Our Board

Pia is a Kensington resident who first joined KNH as a Study Support Coordinator back in 2015 – assisting local children with literacy and numeracy. 

Pia is an experienced project manager who has worked with organisations such as MLC, Momentum Energy and RMIT. She is currently a Senior Project Manager with SEEK, working on CRM unification across Asia, Australia and New Zealand.

Molly has spent most of her life in Melbourne’s inner suburbs, and currently lives in the CBD. She currently holds a position managing support services at VincentCare and has worked for over 20 years in community organisation and government roles in program delivery, policy and sector development.

Molly’s professional experience spans diverse areas including children’s services, family violence, health, education and housing, and in 2014 she received a Churchill Fellowship to investigate innovative responses to youth homelessness in the US, Canada and the UK.

Mike and his partner Anne first moved into Kensington in 1986 and returned there again in 2012 after ten years living and working in Vietnam and Hong Kong. Their two children were raised in the community, attending the Kensington Community Childcare Co-operative and Kensington Primary School.

Mike was a member of the Board of KCCC during its transition from its original premises in Henry Street to its current location. Mike is the CEO of CAVAL, a not for profit co-operative which has been supporting Australian libraries since 1978. He has over thirty five years’ professional experience in libraries and higher education in Australia, Vietnam and Hong Kong.

Capucine is a telecommunications lawyer, with a strong interest outside of work in art and fundraising for arts projects. Originally from New Zealand, she has lived and worked in the UK, US, Singapore and Sydney before finding her way to Melbourne and then the Inner West, in 2021.Capucine is a keen gardener and is interested in cultivation of community gardening and green spaces in the Kensington neighbourhood.

Originally from Hobart, Claire has lived in Kensington for the past 10 years. Claire is an urban planner with experience in local and state government, private consultancy and not for profit. She has a strong interest in the environment, community and loves living in Kensington.   

Emily is a Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer, Cancer Council Victoria, where she researches cancer prevention interventions. She has lived in Melbourne since 2001, and moved to Kensington in 2021.

Emily first came into contact with the Neighbourhood House as a student in the Knitting and Crochet Course, and as a regular donor to the McCracken St Food Pantry. 

Michelle Welsh is a Professor and Head of the Department of Business Law and Taxation in the Monash Business School at Monash University. She researches and teaches in corporate law and has a particular interest in corporate ethics and accountability. 

Michelle has experience on other not for profit boards and management committees and moved to Kensington with her two daughters in early 2016.

Sara Newton is a former (and hopefully future) Kensington resident. She first connected with KNH after the lockdowns with a desire to be social in the local community, but ended up with a regular fitness routine and new cooking skills. Sara works as a researcher at the University of Melbourne in the School of Population and Global Health. She lives in West Footscray with her husband and dog and enjoys all of the inner West's proximity to good coffee and day hikes outside of the city.