Alisdair Cameron Alisdair Cameron has variously been an academic historian, a lawyer and a user of mental health services, in between stretches of generalised community activism... Expand Alisdair Cameron has variously been an academic historian, a lawyer and a user of mental health services, in between stretches of generalised community activism. His day job is as team leader at Launchpad, the mental health service user involvement project for Newcastle upon Tyne, and he is also co-chair of the Northumberland, Tyne and Wear Service User & Carer network, and has been a leading light in the establishment of a North East region-wide MH user and carer body, NEt. He is also Chair of Newcastle and Gateshead Arts Studio (NAGAS), Vice-Chair of MHNE, a Governor of the NTW NHS Foundation Trust, and a board member of NSUN, the National Survivor User Network for mental health. In spare moments he shuffles all of the letters from the aforementioned acronyms and sees what they can spell out.
Eleni Chambers Eleni has worked in health and social care since 1989, in both the voluntary and statutory sectors... Expand Eleni Chambers has worked in health and social care since 1989, in both the voluntary and statutory sectors. She is a long-term user of mental health services and more recently of adult social care, and has particular interests in concurrent mental and physical health conditions, self-management, personalisation and research. Eleni is currently a member of the National User Group of Shaping Our Lives, the Advisory Group of INVOLVE and works freelance for a number of national and local organisations. Eleni’s interest in involvement originates from activism in service delivery settings, and she is keen on user-led research and co-production. She has a particular interest in involving communities who are marginalised and/or not usually involved and is currently doing a PhD in involvement in Palliative Care research.
Julia Smith Julia Smith is a member of the Pennine Service User and Carer Involvement Forum and has a wealth of experience as a service user trainer, facilitator and campaigner, working with diverse communities... Expand Julia Smith is a member of the Pennine Service User and Carer Involvement Forum and has a wealth of experience as a service user trainer, facilitator and campaigner, working with diverse communities. She is a volunteer for Rochdale Mind, delivering WRAP training and facilitating a peer support group. Julia was a member of the Rochdale Borough Users Forum (RBUF) which became Voices for ALL (closed Spring 2019) and has worked closely with service providers and the NHS developing policy and products. Julia has contributed to Service user research at both Manchester and Salford Universities. and has had input into the newer Northern Mental Health Forum that shares some NSUN Members.
Mark Wood: Chair Mark Wood is a service user from Birmingham. Before mental illness necessitated ceasing paid employment, Mark worked for many years in management roles within children's social services and trained as a social worker... Expand Mark Wood is a service user from Birmingham. Before mental illness necessitated ceasing paid employment, Mark worked for many years in management roles within children's social services and trained as a social worker. Alongside the paid employment, Mark was an active trade unionist with Unison, the public service trade union, holding positions at local, regional and national levels. Having used the services of Sandwell Mind since 2005 and helping to represent the views of service users to the organisation, Mark was invited to join their Board of Trustees in 2012. The organisation has since changed name to Kaleidoscope Plus Group. In 2015, Mark was elected as a public Governor of the Black Country Partnership Foundation Trust
Rachel Rowan Olive Rachel Rowan Olive is a mental health service user / survivor, illustrator, and MA student in Applied Linguistics at Birkbeck, University of London. She uses her lived experience of mental health and social policy to inform research consultation... Expand Rachel Rowan Olive is a mental health service user / survivor, illustrator, and MA student in Applied Linguistics at Birkbeck, University of London. She uses her lived experience of mental health and social policy to inform research consultation and teaching and training work with universities including UCL, Birmingham, and Essex. She has particular interests in gender and crisis support, informed and guided by membership of a local women’s service user group. Rachel is a member of Studio Upstairs Dalston, a therapeutic artistic community, and exhibits regularly with them in London. She also takes her work - largely cartoons about mental health, politics, and pets - to various zine and illustration fairs.
Jonathan Rackham (co-opted trustee) Jonathan Rackham is a disabled international Independent advocate and consultant who specialises in all forms of Disability and human right law including the United Nations Convention on the person’s right with disabilities... Expand Jonathan Rackham is a disabled international Independent advocate and consultant who specialises in all forms of Disability and human right law including the United Nations Convention on the person’s right with disabilities. He is also a trainer/facilitator and researcher in complex mental health and social care systems and legal frameworks. Jonathan has gained and achieved access to justice working with influential official figures including MP’s, Law Lords, local authority officials. He has a wealth of professional knowledge and experiences into the world of health and social care, disability and human rights law and has been involved in setting new case law precedents. He is involved in a variety of disability organisations including working at senior levels in both the public and voluntary sector and ensures people’s voices are heard and not ignored. He champions the rights of people to be empowered to succeed and reach their individual potential.
Amy Rushton (co-opted trustee) Amy Rushton is an interdisciplinary researcher and writer on mental distress, critical thinking and creative work. Amy’s professional background is in academic research and teaching in UK Higher Education... Expand Amy Rushton is an interdisciplinary researcher and writer on mental distress, critical thinking and creative work. Amy’s professional background is in academic research and teaching in UK Higher Education; she is currently a Lecturer in English at Nottingham Trent University and has taught at universities across London and Manchester. Amy is a long-term mental health service user-survivor and uses her platform as a researcher and teacher to advocate for mental health-related rights and justice. As a queer woman, Amy has direct experience of how mental health services can emphasise ‘normalcy’ and cause further alienation and distress. Her current research project investigates how current writing by user-survivors around the world questions and resists the dominant story about the ongoing global mental health ‘crisis’. To date, she has published three peer-reviewed research papers as part of her new project and leads the World Literature Network’s research cluster on World Literature and Mental Health (details of relevant publications and research cluster can be found here).
