Our senior leadership team
Chief Executive Officer
Tony Byrne
Tony has held numerous senior management positions in various industries, including catering, facilities management, hotels and retail. He has also held non-executive positions in the charity, not for profit and commercial sectors many of which were involved in supporting children and young people. He has worked primarily in the UK but has worked internationally both in Europe and North America.
Tony is a Non-Executive Director for Cumbria County Holdings Ltd and Orian Solutions Ltd. Both are commercial companies owned by Cumberland Council and Westmorland and Furness Council. These companies are involved in catering and cleaning.
Additionally, Tony is a Non-Executive Director at Corserv Ltd, a group of businesses owned by Cornwall Council. These businesses provide infrastructure, engineering, housing, jobs, social care, facilities management, inward investment, transport and other essential services to Cornwall and beyond.
Tony is married to Pam and they have two grown-up sons. They now share their home with Freddie, a Catalan Sheepdog. He enjoys reading, walking, golf and trying out new foods.
Director of Member Services
Claire Mather
Claire brings over 20 years of experience of working both for the NHS as a qualified nurse and Ward Sister and for the third sector as Director of Nursing in a leading hospice. Following a master’s in Business Administration, she took on the role of a Director at DEBRA and is passionate about helping to make a difference, today, for people living with EB.
A significant focus of the role has been to work collaboratively with key stakeholders to provide creative solutions to the challenges faced in the delivery of best practices and to lead a number of commercial projects partnering with organisations in the private and public sector to both improve the range of goods and services on offer to those living with EB and raise income for the charity.
Director of Fundraising
Hugh Thompson
Hugh is a professional fundraiser with over 20 years of experience and has worked with a number of different charities. He joined DEBRA in 2017 and has overseen a steady growth in income thanks to a great team effort and the wonderful generosity of the charity’s supporters.
Focused on increasing engagement with the EB community whilst raising awareness for this terrible condition, Hugh and his team aim to develop the charity’s voluntary income stream to ensure more care and support is available to those who need it.
Hugh is married and has two teenage boys. He enjoys playing hockey and golf when he’s able to. Feel free to contact Hugh directly by email at hugh.thompson@debra.org.uk.
Director of Research
Dr Sagair Hussain
Sagair brings over 20 years of experience both as a Medical Researcher from world-leading research institutions and as Director of Research in leading dermatology charity British Association of Dermatologists, managing multi-million-pound research programmes involving academic institutions, pharmaceutical companies and NHS Trusts.
Whilst working at the British Association of Dermatologists (BAD), he delivered their most successful research initiative; psoriasis patient registry (BADBIR). It is now the world’s largest psoriasis specific patient register involving approximately 20,000 patients, 10 pharmaceutical companies and 165 dermatology centres throughout the UK and Republic of Ireland.
Through BADBIR, he raised the profile of psoriasis amongst scientists and clinical researchers. He has a PhD from University College London and a Master’s in Business Administration from Imperial College.
He lives in Carshalton with his partner, Sara and their 2 young girls. He spends the weekends being a chauffeur for the girls and, when he can, enjoys going to the gym and playing cricket.
Director of Finance
Also carries responsibilities for IT, risk and insurance.
Simon Jones
Simon is a Fellow Chartered Accountant with more than 20 years’ finance experience. Following a period as an auditor with PwC, he has worked in leadership positions responsible for financial strategy, planning and analysis within the Public and Charity sectors.
He also has many years of experience leading IT and implementing Finance and IT transformation projects.
Simon is married with two young children. When not providing taxi services to various post-school activities he enjoys gardening, cooking and travelling.
Director of Marketing & Communications
Chris Clarke
Chris is a fellow of the chartered institute of marketing (FCIM) with over 20 years’ experience in senior marketing and communication roles across a variety of industry sectors including consumer durables and fast-moving consumer goods, healthcare, medical devices, construction, and housing. Chris is passionate about insight-based marketing and communication and has a proven track record of devising and implementing highly targeted strategies that connect with the target audience, influence behavioural change, and drive revenue.
Chris is married and has a young daughter, he loves the countryside, any form of motorsport, and cycling the roads and trails of his beloved North Cotswolds.
Director of People
Gavin Differ
Gavin is a Chartered Fellow of the CIPD and an accomplished HR professional with over twenty years’ experience in people leadership and senior HR roles within the retail industry.
He brings extensive expertise in leading organisational change, shaping positive and high-performing work cultures, and is passionate about enabling individuals to fulfil their potential.
Gavin and his team are committed to investing in colleague development and fostering an inclusive environment where everyone feels welcomed, valued, and empowered to thrive.
Gavin lives on the west coast of Scotland and enjoys exploring new destinations across Europe, socialising with friends, and immersing himself in world cinema.
Director of Retail and Trading
Michelle Scott
Michelle began her career at the Rank Organisation in the Central Salaries Department, before gaining extensive experience in various accounts departments across multiple organisations. After many years working within finance, she shifted her focus to the childcare sector, running her own nurseries and specialising in supporting children with special educational needs.
In 2011, she relocated to Scotland and joined DEBRA as an Assistant Manager within their Stirling store. Her passion for retail and great customer service led to a swift promotion to Area Manager. Over the subsequent years working closely with the retail team, volunteers, and head office colleagues has given Michelle a deep understanding of DEBRA’s mission to provide life-long support for people affected by EB and of the important role that DEBRA’s retail division plays in supporting this mission.
In her current role of Director of Retail and Trading, Michelle leads the retail directorate and is dedicated to driving retail success and empowering her teams to deliver exceptional customer experience and sales growth both instore and online.
Outside of work, Michelle enjoys the natural beauty of her adopted country, spending her free time exploring Scotland’s lochs and hills, and generally embracing the great outdoors.