Our story so far…
Barbara Souster was a youth worker based in Islip, Northamptonshire. She devoted much of her life to supporting a group of young people she called the ‘Guild of St Nicholas’ and they met in the shadow of the village church of the same name.
Barbara was a woman of faith and helped young people explore questions of faith and involvement in the local church. She also took her group away to the seaside each year and supported them as they reached adulthood in many ways.
Arthur Souster (Barbara’s father) had worked in the marketing department at Weetabix. During the course of his work he was rewarded with company shares. When Barbara inherited these shares and was later made an offer to sell them, she set up a trust fund so that young people would continue to benefit from her resources. This legacy was used to help set up The Souster Youth Trust in June 2015.
Jason Royce was appointed as the Director and began work in February 2016, shortly followed by the rest of the team.
We have established ‘Souster Youth’ as a charity working in local schools to support the social, emotional, and spiritual needs of young people. We also work closely with churches and community organisations to help youth ministry flourish in East Northamptonshire.
In December 2017, Thrapston Methodist Church was purchased to be used as a permanent base for our work. We intend to use the building as it currently stands whilst we fundraise for an extensive refurbishment and modernisation.
Meet the team
Tim Sandford
Director
Tim has over 20 years experience of working with young people in a variety of settings; in schools, in churches, in youth groups, and within the charitable sector. In previous roles he worked at the charities Youthscape (Luton) and Step (St Albans and Harpenden). Tim initially joined Souster Youth in January 2018 as a Schools Worker, before taking on the role of Director in September 2024. He loves talking about the big stuff of life and hearing the thoughts and ideas of young people. Tim is married to Becky and they are kept on their toes by their mischievous two children, Nathan and Phoebe. Tim enjoys playing or listening to music, sport of any kind, board games (especially when he wins), D&D, and anything created by Apple.
Tim’s work this year has been made possible by an award from Postcode Places Trust, a grant-giving charity funded entirely by players of People’s Postcode Lottery.
Anna Freij
Psychological Health Lead
Having trained as a counsellor at the renowned Metanoia Institute, Anna worked predominantly in the charitable sector where projects included creating a service for people with learning disabilities and their families. She was one of the first people in the UK to study wellbeing at postgraduate level (Masters in Applied Positive Psychology run by Dr. Ilona Boniwell). Anna was asked to be involved in the innovative Well London initiative and delivered the DIY Happiness programme for the South London and Maudsley NHS Trust. Grounding her consultancy practice in wellbeing (Positive Psychology) research, she also developed an evidence-based employee engagement programme for her clients. Since moving to Northamptonshire, Anna has worked with women at Pen Green in Corby. Evaluation of the intervention she devised and delivered showed a mean percentage increase in wellbeing of 63%. Anna joined Souster Youth in 2016. Her publications include: Freij A (2009) Strengths and Positive Psychology: The Strengths Recipe for Success
Megan Wild
PA/Office Manager
Megan joined our team in 2021 as a PA/Office Manager, bringing her experience from leading the admin department at a medical equipment company. With a background in Business Administration, Megan keeps everything running smoothly—and has a lot of excitement for all things stationery. She’s married to Jonathan, and when she’s not running the office, she’s busy singing, dancing, and having fun with their energetic little boy, Silas. Megan’s enthusiasm and energy make her the spark that keeps our office going.
Bex Hunter
Drop-in Lead
Bex joined Souster Youth in September 2022. She has been involved in youth work for most of her adult life in touring drama teams, youth clubs, summer camps and schools, as well as spending 6 years working for Youth For Christ and Junction42 in prisons in the North East of England. Bex’s role involved using drama and the creative arts to reach those who are marginalised, and working alongside the prison chaplaincy teams to deliver alpha and discipleship courses. Bex has loved getting back into youth work with Souster after a 8 year gap enjoying time with her 3 children Dylan, Cerys and Ewan, and whenever she is not in work she is being entertained and kept busy by them.
Alicia Kift Development Year Intern
Alicia joined Souster Youth in September 2024, she has just finished sixth form after studying Drama, Business and Philosophy & Ethics. This year Alicia is doing a Development Year as a part of the Peterborough Diocese Ministry Experience Scheme (MES), growing in faith and youth work skills alongside the other interns in the area. She will be assisting the rest of the Souster team with Drop-ins and lunch clubs throughout the year. Alicia has been serving in her church on the children’s ministry team for the last 6 years, and has now become a leader on the youth ministry team. She has also been serving on her worship team for 2 years, and you will often find her singing in her spare time. She enjoys spending time with her friends and family and will usually be with them when she isn’t in the office. This year she hopes to strengthen her youth work skills through working with the Souster Youth team as well as deepen her faith and have a great time getting to know the Souster team, the MES group and all of the young people they work with!