Foundation 25: Rise to the challenge for the ICAS Foundation
Do you want to help a talented young person join the profession? Join our Deputy President, Alison Cornwell CA and raise money for the ICAS Foundation. Following the success of Alison’s fundraising efforts last year, we’re calling on fellow CAs to join her and take part in this year’s fundraising campaign.
We’re looking for 25 CAs to rise to the challenge and raise £1000 each for the ICAS Foundation to generate £25,000. You can join by doing any challenge, nothing is too small or too big. Whether you’re into cycling, climbing a Munro or there’s a secret baker inside you - we’d love to hear from you.
In 2022, Alison cycled over 1000 miles from Land’s End to John O’Groats and raised £25,500 for the ICAS Foundation while doing so.
“By calling on my network, I was able to raise over £25,000. It showed that as a community, CAs want to support talented young people from disadvantaged communities to join our profession.
“For 2023, I am asking you to join me in becoming a member of the Foundation 25. Have fun, challenge yourself, tap into your networks and raise much-needed funds for the ICAS Foundation.”
The aims and purpose of the ICAS Foundation
The ICAS Foundation supports academically talented students from disadvantaged communities to study accountancy and finance at university, offering bursary funding, mentoring support and help with finding internships and graduate jobs.
As a charity that relies on donations, the Foundation couldn’t do what they do without the help of ICAS members, and they need your support more than ever before. Applications continue to rise each year, and this year we saw a record-breaking number of young people apply for funding.
“I didn’t know anyone who was a chartered accountant… having access to guidance from someone who had been through the exams, and then created a successful career, was huge. I believe that being a foundation student accelerated things for me and was part of what enabled me to become a finance director by the age of 25.” Says Sean Grubb CA, Finance Director, The double A trading company and ICAS Board Member of ICAS Members Board.
The CAs making a difference
Alison Cornwell CA
About Alison
Alison is a highly experienced CFO having worked in senior international roles at Disney and then as CFO in three successive PE backed businesses in broadcasting, film distribution and production financing and currently in film exhibition. She is a former Governor of the British Film Institute and is a non executive director of Moonriver TV, the independent production company behind high profile upcoming series Nautilus and A Gentleman In Moscow.
Alison's Foundation 25 challenge
Alison became ICAS Deputy President in 2023 having been an ICAS Council Member since 2018. In 2022 Alison raised over £25k for the ICAS Foundation by cycling 1000 miles across Britain in 9 days.
This year she will be cycling 100 miles, despite having serious ligament damage in her left knee. Please support Alison's challenge and donate here to help her reach the £1,000 target.
Carol Flockhart CA
About Carol
Carol is an experienced Partner, Managing Partner, Non-Exec Director and Chair. Her experience takes in professional practice at CT: Accountants and Advisers, where she has acted as Managing and Finance Partner, and the charity sector, where she served as Non-Exec Chair and Board Member of the film charity CMI from 2011-19.
As well as being a CA, Carol has led multiple strategic and change management programmes for her own organisations and clients alike. One of her passions is leadership and people development, and bringing people together to fulfil potential. Carol is intellectually curious, with a continual learning and development focus, both for herself and others.
Carol's Foundation 25 challenge
Carol loves the outdoors and is a keen walker, having covered many of Scotland’s long distance walks and byways – West Highland Way, River Ayr Way, Cateran Trail and Rob Roy Way to name just a few. She’s excited to be fundraising for the Foundation 25 by walking 25 miles of the scenic John Muir Way coastline from Edinburgh to North Berwick.
Donate to Carol's fundraiser here.
Geraldine Gammell CA
About Geraldine
Geraldine Gammell is a Chartered Accountant and previous member of the ICAS Ethics Committee. She was formerly the Director of The Prince’s Trust in Scotland and a Partner in Springfords Chartered Accountants.
Geraldine is now a Trustee of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo (Charities) Limited and an non executive Director of its trading company, a Trustee of the Golden Charter Trust and a non executive Director of its investment company, Deputy Chair and Governor of Kilgraston School and a non executive Director of Reform Scotland (Scotland’s independent think tank).
"Doors opened in my life and my life choices increased, thanks to my accountancy studies and qualification. This was possible because I received a non-repayable grant to attend university. Being a ICAS Foundation trustee lets me play my part in helping open doors and increase life choices for others; able, hard-working young people who, with the support of the Foundation, can study accountancy and finance. I firmly believe that recruiting young people from diverse backgrounds makes the sector more reflective of our society, stronger and much more fun to be part of."
