Civic Leaders Meeting.

I was delighted to attend a Civic Leaders meeting at Surrey County Council’s offices at Woodhatch, Reigate.

Hosted by Tim Hall and Bernie Muir, the  Chair and Vice Chair of SCC, also in attendance were Mary Cresswell, the Vice Lord Lieutenant, myself as High Sheriff and the majority of the District, Borough and Town Mayors from across the County. Each of us in turn explained a little about our roles, our themes for the year and the various engagements we had in our diaries. It was a great opportunity to meet those in office that I had not yet come across on my engagements and to arrange to see them on their own patches later on in my Shrieval year.

There was obvious concern in the room about the effect the change in local government (the abolishing Boroughs and Districts), would have on local civic appointments and the desire for some local civic function to survive the changes to support future local community events; matters that would hopefully be discussed further when more is known of the proposed reforms.

Oasis – Supporting Children and Families in Elmbridge.

I had the pleasure of meeting Caroline Edwards, the Founder and Director of Services for Oasis, a charity that provides vital support to vulnerable families and children in Elmbridge and the Surrounding areas.

Caroline has been supporting her local community for a staggering 29 years and Oasis provides a wide variety of services including crisis support, emotional well-being, emergency services, parenting support, legal support, Christmas services, children services as well as running a bursary in their centre in Cobham. As so often seen in Surrey, there is a problem in convincing people that deprivation and need are very real issues, albeit hidden away, from the more affluent more visible parts of the County; and there are people living in both absolute and relative poverty. One of the other key services Oasis provides, which sadly is prevalent in many homes, regardless of wealth, is help for people suffering from domestic abuse.

Oasis provides support sessions which, unlike statutory provision services, are not of any fixed duration; and they have over many years helped countless individuals and families find more positive pathways and happier futures. 

If you live in the Elmbridge area and would like to offer your support you can find more information here https://www.oasischarity.co.uk/

Royal Surrey Hospital – Community Open Day.

It is rare you get the opportunity to see the inner workings of a major hospital; so Suzanne and I were delighted to be invited to attend the Community Open Day at Royal Surrey on Saturday June 28th. It was a very busy day, with hundreds of visitors young and old having tours of the various hospital departments and seeing the number of volunteer and charitable organisations connected to the running of the hospital wand welfare of their patients. There was even an opportunity to climb on board, or press the sirens on, a number of emergency vehicles. 

We were privileged to be escorted round by Joss Bigmore, the Chair of the Royal Surrey Foundation Trust, who having only been the post a couple of years seemed to know the names of all the staff and volunteers we met. He also furnished us with some amazing statistics including the fact they have 5,300 dedicated staff and nearly 300 volunteers who see around 90,000 patients in the emergency department and over half a million in out-patients over a year. 

The hospitals offers some 350 careers and provides around 100 placement opportunities a year.

We had a fascinating tour of one of the operating theatres with its state of the art robotic surgical arms, controlled by a surgeon. They can each carry out up to four prostrate operations a day in the theatre (when previously only one would be possible) and because they need to make less incisions the patients can return home the same day rather than spending three days in hospital. The hospital has four of these machines with a further four on the way. We then visited the cancer centre and saw how the radiotherapy unit works carrying out over 3,800 sessions a year.

It is a great idea to open the hospital up in this way and hopefully it will encourage people to apply to be a part of it whether a volunteer, placement or a full time career.

I would recommend it for a fascinating insight to hospital life when the opportunity arises again next year.

A Date for the Diary – The Air Ambulance Winter Ball.

If you read my blogs you will have seen a couple about the Air Ambulance Charity. A vital service in our county and that of Kent and Sussex too. This is another way to support them and help save lives – find out about their events at: events@aakss.org.uk.
#charity #airambulance #Akss #surrey #sussex #kent #savelives #pennyhillpark #WinterBall

Passing out ceremony for students at Merrist Wood College who passed the 'Uniformed Protective Services' course.

Passing Out Celebration at Merrist Wood College.

