News from our Chair of Trustees

June 2022

Hi everyone. It’s been a while since my last message in the final Brunswick Centre Quarterly Newsletter, and I wanted to take a minute to quickly tell you about what the trustees have been up to since then.

In some ways, the world seems like a very different place to how it was only six months ago. Although COVID-19 is still circulating in our communities, we now seem to be past the peak of the most recent wave and numbers are now on the decline. Beyond that though, we are now learning to ‘live with COVID’ and in a world without any restrictions. ‘Living with COVID’ will mean different things to different people, so please continue to do what you’re comfortable with and remember that different people may also have different comfort zones. Some may need to continue to be more careful as a result of underlying conditions and vulnerabilities. I would urge you to continue to be mindful of this and consider what you can continue do to keep yourself and others safe and well.

As many of you will also be aware, there have recently been a number of cases in the UK of the Monkeypox virus and some of you may be concerned about how this might affect you. Whilst the risk of infection remains low at this time, it’s important to remain vigilant and contact your local sexual health clinic (but do not attend unless advised by the clinic to do so) or NHS 111 if you have any unexplained rashes or lesions. Further information and an FAQ are available on our website here.

In other news, I am delighted that the board of trustees has agreed to fund work to further explore and develop our approach to co-production at the Brunswick Centre. We know that our local communities have precious insight, lived experience and assets that can help us design, develop and deliver more better, more effective services. I want this work to be an opportunity for us to consider how we can better share power with the communities we serve and continue to give them opportunities to help influence and shape the work of the Brunswick Centre moving forwards. This ties in nicely to our ongoing work to ensure that race equality and inclusion are embedded within all aspects of the charity.

Finally, we are currently seeking out new trustees to be part of our thriving and dynamic board. If you’ve ever wondered what being a trustee would be like or are interested to know more, please do get in touch with me at chairperson@thebrunswickcentre.org.uk or, for more info, visit our website here.

All the best,

Tom Mapplethorpe

Chair of Trustees