I also ran courses on these topics specifically designed for CVSs and other second tier and local authority infrastructure support workers who had to advise and support organisations, and provided training about the voluntary sector for local authorities and other funders.

Alongside open training I did a similar range of courses for individual organisations, ranging from tiny local groups to national organisations, covering the topics above and more. Such training was always tailored very specifically to the organisation, and always included a report with recommendations and suggestions, and support in implementing the recommendations.

As well as training I had always undertaken in-house consultancies or facilitated discussions to help with in-depth problems, board effectiveness and other governance issues, organisational restructuring, constitution reviews, incorporation and other major changes. By 2015 I had moved away from most training and was concentrating primarily on consultancy. I have now semi-retired even from consultancy, but still do occasional governance reviews, constitution reviews (articles of association etc), mentoring and in-house board training. I also regularly provide free information or signposting to organisations which contact me with specific queries.

As well as training and consultancy, I have written extensively and was well known for my many publications about local organising, voluntary sector governance and management, and how the law affects voluntary organisations. For more than 20 years I produced a widely used and respected free legal update email service for voluntary organisations, with all emails also published on this website. Unfortunately family pressures from 2013 meant I no longer had time to research and write updates on hundreds or even dozens of topics, and when the legal update website pages became dangerously out of date they had to be removed.

I have a BA cum laude in liberal arts with majors in sociology and journalism from Syracuse University (1965) in the United States, and worked as a social work administrator and as a social psychology researcher on community care until moving to the UK in 1968. I worked for one of the first academic microfilm publishers in the UK (1973-76), and as coordinator of the Campaign Against Arms Trade (1975-80). My freelance training in the voluntary sector started in 1980, and alongside that I also did a large amount of writing, editing and other publishing work for campaigning and other organisations in the early 1980s, and worked part-time as a sub-editor in financial publishing from 1983-85.

In 1991 I co-founded the Management Development Network (now Consultants for Good), a network of freelance management and governance trainers and consultants who work primarily or exclusively with voluntary organisations, and remained an MDN convenor until 2015. I was on the advisory committee for PEACe, the Personnel Employment Advice and Conciliation service at London Voluntary Service Council for many years, and was an external examiner for Goldsmiths College's voluntary sector management courses for three years.

During the 1960s I was actively involved in the civil rights and anti-war movements in the United States, and after moving to the UK remained actively involved in peace organisations for many years, including serving as an executive committee member of the National Peace Council, an umbrella organisation, for most of the time from 1981 to 1998, and as a trustee and secretary of a peace movement educational charity, the United World Education and Research Trust, from 1980 until it was wound up in 2006. I was secretary of my tenants and residents association from 2001-2006 and remain actively involved with local activities.