Meet the Team

Our Chair, Polly, is a founding member of Bright Horizon and has spent a lifetime involved in animal rights, welfare & rescue. A founding member of Bright Horizon and a biochemist, she specialises in high-care hamsters and special cases, and leads the charity’s Research Team with Dr Kemp. She holds multiple charity trustee directorships and leads our vision and values.

Janice is a founding member and our charity’s Treasurer, working with the Finance team to ensure our compliance and manage our funds. Janice is a dwarf species expert specialising in high care dwarf intake. She is also the editor of our newsletter.

Kitty is a founding member of Bright Horizon and started rescuing in 2020. She has a particular fondness for rehabilitation and loves working with some of our more nervous hamsters. Kitty is also our Sanctuary Lead, offering permanent homes to hamsters who aren't advertised for adoption due to health concerns and old age.

Steph Dahm is a veteran Bright Horizon member and Trustee. She puts her love of hamsters down to never being allowed to have one as a child. Her first Syrian rescue in 2020 was to change all that. Steph loves all things hamster and has a massive love of Syrians, particularly those with health issues and who haven’t had a good start in life. Her focus is on spreading the word about minimum size cages for all and spreading kindness within the hamster community. When not hamstering Steph works in policy and her family has an extensive menagerie.

Stacey has been a dedicated volunteer at Bright Horizon since early 2024. She began by assisting with the transportation of hamsters to their foster carers, but her commitment quickly saw her take on more responsibilities. Stacey became a foster carer herself, and later, a Trustee of the charity. Currently, she serves as the Transport Coordinator, meticulously planning journeys for volunteers involved in the rescue and rehoming of hamsters. Additionally, Stacey tracks these statistics for the charity's records, ensuring efficient and effective operations. Her dedication and organisational skills make her an invaluable asset to the Bright Horizon team

Charlotte fell into rescue late in 2022 after feeling compelled to help a pair of roborovski hamsters being advertised in her local area. She sought advice from members of Bright Horizon and soon joined the ranks officially. Since then she has been involved in rescuing, fostering and transporting dozens of hamsters of all species.

Bonnie joined Bright Horizon in 2023. She got her first hamster in 2020 and ever since then has been a big advocate for proper care, and has been rescuing since. She loves all small furry animals as well as everything with scales! She also works in a vets and plans to qualify as an RVN in the near future. Everyone knows her as the ‘small animal expert’ at her workplace!

Jo has been a dedicated volunteer at Bright Horizon since the beginning of 2024. With a particular interest in dwarf hamsters, Jo brings her passion for these small creatures to her role. She is actively involved in administrative tasks, providing essential support to the rescue operations. Jo's commitment and enthusiasm make her a valued member of the team

Zoe over the years has kept, and is still keeping a variety of animals!! She joined Bright Horizon in 2023 and has a particular interest in elderly Syrians, often adopting them and giving them a nice retirement home! She will often give advice on our social media platforms, helping to guide owners on safe and ethical hamster care.

Rebecca joined the team in 2024 and is dedicated to fostering and rescuing hamsters. Rebecca has many years of experience with small animals including hamsters.

Rebecca specialises in caring for Female Syrian Hamsters and has a particular interest in research led by Polly Child and Dr Kemp.

Nicola began fostering in early 2024 and has since fostered more than a dozen hamsters in that time. She has become experienced in recognising blindness in hamsters through her work, as well as gut health issues. Nicola aids with administrative duties including responding to enquiries, fundraising, and will be taking on various other administrative duties in due course. She also assists with transport where possible to ensure hamsters reach the rescue safely and adoptions reach their vetted forever homes.

Kat is dedicated to rescuing and fostering hamsters. She also serves as the Resourcing Lead at the charity, where she manages public donations, secures discounts and services, and oversees resource distribution. Her passion for hamster safety involves her in research and reviews of the safety of items marketed at hamsters.

Kaylee is a founding member and our charity’s Secretary. She also manages our social media channels and oversees intake. She holds a BSc(Hons) Animal Management & Conservation. Kaylee works for Battersea, and has devoted her life to animal welfare and rescue.

Becky is a founding member of the rescue, a key foster, and advises on nutrition. She manages our Facebook page and website while also overseeing adoptions. Becky owns Chubby Cheeks Hamster Food/Hammykins and her company supports the rescue through donations of food, rescue funds and resources.

Bean is one of the charity's trustees and joint research lead. They have 12 years of experience in rodent rescue and are delighted to now be able to support the community as part of a larger group.

Bean has a background in human medicine which enables them to provide the necessary support for hamsters with specific medical, behavioural or physical care needs. They are also experienced in managing pregnant and nursing hamsters.

Tom started getting involved with BH in early 2023 when transport was needed from near his workplace to rescue hamsters. Now a trustee of the charity, he focuses on looking at the bigger picture and how best to run the organisation, without getting too involved in the day to day operations.

Melanie is a member of the fundraising team. She has over 10 years of experience in the charity sector and is a founder and trustee of a cancer care pack charity. She has been volunteering in hamster rescue since 2020.

Graham is a member of the finance team. He has been a tax professional for 24 years, 17 with HMRC and 7 years running his own practice. He assists and advises on accounting and finance. He has also been a scout leader for over 27 years and has held multiple charity trusteeships.

Alisha joined Bright Horizon in 2023 after getting her own hamster and learning more about ethical care led her to the rescue. Since, she has fostered hamsters first in the South East but now down in the South West. She also spends time actively engaging with the hamster community to give advice and help educate.

Jess has been a lover of hamsters for years and joined Bright Horizon in early 2024 to become a fosterer. She actively engages with the hamster community to discuss best care and educate new owners. She also supports our very active “Hamsportation” logistics network, helping our hamsters get to their new home comfortably. Although she likes to consider herself a fosterer, she has a habit of adopting the hamsters who have been with us a little bit longer and need a bit extra love and care!

Adam joined the team in 2024. He graduated with a BVMedSci (1st Hons) degree in 2022 and uses this to take care of our sick hamsters. Even though he is a busy final year vet student, he spends several hours a night with his personal and foster hamsters, creating some amazing bonds. You’ll know which hamsters he has fostered as they have biscuit themed names. His vet school studies center on hamsters, exotic animals and cows (not a bad difference), and he will graduate and become an accredited RCVS vet in 2025. His ambition is to use his love of hamsters and professional opinion to help shape the future of veterinary medicine, advise charities and campaigns and improve hamster welfare in the UK.

Sasha joined Bright Horizon in March 2024 and puts her BSc (Hons 1st) in Information Systems to use as our Impact Data Lead. She analyses our intake, adoptions, residents, and external aid to ensure our efforts are effectively measured and that we continue to make a positive impact on the lives of hamsters in need.

Jade joined Bright Horizon in early 2024 following adopting a hamster from them in late 2023. She loves caring for animals of all kinds and holds a Level 3 qualification in Animal Management.

We express our gratitude to the many volunteers and fosterers who contribute to our mission. The diversity, kindness, and inclusivity within Bright Horizon truly make it a remarkable charity to be involved with.