Suzanne and I enjoyed a lovely afternoon at Merrist Wood College where a number of their students at both Level 2 and Level 3 were celebrating completing their courses in Uniformed Protective Services. The day included friendly competition between the various Activate Learning colleges that teach the course with both tug-of-war and mock gun assembly assault courses. After a lunch break, Gary Headland, CEO of Activate Learning, Suzanne and I were able to meet the students who lined up in front of their parents, families and friends. I was very impressed by the confidence that the students displayed and the fact that most of them were interested in pursuing a career in public service having fully enjoyed the course they had been studying. I was able to give a short speech providing them with some advice as they look towards their future studies and careers. I left them with my favourite piece of advice, which is a quote from arguably the best boxer of all time, Muhammed Ali, which simply says:- Don’t Count The Days, Make The Days Count. Something I try and remember!

Uniformed protective services are crucial in the UK for many reasons including upholding law and order, emergency response, national defence,  community safety, upholding human rights, promoting equality and diversity; and for the high level of discipline and professionalism that is necessary to maintain public trust and credibility. Clearly the course had instilled in the students many of the necessary qualities they will need but more importantly had lifted their sights as to future rewarding careers.

You can read my speech HERE.

Promoting Safety for Children at The Guildford Spectrum.

Suzanne and I had a very informative morning at Guildford Spectrum on June 26th when we joined final year primary school children in attending a Junior Citizen Safety Event run by Child Safety Media. Over a two week period approximately 1,200 Year 6 children (10–11-year-olds) from local primary schools will be taking part in a series of interactive safety workshops under the ‘Junior Citizen’ banner.

The ‘Junior Citizen’ scheme teaches children about important issues that are often overlooked by the curriculum, such as: first aid (learning how to save a life; DRABC; basic life support – CPR;  recovery position); the dangers and consequences of criminal damage (trespass, graffiti, object throwing); anti-social behaviour (what it is and what it isn’t, who can cause ASB and how to report it);being wildfire aware in the countryside, what to do if a fire is encountered, how to make a 999 call; health and wellbeing (the importance of physical activity; sugar swaps); safety on the railways (safe places to cross, dangers of electricity and platform safety); water safety (dangers, lifeguards, flags, safety signs, floating, what to do in an emergency).The workshops are delivered by local safety agencies and  give pupils the unique opportunity to learn valuable skills from the professionals, through practical demonstrations and discussions in real-life situations.

The event, will run until Friday, 27th June 2025, and includes sessions from agencies such as South East Coast Ambulance Service, British Transport Police, Thames Basin Heaths Partnership, Children and Family Health Surrey (School Nurses), Network Rail/ South Western Railway and Freedom Leisure.

The children were certainly fully enthralled and from a quick quiz at the end of the session they had clearly absorbed the main safety messages that had been conveyed. Suzanne, Howard Smith, Mayor of Guildford, and I also came away suitably enlightened. Many congratulations to Dan Lowrie, Director of Child Safety Media, his fellow staff, all the agencies involved and Freedom Leisure (who run Guildford Spectrum and make the space available).

Guildford Philanthropy’s Corporate Ambassador Evening at Chilworth Manor Vineyard.

With my feet still a little weary from the Wine Walk the previous weekend I returned to one of the vineyards, Chilworth Manor,  for Guildford Philanthropy’s Corporate Ambassador evening. It was a glorious balmy evening and Sir Graham and Mia Wrigley, were the most gracious hosts. We were all able to sample the three types of wine they produce and we heard about the history of the vineyard and the growing techniques. I stepped down as Chair of Guildford Philanthropy earlier this year, although I remain on the Panel, and my successor, Nikki Ackerley, informed all present of the grants that had been awarded this year due to the generous donations made by our Corporate Ambassadors. To emphasise the impact of their contributions, Rob Kelly, from Home Start related how the grant of £9,900 made at the end of last year had helped a number of local families. Guildford Philanthropy, since it started the initiative six years ago, has welcomed 45 local businesses to join its Corporate Ambassador programme, and it has developed into a strong business networking club, meeting four times a year, as well as a force for good in the local community. If you want to know more about the Club, and how to join, information can be found  here https://guildfordphilanthropy.org.uk/corporate-ambassadors/ A huge thank you to Graham and Mia, their team Nik Badain, Helen Harber and (on her first event!) Emma Biggin; also thanks to Surrey Hills Wood Fired Pizza for the delicious canapes. It was definitely more pleasurable not having to walk all the way to the vineyard, however, I had promised Graham I would turn up in my full court dress as a thank you for the hospitality and I had not banked on 25 degrees of heat!

