Heart of the Tyne Business Board
A group of local business leaders in Northumberland and Tyne & Wear committed to raising vital funds in support of BHF’s lifesaving research.
Heart of the Tyne Business Board was formed in 2021 by cardiac arrest survivor David Brind.
David had the cardiac arrest in 2017. Following this, he and his good friend Stuart felt inspired to look for ways to raise funds for BHF.
Soon after, the idea for Heart of the Tyne Business Board came about.
As well as organising fundraising events, the group is keen to raise awareness and improve education around heart and circulatory diseases.
Sadly, every 75 minutes someone dies from a heart or circulatory disease in North East England.
This fact alone makes the group even more determined to make a difference.
Ways to get involved
Would you like to attend or sponsor an event or find out what’s going on?
We’d love to hear from you.
Meet the board members
David is the Chief Financial Officer for Kitwave Wholesale Group and is based at their headquarters in North East England.
He’s worked in many aspects of finance across the UK for over 25 years. His experience is in strategic development, mergers and acquisitions, banking and industry.
In the late 90s he raised funds to install defibrillators in his local leisure centres.
He suffered a heart attack in 2017 and had several stents inserted. This has renewed his drive to support the BHF with fundraising and awareness campaigns.
Stuart is Head of Service Delivery for C&C Group Holdings Limited. This is a specialist software development company that does work in the public utilities and pharmaceutical sectors.
Stuart has worked in these sectors in various roles for the last 32 years.
He became involved with BHF after his close friend David had a near fatal cardiac arrest in 2017.
Melanie is the Head of Newcastle Rugby Foundation. The foundation is the registered charity of Newcastle Falcons and Newcastle Thunder professional rugby clubs.
She’s worked with the organisation for over 18 years in marketing and business development.
Melanie is passionate about showing the positive difference rugby can make in peoples’ lives.
She’s delighted to be able to work as a part of Heart of Tyne Business Board.
James is Managing Director of TMP Wealth Management based in Northumberland.
He’s experienced personal tragedy relating to heart disease.
He believes that the BHF's research and education help improve outcomes for people.
This is why he and his business are supporters and advocates of Heart of the Tyne Business Board.
Having had a heart attack at 44, my vision was to bring together businesses, who are at the Heart of the Tyne, to help raise a significant sum, but also to raise awareness of the importance of heart health for their staff and families alike. We’ve had a hugely successful first year and we are looking forward to continuing to work in partnership with the BHF over the years to come.David Brind, Heart of the Tyne Business Board Chair