Luke Southall
Co-Founder
Luke has dedicated his career to supporting the global sport for good community.
Utilising his expertise in fundraising, strategy, business planning and governance, Luke has spent the last 14-years working across the full spectrum of the global sport for development sector. Having worked with organisations such as sportanddev, The Arsenal Foundation, ITTF Foundation, TAFISA, The FA, Special Olympics International and UNHCR, Luke’s passion is building capacity and financial sustainability within the sector, and he has helped to secure more than €50m of funding into the global sport for development movement.
From joining Oaks Consultancy as an intern, he was appointed as Managing Director in 2017 and led the company’s sport for development business. In addition to supporting 100s of sport for development organisations, Luke spearheaded the industry-leading annual Fundraising in Sport for Development: State of the Sector series of reports, webinars and events.
Luke has held a number of board positions within the sector and is currently a trustee at The Change Foundation.
Rahul Bissoonauth
Co-Founder
Rahul has spent 12+ years working within sport for good with a focus on fundraising and grant-making.
He most recently served as Chief Commercial Officer at Yunus Sports Hub - an international social enterprise led by Nobel Peace Laureate Muhammad Yunus - leading the organisation’s fundraising and commercial efforts and working alongside partners including the International Olympic Committee, Paris 2024, GIZ, AFD, Laureus Sport for Good and Ashoka.
Prior to joining Yunus Sports Hub, Rahul worked at Oaks Consultancy for more than 10 years, holding roles from intern and manager to director and board member. In this time, Rahul led and supported 100s of strategic planning and fundraising-related projects with organisations of all sizes. He has provided support to federations, grant-makers and award-winning NGOs such as Sport England, Sporting Equals, UEFA, Magic Bus, the Lawn Tennis Association, and many, many more.
Rahul is a board member at the People’s Postcode Lottery trusts and a panel member at the Football Foundation and the Growth Impact Fund.
Jess Shepherdson
Trusts and Foundations Lead
Jess Smith
Trusts and Foundations Fundraiser
Lucy Wilkes
Trusts and Foundations Fundraiser
Keri McDonald
Capacity Building Lead
Laura-Maria Lehiste
Advisory Board Member
Paul Hunt
Advisory Board Member
Sally Nnamani
Advisory Board Member
Marisa Schlenker
Advisory Board Member
David Given-Sjolander
Advisory Board Member
Vicky Lowe
Advisory Board MemberOur Team
Trusts and Foundations Lead Jess is an experienced trust fundraising specialist who has spent nearly a decade advising organisations using sport for good. She leads our trusts and foundations fundraising team, supporting our clients and partners to strengthen their capabilities and source new grants and funding opportunities.
Capacity Building Lead Keri brings over a decade of experience in fundraising, project management and partnership building within international sport for good, having until recently led international projects and fundraising campaigns for The Association for International Sport for All (TAFISA). Keri will lead and coordinate our capacity building work, focusing on the development of tools, resources and fundraising training for the sector.
Trusts and Foundations Fundraiser Lucy is an experienced bid-writer with a degree in English and Philosophy, and has spent the past few years fundraising for a combination of sport for development charities and education causes. As part of our trusts and foundations team, Lucy crafts compelling proposals, identifying new sources of funding, and scripting blogs, reports and courses to help build fundraising capacity within the sport for good sector.
Trusts and Foundations Fundraiser Jess brings direct fundraising experience from the sector, having worked with the LTA Serves programme, Special Olympics International and many grassroots community groups in recent years. She joins our growing trusts and foundations team and will provide fundraising and capacity building support to organisations using sport for good across the UK and around the world.
Our Advisory Board