Sheila was born and raised in Dorchester. She has a law degree from University College London and is a qualified Solicitor becoming the First Lady President of the Bournemouth and District Law Society in 2001.

Sheila never went back to working full time in the law after her children arrived preferring instead to take up various trustee and non-executive posts with charities and other not for profit organisations.

Amongst other things Sheila has been a trustee of Care South and Bournemouth University and a Non-Executive Director of Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals becoming its chairman in 1998.
During her period as Chairman the Trust was awarded Foundation Trust status and was voted the best District General Trust in the England in 2011.

After a long period involved in the NHS Sheila was asked to turn her attentions to housing. She became a Non-Executive on the Board of a locally based Housing Association (Raglan Housing) and after its merger with a Midlands based housing Association she sat on the board of the merged Group now called Stonewater. She became Chairman of Stonewater in 2019.

Sheila worked closely with MCL during her years on the hospital board and understands the importance of first-class palliative care. She is delighted to now have a chance to get further involved as a Trustee of the charity.

Sheila is married with 2 grown up children one of whom is a nurse and the other a social worker. Her husband is a Deputy District Judge, and they have one granddaughter and have also fostered 3 other children.

Sheila became a Trustee in 2021.