Meet the team
Lou Cowell
Managing Director
Wildlife Aid has been a major part of Lou’s life from the moment she was born. As founder Simon Cowell’s eldest daughter, no one knows the inner workings of the Foundation better than Lou.
Having grown up with the charity – from young hedgehogs kept warm in the airing cupboard situated in her childhood bedroom, to the exponential growth of an organisation, now, internationally renowned – Lou has been there every step of the way.
From assisting her parents’ vision in the form of feeding young orphaned wildlife and cleaning out cages until she left home, Lou came on board, in an official capacity, over twenty years ago.
Following the loss of her father, Lou has taken over the running of the charity, his legacy, and aspires to the same aim as her Dad in caring for any sick, injured or orphaned British wildlife, and helping to redress the balance between Man and nature.
Alice Serras-Carroll
Manager
Having been fascinated by animals and the environment from a young age, Alice was always a big fan of ‘Wildlife SOS’; little did she know that she would, one day, work at the centre in Leatherhead.
As well as her passion for wildlife, Alice has a keen interest in news and, after studying journalism and history, considered a career as a journalist. A naturally vivacious character, though, Alice was soon snapped up by the cinema and events industry, where she remained for ten years, before deciding she wanted to do something more meaningful. Initially managing a dog training centre, the charity world soon came calling and she embarked upon lending her expertise to International Aid for the Protection & Welfare of Animals (IAPWA).
After volunteering for The Wildlife Aid Foundation in her spare time, Alice quickly realised she wanted to be more involved and jumped at the opportunity to join the WAF team, full time.
Douglas Anderson
Manager
Hailing from sunny Scotland, Douglas studied Zoology at university, with the aim of pursuing a career working in wildlife conservation. In the years that followed, he secured a job working with the wildlife of southern Africa and moved to Namibia, where he ran a research and volunteer programme for a wildlife conservation charity.
After moving back to the UK, Douglas joined Wildlife Aid as our iDot Engagement Officer. His activities in this role organically led to a greater involvement in the development of the new Wildlife Aid Centre, resulting in him recently taking on the role of Centre Manager, with his sights firmly set on making Simon’s dream of the new centre become a reality.
Douglas continues to coordinate our community engagement work with iDot, so if you have any links to local schools, businesses, or community groups that you think would like to engage with our work here at WAF, please don’t hesitate to reach out for a chat.
Judith Monfort Font
Vet
Judith was born in Barcelona, Spain and graduated in Veterinary Medicine at the University of Zaragoza in 2018. Ever since starting vet school, she always wanted to work with wildlife. Whilst at university, she did many courses on wildlife medicine and attended numerous seminars and practical sessions to expand her knowledge. Volunteering for two summers at her local wildlife rescue centre in Catalonia helped her to develop many skills.
After graduating, Judith worked in small animal practice and completed a rotatory internship at University Hospital. She also travelled to Africa where she worked with a Spanish NGO, providing veterinary care to dogs and cattle in Uganda.
Judith moved to the UK to continue her work in small animal practice and shortly afterwards began volunteering at WAF. She then joined the team as a full-time vet! Her favourite British wild animals are foxes, but rodents, hedgehogs and feral pigeons also have a very special place in her heart. She really loves all animals!
In her free time, Judith enjoys spending the days outdoors with her dog, and loves hiking, photography and the cinema.
Raul Romero Reyes
Vet
Raul graduated as a vet in 2010 from the University of Cordoba, Spain. Always passionate about wildlife, he first began working in small animal practice, developing different skills and acquiring experience in several cities in Spain, New Zealand, Qatar and the UK.
After finishing a master’s degree in wildlife management, and thanks to previous experience working with exotic pets and zoo animals, Raul was happy to find a place to work, where wildlife is the focus, The Wildlife Aid Foundation. Here he can work and help wildlife and nature, getting involved in conservation, his main area of interest.
Living with his partner who is also a vet, they enjoy walking and hiking in British landscapes at the same time discovering the beauty of the UK.
Kayleigh Hawkins
Registered Veterinary Nurse
Kayleigh is an avian advocate and joined us in October 2023, having qualified as a Registered Veterinary Nurse in 2022. Kayleigh has additional qualifications specialising in avian species, as well as being trained as a marine mammal medic with the BDMLR. On top of all of that she is also currently in the process of studying the advanced wildlife nursing course through Girling & Fraser Ltd.
Kayleigh has experience in seabird rehabilitation from her many trips to South Africa, which is where she fell in love with wildlife and also where she fell in love with birdwatching and bird photography (she has a soft spot for shore and seabirds). We are so excited to welcome Kayleigh to the team!
