The Team
The charity Boxers in Need is governed by a Board of Trustees who collectively bring professional expertise, real life experience, and a shared passion for boxing. The trustees are responsible for ensuring the charity operates in line with its objectives, complies with regulatory requirements, and delivers lasting benefit to its beneficiaries.
Together, they provide strategic leadership, financial oversight, and governance to ensure the charity fulfils its mission of supporting injured and retired boxers, as well as grassroots boxing gyms in deprived communities across the UK.
Trustees
Chair & Trustee
Gary Cornforth
Lifelong boxing fan Gary Cornforth is a retired businessman from Manchester. He is passionate about the fight game and wants to help boxing clubs and boxers at grassroots level, plus other boxing projects or cases in UK and Ireland.
Co-Founder & Trustee
Peter Fury
Peter Fury is a world-renowned professional boxing coach with a proven track record of guiding fighters to the very highest levels of the sport.
Respected for his tactical mind, disciplined approach, and deep knowledge of boxing, Peter has trained and managed world champions as well as upcoming prospects. His coaching philosophy balances technical excellence with mental resilience, earning him a reputation as one of the most astute and committed figures in British boxing.
Trustee
Micky Collier
Boxers In Need are very proud to welcome Micky Collier as an ambassador.
Micky is one of the most respected figures within the British boxing community, known for his integrity, leadership, and lifelong commitment to the sport.
As a senior member of the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBOC), Mick has played a pivotal role in upholding the highest standards of governance, safety, and fairness within professional boxing across the UK.
Beyond his official duties, Mick is widely recognised for his dedication to boxer welfare. In 2010, he launched the Harry Fund to support former professional boxer Harry Senior after he suffered a devastating stroke. This initiative demonstrated Mick’s deep compassion and his determination to ensure that fighters are supported long after they leave the ring.
Trustee
Scott Ewing
Scott Alexander Ewing is a highly respected solicitor with over 30 years’ experience in criminal law and regulatory defence.
​
As Managing Director of Ewing Law, a Mayfair based firm he founded in 2012, Scott has built a reputation for guiding clients through some of the most serious and complex legal cases in the UK.
​
Beyond his legal practice, Scott is deeply passionate about boxing and the welfare of fighters outside the ring. ​
​
Scott helps many people within the boxing community, his commitment reflects a lifelong belief that boxers deserve the same strength and dedication in their corner beyond the ropes as they show inside them.
​
In 2025 Scott was given the Freedom of the City of London for his commitment to fundraising for charities.
Trustee
James Barker
James Barker is the CEO of Devonshire Green Accountants and serves as Trustee and Treasurer for Boxers in Need.
With a strong background in finance and business leadership, James brings valuable expertise to the charity, ensuring transparency and sustainability in its mission.
A lifelong supporter of the sport, he is passionate about boxing’s positive impact on communities and is committed to giving something back by helping injured fighters, retired professionals, and grassroots gyms across the UK.
Trustee
Samm Mullins
Samm Mullins is a professional boxing coach and founder of Churchill’s Gym, where he has established a reputation for excellence in training and mentorship.
With a lifelong passion for the sport, Samm has guided boxers at every stage of their journey, instilling discipline, technical skill, and resilience.
Under his leadership, Churchill’s Gym has become recognised not only as a training ground for fighters but also as a supportive community built on respect, hard work, and the traditions of boxing.
Trustee
Aky Karim
Aky Karim is a British boxing presenter, commentator, and MC, recognized for his engaging presence in the sport. He is a partner and started his boxing carear with British Boxers BBTV, Boxing Now and has contributed to platforms such as DAZN, TalkSport, Eurosport, BBC Sport, and IBA boxing, enhancing his reputation within the boxing community. Aky conducts interviews with prominent boxing figures, including legends like Joe Calzaghe and current champions like Hughie Fury. His dedication to boxing extends to organizing events, such as previewing fight nights like "Destruction In The Dome" featuring Carly Skelly's WBC International Title bout.
Karim's multifaceted involvement significantly enriches the boxing landscape.
Trustee
Aaron Williams
An accomplished financial professional with 13 years’ expertise across wealth and commercial management. He is the Owner and Director of Kocab Wealth, a boutique wealth planning firm managing over £20 million in client funds. Aaron will also provide free wealth management advice to boxers who are in need, supporting their financial stability during and after their careers.
Ambassadors
Former Undisputed Boxing Champion
Ricky Hatton MBE RIP
Ricky Hatton was one of our first ambassadors to join Boxers InNeed, no surprise there as Ricky would never turn down any chance to help others before him self.
Boxers In Need will always be grateful to Ricky for his help, I personally knew Ricky to be a man of being there for others, a grounded humble man who never lost his personality even through the fame he carried and what he achieved in the sport of boxing.
He remained a genuine kind humble man from the beginnings to the highs and to the end of his young life.
The 2 weight world champion will be always remembered for giving the Manchester fans some of the most historic nights in resent times. He was and always will be deeply respected and loved by the masses. I was very honoured to know this man for everything a man should be also to others. His memory will last on and his legacy will always be a part of Boxers In Need.
RIP my friend with eternal glory.
