A day in the life: Jane

Published: 23 Oct 2023

If I wake up early enough, I enjoy starting the day by reading in bed. I love crime fiction, but nothing too gritty – I like that there is always a neat ending.  

When it’s time to start work I head to my office. I’m lucky enough to have my own study at home, with a heater, sofa and an overly large pile of reading. I also have lots of photographs of my god-children, of which I have an entire brood. I’ve been fortunate that my friends have shared some of the joys of parenting with me – the youngest is going to be 16 and the eldest has two children of her own and I’ve got everyone in between. It’s great fun.

I’m delighted to say I don’t have a typical day. As the CEO, I’m often at in person meetings, presenting webinars, or taking part in debates and roundtables. I spend a lot of time replying to emails and meeting with the team – formally and informally. The best thing about being a charity CEO is getting to work with such extraordinary people. The passion of the team at Working Families and the generosity of our donors make it the most rewarding job I’ve ever had. I love to work and I think work can be an extraordinary mechanism for getting people who wouldn’t normally meet one another to open their minds. Because you meet people at work that you would never have met in your ordinary day to day life. 

I have complete autonomy over my calendar. Lucky for me I have the best PA in the world who helps manage my diary. We use a colour code system so it’s easy to see what’s coming up next and what’s a priority.

I first wanted to work for a charity to do what I could, in my small way, to improve the world. I grew up in apartheid South Africa, where ‘injustice’ doesn’t begin to cover the atrocity that was committed. Aware of my privilege, I’ve always wanted to make things fairer. I found that the more senior I got in roles, the more autonomy I had over what I did—I really enjoyed being able to influence the working culture.

Being able to work flexibly is so important. When I was in my first proper job, my boss allowed me to flex my working day to visit my estranged father who was ill in hospital. It was a privilege I’m forever grateful for, as it transformed my relationship with my father who died a few years later. I’ve been a carer for my mother, who had Alzheimer’s, and both my mother-in-law and father-in-law during their final years.

I’ve also been lucky enough to be very involved in the lives of my 5 UK god-children – standing in for their parents when their work demands got in the way of life. We’re all in a family of some kind; we all need to work – making those pieces of the puzzle fit into our life is so important! I want to do everything I can to ensure people get to thrive at home and at work.  

Ashtanga yoga is my go-to to switch off from work. I have a poor sense of balance and little proprioception (knowing where your body is in space), so yoga is all encompassing for me.