IAG Members

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Steve Atkins

Steve Atkins
IAG Chair

Steve is extremely passionate about grassroots football, and has an unshakable belief in the positive effect it has on people’s lives, no matter what their role in the sport. He has always played the game but started off in volunteering as a coach at the age of 16. Since then he has tried his best to make a difference, taking on many roles from secretary to referee, and from cleaning toilets, to becoming chairman of his favourite local club. Steve is neurodivergent. Being wired differently has its difficulties but he believes it allows him to see things differently and has gifted him with an understanding of equality, diversity, and inclusion. He has a passion to try his best to ensure that everyone involved in football feels comfortable, safe, and happy when participating in all the roles within it. Steve was chair of the Sussex Disability Football League from 2018 till 2023 and is now the president of the league, he is also the chair of our Inclusion Advisory Group (IAG).

Sharon Muxworthy

Sharon Muxworthy
IAG Deputy Chair

Sharon is the FA Regional Coach development officer in the South East and her role is to support new coaches from under-represented backgrounds to ‘Step over the Sidelines’ and get involved in coaching. Her key focus is to recruit support and deploy more female coaches in to the grassroots game as part of FA Education to ensure courses are accessible and fit for the future. Sharon evolved into football from a teaching background of 25 years where she held the roles’ of Director of Sport and Assistant Head at Bede’s School Sussex. Sharon left teaching to join The FA in 2017 and has now turned her remit to inspiring the next generation of females to get into coaching within the grassroots game. Sharon believes in volunteering and this has led to some invaluable experiences of working with and supporting teachers and coaches in Botswana, Lesotho, Rwanda, Ghana, Trinidad and Tobago in their delivery of PE and football through mentoring and bespoke training and development. Additionally Sharon has also run a Wildcats at Newhaven and coached school teams from under-8 to under-19 in the school sector, as well as being part of the ISFA (independent Schools Football Association) Development Committee and Representative Teams coaching staff at under-16 and under-18. During the Euro’s Sharon led the Euro Legacy Workforce group in recruiting more females into coaching and referring roles within Sussex. This also involved the County FA creating partnerships with Brighton University in providing a female pathway for female coaches alongside a female coach development group. Sharon received the accolade of being listed on the 2022 Kindness & Leadership, 50 Leading Lights UK supported by Britvic in recognition of her transformative approach to leading and supporting positive change within her industry.

Jade Harker

Jade Harker
IAG Co-ordinator

With 20 years coaching experience, Jade holds the UEFA C Qualification and is an FA Coach Mentor for Disability. Jade is also Secretary for the Sussex Disability Football League and heads up the Sussex County FA development team. Jade also works as a support worker, helping people with a disability to acquire new life skills. Jade's passion for equality and inclusion has been a constant driving force in every role she has held, including a sports assistant to a Paralympic athlete. Jade believes that football has the power to influence change in society and that the IAG can be the driving force here in Sussex.

Pam Chandler

Pam Chandler
IAG Member

Former player and Taekwondo European champion with over 18 years experience in coaching. Pam gained a First-Class degree in Sports Science and MSc in Sports Coaching Science. She then embarked on her coaching qualifications. Pam currently hold a UEFA B License, Youth Module Award and an MSc in Sports Coaching Science. She has worked with number of grassroots football clubs and their community trusts, later becoming an FA Coach Mentor (Disability) and Coach Developer (UEFA C). Pam has also guest lectured at a number of universities on the Principles of Inclusive Sports Coaching, Adapted Physical Activity, Sport and Disability and Contemporary Issues in Disability Sports Coaching and PE. Her particular interests are developing Disability and Women and Girls’ football, as well as anyone working with under-represented groups, who wish to further develop their skills and knowledge and to form relationships with football's key stakeholders. Pam strongly believes that disabled and female coaches should not be restricted to coaching disability or female football and wants to encourage a more integrated approach.

