Meet The Team
Chair Of Trustees
Jefferey Ball
. A well-respected figure in the charity sector, he heads up the North East charity team for investment manager, RBC Brewin Dolphin, and specialises in charity governance, corporate social responsibility and ESG.
He is also a trustee and chair of the finance & governance sub-committee at Newcastle Rugby Foundation and founder of the North East Charity Awards. He has been recognised for his voluntary efforts, named national rugby league volunteer of the year in 2015 and NE Youth trustee of the year in 2022.
Amongst his proudest achievements are seeing Cramlington Rockets be named national club of the year, Rockets players walk out with England at the opening match of the World Cup, and being part of the team that raised half a million pounds to refurbish Eastfield Pavilion.
Foundation Lead
Steve Beaty
Foundation Lead Steve Beaty is the original founder of Rockets Community and has ran the project ever since. Son of Steve Beaty Snr, the original found Cramlington Rockets RLFC, Steve Jnr has dedicated his life to supporting young people within the community and is key to implementing our strategy.
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Away from Rockets Community Steve is the Director Of Rugby for Cramlington Rockets and spends a lot of his time working with coaches and players to create the best environment possible.
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As a foundation we are delighted to have Steve leading the charge as he brings bags of enthusiasm and knowledge to work every day.
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Trustee
Karen Clark
Karen has worked at Cramlington Learning Village for 20 years and is the current Head of Languages as well as working on staff wellbeing and facilitating the award winning Cramlington Youth Council.
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Karen has a long history with the Rockets originally a parent on the side lines, then as volunteer and now as a trustee. Karen loves volunteering as gives her an opportunity to connect with the wider community in and around Cramlington. She has been an ever present in all plans Launch Pad related and is looking forward to seeing the foundation develop and The Launch Pad being a real asset in a community that needs it most.
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Karen plays a huge part in helping us shape our community strategy and we are delighted to have her on board.
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Trustee
John Downes
John has over 20 years’ experience within the charity sector, 16 of which have been at national Sports charity Street Games where he is the Director of Place for the north as well as Head Of Youth Partnerships.
John was originally involved with Cramlington Rockets and has been for over 5 years, coaching and leading on safeguarding for the club but recently has joined the Foundation as a Trustee. John brings bags of experience to his role and supports us with our overall strategy and operations. A man of many talents, John is also a trustee of the Centre for Life in Newcastle and vice chair of New Hartley Governors.
John has often commented about how proud he is to be a trustee of Rockets Community Foundation, he enjoys utilising his vast skill set and experience to make a difference within the local community.
Trustee
Robert Philips
Rob served in the Royal Air Force for 23 years before turning his hand to teaching. Rob is a teacher at Shilbottle Primary as well as the Special Educational Needs Coordinator. Another parent turned volunteer; Rob was key to setting up a satellite club Alnwick Bears back in 2018.
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Growing up in Leeds he witnessed first hand the power of strong communities and the difference volunteers can make. Robs favourite thing about volunteering is giving young people a voice in situations where they are normally unheard.
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Rob brings an authentic passionate voice to the board room, and we are delighted to that he volunteers his time to support us on our journey.
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Trustee
Douglas Kay
Doug is the Treasurer of Rockets Community Foundation and a long serving Rocket. When not volunteering, Doug is a Technical Director for a large engineering company specialising in Structural Engineering.
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What Doug enjoys most about volunteering is, providing his services to the charity sector allows him to make a difference and creates an opportunity for him to give back, whilst making him feel connected within his community.
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Doug has been a vital asset to Cramlington Rockets RLFC and we are delighted to have him on board at the Foundation.
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