Geraldine's Foundation 25 challenge
Geraldine will be hosting some dinner parties as part of the Foundation 25 challenge, to raise £1000 for the ICAS Foundation, that she has been a Trustee for six years. Geraldine says, “As my friends know, I am not one for cooking, so this will be a real challenge!”.
If you'd like to support Geraldine's fundraiser, please email us, communications@icas.com
Graham Getty
About Graham
Graham lives in Amersham, Buckinghamshire, with his wife, Sylvia, and is now fully retired, having taken early retirement six years ago, to coincide with his completion of 25 years’ service with Swiss based Kuehne + Nagel International AG, one of the largest logistics companies in the world, and with the successful removal of a benign tumour on his lung.
During his time with Kuehne + Nagel, Graham held various senior positions including Finance Director UK, Finance Director BeNeLux Region and Head of Procurement, Western Europe.
For eight of those years, Graham was based in Rotterdam in The Netherlands and it was there that he met Sylvia and bought his first bicycle: as he says it’s impossible to live in the Netherlands and not have a bike!
Since retiring, Graham has further developed his passion for cycling and rides most days, whether that be round the Chiltern Hills or on an indoor bike. Graham also regularly attends Yoga and Pilates classes.
Prior to developing this passion for cycling, and for over 20 years from the age of 13, Graham was a regular participant in cross country and road running races across the UK. Graham was a Double Full Blue (in Cross Country Running and Track and Field Athletics) at Strathclyde University and represented Scotland at the marathon. Graham competed for three top clubs: Bellahouston Harriers and Cambuslang Harriers in Scotland and Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers in England.
Graham's Foundation 25 challenge
In light of the above, perhaps it is not surprising that Graham’s chosen challenge is, in five months, to cycle 3,297 miles, equivalent to the distance from Seattle to Miami!
Support Graham's challenge by donating here.
Richard Grant CA
About Richard
Richard qualified as a CA in 1991 in Edinburgh with KPMG and then spent 2 years in their Prague office when the Czech Republic was in the process of moving away from a planned economy system.
He then moved to London where he spent the rest of his career in financial services, latterly as the Chief Operating Officer for a boutique investment firm based in London. He's now semi-retired and fills his time with lots of cycling and more recently as the Chair of the London Area Network for ICAS.
Richard's Foundation 25 challenge
Richard says "The ICAS Foundation does some fabulous work in helping young people start on the road to a career in finance and he is delighted to help raise some much-needed funds." He goes on to say, "However, it seemed a little too easy for me to commit to a bike ride (something I do all the time) so have decided to attempt a Sky Dive for the first time. Something that both excites and terrifies me at the same time!"
Donate to Richard's fundraiser here.
Elizabeth Gammie CA
About Elizabeth
Elizabeth Gammie is Dean of Aberdeen Business School at the Robert Gordon University. Throughout her career she has been actively involved with ICAS and currently chairs the Qualification Board, the TPE Assessment Board and sits on both the Oversight Board and Council. She has been involved with the Foundation since the embryonic concept stage, was one of the founding trustees and will shortly stand down from the Foundation after completing two terms as a trustee of the charity.
Elizabeth's Foundation 25 challenge
Elizabeth has chosen to share this experience with her colleagues from the Aberdeen Business School at the Robert Gordon University. They are going to walk 10 miles (leaving the Garthdee Campus to walk to the Milltimber Bridge and back).
Chris Barber CA
About Chris
Chris was appointed Chief Financial Offer of ICAS in April 2022 joining from Peter Vardy Automotive Group where he was Group Finance Director and was responsible for Financial Control, Financial Planning & Reporting, Tax, Treasury, IT and Compliance.
Chris qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2004. Starting at Arthur Andersen, he then moved to Deloitte where he worked for 9 years across Audit & Assurance and Corporate Finance. He specialised in Advertising & Media and spent the majority of his time working on a FTSE 100 Multinational Advertising, PR & Communications company headquartered in London.
Chris' Foundation 25 challenge
chosen to undertake the Edinburgh Mighty Stride Kiltwalk, a 21 mile route around Edinburgh.