 

HMP High Down - Focusing on Rehabilitation

HMP High Down – Focusing on Rehabilitation.

Having spent the previous afternoon at HMP Send at the Our Time Art Exhibition, Suzanne and I visited the largest prison for men in Surrey, HMP High Down, the following day.

It houses some 1,200 convicted men (no remand prisoners) and is a Category C prison. We were welcomed by Richard Jackman, the Business and Community Engagement Manager, and spent some time with the Prison Governor, Emily Martin, who enlightened us as to the daily routine at High Down. Rehabilitation is a main focus and the need to occupy the time of inmates productively is paramount. We saw workshops teaching bricklaying, plastering, carpentry, waste management, rail track laying, bike mechanics and fabric cutting (into towels and shower curtains). Also, there is a fully functioning DHL facility within the prison, a strong horticultural scheme and a fully equipped gym and 4G pitch. All inmates are encouraged to participate, the vast majority do, and of those which start a course an amazing 99% complete it, demonstrating the positive impact it has on prison life. The skills based training is backed up by educational lessons and courses designed to prepare the men for their release.

Richard gave us an extensive tour of the prison and we had the opportunity to talk to some of the inmates who were clearly enjoying the bricklaying training. Overall the impression was an environment of structured activity, helped by the routine and stability of the prison population. Like all prisons there is a problem with drones making illegal deliveries and a vacancy list for both prison staff and probation officers but the morale of the prison staff we met seemed high and there was a mutual respect between them and the prisoners.

‘Our Time’ Exhibition Showcases Work from Past & Present Artists at HMP Send.

I was delighted to be invited, with Suzanne to meet a group of resident artists, plus alumnae, at the Private View of the Our Time exhibition 2025, on June 24th at HMP Send.

This annual event has been held since 2017 and includes work from woman artists who take part in the weekly Watts Gallery Trust Art workshops. This year nine artists were exhibiting their work. They all used different mediums and styles revealing their different personalities and backgrounds; and most of them had never produced any artworks before enrolling on the workshops. They all spoke briefly about their experience and thanked Sophie Artemis – their inspirational tutor, and Officer Stuart Gregory, who provides them with continuous support and encouragement.

Sally Varah of the Michael Varah Memorial Fund spoke about how in 2016-17 the co-founders talked to her about their aspirations to hold the first ever art exhibition inside a UK prison, planned and curated by the artists themselves, and how the MVMF has supported the exhibitions ever since.

The evening was graced by the Lord Lieutenant, a number of DLs and a posse of past High Sheriffs together with a number of other dignitaries with many of the guests purchasing artwork, greeting cards or postcards. Suzanne and I were delighted to acquire a set of three Hare pictures created by Dena, an alumna who returns each year to exhibit. It was a pleasure to speak with all the artist and hear their enthusiasm for the workshops and the exhibition.

Headroom – New Premises in Farnham

Suzanne and I had a very uplifting evening at the grand opening of Headroom’s new premises in Farnham on June 24th.

Headroom is a mental health charity which seeks to help young people, their parents and their carers. Started by Sue Evans from a shed in her garden it later moved to Aldershot before outgrowing that space and now opening in Farnham. They offer a range of free therapeutic services that are specifically designed to meet the growing mental health crisis and alleviate pressure on local services and improve the quality of life for those they help. We heard some lived experiences from people the charity has helped and we spoke to a number of the team and the trustees who work so heard to help those in crisis.

As a Trustee of the Community Foundation, I was aware that we awarded a grant to Headroom last year which paid for over 150 one-to-one sessions which had positively benefited 33 people. They help young people aged form 11 to 25 and their parents and carers which is important as statutory help often ends at age 18, and also there is no limit to the number of sessions they will provide.

We were escorted round and introduced to everyone by Nichola Clark (Chair of Trustees) and the Mayor of Farnham and I myself gave short speeches celebrating both the achievements to date and the fact the larger premises will enable them to greatly increase the number of services they provide and young people they can support.   

Visit the Website at; https://www.headroomcharity.co.uk

You can also read my speech HERE

Suzanne, Sue Evans, me and Nichola Clark.

The Headroom Team.