Meet Our Brilliant Board
Sumaia Mashal
Chair
Sumaia has been Chair of the Board of Trustees at Leaders in Community (LiC) since 2022 and has been actively involved with the organisation for many years. Her commitment to youth empowerment began during her time as Chair of the Poplar HARCA Youth Empowerment Board, where she led a successful funding campaign and oversaw the development of the Spotlight Youth Centre, a key partner of LiC.
Sumaia is passionate about creating opportunities for young people, reducing inequalities, and promoting female leadership. She is involved in numerous professional networks that focus on these causes and actively participates in coaching and mentoring programmes.
A clinical pharmacist by training, Sumaia transitioned into national roles at the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England, where she worked in various professional and policy capacities. She now works at a consulting firm, supporting national health policy initiatives.
Sumaia enjoys experimenting with new food recipes, adding her twist to them. She loves traveling, especially when it involves snorkelling, diving, or hiking and has also recently discovered a passion for boxing, a hobby she stumbled upon by chance!
Hema Kana
Vice-Chair
Hema has been involved with LiC since 2018. Her involvement began through a beginner beekeeping course they offered. That experience led her to see more about LiC and its mission.
What she finds most inspiring about LiC is the way they equip young people with the skills and confidence to lead. The charity creates a space for learning and growth, encouraging youth not just to participate, but to take charge of their own futures.
In the same way that bees instinctively know their value within the hive, LiC helps young people recognise their potential to make a difference.
But what’s truly remarkable is how LiC’s work ripples across generations, ensuring that everyone in the community feels a sense of belonging. By nurturing young leaders, LiC strengthens the entire community, just like how a hive’s success depends on the collective effort of every bee.
Hema is honoured to support LiC’s mission as a board member, knowing we’re shaping a future where young people lead with purpose and passion.
Shelly Zucker
Treasurer
Shelley has recently joined the LiC Board as Treasurer. She is a Depositary Manager, looking after UK authorised funds and ensuring compliance and safeguarding of assets, focusing on maintaining the highest standards in governance and regulatory adherence. Her role involves collaborating closely with clients to navigate regulatory requirements and to provide robust oversight and risk management.
Prior to this role, she worked in Agency Securities Lending, focusing on regulatory and control oversight, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements, implementing controls, and managing risk to support seamless lending operations and trading.
Shelley’s experience gained in both Depositary Management and Regulatory Controls Oversight aligns well with the responsibilities of the Treasurer position, bringing key pillars of oversight, compliance, and challenge to the Board.
James Allwinton
Vice-Treasurer
James has been a trustee and the Vice Treasurer of Leaders in Community since 2016, where he oversees financial governance and ensures the charity’s sustainability.
With eight years of experience as a bond trader at JPMorgan in London, James brings expertise in financial management, ethics, governance, and accounting to the organisation.
In 2023, James transitioned from investment banking to focus full-time on his publishing company, where he works with independent authors in a variety of fields. He is a holder of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) qualification, which underscores his commitment to financial integrity and ethical standards in all aspects of his work.
James holds a BSc in Economics from the University of Manchester. Driven by a passion for community development, James is dedicated to supporting Leaders in Community’s mission to empower young people from diverse backgrounds.
Graeme McLean
Graeme is a financial regulator working in Newham. He is currently the Head of CEO Office at the Financial Conduct Authority where
he supports the delivery of its strategic and operational priorities. He has been a Trustee of Leaders In Community since 2019 and is also a Trustee of Your Place, the homelessness charity based in Newham.
Graeme is a football manager at Millwall Albion FC. He lives with his wife and their two sons in Tower Hamlets. His passions are music and sport (including marathons and half-marathons).
Sarah Najjuma
Sarah is the founder of Discover Diaspora, a tech platform connecting diaspora communities to their heritage, and Virtual Assistant Diary, an agency providing executive support with a team spanning multiple countries. Growing up in Tottenham, in a family of eight children, Sarah’s determination to defy the odds is driven by her mission to leave a lasting impact through her legacy.
Sarah was awarded “Business Woman of the Year 2023” by Foundervines Changemakers Awards and was most recently nominated for Young Entrepreneur of the Year by the prestigious Precious Awards.
Her portfolio includes organising the WinTrade Summit at the House of Lords, London Stock Exchange Group, and Lloyds of London, as well as working with reputable clients such as PsiQuantum and Aspire Education Group. She also project-managed a programme empowering 20 Black British entrepreneurs to experience an interactive business week in Uganda.
Sarah has worked with Foundervine, Lloyds Bank, Amazon Web Services, and Lambeth Council and mentors youth empowerment programmes for organisations such as Leaders in Community.
Asad Bendeali
Asad founded A Spark Consulting in 2021, a research and human-centred design firm with a mission to educate and empower those driving public system transformation. Through his work, Asad aims to equip those who serve communities with the tools and knowledge to drive impactful change.
Asad has led numerous transformative projects, from launching the “Growing Kinship Connection,” a kinship navigation programme in child welfare, to designing and facilitating equity-centred leadership programmes for health care leaders. His work emphasises real-world solutions that centre on equity, innovation, and transformation.
Before launching A Spark Consulting, Asad served as a Policy Strategy Lead at St. Louis County, Minnesota, where he focused on elevating the voices of families, communities, and tribes to reduce child abuse and neglect. His efforts involved community engagement, impact investing, strategic planning with key stakeholders, and grant making.
Prior to this, Asad was an Improvement Advisor at Community Solutions, coaching leaders across 10 government jurisdictions on using quality improvement, data analytics, and human-centred design in service of ending homelessness.
Asad is a former Foster America fellow and holds a Master’s degree from Cal Poly Pomona and a Bachelor’s from the University of California, Irvine. He lives between Los Angeles and London, with his wife and son.
Nasim Ahmed
Nasim is a board member and trustee at Leaders in the Community (LIC) since 2019. However, his journey with LIC began much earlier, as he participated in several youth projects with the organisation during his teens.
Nasim is truly grateful to be part of LiC, especially at this pivotal stage of its history, where its expanded its reach significantly and deepened its engagement within the local community. His role as a trustee has given him the opportunity to assist in shaping strategic priorities, contribute to key decisions, and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements.
He brings a blend of legal knowledge, strategic thinking, and governance experience to LiC. He is an aspiring solicitor, and has a background that spans: youth engagement, community outreach, and corporate governance, making him well-equipped to support LiC’s mission of empowering young people and improving community wellbeing.
Nasim is committed to using his skills and experience to further elevate LiC’s presence and contribute to positive, lasting change that empowers young people in our community to grow, thrive, and reach their full potential.
Janice Arthur
Janice is a trainee solicitor at a leading property development company, where she plays a key role in drafting complex contracts and assisting with multimillion-pound deals. Her legal expertise, particularly in the areas of property law and high-value transactions, allows her to navigate intricate legal frameworks with precision and insight. Janice holds a law degree, which has provided her with a solid foundation in legal principles and a strong commitment to justice.
In 2024, Janice joined Leaders in Community as a trustee, motivated by her passion for empowering young people. She is dedicated to helping young people develop the skills and opportunities they need to speak out about important community issues and challenge inequalities. Janice believes that young voices are vital to creating positive change, and she is committed to supporting initiatives that amplify their perspectives and drive social progress.
Through her work as a trustee, Janice aims to combine her legal background with her dedication to social justice, helping Leaders in Community create a more inclusive and equitable society.
Janice is proud to contribute her knowledge and experience to an organisation that shares her vision for empowering the next generation of leaders.