Penny Buckell-Wickings
Registered Veterinary Nurse
Jacqui Adams
Office Assistant
Jacqui joined us, way back in 2012, as an office volunteer, having spent 22 years in corporate customer-facing roles. Looking for a change of scenery, and with a deep appreciation of the benefits that nature and wildlife provide, Jacqui leapt at the opportunity of being actively involved in helping it thrive.
Now a permanent member of our office team, Jacqui is Alice’s right-hand woman and handles a range of office duties, from the volunteer rota to donations and everything in-between.
Often heard before she’s seen, Jacqui is also our resident karaoke machine, never failing to break out into song at the hint of a musical reference, during any given conversation.
Katrien Deroost
Wildlife Care Assistant
Having always been fascinated by both animals and infectious diseases, Katrien initially followed a career in scientific research. An intercultural exchange in Paraguay sparked a lifelong love of travel and languages, while also strengthening her interest in global health and the inequalities surrounding infectious diseases.
This led to 15 years of research into malaria pathogenesis and immunology, working in Belgium, Brazil and, from 2014, the UK. After many rewarding years in research, she decided it was time for a change and to reconnect with her other lifelong passion – animals.
After volunteering at Wildlife Aid, alongside working as a freelance pet sitter and academic editor, she quickly realised she had found exactly what she had been looking for. She joined the team as a permanent member in January and loves being able to combine her passion for wildlife with spending time outdoors every day.
Matt Smithers
Marketing & Fundraising
Matt has over 15 years of senior marketing and fundraising experience, working for animal charities and NGOs, delivering global award-winning campaigns to challenge wild animal welfare issues, raising vital funds, and working to inspire communities to build a more compassionate future for wildlife.
Matt has raised millions of pounds for various causes to improve the wellbeing and welfare of wild animals, and has campaigned against many wild animal welfare issues from captive lion breeding, illegal poaching, trophy hunting, illegal wildlife trade, circuses, animals in entertainment, wildlife persecution, and more.
Matt is dedicated to making the world a better place for all its inhabitants and is motivated by a belief that all species have as much right to be here as we do, and we need to work harder to find solutions for people and wildlife to coexist.
Matt’s goal, now, is to use his experience, skills, and knowledge to help inform, educate, and motivate the public to build a sustainable, ethical, and compassionate world for the wildlife around us.
Gabriel Mclachlan
Digital Content Creator
Gabriel is the Digital Content Creator at Wildlife Aid, where he combines his passion for filmmaking with his lifelong love of wildlife.
After studying Film and Media at college, Gabriel discovered a passion for visual storytelling and camera work. He went on to work on professional documentaries and drama productions before joining the Wildlife Aid team.
Inspired from a young age by wildlife presenters such as Steve Backshall, Gabriel has always been fascinated by the natural world. Today, he uses his skills to capture the incredible work of the charity, sharing the stories of rescued animals and the dedicated people who care for them. Through engaging content, he aims to inspire others to appreciate and protect British wildlife.
Abbey Charlwood
Marketing Assistant
Abbey has loved animals for as long as she can remember. After graduating with a First-Class degree in Project Management, she realised her true passion lay in wildlife conservation.
Before joining Wildlife Aid Foundation as Marketing Assistant, Abbey volunteered with the charity’s husbandry team, gaining hands-on experience caring for native wildlife and learning about wildlife rehabilitation. During her time at university, she also volunteered with bats, further developing her interest in British wildlife and conservation. Alongside her role in the marketing team, Abbey continues to volunteer with the husbandry team whenever she can.
Abbey enjoys sharing the stories of Wildlife Aid’s patients, educating people about British wildlife, and inspiring others to appreciate and protect the natural world.
Louis Horton
Wildlife Rescue Officer
Louis was home grown to a degree originally from WAF, he started his animal welfare journey with us 18 years ago as an animal husbandry volunteer. After 12 years in his previous career, he made the decision to pursue animal welfare professionally and has since built extensive experience across a range of animal care and rescue roles.
He spent several years handling dogs for the Metropolitan Police before joining the RSPCA. At the RSPCA South Godstone Animal Centre, Louis worked with dogs, cats, small domestic animals and exotic species. He later became an Animal Rescue Officer within the RSPCA Inspectorate, investigating cases of animal neglect and cruelty while rescuing, handling and transporting British wildlife, domestic animals, equines, farm animals and exotic species.
Louis kept in touch with Simon and the rest of the WAF team throughout his career and even joined us on wildlife rescues from time to time.
He was invited back to join the WAF team in February 2026, and continues to rescue wildlife casualties and support our volunteer rescue team.
Trustees
Mandip Singh Sahota
Architect
Dr Helen Donald
Vet
James Wickes
Entrepreneur
Bev Panto
Vet
