Our team

Our Trustees

Emma Livingstone

Emma Livingstone

Emma qualified as a Speech and Language Therapist at Birmingham University in 1998 and has worked predominantly with children, running services for both pre-school and school-age children across London. More recently she has worked at City University supporting student speech and language therapists and also practices as a life coach. Emma is married and mum to 3 young and active children.

Emma was born with Cerebral Palsy and has seen a significant decline in her mobility in recent years leading to several surgeries and having to give up work. It was her frustration at the lack of knowledge and understanding of Cerebral Palsy as a disability affecting adults that spurred her on to begin campaigning. In 2018 she founded the charity Adult Cerebral Palsy Hub, now renamed Up – The Adult Cerebral Palsy Movement, to campaign for better support and services and give voice to the adult Cerebral Palsy community. 

Woman smiling

Miriam Creeger

Miriam Creeger qualified as a Chartered Physiotherapist from Guy’s Hospital in 1993 and in 1996 started specialising in Neurology.

It was while at St George’s Hospital, her interest in Adults with Cerebral Palsy evolved, while working in Neuro physio Outpatients. Here she began to learn about the need for holistic care for each individual patient and the benefit of working collaboratively with other disciplines to gain the best outcome for her patients. She then moved onto more senior roles running the inpatient and outpatient Neuro physiotherapy services at both The Whittington Hospital and Chase Farm Hospital.

She has continued developing her skills within Neurology and also Elderly Care both within the NHS and now in Private Practice.

Man smiling

Derek Livingstone

Derek is Head of Treasury at ManyPets, a fast growing tech-enable pet insurance business. He has had a successful and varied career in finance and business strategy across aviation, gaming and media.

Derek is Emma’s husband and has experienced first-hand the impact that ageing with Cerebral Palsy has had on Emma and the family.

Committed to raising the profile of adults with Cerebral Palsy, Derek is a trustee and supports the charity with its finances and all things technical.

Dr Jennifer Ryan

Jennifer Ryan is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Physiotherapy and Director of Cerebral Palsy Lifespan Health and Well-being (CP-Life) Research Centre. Jennifer has a degree in Physiotherapy and a PhD from Trinity College Dublin and an MSc in Medical Statistics from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. She worked as a Lecturer and subsequently a Senior Lecturer in Physiotherapy at Brunel University London from 2013 before joining RCSI in 2018.

Jennifer conducts research about cerebral palsy and disability more broadly under the themes of 1) health services research, 2) population health and 3) physical activity and exercise. She has received funding from national and international funders including the Health Research Board, MS Society UK, Action Medical Research and NIHR. She has published over 80 peer-reviewed journal articles, including articles as senior author in JAMA Neurology, Neurology, Pediatrics, and Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology.

Val Stevenson

Dr Valerie Stevenson

Dr Stevenson is a Consultant Neurologist working at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, UCLH where she runs the spasticity management service along with neurorehabilitation clinics. Since 2014, Dr Stevenson has worked with NICE in the development of guidelines for children, young people and adults with cerebral palsy.

She graduated from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1991 and began specialisation in Neurology in 1995 and completed an MD in multiple sclerosis at UCL in 1999. Following the completion of specialist training, Dr Stevenson was appointed in 2003 as a Consultant Neurologist at The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, UCLH.

From 2012 to 2015, Dr Stevenson was the Assistant Clinical Director for Stroke, Therapies and Rehabilitation, and has been the Clinical Lead for Rehabilitation at UCLH since 2016. Her clinical caseload is focussed in multidisciplinary spasticity management, Functional Electrical Stimulation and cerebral palsy services at UCLH.

Dr Stevenson’s research interests are focussed on spasticity and disability management in all neurological conditions. She has published widely and is an editor and author of
Spasticity Management: A Practical Multidisciplinary Guide.

 

Stephen Jacobs

Stephen Jacobs OBE

Stephen brings a wealth of experience in public health, social care and housing gained across a range of ”for profit” and ”not for profit” organisations.

Stephen has been Chair of the Newham Primary Care Trust, Chairman of Whipps Cross University Trust Hospital and executive chairman of the Expert Patient Programme – a community interest company which delivered training courses for patients and their carers with long term health conditions. Stephen has also held visiting Professorships at the Universities of Coventry and London South Bank on Health Inclusion.

Stephen has been active in urban regeneration and Housing and held a key community relations role within the successful London 2012 Olympic Bid team. As the neighbourhood Director of the Lancaster West Estate, which is the estate on which the Grenfell Tower is located, Stephen has been responsible for managing and regenerating the estate and community engagement following the disastrous fire.

He was awarded an OBE for services to urban regeneration in the Queen’s Millennium Honours List.

Siva Nair

Professor Krishnan Padmakumari Sivaraman Nair (Siva Nair) MBBS, MD, DM, FRCP, FIAN.