Peter Fury
Former world cruiserweight Champion now boxing pundit
Johnny Nelson MBE
Johnny Nelson MBE is a former British professional boxer and current TV pundit and motivational speaker. He is best known for holding the World Boxing Organization (WBO) cruiserweight title from 1999 to 2006, the longest reign in history. Most remembered for his seven-year reign as WBO Cruiserweight Champion, he is the longest-reigning cruiserweight of all time. In addition to his worldwide success, Johnny Nelson has also held the British Cruiserweight twice, between 1989 and 1997 and held the European Cruiserweight title on two occasions.
Professional Heavyweight Boxer
Hughie Fury
Hughie Fury is a former British champion and heavyweight world title challenger and one of the current leading world contenders in the division. Hughie has come onboard as an ambassador for Boxers in Need and we are delighted to have someone like him behind the program. Hughie knows first hand the impact and positive effect that boxing and amateur gyms have on young people even if they are never going to box! "Not everyone who goes in a gym becomes a boxer but many come out as good people with respect and discipline! I'm Delighted to become an Ambassador!"
Professional Light Heavyweight Boxer
Liam Cameron
Liam Cameron is a British professional boxer from Sheffield, England, known for his grit, heart, and no-nonsense fighting style.
Born and raised in the Steel City, Liam came up through the tough local boxing circuit, earning a reputation early on as a hard worker who never shied away from a challenge.
He turned professional in 2009 after a successful amateur career and quickly made a name for himself on the domestic scene. Cameron captured the Commonwealth middleweight title in 2017 with a dominant win over Sam Sheedy a proud moment for both him and Sheffield’s boxing community. Standing tall and fighting with a relentless engine, he is known for his pressure, power, and determination inside the ropes.
Outside the ring, Liam’s story has been one of resilience. His career was marked by highs and lows, including setbacks that tested his character, but he’s always been open about the realities fighters face beyond the spotlight. A true Sheffield fighter through and through, Liam Cameron remains respected for his honesty, toughness, and his love for the sport that shaped his life.
Former British Middleweight Champion
Nick Blackwell
Nick Blackwell was a Professional Boxer. His achievements included WBC World Youth Champion, youngest ever English Middleweight Champion and British Middleweight Champion
In March 2016, Nick Blackwell was on his 3rd defence of the British title against Chris Eubank Jr.
During the fight Nick suffered a bleed on the brain. He collapsed in the ring and was placed in an induced coma.
Nick died in the ambulance and they brought him back.
He was medically retired from boxing, that's when his whole life changed.
Former British Professional Boxer
Gary Crawford Ashley
Gary “Crawford” Ashley is a former British professional boxer from Leeds who competed at elite level between 1987 and 2001. A two-time British and European Light-Heavyweight Champion and Commonwealth Champion, he also challenged for world titles against top international opponents. Known for his toughness and determination, Crawford Ashley’s career reflects both the highs and hardships of life in boxing—on and beyond the ropes.
Professional Boxer
Dave Allen
Dave “The White Rhino” Allen is a popular British heavyweight boxer from Doncaster, known for his toughness, honesty, and loyal fanbase. Turning professional in 2012, Allen faced some of the division’s biggest names and twice challenged for the Commonwealth heavyweight title, showing the grit and resilience that made him a cult favourite in UK boxing.
Beyond his in-ring achievements, Allen has been open about the personal and mental pressures fighters face, helping to break stigma within the sport. Today, he supports boxing at grassroots level through coaching and mentoring, reflecting the mission of Boxers in Need: to stand beside fighters during and after their careers, ensuring they never face their struggles alone.
Former British Boxing Champion
John 'Buster' Keeton
John 'Buster' Keeton John Keeton (born 19 May 1972) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2009. He held the British cruiserweight title and challenged twice for the Commonwealth cruiserweight title between 2006 and 2007.
Keeton had his first professional contest on 11 August 1993, scoring a stoppage win over Tony Colclough in Mansfield. For the first three years of his career Keeton's results were a mixture of victories and defeats losing to the likes of Julius Francis, Bruce Scott and Nicky Piper. Following the Piper defeat on 7 July 1995, Keeton scored a run of five victories to earn a shot at the British title for the first time.
Former British and commonwealth champion
Tommy Frank
Tommy Frank is a British professional boxer who held the British flyweight title from 2021 to 2023 and the Commonwealth super-flyweight title from 2019 to 2020.
Tommy was born in Sheffield, Yorkshire. At the age of five, Frank had an operation to repair a hole in his heart and has since been an ambassador for Yorkshire-based national charity Heart Research UK. Frank took up boxing at the age of twelve, compiling an amateur record of 23–22, training at the Sheffield Boxing Centre in Hillsborough under the tutelage of head trainer Glyn Rhodes. After leaving school he studied plumbing at Castle College in Sheffield and worked as a labourer before turning professional. He is proud to be an ambassador for Boxers in Need.
Former Professional Boxer, now succesful trainer and mentor
Glyn Rhodes MBE
Glyn Rhodes MBE has devoted his life to boxing. Since wandering into the world-famous St Thomas' gym in Sheffield as a directionless teenager, he has spent more than 40 years working inside and outside the ropes. Cognisant of how this hardest of sports both saved and brutalised him, he is now ready to tell his story. Rhodes' reflections offer fresh perspectives on the likes of Naseem Hamed, Johnny Nelson, Herol Graham, Clinton Woods, the British Boxing Board of Control, plus his complicated relationship with the iconic Brendan Ingle. Glyn is now a respected boxing trainer, bringing through the next generation of stars and is a valued ambassador for Boxers in Need.