Sophie Cook

Dr Sophie Cook
IAG Member

Writer, speaker, actor, broadcaster and photographer. LGBT and mental health campaigner. Hon Doctor of Letters. RAF veteran. Self harm and suicide survivor. 13th most influential figure in Brighton, apparently... oh, and transgender. Dr Sophie Cook became the first transgender woman to work in football’s Premier League as club photographer for AFC Bournemouth following her transition from Steve to Sophie in the summer of 2015. Europe’s first trans TV newscaster, Sophie has hosted her own TV and radio chat shows and is an experienced broadcaster. In the 2017 General Election she contested the East Worthing & Shoreham seat, increasing the Labour vote by 114% and narrowly missing out on becoming the UK’s first trans MP. Sophie is a standup comedian, actor and an in-demand public speaker, delivering keynote talks internationally including a TEDx Talk on change, fear, vulnerability, diversity, mental health and LGBT issues. In 2019 as recognition of her work around mental health Sophie was awarded the title of Doctor of Letters honoris causa by Bournemouth University. Sophie was presented with the Outstanding Contribution to LGBT+ Life Award at the 2020 British LGBT Awards and in 2019 was named as the 13th Most Influential Person in Brighton according to the Brighton Power 100. Working with organisations of all sizes, Sophie is honoured to hold the position of Speak Out Champion at the Crown Prosecution Service where she is responsible for improving confidence amongst employees in being able to speak openly about their experiences as part of the CPS’ continued cultural drive to embed EDI within every tier of management across the organisation. Sophie’s published books include her autobiography ‘Not Today: How I Chose Life’ which charts her personal journey from despair to redemption and acts as a self help book for anyone struggling with their mental health and identity, and a series of illustrated volumes that address various forms of bigotry. Sophie is honoured to hold the following positions: Honorary Vice President at Bellevue FC, Ambassador for Kick It Out, Ambassador for the Sussex Disability Football League, Ambassador for Hope Charity Project, Ambassador for Beyond Reflections, Patron of Just A Ball Game, Patron of Proud Cherries, Patron of Space Youth Project, Patron of People’s Pride Southampton, Equality & Diversity Officer Whitehawk FC and member of the Sussex County FA Inclusion Advisory Group.

Christopher Dover

Christopher Dover
IAG Member

Christopher is a self driven individual, who has worked within IT for almost 20 years. He comes with a wealth of experience working in different sized organisations in the public and private sector with varying demand levels and setups, which gives him a unique and fresh perspective on topics such as equality and work standards. He is very supportive of seeing everyone succeed within all walks of life and he is committed to having a positive impact on society. He lives in South East London with his wife and child, and is a lifelong Arsenal supporter.

Sarah Gould

Sarah Gould
IAG Member

Sarah currently works at Brighton & Hove Albion as Supporter Services Manager and has many years’ experience working in football, formerly at Birmingham City. Sarah is passionate about Equality, Diversity & Inclusion has helped the Albion with their equality journey to date. She loves to travel in her spare time.

Amy Marshall

Amy Marshall
IAG Member

Amy has played football for nearly 15 years at a range of levels and currently plays in Tier 6 of the women’s football pyramid. Whilst football has created many positive foundations in her life, her experience has been tainted at times from decisions off the pitch which produced unfair and unsupportive environments. Amy currently works in the charity sector, identifying, understanding, and ameliorating unjust policies and practices to improve community livelihoods. Amy strongly believes that football reflects society and can therefore positively impact people’s lives when executed properly. These beliefs have encouraged her to join the IAG to prevent any inhibitive barriers and ensure that the benefits of football are promoted to everyone, no matter their background.

 Shelley Tiltman

Shelley Tiltman
IAG Member

Shelley has over 15 years experience working in the equality, diversity and inclusion space, heaps of experience creating and being part of affinity groups in FTSE100 and Fortune 500 companies. She also has experience working in the not-for-profit and charitable sector across UK and Ireland. Shelley is the Global Inclusion & Belonging leader at Cognizant, she provides strategic oversight and guidance to help enhance the employee experience, progression of talent and sense of belonging at Cognizant. She also provides consultation, review and delivery in diversity and training programmes aligned to diverse groups at Cognizant. Shelley is a proud member of the disability community and is also a certified disability inclusion specialist and provides advisory. She regularly speaks on external panels on LGBTQ+, women in leadership and neurodiversity and also judges D&I related awards. She is an avid traveller and loves exploring different cultures and ways of doing things. She has played football since a child but took a long break due to lack of access. Shelley is now a member of two local recreational clubs Hot Women FC and Kemptown Kickers and what she lacks in skills she makes up for in determination. She lives with her partner Joanne and her two dogs by the sea in Brighton.

Amy White

Amy White
IAG Consultant

Amy is Head of Training & Wellbeing for Loch Associates Group and leads on the delivery of training and wellbeing services to the firm's clients. Prior to joining Loch, she had a successful career in law for over 15 years, qualifying as a solicitor in 2015. She worked as an Employment Partner for a regional full-service law firm, managed an external HR consultancy and advised on and delivered training to SMEs in a wide range of industries. Amy is passionate about equality, diversity and inclusion, having seen, first-hand, the damage discrimination can do through her work advising on the law and HR best practice. She strongly believes education and training are the best starting point. Outside of work, Amy enjoys musical theatre, keeping fit by going for walks and running and spending time with her daughter.