I am a consultant in Neurology with special interest Neurorehabilitation in Sheffield, United Kingdom since 2005. I graduated from Government medical college, Trivandrum and was trained in neurology from The National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, India. I worked as an Associate Professor in NIMHANS till 2005, before moving to Sheffield UK. I am currently an Honorary Professor of neurosciences, in the University of Sheffield. I also the chair of Research and Clinical Standards Committee of British Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine. I am a member of the Joint Specialty Committee of Royal College of Physicians on Stroke and JSC on Rehabilitation medicine. I am the chief editor of the textbook Neurorehabilitation: Therapy and Therapeutics, published by the Cambridge University press.

I have lead the adult neuro-disability clinic in Sheffield. I work with a Neuro-physiotherapy colleague and facilitate transition of young adults with cerebral palsy into adult services.  We conduct clinic for adults with neuro-disabilities and Cerebral palsy.  My research interest is to develop of devices and interventions to promote function in adults with Cerebral palsy. We are also developing tools to monitor mobility of people with Cerebral palsy using Digital tools. I lead the Neurology Academy webinar on Cerebral Palsy which is now live.

Our Ambassadors

James Moore

James Moore

James is a performance artist, musician and actor currently starring in Emmerdale. He has ataxic cerebral palsy and he is a strong advocate for people with disabilities in the arts. In January he won the National Television Award for Best Newcomer and hopes to take his career further and encourage people with disabilities to pursue careers in the arts.

Leon Taylor

Leon Taylor

Leon was a Goalkeeper with the England Cerebral Palsy Football Team from 2003-2011 and competed in international tournaments across Europe and the rest of the world including as a member of the Great Britain team which competed at the Beijing Paralympic Games in 2008.

Until his retirement from competitive football, he was also the player representative on the National Cerebral Palsy League Committee. He has previously been a player mentor for the East Midlands Cerebral Palsy Elite Football Squad and is currently an assistant coach of the newly formed Derby County Community Trust Adult Cerebral Palsy Team.

Leon is a Sporting Ambassador for the charity Cerebral Palsy Sport, the country’s leading national disability sports organisation supporting people with cerebral palsy to achieve their sporting potential.

Away from Sport, Leon is the Patron of Hemi Hearts, a support group for children and families living with hemiplegia, a form of cerebral palsy. He is also the UK Spokesperson for the World Cerebral Day Committee.

Scarlett Murray

Scarlett Murray

Scarlett is a writer based in West London, who blogs on her experiences of having a physical disability, Cerebral Palsy. Through this lens, she discusses subjects that she feels are sorely under-represented: motherhood, desirability, language, and more. Scarlett has worked as a content writer for a children’s book company, and most recently has been working on her skills in podcast editing.

Siobhan Fitzpatrick

Siobhan Fitzpatrick

Siobhan Fitzpatrick is a World and European medallist, and a Junior World and European champion. She competed at her first Summer Paralympics in Tokyo, 2021. Since, she has join the team at Bring The Power following Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games , a youth engagement programme working with ages 5-25 across Birmingham, West Midlands and the Commonwealth.

Siobhan has always been a loud advocate for our movement and featured in our Stamp Out the Gap campaign in September 2021, as part of #TeamCP Paralympians. She joined us again in March 2022 Midweek Matters to share her experience around fitness staying active and achieving her dream.

Carrie-Ann Lightley

Carrie-Ann Lightley

Carrie-Ann Lightley is one of the UK’s leading accessible travel bloggers, sharing accessibility reviews, disability travel guides and wheelchair travel tips. The blog aims to encourage and inspire disabled people to travel to, explore and discover new places. In 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022, Carrie-Ann was named as one of the top 100 most influential disabled people in the UK, on the Shaw Trust #DisabilityPower100.

Abbie Hills

Abbie Hills, a filmmaker and talent agent living with cerebral palsy, is passionate about fostering diversity and inclusion in the entertainment industry. At 23, she founded The Dazey Hills Company, representing over 60 clients with a focus on inclusivity.

Abbie’s work extends beyond representation. As an access coordinator, she draws on her own experiences to support deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent individuals on and off-screen, ensuring they thrive in the film and television industry.

Recognised for her advocacy, Abbie received the National Diversity Award for Positive Role Model for Disability in 2021. She continues to leverage her platform to raise awareness about cerebral palsy and promote diverse representation in entertainment.

Abbie holds a BA HONS in Film and an MA in Cultural Arts Management, demonstrating her commitment to the creative landscape.

Nick Jacobsen

Nick is a Para Standing Tennis player. He discovered his love for tennis at age 6. He qualified as an LTA accredited tennis coach in 2017, teaching both mainstream and disability tennis in some of the biggest tennis venues around the country such as Queen’s Club and The National Tennis Centre.

In 2021, he had to leave coaching behind as, in addition to Cerebral Palsy, Nick was diagnosed with Functional Neurological Disorder, of which involuntary spasms is the main symptom.  Nick has subsequently discovered the relatively new format of disability tennis called Para Standing Tennis which is mainstream tennis for those with ambulatory disabilities without the need of a wheelchair.  After an intense period of training. Nick travelled to Malmö, Sweden in February 2024 and unexpectedly, ended up winning 2 gold medals in singles and doubles.  Nick hopes to keep inspiring people through his tennis, encouraging them to stay resilient in the face of any challenge.

