Meet the Trustee: Toby Yap

Toby has been a Trustee at National Star since 2025. In his professional career, he has worked as a business leader, entrepreneur, investor, and advisor across established organisations and early-stage ventures, with experience ranging from international consumer markets through to property, technology, and online retail. 

Along that journey he has been involved in building businesses, supporting founders, and contributing at board level, which has given a broad perspective on strategy, growth, and decision-making in different environments. 

Becoming a trustee has enabled Toby to apply that experience in a different context, where the focus is not commercial return, but making a real difference and impact on lives. National Star stood out to Toby as the place to do exactly that. 

Originally from Australia, he moved to his wife’s native Gloucestershire in early 2024. It was this move, Toby says, that created a natural point to reflect on how he wanted to contribute his career.  

‘I’ve spent much of my career in environments where the quality of decision-making directly affects outcomes. That thinking is highly transferable. Strategy, risk, innovation, and capital allocation all exist in both commercial and social settings. 

Becoming a trustee felt like a way to contribute in a practical and meaningful way. Not just supporting a cause but helping an organisation make a genuine difference in people’s lives while continuing to evolve, innovate, and remain sustainable over the long term.’ 

Navigating the difference between commercial and voluntary board environments has been a challenge, with a voluntary board setting having more broad and varied outcomes than the commercial setting of being very direct and highly focused on outcomes. Toby’s approach to this has been to respect that context while still bringing clarity, structure, and a focus on decision quality. He says it is about integrating experience in a way that supports the organisation and its mission. 

Along the way, he has gained a deeper appreciation of the complexity of an organisation like National Star, and the significant breadth of responsibility it holds in education, care, and specialist support. Delivering meaningful impact at that scale requires strong coordination, expertise, and leadership, which the trustees help to supply.   

For those with the motivation to make a real difference and contribute meaningfully to an organisation, Toby recommends the role of Trustee and says it can be a very rewarding role.  

‘Your value comes from applying your experience in a way that improves how the organisation thinks and operates. 

You need to be willing to learn and ask questions, but also confident enough to challenge when needed. And always keep in mind the purpose, which is ultimately about impact on people’s lives.’ 

Looking ahead, Toby is excited for the opportunity National Star has to continue building on its position as a leading organisation nationally; while deepening the impact it has on people’s lives.