Co-operative Assistance Network Limited

Hilary Sudbury – Associate and Development Worker

Hilary has been providing business and governance support for co-operative and community led organisations from small membership worker co-operatives to large membership community benefit societies in Bristol and surrounding areas since 1996. Hilary enjoys working across all business sectors from community led housing to community owned assets (piers, pubs, pools, renewable energy etc.) at all stages of development including pre-feasibility, incorporation and conversion to a co-operative or community led model. She has expertise in governance reviews for existing organisations and advises on developing community share offers including assessment and awarding the Standard Mark. She is an accredited Community Led Housing Enabler and Licensed Community Shares Practitioner and also has direct experience as Co-ordinator for South West Co-operative Support and Society Secretary for Low Carbon Gordano.

John Merritt – Development Worker, Member and Director

John was born in 1959 and has a Master of Philosophy, Diploma in Social Work, Certificate in Co-operative and Social Enterprise Support and Credit Union Development Education. He has been working in the Co-operative and Social Enterprise Sector since 1998. Specialist areas of support include Credit Unions, Health and Care and Co-operative Movement development. John has been project coordinator for Southampton Co-operative City project.

Brian Titley – Development Worker, Member, Director and Society Secretary

Brian has been working in the co-operative sector since the 1980s. Currently elected Vice-Chair of Co-operatives South West, he is a specialist in finance, marketing and governance, and was project manager for the promotional work which resulted in the successful £1million share issue by Co-operative and Community Finance. After secondment to the University of Southampton, where he completed research into management needs in growth SMEs, a decade ago Brian returned to work for CAN. As well as his role as Director and Finance Director in several co-operative enterprises, Brian is a long-standing Co-operative and Community Finance trustee, and has been CCF Staff Trustee and on the Management Committee since 2006.

Rosie Hadrill – Member and Development Worker

Rosie has been working in the co-operative movement since 2006 when she was involved in co-founding Café Kino, a successful worker co-operative café in Bristol. A Member of the Association of Accounting Technicians, Rosie has vast experience of bookkeeping, payroll, accounts preparation and corporation tax for co-operatives of varying sizes, sectors and structures. She is also a qualified Social Enterprise Adviser with a Level 5 Certificate in Social Enterprise Support.

Chris Funnell – Development Worker, Founder Member and Director

Chris Funnell has been a co-operative development worker for over thirty years. During that time he has played a part in the establishment of over a hundred co-operative enterprises currently trading. He has experience of going into diverse sectors and areas of interest to set up partnerships and communications; e.g. regeneration partnerships in urban areas and small market towns, rural enterprise development projects and international projects. All of these projects call for open mindedness, networking skills, being able to 'learn the language' and an ability to understand and synthesise the special strengths of organisations.

"Friend" Chris on facebook here.

Deana Wildgoose – Associate

A connector, a catalyst and a creator of useful tools for community led regeneration, Deana leads on the use and sharing of the Wicked Spreadsheet – a tool developed by CAN to enable groups to carry out a quick viability check on the potential for bringing assets such as buildings into community use and ownership. Deana is a qualified chartered accountant and teacher.

Austen Cordasco – Development Worker, Member and Director

Austen joined the co-operative movement in the late eighties when he became a member of Bramble Wholefoods – a wholesaling co-operative in Essex, where he introduced computer and bar coding systems and carried out his first stint as Company Secretary. He was a founder member of MillRace Furniture Restoration Co-operative – a co-operative social firm which is still trading after more than 20 years – also in Essex. Austen has extensive experience of delivering ESF funded programmes, of project management, work in the charity sector and of tutoring IT skills to vulnerable adults. He is a qualified trainer and NVQ assessor. Since joining CAN in 2005, Austen has taken on leadership responsibilities for product development and ICT.

"Friend" Austen on facebook here.

Associates are individuals with whom we have a long standing relationship – some are ex-members of CAN. They are all skilled co-operative development workers with their own specialist areas of expertise.