Meet the team
Equine Care Staff
Chris Waterman – Hapton Equine Centre Manager
Chris has worked at Redwings for seven years. He started off working at our Caldecott Visitor Centre near Great Yarmouth for a couple of seasons and then moved to our Hapton HQ south of Norwich, where he is now Equine Centre Manager. Chris had never worked with horses before but took an HND in Animal Science and Welfare before joining the organisation – he says the best thing about his job is the horses (“because that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?), and his favourite resident is a naughty little pony called Chips who likes to escape from his field when no one’s looking!
Vet Nurse
Sally Sutton – Head Veterinary Nurse
Sally is our head nurse and has worked with Redwings for over 13 years. Prior to this she was a receptionist with a boat hire company, which helps explain why she’s such a natural with people!
Initially Sally worked on the equine care team but we soon spotted her potential and encouraged her to apply to the veterinary unit. Despite reservations as Sally had quite a phobia about blood, she joined the veterinary team and now regularly assists with surgery!! Sally went on to gain the prestigious Equine Veterinary Nursing qualification in 2007.
Sally says she enjoys her job as she is proud of the way that all the various teams interact and help each other across the Redwings sites and she genuinely enjoys seeing neglected horses grow back to health. Sally’s favourite Redwings residents are Bungle and Sierra, both of whom Sally has done a lot of nursing work with (and apparently Sierra has beautiful eyes!)
Admin
Gemma Carnell – Assistant to the Chief Executive
After graduating from University, Gemma started at Redwings in 2004 as a member of the Caldecott Visitor Centre team. She spent a Winter working in our mail order and supporter services departments, before becoming Caldecott’s Deputy Visitor Centre manager for the 2005 season. After nearly three years in the role, Gemma made the move to Redwings HQ and into the CEO Team, where she is now assistant to our Chief Executive Lynn Cutress. Gemma says she loves her job because “I used to dream of visiting Redwings, ever since I was six years old when I first adopted Pepper, and now I get to be here every day.” Her favourite residents are stunning Wellington (“the most handsome pony I’ve ever seen”) and adoption pony Darcey (“I must have a thing for dapple grey ponies…”).
Maintenance
Lee Granville – Maintenance Team Member
Lee Granville has been with Redwings for three and a half years, on the Sanctuary’s dedicated Maintenance team, who have an incredibly varied life and can be doing anything from mending fences and water tanks to making bird boxes, putting up display boards and even getting involved in major horse rescues! In his LBR (Life Before Redwings), Lee was a painter, especially applying fire protection coats to buildings – interesting enough in itself, but he says he loves his job at Redwings for the sheer variety of work on offer. His favourite horse? Well he doesn’t have a favourite as such (we know, it’s so hard to choose!) but in his own words, he likes ‘the big ones’!
Nights
Vikki Gordon – Night Welfare and Security Manager
Vikki has worked at Redwings for seven years and oversees the charity’s Nights Team, who have a very important role checking all the horsey residents every night and making sure our sites are secure and safe. And she loves her job – “Everyone's contribution to Redwings is recognised and appreciated. Plus, it’s a far cry from what I have done in the past! I get to see all of our sites, see all the horses and get to appreciate all the wildlife during the night. It is a great time to be out walking too. It is not as scary as some may think.”
Before Redwings Vikki worked for about eight years in an amusement arcade… “if you need a fruit machine servicing or repairing you know where to find me!” Her favourite horse changes all the time but the current favourite is little Evie, a young foal with a rare skin condition, “she has overcome a lot of issues and is now super soft to touch. If she could fit through my cat flap I would have her and take her home!!” Now, Vikki, you know that’s not allowed…!
