Our People

Chair

Danielle Friend

Danielle Friend, owner of accountancy practice Create Balance, joined our board in 2024 and bought with her extensive charity experience. Through Create Balance, which is based just outside Tunbridge Wells, she provides Finance Director (FD) services to a regional air ambulance charity as well as previously being the FD of a Maidstone-based drug and alcohol charity.

Danielle was born and raised in Tunbridge Wells and attended Tunbridge Wells Girls’ Grammar School (TWGGS). She began her finance career as an apprentice in a local accountancy practice before heading for the bright lights of London. Danielle then found herself back in Tunbridge Wells in 2004 working for a local export business, before launching her own practice in 2013.

“Pickering is a charity close to my heart and I’ve wanted to be part of it for some time,” says Danielle. “In 2022, I lost a very dear friend to cancer and she had cared a lot about the charity, even before she was ill. To continue to see it thrive and help so many others will be part of her legacy. To serve as part of the Pickering board and be given the opportunity to shape the future of the charity, is nothing short of a privilege.”

Helen Yates

Dr Helen Yates joined our board in the summer of 2026, having recently retired as a GP at Grosvenor and St James Medical Practice in Tunbridge Wells, where she worked for 34 years.

Helen brings with her a wide experience of being there for patients undergoing cancer treatment and recognises the important role The Pickering Cancer Drop-In Centre plays in providing vital emotional support during active treatment and afterwards.

She says: “For many years I have been signposting patients to the Pickering Centre and hearing only good things back about the fantastic support they provide. Increasingly stretched medical services only focus on medical treatment and not the person as a whole and the devastation a diagnosis makes on so many facets of their life.

Pickering is unique in providing holistic, empathic support from people who really understand, as they have had their own journeys. I am delighted to join the team and hope that we can grow and reach out to as many people as possible, wherever they, or their loved one, are on their cancer journey."

In her spare time Helen is enjoying the freedom retirement is giving her to try and improve her not very good golf handicap, travel and catch up with family and friends.

Freya Hodge

Freya Hodge joined our board in 2026 and is our youngest trustee to date but brings a raft of both professional and personal experience to the role. Freya graduated from the University of Sheffield with a degree in journalism and she loves telling stories - whether that's through an article, a short-form video, a magazine feature or a brand's social media.

Freya is a journalist working for a B2B trade magazine publisher. Previously, she worked as a Marketing and PR Assistant at local accountancy firm and also gained experience at Tunbridge Wells Business Magazine, writing Q&A interviews, local news and feature pieces.

In her third year at university, Freya was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma and became a visitor at Pickering. Today, she’s both a member of the Teenage Cancer Trust's Creative and Campaigns Group, and a Trustee for Pickering.

“These are both roles that let me use my skills for causes that genuinely matter to me,” says Freya. “Being trusted to help steer a charity is easily one of the things I'm proudest of.”

In her spare time, Freya likes to paint, trawl through vintage shops and loves reading.

Head of Volunteers

Janice Rees

Janice joined The Pickering Cancer Drop-In Centre as a volunteer six years ago and then, after the pandemic, she took on the role of co-ordinating our volunteers. After 30 years working in the City, she was on the lookout for an opportunity to volunteer and on a few occasions nearly applied for roles in other charities. Something always held her back and when she heard about Pickering, it seemed like the perfect fit and she is glad she waited for the right one!

As volunteer team leader, Janice organises the volunteer rota, interviews prospective new volunteers and arranges induction sessions for them. She organises each month’s rota a few weeks in advance, making sure there are enough volunteers for each session and a good balance of experienced and newer volunteers.

Janice also recently took on the role of Safeguarding Officer.

She says: “Volunteering at Pickering has brought me into contact with a diverse group of people both within the team of volunteers and amongst our visitors, which makes the role so interesting and the conversations so varied! It is great being part of the team and the Centre is a friendly, welcoming place where laughter is frequently heard. It’s a wonderful community where volunteers support visitors and visitors help and support each other. New visitors don’t know what to expect when they ring our doorbell but we hope they soon feel the warmth and the welcome.”

DBS Coordinator

Trish Fearnley

Trish has been volunteering here at The Pickering Cancer Drop-In Centre since 2018.

“I first found out about Pickering when I was working at Thomson, Snell & Passmore [a law firm in Tunbridge Wells],” Trish explains. “It resonated with me, as I’d had my own cancer diagnosis in 2003.”

Trish retired in 2017 and gave herself six months of being ‘properly retired’ before getting in touch with Pickering to discover more about becoming a volunteer.

“Now I come in most Wednesdays and enjoy chatting with our visitors, as well as helping out with some of the admin,” she says. “Having retired, I missed being ‘part of a team’ and the sense of belonging that comes with that. At Pickering, I’ve found that again. There’s a lovely warm feeling here; I enjoy talking to our visitors and hearing their stories which are often inspirational. I think they feel a little better when they leave and I feel I’ve done something worthwhile with my time.”