Richard
Hi, my name is Richard and I am the Director of Tameside Oldham and Glossop Mind. I report to the Executive Committee of the organisation who, while ultimately responsible for the company, delegate the day to day management to me. As a relatively small organisation we do not have the luxury of dedicated workers for finance, IT, human resources etc which means that a lot of these functions fall to me. In the course of one day I might battle with a spreadsheet, offer a 121 to a distressed client, begin work on a new project, and fix the photocopier. At times this makes the job pretty busy and I can feel stretched but it is also the variety that I love. I am also very lucky to lead such an enthusiastic team of paid workers and volunteers which makes me very proud of what we achieve and the differences we make to peoples lives.
I came to the organisation in 2001 having spent 15 years working with people with serious mental health problems in Inner London Boroughs. It was around that time that I found a strong attraction to being in wild and mountainous places and moving to this part of the world allows me to live in the Peak District and be within easy travel of Snowdonia, the Lakes and Scotland.
The ideas of 'well being', social inclusion' and 'recovery' seem to be on everybody's lips at the moment but here we really believe this is the way to make positive changes for the public. We have not just 're-badged' ourselves, nor are we doing this on a shoestring. I hope you benefit from what we have to offer and that you will recommend us to your friends and family.
Fozia
Hi, I'm the manager at Oldham services. It's an exciting time for the organisation as we venture forward on developing advocacy, carers support and engaging with local communities. My role as Oldham Services Manager is to manage the day to day running of the Oldham team and report back to Richard on progress. I also work closely with strategic partners and network with other local organisations to ensure an effective joint working approach for all involved.
I initially volunteered at the Ashton office about seven years ago and that experience encouraged me to come back to a people friendly organisation. I've worked in various settings including domestic violence, bereavement, the private sector and learning disabilities. My personal interests lie in client-centred psychotherapy, the Sesame Approach, spirituality and the soul, and breaking down the barriers to mental health stigma through employers and the media - and I'll be well steam ahead to run some of these interests through my work...
We've had a great response from people and partner organisations in Oldham and look forward to a great deal of development and progress. Our ethos and culture encourages us to look at wellbeing as a whole, making our support real for the day to day person. I'm also keen to promote the Time to Change Campaign through local agencies/organisations so watch out for our community events.
Our strategic plan is out for consultation at present so please get involved and tell us if we're doing things the way you, the public want us to!
Judi
Hi I am employed by Mind as the office co-ordinator, providing office admin support and helping to co-ordinate the office and Reception area for the team here at Oldham. I have had varied office experience over the last 17 years where I started off working in the insurance industry. I’m very excited to be here and having recently worked in office administration for Adult Social Services this has stood me in good stead for my role at Mind.
I also work as a trainee volunteer advisor for the Citizens Advice Bureau which involves giving general advice to the public and informing them of their rights and responsibilities on a variety of issues e.g. debt, housing, employment, family etc.
I thoroughly enjoy meeting and greeting people which is one of the reasons I was thrilled to join Mind. I am also glad I have the opportunity to work for a National charity and give something back to the local community. In my role as office co-ordinator I would like to help to raise Mind’s profile by promoting their ethos of well-being, social inclusion and recovery. For me, working for Mind means helping to break down barriers in society so mental health issues are more understood which in turn reduces fear and misunderstanding.
In my personal life I love spending time with my family and friends and I enjoy a variety of sporting activities from walking/hiking, running, Latino dancing and going to the gym! I strongly believe that exercise is a good stress buster and along with a balanced diet, leads to a good sense of well-being.
Gemma
I’m an Independent Mental Health Advocate at Mind in Oldham. I started this role in October 2008, and I completed a ten week training course on the principles of advocacy. I work mainly in the hospital; however, I’m also a community advocate. My role is to work alongside the user of services with particular issues; helping them to look for solutions and in some cases speak on their behalf. I am now also a qualified IMHAA advocate, menaing that I have completed the specialism module for working with people who are detained under the Mental Health Act.
I started as a volunteer counsellor at Mind in June 2008. I qualified for my level 4 Diploma in Person Centred counselling in October 2009. I volunteer as a counsellor at the Ashton office which I thourally enjoy.
I have also studied the Introduction to NLP, Neuro Linguistic Programming which is an alternative approach to interpersonal communication and psychotherapy. The theory is to educate people in self awareness and effective communication. I’m hoping to become a Master Practitioner in this field one day.
Being an advocate is a very fulfilling and rewarding role. It is person centred advocacy which uses skills to empower and encourage clients to speak for themselves. The most enjoyable part of my job is to see a client self advocate and become confident in there own abilities.
Ian
My name is Ian and I am the Community Engagement Worker here at Oldham Mind. I have experience of using services in the past, though not in Oldham, and helped set up a local user group serving initially as Chair and later as the paid worker. I have since then worked with a Primary Care Trust, served as a non-Executive Director of a Mental Health Trust, worked for NIMHE (National Institute for Mental Health England), and prior to coming to join Mind was a self employed consultant. As a consultant I carried out a piece of work in Oldham and it’s great to be back here and see everyone again.
