sustainability challenges. Tamsin joins the board of Fredericks Foundation as a trustee in October 2021.
Tamsin was responsible for strategic communications and IR for direct lending funds and a private equity portfolio at Pollen Street Capital. Prior to that, Tamsin spent a decade at Marshall Wace, a leading global hedge fund specialising in long/short equity. Whilst at Marshall Wace, Tamsin built out and led the investor relations and communications capabilities for an innovative global direct lending strategy that traded as a FTSE 250 company.
Key Personnel
Duncan Parker - Strategic Advisor
Duncan has a unique academic and professional background in International Development within the third sector and the commercial world. Duncan’s previous roles include field work in Africa, Americas and Asia, being the International Development Director for The Salvation Army (UK), Managing Director for an African Agricultural investment fund and running his own consultancy.
Duncan has a passion for making the world better, spending time with his family and friends and coffee…lots of coffee! He has run and competed in a whole host of physical challenges for the benefit of charity including running 6 marathons in 6 days for his favourite charity.
Paul Maddison -Finance Manager
Paul comes from a commercial banking career of 30 years, where he gained a wealth of knowledge and experience in B2B environments.
Paul enjoys watching rugby and football as well as playing golf. He has run in an impressive 3 marathons. Paul has a cat called Freddie ... and yes, he was named after the foundation!
