Thank you to everyone that came out to Tooting for the Voluntary Sector Forum on Wednesday 7 December.

We got the results from the H&WBB Voluntary Sector Representative Election. Congratulations to Marry-Ann Foxwell from Citizen’s Advice Wandsworth who won the election.

We heard from Chas de Swiet from Sound Minds who is doing excellent work with the community in Battersea, working with people with mental health issues, and Simon Westgarth, CEO of the Richmond Furniture Scheme.

The focus this time was on the cost of living crisis where we heard from Aaron Barbour, director of Katherine Low Settlement and Mary-Ann Foxwell, CEO, Citizens Advice Wandsworth who talked about the Cost of Living Hub.

From the council we had Alix Wilson, who talked about the Council’s Cost of Living Crisis response, and Dorian Leathum, joint chair of the Cost of Living Commission.

Download all the Presentations below:

Sound Minds

Richmond Furniture Scheme

Cost of Living Hub – Citizens Advice Wandsworth

Wandsworth Council’s Cost of Living Crisis Response

Wandsworth Council – Cost of Living Commission

Trustees’ Week (7th-11th November) is a time to come together to celebrate the achievements of nearly 1 million trustees across the UK.  One of WCA’s trustees, Tom Mytton, has participated in a Q&A session to explain what he enjoys about the role, why he chose to do it and what he would say to others thinking about becoming a Trustee.

What made you decide to become a Trustee?

Over the years I have always looked to undertake voluntary roles – I find them extremely rewarding. In my career I work in governance and support Boards of Directors and Trustees to run organisations more efficiently and in a transparent manner.  As my professional career developed, I felt  my skills and experience would fit into those required of a Trustee. However, my overall motivation is being able to ‘give back’ to organisations and (hopefully!) they can take some benefit from the work I do.

Why the Wandsworth Care Alliance?

I had heard a lot about what WCA does in the local community way before I applied. It aims to empower local people to have an effective voice in their community, particularly in the development of local health and social care services and acts as a liaison point between our communities, the NHS in Wandsworth and Wandsworth Council.  Not many people know but as well as working closely with the NHS ,I have also been a long-term patient as well. Unfortunately I have experienced quality of services on both ends of the scale so the role that the WCA plays in trying to help the patient voice be heard in improving services was particularly important to me.  If I can play even a small role in improving the patient experience even slightly then that’s a big win for me.

The WCA also builds strength and resilience in the Wandsworth voluntary sector by supporting the development of networks and skills and undertakes the role as the lead co-ordinating organisation for the sector. Taking on the role as a Trustee has given me the opportunity to gain further insight into the local voluntary sector and build out my own experience of charity governance. I get to working alongside a committed group of volunteers on the Board and draw on my own experience to help achieve the shared goal of supporting and contributing to the work of WCA. We have such a vibrant and connected voluntary sector in the Borough and being able to play a small part in it and get to see all the hard work that the WCA staff put in is absolutely fantastic.

What parts of the role do you enjoy?

Since joining back in 2019 I have been involved in all sorts. Whilst my background is in governance I really enjoyed being involved, along with Trustee colleagues, in the engagement exercise to develop and sign off the Borough’s local Health and Care Plan. Since last year I have also taken on the role of chairing the organisation’s Finance sub-group, which has allowed me to draw upon my experience of running a business to work with colleagues to ensure the right decisions are taken regarding WCA’s finances. However, the best part of the role is just being able to do it. I am really grateful for the opportunity to be a WCA Trustee. I have almost completed 4 years in the role and am now one of the longest standing members of the Board but I am still learning more and more, about the fantastic work that WCA does.

What would you say to others who are considering becoming a Trustee in future?

Absolutely go for it. It’s an opportunity to be involved in making decisions that can help improve lives for others. It’s a fantastic experience and I am really glad that I took the decision to apply.