Our Trustees
Barbara Chidgey (Chair)
A previous secondary headteacher with over 31 years’ experience in senior leadership roles in education in both England and Wales, Barbara is passionate about leadership, fairness, and equality. From headship, she has been working in the private sector concentrating on bespoke leadership development skills’ support and training. She is a highly experienced coach, facilitator, and a designer of events.
Barbara is currently an associate of Cardiff Metropolitan University, studying for a professional doctorate. She is investigating the use of conversational leadership, within health and social care settings.
As the Executive Chair of Leading Wales Awards, Barbara has led and driven forward the Awards since their conception and from which Daring to Dream® has emerged as part of its legacy.
Her voluntary roles have included trustee and vice chair with the Community Foundation in Wales, and chair of Chartered Management Institute in Wales, (CMI Cymru was founded under her chairmanship). She is currently also Chair of Engage for Success Wales and also a Bevan Advocate (part of the Bevan Commission).
Barbara started Daring to Dream® as a named charitable fund in 2019, inspired by her own extensive patient experiences and trusted relationships with health professionals. Her own journey helped her learn just how important to physical recovery for a patient is their emotional health and well-being.
Barbara became trustee and chair of Daring to Dream in July 2020.
John Chown (Treasurer)
John is a qualified chartered accountant and has been a director of Williams Ross Limited in Cardiff for 17 years. He has had a professional involvement in providing assurance services, advice, support, and training in the not for profit sector covering charities, credit unions and other voluntary organisations for a number of years.
His voluntary activities have included being a management board member of the Wales Co-operative Centre for over 14 years and being a board member of Cynon Taf Housing Group since September 2018. John also became a trustee of The Bevan Foundation in January 2020.
John joined the Daring to Dream board in July 2020.
Dr Nav Masani MBBS MRCP (trustee)
Nav is a highly experienced consultant cardiologist specialising in the non-invasive management of heart disease and adult congenital heart disease. He is a subspecialty expert in echocardiography with a high national profile and international reputation; he is the Past President of the British Society of Echocardiography and Founder/Director of the Cardiff Echocardiography course. He has held a number of leadership roles at Cardiff & Vale University Health Board and was recently appointed Assistant Medical Director for Strategic Clinical Planning Programmes.
Nav joined the board of Daring to Dream® in July 2020. He brings an understanding of the need to support patients’ emotional wellbeing at times of physical illness, particularly in the hospital environment. He is keen to improve the understanding and interactions between patients, family, and healthcare staff.
Alison Taunton (Trustee)
Alison is a Solicitor who has worked, as part of the NHS in Wales since finishing her legal studies in 1995. Alison has extensive experience managing clinical negligence claims involving a wide range of legal issues to include high profile and highly emotive cases. Her present role includes looking at the strategic management of claims across Wales. She also works with the local judiciary and nationally looking at changes to the litigation process.
Prior to her legal career Alison worked as a dentist in general dental practice and as a junior Oral/Maxillo-Facial surgeon, in hospitals in London, South and West Wales following her qualification as a dentist in 1986.
Alison is an empathetic experienced Solicitor, advocate, leader, and communicator.
