Meet the team
Hebden Royd Business Forum and the HebdenBridge.org website are run by a wonderful diverse committee of local business people on a voluntary basis. Meet our team below…
What We Do
“To act as a collective voice for local businesses, focused on improving our town and encouraging greater trade and tourism”
We are Hebden Royd Business Forum. We are a collective voice for local businesses, support collaboration and provide learning opportunities to help us all to thrive.
All businesses based in HX7 are welcome to become members of HRBF – large or small, whether you have a high street presence or run a business from home, from retail and hospitality, to trades, arts, professional services and not-for-profits.
Who we are
Hebdenbridge.org is run by the Hebden Royd Business Forum
We are a not-for-profit organisation, run by a committee of brilliant volunteers who support HRBF alongside running their own businesses..
Angie Mossman
Chair
I moved to Hebden Bridge in 2005 and fell in love with this vibrant, creative and independent community. My background is in designing, improving and running customer service operations, leading teams of up to 500 people in a range of industries and complex environments, including the HBOS Household Insurance service operation and one of the HMRC service centres. I moved into project and change management in HMRC, leading process re-engineering and systems introduction across 10 PAYE service centres. From HMRC, I moved back into the private sector with Gamma Telecom, setting up a complex operational change function and leading my team to deliver multiple system and process change projects over the next 7 years. I also spent 5 years as a freelance Learning & Development Consultant, adding NLP to my skill set and specialising in design and delivery of leadership skills training for corporate clients, mostly in customer service environments, as well as growth and change programmes for personal clients. In 2019, driven by a desire to use my project & service design experience for my own business, I started the journey of designing and building Daisy Bank Camp in Blackshaw Head with my husband Andrew, which opened during 2021 and 2022. I’ve always sought to enable organisations and people to be the best they can be, and strive to design in fantastic customer service whilst improving business performance through pragmatic, action oriented collaboration, so I was delighted to be asked to get involved with the Hebden Royd Business Forum and hope to use my experiences to support HX7 businesses to thrive!
Roger Benn
Light Up The Valley & Recovery Group Collective
I have lived in Hebden Bridge for over 30 years and married with 4 children and 5 grandchildren. A former police officer, I started my own travel business – Benchmark Travel – nearly 20 years ago. First operating from home, I then moved the business to Top Land Country Business Park before taking over Whitesands Travel in 2012 when the merged business moved to its present home at Bridge End, Mytholmroyd (opposite Sainsburys). Benchmark Travel offers a full range of travel and holiday services including its own specialist tours. I am a member of Rotary and currently responsible for organising the Easter Monday Hebden Bridge Duck Race which this year returns to Hebden Water in the centre of Hebden Bridge. I am also the lead Organiser for Light Up The Valley a partnership between the Business Forum, the Rotary Club of Hebden Bridge and Hebden Royd Town Council to help the community and businesses of HX7. This was an idea born from the Hebden Bridge Recovery Group of which I’m also a member, currently looking at ways to shape the future of HX7, both short and long term.
Andrew Mossman
Treasurer
I’m Andrew, the Treasurer for HRBF, and I run a rural retreat in Blackshaw Head called Daisy Bank Camp with my wife Angie. I formed my first Limited Company over 40 years ago and have worked in many corporate environments both in the UK and overseas since. The majority of my career has been in telecommunications, designing telecoms networks and more efficient ways of working, and latterly running projects upgrading and closing exchanges. I’ve always been passionate about the power of communities and I have worked with numerous community groups, gaining a BA hons 1st in Community Regeneration and Development in 2011. I’m looking forward to using my experience to help HX7 businesses in any way I can.
Alison Bartram
Social Media/Hebden Bridge representative
With family born and raised in Halifax it was inevitable that I would end up planting firm roots somewhere in the beautiful Calder Valley and I am proud to have my business in Hebden Bridge. Heart Gallery opened on Market Street in 2006 to bring a different shopping experience to the town. Passionate about working with local and UK based designers, makers, and artists I have worked hard to realise my dream whilst hopefully changing the way people think about how they shop and where they shop. I am happy to be part of a great team that is striving to keep Hebden Bridge a destination full of great independent businesses.
