Stepping up to lead the board

When Lucia began thinking about becoming a trustee, she wasn’t looking for just any role. She wanted to use her professional expertise in a way that felt purposeful - something rooted in health, based in an area she cares deeply about, and able to make a tangible difference.

Through Reach, she found STAMP Revisited, a Teesside-based mental health advocacy charity. One year later, she is now Chair of Trustees, helping to guide a new five-year strategy and leading a refreshed, diverse board into its next chapter.

Here, Lucia shares her story: 

“I’d been thinking about becoming a trustee for a while. Like many people, I had that internal dialogue - do I have the right skills? Do I have the time? Am I too young?

“But professionally, I work in communications in the NHS and the charity sector. Health is my passion. And through my day job, I was also completing a governance course, equipping me further for that step into trusteeship. This helped me realise that I wanted to use my skills in a meaningful way. 

“I spotted Reach on LinkedIn. The idea of a dedicated platform for trustee recruitment immediately made sense. It felt open, transparent and fair. Unless someone personally taps you on the shoulder - which can sometimes feel a bit opaque - it’s hard to know where to start. Reach made that first step much clearer.

“STAMP Revisited stood out straight away. It’s a mental health advocacy charity based in Middlesbrough, and giving something back to the North East was important to me. It’s an area that faces real challenges. The role felt aligned with both my professional experience and my personal values.

“I applied through Reach and the process felt straightforward and supportive. There was clarity about what the charity needed, and I felt protected in that initial stage before conversations began. I went down to Middlesbrough to meet the Chair and Project Manager, and very quickly it felt like the right fit.

“I joined at the same time as several other new trustees. We were effectively an emerging board. Everyone had come for slightly different reasons, but when we met in person and shared those reasons, particularly in the context of mental health, it was powerful. Some conversations were very candid. That created a sense of honesty from the start.

“Within a few months, I moved from trustee to Chair. The previous Chair had done an incredible job holding the organisation together, but it was time for the next phase. We now have a new five-year strategy and a renewed focus on how we grow sustainably.

“STAMP has a small operational team: three part-time advocates, a part-time advocate and project support officer, and a project manager who essentially does everything. That means trusteeship here really matters. We are not ornamental. We need to bring skills that strengthen the organisation’s resilience and governance.

“Through Reach we were able to bring a good balance of different skills to the board.  We now have a treasurer who has introduced new financial systems and simplified reporting. We have trustees with backgrounds in HR and recruitment, law, income generation, business management and lived experience as a service user. I bring communications and strategic leadership experience.

“That diversity - of skills, background and lived experience - is one of our greatest strengths. It makes discussions richer. It challenges assumptions. It ensures we are accountable.

“One of the first things we recognised was the need for a clear strategy. We’ve developed a five-year plan and are now aligning trustees to different strands based on their expertise and interests. It’s about informed decision-making. As trustees, we must avoid stepping into operational work unnecessarily - but we also have a duty to provide the insight and challenge that a small charity needs. Finding that line isn’t always easy.

“Personally, becoming a trustee, and now Chair, has been deeply satisfying. It allows me to use my professional skills in a different context. It reminds you that those skills have value beyond your day job. It sharpens your thinking. It changes how you work.

“There’s also something powerful about collective action. Every trustee is giving time. The staff are giving extraordinary commitment. Together, that creates momentum. As a board, we don’t just make decisions, we strengthen systems, shape culture and create the conditions for better support for people experiencing mental health challenges.

“I would absolutely recommend Reach to anyone considering trusteeship. It opens the door. It makes the process fairer and more independent. And it helps you see where your skills might genuinely make a difference.

“You do need to care. You can’t do this well if you don’t believe in the cause. But if you’re ready to step forward, there is real value - for the charity, and for you.”