By Steve Rafferty
Although I have been part of erosh for almost 6 years, I haven’t experienced the different work that goes on behind the scenes to ensure we can continue to provide our wide range of services to members. I have worked with Rebecca for over 20 years at a number of different organisations and it is great that Rebecca has agreed to remain with erosh focussing on Policy and Good Practice.
Taking on the role of CEO from the 1st of June has been a busy month and a taste of what is ahead. It has been great to meet members, Trustees, partner agencies and also prepare for the appointment of Kevin Smith to take on the role of managing the ILS Accreditation, I am confident he will be a great success. It has also been a busy month with my cycling challenge – 300 miles in June for Dementia Uk, which I completed on the 30th June and raising money for such a great charity.
Here are some of the highlights from the month:
- Good Practice Showcase event – the day was really enjoyable and as a first time for this type of event, it had a great attendance and some interesting presentations, focussing on service delivery models, quality frameworks, extensive support services across different client groups, new build schemes and refurbishment projects. I am already looking ahead to next year’s event.
- South Wales Network meeting – a packed room in Aberdare with over 30 members from across South Wales, with a very interesting and eye-opening presentation about heat networks and new regulations, which will impact Independent Living Schemes and social housing generally. It was also an opportunity to meet and network with those attending.
- ILS Network meeting – these quarterly meetings are always well attended and raise a wide range of subjects, to allow discussions and sharing of good practice.
- Good Practice Bitesize Workshop – Managing Communal Lounges – a short, lunchtime event where we had an animated discussion, shared challenges and discussed the findings of our new Good Practice Guide on Managing Communal Lounges.
- Meeting James Batchelor MBE – many of you will have heard about the “I am okay” button and the work of Alertacall and the work of James in developing this over 20 years ago. He was recently awarded the MBE and I took the opportunity to meet up with him while he was working in Bristol and hear about his passion for the subject of keeping elderly residents safe through the use of technology and how this idea has grown over the years.
- Meeting the Trustees – the unsung heroes of all charities, who give up their time for free and bring so much experience to supporting erosh. We are always keen to hear from anyone who would like to become a Trustee and in particular we are looking to recruit a new Treasurer. If you would like to find out more, please contact info@erosh.co.uk.
- Meeting the team – although I have worked with the team for several years, it has been really good to find out more about the different roles and talk about new ideas for erosh. I am looking forward to working with such a great team, with so much experience and commitment to erosh.
I have certainly slept well this month with lots of cycling and a busy diary!
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