Leanne is the Founder and Chief Executive of Aching Arms, established in 2010 in memory of her son James, to support the emotional well-being of parents after pregnancy and baby loss and to raise awareness of its impact. She became the charity’s first Coordinator in 2013, and was then was appointed full‑time CEO in 2018 and has shaped its development into a national support charity. She also serves as Secretary of the Pregnancy & Baby Charities Network, contributing to sector‑wide collaboration and advocacy. Before founding Aching Arms, Leanne worked in the Education Sector for 18 years as a teacher and consultant.
Roberta is the Communications Manager at Aching Arms and has been involved with the charity since its early days in 2015, beginning as a volunteer preparing bears for London hospitals and supporting fundraising and social media. She has since developed the charity’s wider communications strategy, helping to raise awareness of its vital work. Passionate about increasing the charity’s profile, Roberta is dedicated to supporting many more bereaved families. Having found comfort herself in receiving an Aching Arms bear, Roberta understands the profound difference the charity can make to families who lose a baby during pregnancy, at birth, or shortly after.
Laura joined Aching Arms in July 2018 as our Volunteer & Operations Manager. She oversees the day‑to‑day running of the charity, supports the Chair, Trustees and CEO, and manages our team of more than 150 volunteers. Laura coordinates the provision of bears to families and to our growing network of hospitals, hospices, befriending groups and funeral directors across the UK. She also ensures every baby’s name dedicated in memory is carefully added to our Dedication List. With a degree in business management, Laura brings excellent organisational skills to her role. She is proud to be part of Aching Arms and values the opportunity to offer comfort to families when they need it most.
Helen joined Aching Arms in 2024, bringing over 25 years of experience in corporate sales and relationship management. She works closely across the organisation and with our business partners to ensure workplaces are supported following a bereavement, helping employers and employees understand the impact of pregnancy and baby loss and the support available. Helen leads on sustainable income generation, overseeing corporate partnerships, grants, and trusts. She is passionate about Aching Arms’ mission, particularly in supporting and amplifying the voices of those who are childless not by choice.
Erica Stewart is a bereaved parent and mummy to Baby Shane who died following major heart surgery at 8 weeks old in 1983. She has three living adult children; Baby Shane was her third child.
Erica has 25 years’ experience working with bereaved parents and families at Sands (Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Charity). She started working as a volunteer on the Sands helpline in the mid ‘90s and after two years she became employed at Sands and worked her way up to Bereavement Support and Awareness Specialist working across all Sands teams. During Erica’s time at Sands, she co-facilitated the South East London Sands Support Group.
Erica trained at CBUK in Advanced Facilitation Skills and is a qualified counsellor and has her own private practice. She brings her knowledge, skills and experience to Aching Arms in her role in the Care Team.
Tom came to know Aching Arms following the death of his son Joshua in 2018. A year later, Tom began fundraising for Aching Arms. He completed many challenges including running marathons and cycling 200 miles in memory of Joshua.
In 2022, Tom started volunteering for Aching Arms by joining the Men’s Working Group. The group shared their experiences and helped us plan a support service specifically for bereaved Dads. Following this, Tom took on two important roles for Aching Arms. Not only did he volunteer to help facilitate the monthly Dads group, and in the latter part of 2023 take over the organisation and running of this, he is also the author of our book, "You are a Dad…you always will be" which will be gifted, by health professionals, to bereaved dads across the UK alongside the gift of an Aching Arms bear.
Tom is very excited to be part of the Aching Arms Support team and will focus on providing support for bereaved dads via the monthly group and through one to one support.
Kate joined Aching Arms in 2021, with many years of experience in digital marketing and communications. She initially supported the charity as a freelance social media manager before moving into a permanent role. Now serving as our Communications and Corporate Partnership Officer, Kate supports both teams to raise the charity’s profile, strengthen partnerships, reach more families in need, and contribute to sustainable income generation. Kate feels deeply proud to work with a charity whose values mean so much to her and is passionate about helping Aching Arms support as many bereaved families as possible.
Claire joined Aching Arms part time in 2023 as project lead for the Be Together programme. Following the loss of two babies in pregnancy, Claire has developed a passion to support parents and their families following baby loss.
Her role within the Be Together programme is to organise events for bereaved parents and families to attend to find comfort, friendship and support whilst creating new memories together.
Claire has a Master’s degree in physiotherapy and worked as a senior physiotherapist in the NHS for 15 years prior to joining Aching Arms. She is proud to be working for Aching Arms in this new chapter of her life.
Ilana has supported Aching Arms since September 2018 after losing her first baby Joel. As a result of receiving an Aching Arms bear, Ilana became passionate about the charity and its values. With her husband Adam, she volunteers for the charity in order to support and help other bereaved parents and families. The two worked together on a training video for health professionals, raised money with their families for Aching Arms, and most recently spoke about their involvement with Aching Arms on Global's Make Some Noise Day. Ilana joined Aching Arms in January 2023 as our Community and Events Fundraising Officer, providing support to our fundraisers. Ilana brings to her role many years of experience fundraising locally and nationally for causes close to her heart. She has a BA Hons Degree in Musical Theatre and prior to joining Aching Arms, worked as an SEN Learning Support Assistant and was actively involved in the fundraising sector. Since Joel's death, Ilana has held fundraising events for her local hospital's maternity charity, raising funds for maternity bereavement care. Ilana is honoured and proud to be a part of the Aching Arms team in her role as the Community Fundraising and Events Officer.
