group Charity Staff

Caz has grown up in Heavitree and has been enjoying the park for over 30 years!  She started volunteering for Park Life in 2022, bringing her passion for connecting people and her experience in early years provision and accessibility to the table by setting up a weekly baby and toddler group, which is one of our most popular groups, with tickets selling out as fast as Glastonbury!

In the Autumn of 2024, Caz officially joined the team of charity staff and has plenty of ideas for new Park Life events and projects that will hopefully connect many different aspects of our community.

Caz has two young boys, loves playing netball and has an allotment off Whipton Lane…and of course enjoys grabbing a lovely mocha from Park Cafe!

Berni, Exeter born and bred, feels very lucky to have grown up in Heavitree and fondly recalls spending time in the park with friends and family, playing cricket, cycling, paddling in the pool or collecting conkers. Now married to Blue with two grown up children, Berni spent time reliving her childhood memories with her own children in the park and with grandparents who still live in Heavitree. 

After 30 years as a PE and PSHE teacher, Berni is excited to join the Parklife Heavitree team. She values community and believes in providing opportunities for people of all ages to be active, social, and engaged. Passionate about mental and physical wellbeing, Berni looks forward to expanding Parklife’s event offerings. 

To maintain her own wellbeing, Berni stays active, enjoys time with loved ones, and has recently taken up cold water swimming. She also enjoys pickleball, life drawing, and is studying for a counselling course. On Saturdays, she cheers on her son’s football team. A favourite travel destination is Zambia, especially the Lower Zambezi River amongst the hippos. 

Berni is very much looking forward to being part of the Park Life Heavitree community and feels excited to have the opportunity to give back to a place that holds a special place in her heart. 

Erica and her family moved from London to Exeter in 2021 and very quickly discovered what a valuable resource the park was, from a place for her young daughter to play, to walking the dogs, and more importantly making new mum friends in the playground.

She moved here before works were due to go ahead with construction of the community Hub and Cafe, and was excited to see what the plans were and to be able to use the facilities.
When the position for Charity Administrator was advertised, she jumped at the chance and has enjoyed being able to get more and more involved with all the various community projects that Park Life organises.

Outside of work, Erica is delighting in all the wonderful new things Devon has to offer, she has just taken up Paddle boarding with her daughter and looks forward to being able to explore a bit further afield in the near future.

Penny has lived in Heavitree – right beside Heavitree Park – since 2006 and after enjoying a multitude of Park Life events and believing in the community ethos of the charity, she felt inspired to do more and join the team.

Penny became a trustee in April 2018 and started her employment in August 2022. She is tasked with all things HR & Governance related. She was also on the build (interiors) team for the Hub and Cafe, which she found really exciting and is very proud to have been able to have a say in the overall aesthetic of the building.

Penny has two children and spends her days loving life with them (when they are not at school!). They are a very active family who enjoy nothing more than exploring this wonderful part of the world that they call home and consequently, they own far too many bikes, surfboards, paddle boards, running shoes and wet suits!