The Team

Chair

Vanisha is a Doula, trained baby wearing and breastfeeding peer supporter she is also a childcare professional with over 25 years in childcare and education. She has worked with families in their own homes as well as in nurseries and playgroups and has supported families with children that have physical disabilities and learning difficulties.

She has experience of running childcare training workshops for an independent agency as well as running her own bias awareness workshops for healthcare professionals, breastfeeding and birth professionals. She is a huge advocate for equity and ensuring representation in and around the birth world for all marginalised people and have spoken and written about these issues since 2017.

Freelance Operations Manager

Louise Oliver is an NCT trained Breastfeeding Counsellor, a Peer Support Trainer, and Doula who has been supporting families for over a decade.

She founded Diversity in Infant Feeding after noticing the distinct lack of diverse representation in the infant feeding world. The organisation aims to change how infant feeding is portrayed by promoting inclusivity and increasing representation through online platforms and an online image bank. She is the Director of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at Early Nourishment CIC, an organisation that provides universally accessible services with the aim of reducing social isolation along with improving families’ physical and mental wellbeing. Louise is also an Executive Director of New Baby Network CIC, an organisation that connects parents and carers by offering safe, non-judgemental spaces that are held by peer supporters who offer empathetic listening and evidence-based information.

Louise is passionate about social justice and is dedicated to creating positive change. She strives to highlight, challenge and dismantle barriers in order to contribute toward a more equitable society.

Team Member

Carmelle Gentle is a mother of two, an independent Midwife, tongue tie specialist and IBCLC, and Hay House Author. She supports families to troubleshoot through complex feeding challenges with tangible strategies to achieve a more confident, empowering and positive feeding experience.

Carmelle recognises the lack of diversity within the lactation realm amongst professionals who provide lactation support as well as the disparities for parents receiving support. She has co-directed Black Breastfeeding Week for the past two years and is excited about being part of Spectrum to continue to support and make progressive change within the community.

Team Member

Ilana is a neonatal doctor and breastmilk researcher working in the field of human milk for the preterm infant. She is co-chair of the Hospital Infant Feeding Network and a trustee of community breastfeeding charity Oxfordshire Breastfeeding Support. She strives to be an antiracist ally.

Team Member

Dr Nav Paul MBBS BSc (Hons.) MRCGP DRCOG DFSRH DPD PGCert MRCP FRSA is a Senior Clinical Fellow in Dermatology and GPSI (GP with special interest) in London. She is passionate about equality, diversity and inclusion in healthcare. She hopes to use digital technology to improve accessibility and representation for all people.

Team Member

After a career as a Deputy Headteacher, Emma trained with the Association of Breastfeeding Mothers, qualifying as a breastfeeding counsellor with them in 2007. The ABM was founded in 1979 and trains health professionals and volunteers as well as speaking for families on a national advocacy level. ABM breastfeeding counsellors run the National Breastfeeding Helpline alongside the Breastfeeding Network. Emma qualified as a Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) in 2011. She has supported families at groups in North London for 13 years for Haringey Breastfeeding Support and volunteers on the helpline alongside her work as a trainer, writer and speaker on breastfeeding and infant feeding issues. She has two children and lives in London.

Team Member

Wanja Knighton is the founder of RISE (Racially Inclusive Skin Evidence), an international non-profit that collects diverse images for digital health and artificial intelligence for healthcare purposes in order to combat racial bias, her vision is a future where all are equal under the eyes of those who need to see us

Team Member

Dr Justice Reilly BSc MBChB MRCS DOHNS IBCLC is a speciality breast doctor in Glasgow and La Leche League breastfeeding counsellor. She has 3 daughters and is committed to improving access and equity in maternal and child healthcare.