Sue Slater
Mytholmroyd/Cragg Vale representative
I was born and have lived in the Heptonstall area all my life. I opened my own hairdressing business Headquarters in Mytholmroyd 39 years ago after training at Bradford College and working in Halifax. I have been a Heptonstall Parish councillor since 2013 and am a trustee of Mytholmroyd Community Centre and Hebden Bridge and District Old People’s Welfare committee.
I have an active role on the Hebden Bridge and Mytholmroyd Town development board and as part of Royd Regen I was instrumental in setting up Mytholmroyd Business Network.
Bryony Smith-Harrison
Committee Member
Growing up on the hillside between Hebden Bridge and Mytholmroyd, the Calder Valley has always been the place I return to and call my home. Which is why, when I moved back in 2016 I decided it would be a great place to open my Pilates studio and start to put roots down with my own business. In January 2017 I opened the doors for The Bridge Pilates Studio which has been growing and evolving ever since!
My education and work has taken me across the whole of the UK, wearing different hats and in different roles for many National Portfolio Organisations. These roles include: delivering dance, education and training, community outreach, festival planning and coordination and office management. I have always been driven by the motivation to create community. I joined the HRBF in November 2023 as I want to help support Hebden Royd Businesses in developing strong and supportive links and communication for the longevity of our businesses and Calder Valley
community.
Mikaela Brand
Social Media
With 26 years combined experience in both advertising and hospitality, working with international brands such as Red Stripe, Nestle, Red Bull, TUI and Sandals Resorts, I decided to step back from the rigours of a hectic lifestyle and return to the UK with my daughter. For a small Yorkshire town, I was immediately impressed by Hebden Bridge’s extensive online presence, its historical preservations and enthralled by its slower pace of life.
The incredible community spirit I witnessed after the 2019 floods followed by full lockdowns, inspired me to establish a marketing/social media consultancy which focuses solely on assisting local small businesses in Hebden Royd break the barriers and reach their full potential with customer experience, collaboration and increased revenue.
Rebecca Mattingly
Membership and communications
For the past 15 years I’ve worked on campaigns, communications and engagement in the charity sector, including for Save the Children, Oxfam, MS Society and Joseph Rowntree Foundation. I live in Hebden Bridge with my young family and I’m now working freelance, sharing my skills and passion for uniting people behind mission and purpose with clients.
My professional work in communications is all about people and connection for me – whether a large charity wanting to attract supporters for a campaign, or a small business building a loyal customer base and partnerships. Our incredible local area is buzzing with independent businesses and innovation and it’s really exciting to be part of HRBF and nurture this community to thrive.
Caroline Tiler-Ansell (Carie)
Committee Member
Born and bred in Calderdale, I moved to Mytholmroyd with my husband and young family over 25 years ago, eventually settling in Blackshaw Head.
A background in engineering, construction and property management, and customer-facing roles in retail management, has shaped my complementary healthcare practice, Therapeutic Kneads. Advocating for a holistic approach to wellbeing, integrating the practicalities of business management with the nurturing aspects of personal health and pain relief, I blend the best from Eastern and Western diagnostics, therapies and techniques.
Living and working in an area with a rich business community, I’ve come to appreciate the wealth of small, often hidden, businesses that contribute to our local economy. These enterprises are the backbone of our community, and success is crucial to our collective prosperity.
Wellbeing is central to my philosophy. If we are ‘broken’, who will run our businesses? Taking care of ourselves and assuming responsibility for our own wellbeing should be paramount. By fostering a culture of self-care and mutual support, we can ensure that our community thrives.
Together, with HRBF, we can continue to build a resilient community where every individual and business has the opportunity to flourish.
Want to join the team?
We are always looking for passionate, enthusiastic and business people to join our team. If this sounds like you, drop us a line.
info@hebdenbridge.org