Red Rose RecoveRy
We’ve been running for nearly three
years, however we have been
independent in our own right as a
charity for the last 12 months. We now
employ 25 people.
The whole conference was a great
experience. It’s not just about the
conference for us though, it’s a reason
to scoop lots of us together and
connect and take a little bit of our
magic and sprinkle it across the UK. We
love the travelling down together and
getting a meal the night before. The
whole experience is about connecting.
This year, the guys were really
buzzing on the bus going home. We
loved the talk from BoB and how Linda
Chan was still in treatment but able to
contribute to BoB, coming through the
service in a
meaningful way
that secured her a
job and a
promotion.
Awesome! Richard
McCann went
down a storm, and
he has put many of
us through a
speaker bootcamp
that has enabled us
to roll out the
training for
ourselves. We are now training up more
people with speaker presentation skills.
We also got lots of inspiration from the
speakers – we liked the stories of hope,
with living examples up at the front.
Tips for a creating and maintaining a
group are to establish some common
values and regularly refresh the
leadership. We brought down 30 or so
people and the vast majority were new
members. Focus should be kept on
where you want to go and what you
want to achieve – let that define who
you are, not where you have come from.
changes UK
Our project started in 2007, but was
set up officially as a CIC in 2009. We
found the speakers inspirational –
however the atmosphere was the most
valuable. It was
really recovery
focused and our
volunteers really
enjoyed a well-
organised day.
We networked
with service user
groups and peer-
led organisations
from all over the
UK. We have since
been supporting a
number of start-up
organisations and have
joined two boards of
directors.
We’d say that it’s
important to ensure that
each service maintains a
service user perspective,
and regular consultation
and engagement
opportunities are in place
to encourage and empower
service users to make
changes within their own
communities.
sUIT
We’ve been going for eight years. We
enjoyed all of it – but especially
meeting new people and getting to
network. It was a really enjoyable day,
and we are definitely looking forward
to next year!
hampshIRe aRc (acTIve
RecoveRy commUnITy)
We’ve been going for about a year now.
Each of the presentations reminded us
what valuable work we do, how much is
possible, ideas for the future and filled
us with the energy and enthusiasm to
12 |
drinkanddrugsnews
| March 2015
The eighTh NaTioNal Service
A tAste of cAlm:
Away from the bustle
of the conference halls,
therapists lois skilleter
and sally crosland from
earthereal of Yorkshire
gave Indian head
massages, thai seated
back massages, hand
massages and reiki
throughout the day.
The exhibition area was a vibrant bustle of networking all day
as service user groups shared information on their activities.
What did the experience mean to those involved?
Keep it real!