Dawn Willis: Secretary Dawn Willis has an extensive background in both working within mental health services and as a campaigner at local and national level... Expand Dawn Willis has an extensive background in both working within mental health services and as a campaigner at local and national level. Having been previously part of the governance structure of Rethink Mental Illness on the South West regional committee she was a national lead on ‘The Hardest Hit’ campaign; delivered ‘The Fair Treatment Now’ petition to Downing Street and was heavily involved in Lord Keith Bradley’s report into the treatment of mentally ill people within the criminal justice system. She was the winner of Rethink Mental Illness’ Pringle Award for campaigning, and a runner up in the MIND Media Awards. Dawn describes herself as a social media fanatic. She has a large twitter following using her handle @quinonostante which she says is pronounced (qui-nono-stante) and loosely translated means ‘here, in spite of’ - a reference to feeling she’s lucky to still be around following her chaotic earlier life and ongoing experiences with bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. Dawn co-authored the document ‘Responsible Reform: Changes to Disability Living Allowance’ as part of the Spartacus Group of professionals concerned about the cumulative impact on sick and disabled people by the proposed changes from DLA (Disability Living Allowance) to PIP (Personal Independence Payments). Her dream is that one day, service provision will be completely managed and operated by people with lived experience, and that there will be no organisations bringing along their ‘token service user’ to validate themselves at mental health events.
Emily Reynolds Emily Reynolds has been a service user/survivor for nearly fifteen years and has been writing about mental health and social care for five. Her work as a journalist has seen her published in The Guardian, BBC and more... Expand Emily Reynolds has been a service user/survivor for nearly fifteen years and has been writing about mental health and social care for five. Her work as a journalist has seen her published in The Guardian, BBC and more, and in 2017 she published a book, A Beginner's Guide to Losing Your Mind, a practical guide to navigating mental illness for young people, with Hodder and Stoughton. She has also talked on mental health policy and more on Five Live, Women's Hour, at the British Academy and more. She also sits on a campaign steering committee for the women's mental health charity Wish, where she is working on two campaigns: one aiming to give women the option of gender specific talk therapy, and another looking at provision of certain services by male staff in women's prisons.
Nick Kennedy (co-opted trustee) Nick Kennedy has been involved with NSUN since its launch. Having experienced the wide variation in quality of support and care for those suffering mental and physical ill health, he became part of a user-led group... Expand Nick Kennedy has been involved with NSUN since its launch. Having experienced the wide variation in quality of support and care for those suffering mental and physical ill health, he became part of a user-led group. As part of a Local Involvement Network, he represented and lobbied for the public to all levels of the NHS and local government, and represented to the Department of Health during the establishment of Healthwatch. He is a long-term campaigner against stigma, and a better deal for those experiencing mental or physical distress.
Zoe Bennett Zoe supports many different organisations and people in the Midlands from many different communities and is very diverse as well as inclusive in her approach by raising funds... Expand Zoe Bennett aka The Motivational Queen® is one of the U.K's most sought after inspirational speakers who has endured and survived countless life-threatening adverse events. Zoe is the Managing Director of Training Personified a personal development training company which recognises and applies individual bespoke training needs. She is also a:- Multi International Award Winning Business Owner * Mentor * Author *Event Host * International Inspirational TedX Speaker * Personal Development Mindset Trainer. As the founder of the MBCC (Midlands Business and Community Charity) she supports many different organisations and people in the Midlands from many different communities and is very diverse as well as inclusive in her approach by raising funds and giving away thousands of pounds each year to various charitable organisations. She does not only help one core group but many such as Domestic Violence victims, the Youth, the Unemployed, the homeless, Cancer Victims, mental health sufferers, the disabled and continues to support many others.
Nic Murray Nic Murray - several years experience working to amplify the voices of people with lived experience of mental distress within a UK policy and influencing context while working for the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute (MMHPI) ... Expand Nic Murray - several years experience working to amplify the voices of people with lived experience of mental distress within a UK policy and influencing context while working for the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute (MMHPI). At MMHPI Nic was involved with the senior management team in establishing the organisation’s fundraising protocols, contributing to decisions on the risk register and drafting equal opportunities and ethical and data compliance protocols for engaging with service users. This experience provided Nic with a strong understanding of the governance processes required of charitable organisations and the responsibilities and duties of trusteeship. As the policy and campaigns convener at London Irish Abortion Rights Campaign, he regularly convenes and organises a working group to respond rapidly to the legal and political landscape across Ireland and the devolved nations. Nic has additional experience in revenue generation for a wide variety of charities and campaigns from private companies as well as grant making organisations, aligning funding opportunities with existing charitable objectives.
Helen Oldfield: Treasurer Helen Oldfield has 20 years’ experience working for professional membership bodies; she has in-depth knowledge of the structure, direction and nature of professional not-for-profit organisations... Expand Helen Oldfield has 20 years’ experience working for professional membership bodies; she has in-depth knowledge of the structure, direction and nature of professional not-for-profit organisations. Helen has been a part of professional body committees for three different membership organisations. Helen has worked for the Chartered Quality Institute (6 years), the Institute of Leadership & Management (11 years) and is currently working for the Market Research Society (3 years). As such she has experience of membership, professional development (training, qualifications and CPD), online support/information, guidance and regulation, and content (journals/online magazines), standards and regulation as well as understanding and meeting the needs of members and communities through her various roles in marketing. She has also been part of the leadership team helping shape strategy and direction of her current and previous professional body, for the last 13 years.