Meet the team

Founder

The Wildlife Aid Foundation originated in the 1980s as a small local wildlife rescue charity. It has, since, grown into one of the UK’s leading environmental and animal welfare organisations.

The charity was founded by Simon Cowell, with his then wife, Jill, and his father, Michael, both of whom worked tirelessly alongside him. Simon headed up the Foundation for a further four decades, both in a very practical ‘hands-on’ way and as the Foundation’s Managing Trustee.

Simon dedicated his life to actively fundraising and promoting the Foundation’s work, while also going out in the middle of the night on rescues, and was actively involved in the day-to-day care of the animals in the centre's veterinary hospital and rehab facility.

In June 2024, Simon passed away after a valiant battle with cancer. He is hugely missed by all who knew him, and unequivocally revered for his positive impact on the natural world.

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.

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.

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.

Marketing and 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.

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.

Media and Communications

Stacey joined us in the summer of 2023, having gained 15 years of experience in the animal charity sector - 8 of them with wildlife. As she turned her hand to multiple different roles, one element always remained the same: her passion for educating others.

With Stacey’s experience, came her eagerness to learn. Already having a foundation degree in Animal Science from Brighton University under her belt, she opted to complete it and, in 2022, was awarded a first-class degree in Animal Biology and Wildlife Conservation from the University of Kent.

Now sharing her knowledge of wildlife, its conservation and critical importance to our society, as our Digital Marketing Officer, Stacey plays a vital role in telling our patients’ stories - the sad ones, the joyous ones, and even the hilariously crazy ones!

In addition to being our Digital Marketing Officer, Stacey is also our resident fox ninja; having been with The Fox Project for three years, observing the animals’ daily behaviours and quirks, her handling technique of the species is well honed!

Engagement Officer

After graduating in 2019 from The Royal Veterinary College with a BSc in Bio-veterinary Science, Winston has spent the subsequent years sharing his knowledge of all things nature with groups ranging from 3 to 83.

With a stint teaching during the Covid period, Winston has developed a real affinity with young people and has a remarkable ability to communicate his passion for animals and the environment. He has worked on projects rewilding agricultural land, deloused ticks on strays in Mexico, released giant tortoises in the Seychelles and undertook conservation survey dives in Madagascar. Throughout all his endeavours, the constant theme has been one of educating communities about the needs of animals and the huge impact, both positive and negative, we can make on them and their environment.

In his role as WAF’s Engagement Officer, Winston brings the knowledge and experience of WAF to schools, community groups and businesses. He runs corporate volunteer days at the new Wildlife Aid site and is the face of WAF at community events and festivals.

Separately, Winston has a particular love of all things marine and is a PADI Master Scuba Diver. He plays Brazilian and African drums with various drum troupes. Never one to shy away from a microphone, Winston loves a crowd and, as a side gig, Winston is the man to call when seeking a professional Father Christmas!

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!

Rehab

Marcela joined us in November 2023 as our Wildlife Rehabilitation Supervisor. Hailing from Colombia, Marcela has an impressive resumé including a Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine; I graduated 3 years ago, and since then I have been travelling around the world working in different wildlife rescue centres. I've worked in Perú, Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica, and South Africa.

I have always had a big interest in conservation and decided to come to England to study a MSc in Global Wildlife Health and Conservation at the University of Bristol, which I finished three months ago!

In my free time, I enjoy being outdoors, swimming, exercising, and spending time with friends. For me, the perfect gift will forever be a book. When I am meeting new people, I might seem quiet and shy, but once you get to know me, you'll see that I never stop laughing :)