Natalie South-Law

Natalie South-Law

Natalie South-Law is Disability Lead at sport for development charity, Sported. Natalie has a background in charity project management, having previously worked for Attitude is Everything, Nesta and Scope. 


Nat’s professional life in disability sport also has crossover with her personal life, having participated in various disability sports, including wheelchair basketball and para pistol shooting. Nat also has a keen interest in live music, regularly attending gigs and festivals.

Nat was born with Cerebral Palsy, and in adulthood has had a constant battle with lack of knowledge and understanding from medical professionals about adults with CP. Nat’s own beliefs are heavily aligned with those of Up, and looks forward to helping the charity grow further and work towards their aims.

Dr Ruslan Vasyutin

Dr Ruslan Vasyutin – PhD in Psychology, educator, successful business manager, active volunteer, and advocate for inclusion.

Ruslan successfully manages three companies he founded: DCP Help, Master Goal, and Human Transformation. The latter is a non-profit organization specializing in mental health support. He is also a father raising a daughter with cerebral palsy.

I decided to become an ambassador for the UP Movement because, through my own experience, I understand the challenges faced by people with cerebral palsy, their parents, and caregivers in this world. I consider it my honourable duty to advocate for inclusion and to create a supportive socio-psychological environment for the personal and professional growth of people with cerebral palsy, especially during and after their transition into adulthood.

I am confident that I will gain valuable new information, insights, and opportunities. In return,

I am happy to share my own experiences, thoughts, and projects.

Our Supporters

Rosie Jones

Rosie Jones

Rosie, who herself has Cerebral Pals,y performed to a rapturous audience at the launch event for Adult Cerebral Palsy Hub in October 2018. With her infectious laugh and high energy, Rosie Jones has quickly become a must-see act on the UK comedy circuit. The ex-television researcher was awarded a second place in the Leicester Mercury’s New Comedian Of The Year Award 2018 and has gone on to star on 8 Out Of 10 Cats and The Last Leg, Comedy Central’s Live From The Comedy Store and Roast Battle, as well as Dave’s Hypothetical. Rosie completed a sell-out run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2018 with her debut show ‘Fifteen Minutes’, receiving critical acclaim – with the Scotsman describing her show as “both elegantly crafted and mischievous to its bones”.

Not forgetting her comedy writing roots Rosie is also busy working on a couple of sitcoms and writing on the hit Netflix series Sex Education. There seems to be no end to Rosie’s talents as she is also an incredible actor, most recently making her primetime debut as Serena in a Silent Witness two-part-special.

Working Group

A Working Group to advance the recommendations of the All Party Parliamentary Group Report on Adults With Cerebral Palsy

In March 2022, a report from the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Cerebral Palsy, commissioned by the charity, set out the minimum requirements for proper coordinated healthcare for adults with Cerebral Palsy. Key recommendations included the need for regional specialised support services, clear care pathways, and annual patient reviews.

Dr Mark Carew
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

Jenny Carroll
Cerebral Palsy Cymru

Dr Charlie Fairhurst
Consultant Neurologist, Evelina Children’s Hospital/NHSE

Baroness Stephanie Fraser
Officer APPG on CP/CEO CP Scotland

Mr Michail Kokkinakis
Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, Evelina Children’s Hospital

Richard Luke
SCOPE

Paul Maynard, MP
Co-Chair APPG on CP

Amanda Richardson, MBE
Founder and Director of Policy, Action Cerebral Palsy

Pilar Cloud
CEO, Action Cerebral Palsy

Dr Jennifer Ryan
Director of the CP-Life Research Centre and Senior Lecturer in the School of Physiotherapy, RCSI

Ellie Simmonds
CP Teens

Dr Valerie Stevenson
Consultant Neurologist, NHNN

Susie Turner
Specialist Paediatric Physiotherapist, Evelina Children’s Hospital

Lionel Salama
Hope

Dr Howard Daitz
GP

Dr Kirsty Colquhoun
Consultant in Geriatric Medicine in Glasgow, Fellow at Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, and Subdean at the University of Glasgow

Judith Broll
Clinical Specialist Speech and Language Therapist, Director of Professional Development, Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists

Jon McFarlane
PhD Economics

Lawrence Ambrose
Head of Policy and Public Affairs, Royal College of Podiatry

Prof Siva Nair
Consultant Neurologist with a Special Interest in Disability Management, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals

Brynnen Ririe
Public Affairs Lead, The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy

Diane Sellers
Specialist Speech and Language Therapist, Chailey

Jill Cadwgan
Consultant in Paediatric Neurodisability, Evelina Children’s Hospital

Anthea Dendy
Clinical Physiotherapy Specialist in Neurology

Emma Livingstone
UP-The Adult Cerebral Palsy Movement

Miriam Creeger
UP-The Adult Cerebral Palsy Movement