Ann Fannin has been a life-long campaigner for peace, justice and equality and sees the Gay and Grey research project as an extension of her commitment to diversity and egalitarianism. Much of her working life was spent in Social Services with older people. She holds a degree in Peace Studies (Bradford University). Before joining Bournemouth University as a lecturer in 1995, she worked as a social worker in adult social services in London and Dorset. Her particular interests are in practice with older people and community care, and she has published an number of journal articles in this area. She also developed and taught a research programme for older people in Community Survey Research – funded by Older and Bolder, in September 2004. Tina Hicks had a varied career including the armed forces (from which she was discharged for her sexuality) and the National Health Service. She has considerable experience of carrying out health related surveys and writing the associated reports. Since retiring she has carried out assessments on voluntary groups applying for charitable funding, participated in the development of a social group for lesbians and continued her love of theatre. Nichola Lavin was employed by Help and Care as the facilitator for Gay and Grey for the first 18 months of the project. She found this a challenging, enjoyable and very rewarding role. Prior to this she worked for Connexions, providing advice and guidance to young people across Dorset. She left the project to move nearer to her family in Birmingham, and is now undertaking a degree in Social Work. Keith holds professional qualifications in nursing, social work and teaching; and academic qualifications in nursing, social work and management. He has worked in the education and training field for over 30 years, working for three universities and three local authority social work departments. Currently he is the Director of the National Centre for Post-Qualifying Social Work and Professional Practice at Bournemouth University and the Director of the Centre for Leadership Impact and Management at Bournemouth. In 2005 he was awarded the Linda Ammon Memorial Award, sponsored by the then Department for Education and Skills, a prize awarded to the individual making the greatest contribution to training and education in the UK. His main academic interest lies in the fusion of academia and professional practice to help improve professional thinking and practice.