Sharon was a founding trustee of Aching Arms. She was one of the first bereaved mothers who volunteered to get the charity started in 2010. After the loss of her daughter Lily, Sharon welcomed the opportunity to reach out to help other families devastated by the loss of their baby. She worked with Leanne to establish the fundamentals of the charity, the style of bears, the ribbon colour and carefully chosen key messages that would go with each bear.
Sharon has fundraised in her local community and became the volunteer Merchandise Manager in 2013. In this role, she has established an excellent range of charity merchandise, available for purchase and for promotional use. In August 2020 we were delighted to appoint Sharon as part time Charity Merchandiser where she continues to run our charity shop. Sharon is an experienced Primary School Teacher working in the West Midlands and is very happy that Lily’s memory lives on through her work for Aching Arms.
Danielle was honoured to Join Aching Arms in February 2022 after the loss of her baby during pregnancy. Receiving an Aching Arms bear gave her great comfort and she wanted to be able to help bring that comfort to other parents and families who have experienced the loss of a baby.
Danielle works for Aching Arms part time, to help assist with the day to day running of the charity. She ensures the volunteers have everything they need to get bears into hospitals in order to provide comfort to families in need. Danielle’s work background involves a variety of different administration positions, from being a front office manager in a hotel to working in education as an administration officer.
Sundeep was elected as Chairperson of Aching Arms in September 2018. She has been an advocate of raising awareness of stillbirth and baby loss after her own experience of giving birth to her stillborn baby boy in September 2014. She works across her corporate network in improving corporate policies and practices towards pregnancy loss.
As the Chairperson for Aching Arms, she is responsible for ensuring that the board of trustees fulfill their responsibilities for the governance and the strategic direction of Aching Arms.
Professional life: Sundeep is a seasoned business executive having worked in many global organisations in senior leadership roles. She has lived in many parts of the world – India, New York and London and has worked in large financial services organisations. She has extensive experience in building strategic partnerships with large and mid-sized organisations and government bodies. She has relationships with members of the media and press. She is also an active contributor to various publications on topics that are close to her heart. Her contribution to the Huffington Post on baby loss has been widely read and circulated.
Melissa joined Aching Arms as a volunteer in 2013, following the death of her first-born Madison Veda. Melissa is the hospital coordinator for four of her local hospitals in North West England, supporting both the Delivery and Early Pregnancy wards. She has spoken at various events, including bereavement study days, on behalf of the charity and she speaks passionately about Madison and how Aching Arms has helped both her and her husband cope with their loss. Melissa is a trained Ambassador for Aching Arms and a keen fundraiser who was elected a Trustee in February 2018.
Melissa is currently a teaching assistant in early years and a part time domiciliary carer for a private care company. Melissa has worked as a customer relations and complaints resolution manager prior to this. Melissa is also mum to her four rainbows.
Donna started volunteering for Aching Arms after losing her daughter Violet in 2013. Initially focused on preparing bears for her local hospital in Southampton, she soon branched out to become an ambassador, delivering training in hospitals across the south coast. Donna has utilised her skills over the years to support Aching Arms in creating strategy and delivery plans to support the growth of the charity. More recently Donna has been helping to grow the corporate exposure, managing the LinkedIn pages and supporting the design and delivery of the workplace training
Donna has worked for a global insurance company for 15 years, focusing on management of change and transformation activity. Outside work, she has two children and enjoys live music and theatre. Donna became a Trustee for Aching Arms in January 2022 and is looking forwards to bringing her passion for better workplace support for baby loss and change management skills to support the charity.
Andrew Morris is a seasoned business leader with extensive experience in strategy, operations, and digital marketing. Currently serving as Head of IT and Marketing at IRM UK, Andrew leads on strategy, product development, and marketing for a portfolio of high-profile conferences. With a background spanning event management, business development, and charity sector programmes, he brings a broad skillset and a proven track record of driving operational excellence.
In addition to his professional expertise, Andrew has a deep personal commitment to the mission of Aching Arms, having experienced baby loss in 2021. This personal connection fuels his passion for providing support to bereaved parents and advocating for their needs. As a Certified Digital Marketer with the Digital Marketing Institute, Andrew leverages his expertise to enhance brand visibility and engagement, helping organisations to grow and deliver impact.
Marie became a postal volunteer for Aching Arms after the death of her second child, Matilda, in 2022. Marie and her husband were given an Aching Arms bear as they left the hospital without their daughter. The bear became an important fixture in the family's life, with Matilda's big brother often falling asleep holding it. She has found the role as a volunteer rewarding and loves to take time and care preparing the bears and reading each baby's name. Marie has been a nurse in the NHS for 10 years, with her current role being a Senior Emergency Department Charge Nurse focusing on the education and development of staff. She has recently joined the Board as a Secretary, hoping to bring her experience within the NHS to advance the care and support provided to bereaved families.
07464 508994 support@achingarms.co.uk
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