Along the way I have also done training in mentoring and brokerage (individual budgets). I believe strongly that users and carers can help to improve services, but also that they can improve their own quality of life along the way.
Beth
Hello, my name is Bethan and I’m an Independent Mental Health Advocate at Mind in Oldham. I started this role in April 2010 and am excited to be a part of a supportive, innovative and community focused team.
After I completed a degree in Criminology and Social policy BSocSci (Hons) from Manchester University I became interested in Youth offending. I began volunteering for the Manchester Youth Offending Service and I still work closely with young offenders and their parents or guardians. I have worked as personal tutor and teaching assistant with young people with physical and learning disabilities as well as mental health issues and emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD) mainly in specialist schools. I have also worked as a residential carer for disadvantaged young people, helping them build confidence and engaging in activities.
After working with people who experience difficulties in many areas of their lives I became interested in counselling and I trained to be a volunteer telephone and online counsellor for the helpline for young people; Childline. I also trained for a radio production and presenting qualification of which I am a volunteer for a Wythenshawe fm, but that was just for fun!
I am interested in different ways of communication and this has lead me to attempt to learn British Sign Language. In my free time I enjoy climbing indoor and outdoor (when I can!) as well as hiking. I also play badminton and go to the gym when will power kicks in!
Nayab
Hi! My name is Nayab and I could perhaps be classed as the ‘Baby’ of the team here at Oldham as I have joined Mind just two days ago in April 2010 as an Independent Mental Health Advocate. I am thrilled to be a part of what seems to be a very exciting time for the organisation. Having received a very warm welcome from the team, I look forward to embarking on what seems to be a very fulfilling and promising journey.
My motivation and drive to advocate for people and to support them through difficult times comes from my previous work as well as life experiences. I graduated last year with a BSc (Hons) degree in Psychology. During the degree I also worked in many different mental health and care settings, where I provided advocacy for people of different ages from different backgrounds. Social inclusion and well-being were and always will be at the heart of the work that I do for individuals. Just before beginning my role as an advocate, I also started volunteering at Mind.
In my personal time, I absolutely love reading books, my favourite ones being The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns. I am also what you could call a ‘foodie’ so I love to go out with friends and family for meals etc. Last but not least, knowing that I’ve made a difference to someone’s life even in the smallest of ways always leaves me smiling and content.
Theresa
I first started at Mind in Ashton under Lyne as a Volunteer in 2002; at the time I had recently completed my Introduction to Counselling and I have now been volunteering there for seven years. During my 7 years at Mind my role has changed a number of times - I started out as a Duty Worker or 1 to 1 Worker giving information and offering services to the public and I also volunteered in the Social Club supporting members within the Club environment and going out on day trips. I have for about four years also asssessed clients for counselling.
I also have facilitated training new volunteers, participated in a interviewing panel, made referrals to different agencies and statutory services.
Whilst volunteering at Ashton Mind I have completed my Certificate in Counselling and my Level 4 Diploma in Counselling. I also completed my placement counselling hours here too. In addition to this, I completed a 10 week course in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Skills, a course in using Integrative Counselling Skills and Level 2 in Reiki.
I am a member of the BACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy) and I continue to see counselling clients on a voluntary basis. My work experiences also include placements and training with various other organisations. I have worked in a residential rehabilitation unit with alcohol dependent clients offering counselling and support, facilitatated an alcohol and drugs drop-in and a 12-step group, and also facilitated brief interventions, workshops and counselling addiction clients.
I am a mother with five children and breed and show my dogs as a hobby. I also love Reiki and hands on healing. I have been a Carer myself for many years looking after different members of my family. I started my current role as Carer and Family Support Worker in February this year and I look forward to working and supporting carers in Oldham to improve their own lives and general wellbeing.
Uzma
Hi, I’m Uzma and I’m an Independent Mental Health Advocate (BME) at Mind. I joined Mind in January ‘09 and am very excited to be a part of Mind when it’s at its initial stages of development.
I am lucky to find myself in a really creative, positive and supportive team, whose vision is focused on the people and communities which surround us.
I have worked with people with mental health and learning disabilities in Holland and Tameside. The services are all relevantly different from one another but all are there in order to make a difference to people in need. This has motivated me to get involved with people to help and improve their life styles. My friends and I have also set up a student organisation in order to improve and facilitate the less fortunate in Pakistan. We are looking at issues like Micro credit for the poor, setting up schools for poor and orphan children, creating outlets such as training centres/distribution centres for handmade products by widows and working with adoption projects for orphans and human right projects.We run the organisation via the web, as all the members are scattered all over Pakistan, Holland and UK.
As an individual I enjoy going to the gym, but it’s a different matter that I don’t get time to go for a workout. |