Bruce Cartwright CA
About Bruce
Bruce was appointed Chief Executive in March 2018 having initially joined ICAS in May 2017 as Executive Director, Policy Leadership.
As Head of PwC’s Scottish Corporate Restructuring practice from 2001-2016, Bruce led the team on a number of high-profile solvent and insolvent corporate restructures in Scotland and abroad. His final significant assignment was as one of the Global Receivers in the Receivership of OW Bunker, a $17 billion turnover Danish-listed company supplying fuel to the global shipping market.
Bruce qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1989. Following an initial period in the Assurance practice he spent the vast majority of his professional career in PwC’s restructuring team. Primarily working across the UK, he also worked in Malaysia, Central Europe and Denmark. He was seconded to Royal Bank of Scotland and Carnaud Metal Box during his PwC career. Bruce also spent one year at Ernst & Young.
Bruce is also a former member of Council and chaired the Insolvency Committee, Technical Policy Board and Oversight Committee in relation to Scottish Independence.
Bruce's Foundation 25 challenge
Having taken up boxing training in the last year it has become a bit of a passion for Bruce, but also the most challenging exercise he's have ever done - 12 rounds of 3 mins and no time to clock watch! Bruce will also walk and spin, overall his personal fundraising challenge will be, 15 hours of boxing training, 120 miles walking and 15 hours of Spin training.
Chinwendu Ogboh CA
About Chinwendu
Chinwendu is a Chartered Accountant and spent the early years of her career working as an External Auditor at KPMG working within the insurance sector. She is currently the lead accountant for AB CarVal Luxembourg and Ireland.
Having moved to the UK from Nigeria almost 10 years ago, Chinwendu accredits the fully sponsored KPMG school leaver program for helping her realise her dream of going to university and pursuing a career in accountancy. She is a firm supported of any initiative that provided such support for other people in disadvantaged communities. She believes that taking part in the foundation fundraiser will be one of many future plans to give back.
Previously, chinwendu actively trained and competed as a sprinter for the Cambridge Harriers athletics club. As a newbie to long distance running, she has decided to break out of her comfort zone and complete a half marathon in support of the ICAS foundation.
Chinwendu's Foundation 25 challenge
Chinwendu will be challenging herself to run a half-marathon. As someone who has never run more than 10km, Chinwendu says that this challenge is definitely way out of her comfort zone but she truly believes that it is for a worthy cause.
Ricky Munday CA
About Ricky
Ricky Munday is an inspirational speaker, international expedition leader, humanitarian and Chartered Accountant.
As a Chartered Accountant, Ricky is a resilient and highly motivated corporate services leader with an unusual breadth of experience transforming large, multidisciplinary and multicultural support functions in complex and insecure environments across the public, private and third sectors, and completed field missions in post-disaster scenarios in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean.
Ricky's Foundation 25 challenge
Ricky is attempting to cycle across Scotland on the John Muir Way in one long day. It’s a 212 kilometre route from Helensburgh to Dunbar.
Komal Madani CA
About Komal
Graduated First class Honours in BSc Accountancy at the University of Birmingham. Komal is currently working as an Audit Manager at KPMG.
Komal's Foundation 25 challenge
Having previously been badly injured to the extent where it was difficult to walk for months, it made me appreciate the freedom that comes with simple movements such as walking and running. With that in mind and ow having fully recovered, I decided to sign up for the Ultra Challenge Half Marathon to push myself out of my comfort zone and challenge myself to try and achieve more than I would have previously signed up for.
Karen Scholes CA
About Karen
Karen graduated from Napier University in 1984 with a BA in Accounting, before commencing training with Whitelaw Wells in Edinburgh. After qualifying through ICAS as a CA in 1988, Karen returned home to Orkney to manage A J B Scholes, the accountancy practice started by her late father, and was a sole practitioner in the firm until it was incorporated in 2008.
Karen is now a partner/director at Scholes CA, retaining a hands-on approach to management within the firm. She is also ICAS Vice-President.
Karen's Foundation 25 challenge
Karen will be undertaking an evening of modern jive dancing.
Get involved
If you have ever wanted to raise money for a great cause but didn’t know where to start, then this is the perfect opportunity for you.
By signing up to fundraise for Foundation 25, you’ll be supported by the ICAS and ICAS Foundation team while fundraising and feature in CA magazine.
Keen to take part? Pick a challenge and email us at communications@icas.com to join.
