Ava Payne

Ava Payne is a proud Kittitian, born and raised in London, England, who has the paperwork to prove it! As an entrepreneur she is the founder and Managing Director of Kitts Kare Ltd, a property development and management company which provides accommodation to meet the diverse needs of different members of the community. Described by many as a powerful Venture Facilitator, making connections, breaking down barriers and getting the job done.

She has over 40 years’ experience as an office administrator providing high quality business support, to facilitate flexible and lateral working, across departments and divisions in both the public and private sectors. Her specialist area is the development and implementation of effective IT systems to build supportive and collaborative ways of working.

Ava is currently working as a trade union representative for Croydon Council employees and Croydon school staff. As an activist her role is to negotiate pay and working conditions for members during restructures and redundancies. She also supports members with workplace issues such as disciplinary, grievance and sickness hearings. Ava was recently elected as the Branch Secretary for GMB Croydon Branch.

For about 20 years she has been a foster carer and adoptive parent of Croydon who looked after children. This has been a challenging role where she has been a passionate advocate for these children.

Ava’s love of reading, from an early age, has culminated in her becoming a published co-author of the Single Mother’s Diary. Her ambition is to complete a Caines family biography for the generations to come.