Since 1999, Stuart Low Trust has worked with people who feel isolated, who struggle with mental health issues and who may also be homeless or struggling financially.
"When your founder, and the only Chair your charity has ever had, decides it’s time to retire there’s a big challenge to face," says trustee, Pat Mayhew.
"We’re a recognised force for good in Islington, which is one of London’s poorest boroughs, with a suicide rate well above the national average. We got the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service in 2015, and have twice been voted ‘small charity of the year’ by the British Medical Journal. Finding a chair who could help carry this legacy and work forward was absolutely essential to us.”
"It was clear to us we had to engage with an established recruitment service, one familiar with the voluntary sector and with expertise in seeking out high quality candidates with the right experience. We chose Reach."
New TrusteeWorks service
Stuart Low Trust was the first charity to use the recently upgraded TrusteeWorks service "Working with Reach was easy," says Pat. "The way the brief was taken gave us confidence and the advice we got was terrific. We liked the weekly progress report and the value of Reach’s candidate vetting was noticeable in the high quality of candidates included on a final shortlist it offered much and represented terrific value for money."
Just the fit
"It took us just three months from start to finish. We had a really challenging person specification. We wanted someone with experience of chairing and strong networking skills. Ideally we hoped for someone local to the charity, and with knowledge of the mental health field. In John Thompson we found just the fit we were after. We’re now looking to the future with confidence, and are very grateful for Reach’s help."
