Our team
Learn more about the Noahs Star Team
Jo-Anne Shellum
CEO and Founding Trustee
Oscar spent 12 weeks in the Neonatal Unit at Birmingham Women’s Hospital and those 12 weeks were challenging for the whole family. Jo-Anne uses these lived experiences to create and grow Noah’s Star.
Jo-Anne’s loves to spend time outdoors with the family husband Kevin and children Daisy, Oscar, and Belle.
Gemma Champion
Project Manager
After experiencing some time on a Neo-Natal Unit in 2016 with her own son, Gemma connected with Jo-Anne just as Noah’s Star was in the process of starting their journey. She knew the need for such a service as there was nothing like it available within any hospitals and she was very passionate to be involved and to be able to help make a difference to so many families. Gemma is incredibly proud to be employed by Noah’s Star and loves the variety of her job role, every day is different! She supports everything that Noah’s Star stands for and is fully committed to helping the charity thrive and grow. When not working Gemma spends most of her time outdoors with her young family doing activities such as camping, sailing, walking and forest adventures.
Gemma Albanese
Trustee
Gemma is a part-time Civil Servant and full time mom to twin girls. Born in 2017, her girls arrived at just 30 weeks following complications resulting from a rare condition called Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome. It was whilst they were receiving care in NICU that she met Jo-Anne and her wonderful team. They were such a fantastic support to her at that time – even the simple things such as a smile and cup of tea went a long way in what was a very lonely and tough time. Since then, the charity has grown and developed such a vast array of excellent support services for families! Following first-hand experience she is really passionate about Noah’s Star.
Chris Baker
Trustee
Chris is Head of Design at 5874 Commerce, a Birmingham-based commerce and marketing agency. Chris has over 8 years’ experience in the design industry, including experience in branding and customer experience working with clients ranging in size and sector. Previous roles include Lead Designer at Squibble and as a self-employed freelance designer.
Born in the West Midlands, Chris grew up in Mid-Wales and has come full-circle by moving back to the Black Country. Chris has a degree in Digital Art and Technology from the University of Plymouth.
Nic Skipwith
Trustee
Nic has spent over 17 years in the fundraising sector, with 15 of those working directly for charities, both large and small. Currently she is Director of Operations at Oaks Consultancy, supporting socially-minded organisations to develop effective fundraising strategies and business development plans. Nic is ultimately accountable for the fundraising performance of all Oaks current partnerships. She oversees the day to-day performance of the team and provides a strategic steer to each of the existing relationships to ensure we client expectations are met. Her most recent post before joining Oaks in 2018 was at Macmillan Cancer Support, where she was in charge of leading a team to raise over £1.5million from a variety of income streams. Originally from Hertfordshire, Nic relocated to Birmingham with her husband 11 years ago and is a mum to two small children. She loves sports, travelling and generally enjoys spending time with friends and family.
