Stephen Tyson Expand Stephen finds that keeping busy helps him to keep mentally healthy, and he does this in a number of ways, particularly with Art and Photography (some of which is displayed at Vital Offices). Thankfully for Vital, part of keeping busy means volunteering his time for the organisation! Stephen has been with Vital from the very early days and is passionate about the work VITAL does, continuing with the business of helping people like him to survive an ever more complicated care system. He is eager for VITAL to move with the needs of the environment and the people it serves, particularly those experiencing mental ill health for the first time. What you should know about Stephen, is that he is always thinking of others, and will be the first to try and solve a problem. Staff at VITAL find themselves in many a food fight over his allotment produce.
Trevor Ramsay Expand Trevor values the friendship and support at Vital which helps him stay mentally well. Having been involved with VITAL since it’s humble beginnings, you will often find Trevor in the office and in attendance at VITAL meetings. Trevor got his first job through VITAL, working for the Bradford District Care Trust as a non-executive Director/ Service user representative, and received support from Vital to carry out this vital (pun intended) role. Trevor is not only a Board Member but also made sure that he attended Advocacy training so he is really aware of the value of the work we do. Trevor has worked on many projects whilst being at VITAL including user led research with Xplore whose paper; The Journey Affect was published in Disability and Society.
Peter Relton Expand Peter came to VITAL all the way back in the 1990s when he wanted to put something back, to help other people rather than just be a passive recipient of mental health services, and got involved as a volunteer advocate with VITAL’s previous incarnation as BAMHAG. This experience led to a job in the NHS, promoting a service user perspective within a radical mental health team that wanted to work in innovative, non-oppressive ways. He then joined the management committee, and remains a Trustee. He believes it is important for there to be an independent organisation that supports people who are disempowered to speak up for themselves, and works to individual service users/patients agendas rather than a narrow definition of what professionals think we need. He has been involved with BAMHAG for over 25 years, and doesn’t feel he can stop supporting it in its new incarnation now. Peter feels he has been around long enough to see how health services/social care goes in cycles. Radical ideas (including the radical team that originally employed him) get squashed; the tired old status quo which in mental health medicalises our experience of distress, and too often gives us inappropriate treatment against our will, holds sway. He feels we are currently at a low point in terms of patient involvement (locally and nationally), where there isn't the interest within health and social care services to listen to what patients and carers think (of course lip-service is paid to this, as ever). His experience suggests that the tide will turn at some point, patient-based ideas will come to the fore again, and services will improve. He hopes and believes that VITAL will play a key part in moving things forward. Interestingly, on of Peter’s favourite TV shows is actually the cartoon Ben & Holly's Little Kingdom, currently shown on Channel 5 early mornings. He thinks it's one of the best TV programmes ever, expressing profound truths about the nature of life, as well as being laugh-out-loud funny!
Sara Firth Expand Sara keeps mentally healthy with an active mind, as well as the art of taking each day as it comes… often minute by minute, hour by hour, and being mindful of better times. Sara came to VITAL 12 years ago attracted by the ‘user run’ work ethos that enabled her voice to be heard & listened to within what she often found to be over complicated health & social care system. She says her VITAL turning point came when she was invited to become a Trustee, finding it heartening to discover that the organisation believed in & had confidence in her, despite having very little in herself. The organisations’ non-judgemental stance & encouragement from the start enabled her to build esteem, become less self-critical, whilst also satisfying a passion for enabling others. Her vision for the future is that the mental health needs for people of all age & diversity are recognised on a par with their physical health needs with no pre-judgement or discrimination & that people are treated as people; not as a diagnosis. If you are lucky enough to spend some time with Sara, you may be the recipient of her amazing baking as she spends time in her my kitchen/come office which she considers her safe space. Here she enjoys challenging herself at being both culinary & philosophically creative.
Colin Perry Expand You may find Colin in your local 10 Pin Bowling alley, as his 10 Pin techniques were recently rediscovered after 50 years at a VITAL gathering. This is unsurprising as part of Colin’s way of staying mentally healthy is taking part in varied activities and interests. As with many of our team, Colin stays active, jogging and walking most days, but also has a good sense of doing things for enjoyment rather than because he ‘ought to’. Colin has worked in mental health services and feels that people’s voices are often marginalised or ignored, and came to work with us following retirement, as he believes in the need to get people heard. He has a vision which I’m sure many will share, that services are built around the needs of people rather than people having to fit in to services. He also hopes that people recognise that we all have mental health, and will all suffer with some type of mental health issue at some point in our lives.
Lynne Ash Expand Lynne likes to find some headspace at weekends to ensure she stays mentally healthy and on occasion, when there is some energy left she joins the wonderful diverse range of people at the gym. She may not do much when I am there, but at least she feels good having made the effort! Lynne was attracted to join Vital, knowing many people who have no voice about their care and left unheard in the crowd. She feels that there are some great people who work in the statutory and voluntary sector who promote the rights of individuals they care for and help to break down barriers for them, but much more support is needed and this is where Vital fits in. She feels VITAL can support people to access support and services as awell as information when things go wrong. As such, she wanted to put her time and effort for the benefit of this cause. Her vision for the future is that no-one experiencing a mental health, condition young or old is left by the way side to struggle by themselves or with their families, unsupported. For all of the serious stuff and hard work that goes in to supporting VITAL, Lynne also has a great sense of humour… feel free to try out your jokes when you see her.