We are incredibly grateful to Andy for his leadership of Cheltenham and District Samaritans over the past three years. As he steps down, we asked him some questions about his time as Branch Director.
What have you enjoyed most about being branch director?
Without a doubt, the thing I’ve enjoyed the most is the opportunity to get to know so many of you. We all have our own reasons for volunteering as listening volunteers but it’s great to be united in a common purpose – to be there for our callers. It really has been a privilege to be branch director for the last three years.
As well as the listening volunteers, it has been great to work alongside and get to know our fundraising volunteers at the Friends of Cheltenham Samaritans. They really do work so hard to keep money flowing into the branch and the events that they organise are also amazing fun and I particularly enjoyed serving beer at the craft beer festival and being in event control at Glastonbury Festival.
Being branch director has also given me the opportunity to get to know other charities in Cheltenham. There are so many in our local community who need support and it’s great to see how that is being provided by volunteers across Cheltenham.
What have been some of the challenges of steering the branch through the past three years?
I’ve loved every minute. Okay maybe not quite every minute!
It’s natural that any building that is in use almost every hour will have things going wrong and, of course, those things need fixing. Whether its broken dishwashers, leaking toilets, bikes getting locked in bike sheds, no heating in the middle of winter, power cuts... it seems like there is always something that needs sorting!
And then there was futureproofing. For a charity that’s been around for 70 years, it’s inevitable that change will happen to make sure we are here supporting callers for years to come. However, the changes proposed were significant and the rationale wasn’t clearly communicated by central Samaritans. I’m glad that there will now be a more considered implementation of any changes. For my part, I tried to ensure that I was open in sharing proposals with our volunteers and making sure there was opportunity for volunteers to provide feedback and ask questions.
What advice would you give to your successor?
Over the next few years, as the futureproofing work continues, there may be changes to the Samaritans service and it will be even more important that there are good communications between the leadership team and volunteers.
Overall though, I know Sue doesn’t need any advice from me. She will be a fantastic director and will always have my full support.
What are you planning to do with your extra time now?
Volunteering is very important to me and I’ll be using some of the time I spent as branch director on other volunteer activities. I have taken on a regional role supporting new branch directors across the region. I’ve also recently become a trustee of Cheltenham Opendoor – an amazing local charity that supports vulnerable, disadvantaged and isolated people in Cheltenham.
I’ll be taking a short break of a couple of months away from the branch but will be restarting listening shifts and leader shifts from the beginning of May. Before that I have a couple of trips planned – walking in the Lake District and improving my pizza-making skills in Naples!
I enjoy being a listening volunteer and I’m looking forward to coming into branch to support callers without worrying about whether the dishwasher is still working or toilet paper needs refilling!
Do you have any message to the volunteers as you step down as director?
You are amazing. Giving you time to be a listening volunteer is a huge commitment but does make a difference for people who need someone to talk to.
We really do have an amazing branch here at Cheltenham. As a branch, we contribute a huge number of volunteer hours – consistently highest across the region, and have seen our overnight support to callers increase (I hope that will continue). Overall though I’ve been humbled by all the support you have provided to me and to the branch. Thank you.