What is Brook?

It's the leading provider of sexual health services for young people in the UK and Jersey.

Why has Brook just published new guidance on working with boys and young men?

We know there is a lot of concern about teenage pregnancy and the sexualisation of young people and sometimes that results in blaming young men, so they become the problem. They tend to put on a big old mask of masculinity, but inside, there's a lot of anxiety. The work we do is vital and this is a guide for practitioners and commissioners to help them focus on young men.

What's your background?

I did a psychology degree in Cardiff, where I got involved in HIV prevention and then got a job with the Family Planning Association working on a boys' project in the south Wales valleys. I'm passionate about young people's right to information and support on sexual health and want to see a change in culture and attitude, so Brook was natural for me – I've been there four years now.

What skills do you bring to the job?

One thing that really helps is the six months when I was seconded to the Department of Health. It was really helpful in understanding how policy is made.

What's your leadership style?

Some recent comments have been that I'm creative and energetic and have a clear vision about where we need to go, but I sometimes need to stop and sit with staff to talk to them about how we will get there.

What's on your agenda?

In April, Brook becomes a single organisation, bringing together our existing network of 17 independently constituted charities. That was a protective mechanism in the face of legal challenges to our work with young people, particularly those under 16; it meant that if someone took Brook to court in Doncaster, the rest of our services would be fine. But the right to contraceptive advice for under 16s has been upheld and now we want to ensure consistency across the organisation and use resources as effectively as possible.

What skills do you need?

We have brilliant frontline staff and general managers, but we need more expertise in commissioning and contracting. We are used to grant funding and tendering is a very time-consuming process. We need more of a business approach and people able to set up services very quickly.

How badly will you be hit by the public sector budget cuts?

We are sitting tight and holding on and trying not to make cuts too quickly, because we have brilliant staff and if we let them go, it will be very difficult to build our teams back up. We know that for every £1 spent on contraception, you save £11 in the health service alone.

What do you do when you're not working?

I share a horse in Wiltshire, so I go there as often as I can.

Interview by Jane Dudman

Brook.org.uk