Lisa Stepanovic MBE
CEO & Founder

Lisa is a true Eastender, of Polish and Irish descent. She cares deeply about the community and making East London safe and inclusive for everyone, having always lived and worked locally. She started her career as a market trader and from an early age was honing entrepreneurial skills. Lisa went on to support at-risk young people with legal issues and appeals.

Brogan Brooks Youth Lead

Brogan prides herself on being a relatable role model for the young people in the community. “To see the change you’ve got to make the change!”

A fitness instructor, and award-winning social entrepreneur. Brogan’s experience spans from working at Box Up Crime, as programme lead, to working independently with schools across Barking, Dagenham and Redbridge. Brogan has also completed the Social Ark ‘Step Up’ and ‘Investment Ready’ programmes, and continue to give back as Alumni. To date, I have worked with over 1,500 young people, many of whom were identified as ‘at-risk’ or/and from ‘marginalised backgrounds’.

Katakyie Zak Addae-Kodua
Leadership Team

Katakyie brings a wealth of experience to the team as a young person who came through our Step-Up programme as a participant and went on to be a project manager for our last Investment Ready programme. Katakyie is also the founder of Xconversation CIC where he utilises his lived experience to support young people at risk.

Tiwa King Leadership Team

Tiwa King is a multifaceted, award-winning social entrepreneur who uses her diverse talents to serve the sector. She is the Founder of Beyond a Song CIC, utilising the power of music and voice to instil wellbeing in companies and communities, and actively supporting and advocating for parents of neurodivergent children. Drawing on her expertise from the Social Ark Investment Ready programme, Tiwa is now part of the leadership team at Social Ark, where she continues to project-manage and mentor across various programmes. Her multifaceted approach has taken her around the globe, making her a sought-after consultant in the sector.

Tasha Cowperthwaite
Justice & Systems Change Lead

Tasha is an experienced facilitator and engagement lead with a background in Criminal and Social Justice, Passionate about empowering individuals with lived experience, Tasha collaborates with sector leaders to break barriers that redistribute power and drive systemic change. Specifically for children & young adults, Tasha builds programmes to reduce serious violence and disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline, also leading the national Parental Imprisonment group at Firebird Foundation. Tasha draws from her personal experience, to challenge and influence decision-makers.

JR Josephs Leadership Team

JR is a visionary social entrepreneur dedicated to empowering young people through creativity. As the Founder and CEO of Sirlute, . Through his work, JR has transformed Sirlute into a vital gateway for young people from under-resourced backgrounds, helping them develop their skills and break into the creative industries. A Cambridge Innovation Award winner and qualified life coach, JR is passionate about mentorship and sustainable change. As a past alumni of Social Ark’s Step Up and Investment Ready programmes, he benefited from the learnings, mentorship, resources, and extended guidance from CEO Lisa Stepanovic. Now part of the Social Ark Leadership team, JR plays an active role in programme delivery and mentoring new beneficiaries, passing on his knowledge and experience supporting next generation of social entrepreneurs succeed.

Jasmine Singh

Jasmine is the Chair of Social Ark, as a founding member, she brings a wealth of lived experience to our board. Going from participant to Trustee to Chairperson speaks to the Social Ark values. Jasmine provides a unique insight into the challenges faced by our young people. She is an East London local who loves working hands-on to support our start-up social entrepreneurs.

Manny Ebokosia

Manny is our newest Alumni board member, joining in March 2021! During his time with Social Ark, he founded True Cadence, a social enterprise that teaches young people about the music business. Manny stepped up to lead as our peer representative, ensuring our young people are supported at every level. Manny also contributes to Social Ark through co-designing programmes and peer-mentoring other members.

Jane Sterland

Jane is an independent third sector consultant, supporting voluntary groups and charities to develop their fundraising skills. With 7 years experience working for the National Lottery Communities Fund, Jane has led projects to promote volunteering and worked extensively in project and change management in the public and private sectors. Jane’s supported Social Ark since 2014, before we even had a name!

Jon Lloyd

Jon is a real estate solicitor with over 35 years’ experience in buying, selling, asset managing and developing real estate assets. He works with various stakeholders including institutional investors, property companies, individuals and family trusts.  Jon has worked closely with us for more than five years providing mentoring support for entrepreneurs and also assisting on various ad hoc matters.

Emma Macklin

Emma has worked with us since 2019, with a background in working with charities including The National Lottery Fund, DCMS, and now Social Investment Business. Emma has worked with youth charities across the country to develop their impact measurement and funding models. Emma has much experience working with at risk young people and has always been passionate about supporting under-resourced communities ensuring young people flourish.

David McQueen

David McQueen is passionate about developing leaders. A family man first, he is the husband of one, father of two and friend of many. He has founded and cofounded a number of businesses including Q squared, Black Founders Hub and Evermoor. David has supported us since the beginning providing expert mentoring and bespoke leadership workshops for our young entrepreneurs. Our young people love him!