Our Staff

Our staff cover a wide variety of roles and work in many different environments: WSHA main office, Barrowfield Community HUB, other WSHA locations such as Sheltered Housing sites, and also home working.

We have two teams within Willowacre Trust - Community Services & Support Services.

Meet the Team 

Retirement Assistant - Gillian Wotherspoon

I work in one of our Sheltered Housing Sites in Glasgow.  My role involves maintaining the health safety of the building by carrying out daily inspections, weekly fire tests, reporting repairs or maintenance issues.   The other part of my role is to support, interact and engage with the Tenants, I do this by carrying out daily phone calls, general support and visits to their property or making referrals on their behalf to the energy advisor, handy person service or Money advisor to name a few.

There are many activities that go on throughout the year within the complex from lunch clubs, coffee mornings, arts and crafts, relaxation, and mindfulness sessions which I help facilitate.  Unfortunately, due to Covid19 these activities have been put on hold.  Instead, I have helped to ensure the Tenants still felt engaged and less isolated by carrying out daily wellbeing calls, delivering lunches to their door, food parcels, activity packs and personal care items.  The use of electronic tablets was offered to the Tenants to help enable them to connect with other Tenants or family members through a video call.

I have worked for WSHA/Willowacre for just over 2 years, and I love my role; every day is a new day and I enjoy the interaction with the Tenants and their families.  I feel a very privileged person working with the tenants and cannot thank them enough for letting me be part of their lives.

Older Peoples Coordinator - Clare Bird

I line manage the retirement assistants and cleaners who all work within our sheltered housing.

My role is varied and certainly keeps me on my toes with regards to what I deal with daily including staff support, health and safety at sheltered housing and managing external contractors for sheltered housing.  I love my job and feel privileged to work with some of our older tenants within our housing stock as they are such a wealth of information, experience, and stories.

I started working with WSHA/Willowacre in October 2017 and have thoroughly enjoyed my time here so far. My career has been varied having worked in community development, housing, education, employability  as well as one of the original adult volunteers with Police Scotland Youth Volunteers. 

My motto is to Enjoy Life as it Comes and Make the Most of Every Day.

Money Advice Officer - Sharn Boyle

I have been delivering a professional and quality Money Advice Service to WSHA tenants since joining the team in October 2018. Prior to joining Willowacre Trust my career had mainly been within the Advice and Support services in a variety of different roles. A career that has spanned many years, more years than I care to admit!

I am someone who enjoys a good natter and putting people at ease. I like to think that my approach is the reason why tenants continue to access the support of Money Advice and have the trust in my commitment to each individual.

Energy Advice Officer - Kevin Bonaccorsi

I was part of the original team that set up the money and energy advice service back in 2014 and I’ve been working ever since to support our tenants to reduce their energy bills and resolve their complaints.

Prior to joining the association, I was with SSE  for almost 5 years in a variety of roles which gave me the knowledge and understanding I needed about the energy sector to help our tenants.  I am also constantly looking at ways to increase my knowledge in order that I can always provide the best advice and guidance.

To date I have assisted directly over 1,400 households and managed to save over £126,000.00, however every case is different and every situation is unique and I will work with tenants to find the best solution to your needs.

Digital Participation Officer - Simon Freeburn

My role involves ensuring our tenants and the wider community have the confidence, skills, and equipment to get online. This means helping people get the best out of their laptop / tablet / smartphone, staying safe and secure online, keeping in touch with friends and family and much more!

Before joining West of Scotland Housing Association I spent five years at Thenue Housing Association in a similar role. This experience built up my confidence as a community development worker and gave me opportunity to bring my own talents to the job. This included computer programming for adults, a device repair service, a digital lending library and even support for local businesses.

So, whatever your motivation for getting online, I can help. Whether that be searching for a new job, getting the best deals online, getting broadband in your property or even just to have fun. I’m always happy to help and enjoy learning new things just to be able to do so.

Community & Support Services Assistant - Hilary Jones

I work on a variety of the projects and services we deliver, including:

• Providing administration support for the CSS managers and team.
• Organising the Starter Pack service for new tenants, through which we provide a variety of essential household items for tenants to allow them to take up their tenancy with WSHA.
• Assisting with the Food Parcel Service, Imagination Library, and the Upcycling Service, through responding to enquiries from tenants, dealing with referrals from other departments, and maintaining accurate records.

My background includes working for several years in the charity sector, after completing a degree in social sciences. The most rewarding thing about working for Willowacre Trust is feeling as though you are making a positive difference to tenants lives and the wider communities we work with across the West of Scotland.