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It is with great sadness that we report the death of Rosina Pullman on 12 September after a short illness. She was 74.
Rosina did a remarkable job as director of TaxAid, serving from 2001 to 2016. She was a highly effective fund raiser who put an excellent young charity onto a firm financial footing – while at the same time transforming and growing it substantially, making it a significant player in the tax world. Her work was recognised in 2016 when she received the lifetime achievement award at the Taxation Awards.
Coming from a non-tax background, some were initially sceptical about her running a tax charity. Rosina had read international studies at LSE and worked at Chatham House before becoming a fund raiser, first at Oxford, then with Friends of the Elderly, finally at the Bethlem Hospital. But at TaxAid, an early achievement was her quickly winning support by demonstrating the wide extra value she brought.
Rosina did not pretend to be a tax expert but she built a strong understanding of our vulnerable beneficiaries – which gave TaxAid a unique offering. She cared strongly how vulnerable people were treated and insisted that everyone who came to TaxAid for help was treated with understanding and respect – it was not enough to get the tax right. Empathy for the beneficiary became part of the TaxAid way of doing things. She saw that TaxAid’s beneficiaries had ‘messy lives’ and that understanding these was central to solving their tax problem. She was interested in their lives and deeply moved by the harrowing circumstances many of them suffered. This experience was freely shared and for example enabled TaxAid to work with HMRC when it designed its ‘extra support’ service.
The charity grew substantially under her leadership, both in terms of the numbers helped and its reach. Working with the big four, volunteers in their offices were recruited to provide a face-to-face service, first in Birmingham, then Manchester and Newcastle. One staff member worked with CAB offices so that TaxAid could support them across the country with tax problems they received. Individual volunteers were also an essential element of delivering the service – Rosina grew this group significantly, several later joining the staff , including Valerie Boggs, TaxAid’s current CEO.
Innovation was another key element of Rosina’s success. Early on, a virtual call centre was established enabling home working – an important offering then in the employment market. A digital data base introduced in 2008 proved hugely valuable – and a source of envy for a visiting HMRC team shortly after.
These developments were made possible because of her skills in attracting support, both funding and pro bono help. Early on, she was bold in approaching the heads of large tax firms to support the charity. She won funds from foundations including the Lottery. Gradually, this and growing support from HMRC put TaxAid on a much stronger financial footing.
Most importantly, she built on the mutually beneficial long-term relationship with HMRC. This included TaxAid providing support during the roll out of tax credits; later, when HMRC had problems with PAYE reconciliation; and when the enquiry centres were closed. It enabled TaxAid, in partnership with MIND and CAB, to persuade HMRC to reform its debt management processes in 2012 to take into account the debtor’s mental health. HMRC in turn, made TaxAid’s work more effective by introducing a FastTrack service and generally supporting TaxAid because it could better reach some vulnerable people and because of its understanding of them.
Rosina’s empathy for TaxAid’s beneficiaries was matched by her care for her staff. She nurtured and developed them while letting them get on with the job. She played to peoples strengths and circumstances and designed jobs around these – building a talented and committed team. She was good to work for, had a remarkably positive approach to life and was great fun to be with.
Rosina remained ‘remorselessly cheerful’ to the end and is greatly missed by her family and friends. She leaves her husband Gerald Pollio, daughter Laura, son Dominic and grandson Reggie. – Stephen Banyard.
