Sherry was recently elected as our new President. Find out more about her, what the role involves and her hopes for the charity.
My first experience of NCT was 17 years ago when I read an article in a mother and baby magazine. The Department of Health was giving out grants to train breastfeeding counsellors and I thought to myself “I could do that”.
So I got in touch with my local NCT branch to find out more. I went along to one of their Early Days sessions and became a member. The branch also needed volunteers to help in their baby changing and feeding tent at a local fair. I gave an hour of my time – was invited to a branch meeting – and walked out as Newsletter Editor!
I want NCT to be more visible and make a bigger impact.
From there I did various roles including branch coordinator, fundraising and social media. I then started volunteering for NCT’s London Region team. While volunteering, I studied as an NCT breastfeeding counsellor, qualifying in 2010. I became a Baby Cafe regional trainer in 2015.
In December 2017, I applied for the role of User Engagement Lead on the Parentforce project because technology change management is my background. (The Parentforce project is replacing the charity’s outdated IT system with a modern scalable cloud-based system.)
Sue Saxey, one of our previous presidents, inspired me. She was a breastfeeding counsellor and an active volunteer. She made volunteering seem so simple and straightforward.
I wanted to stand because I also want NCT to be more visible and make a bigger impact.
The Board of Trustees are all volunteers. They’re responsible for setting the direction of the strategy, in line with the charity’s objectives. We’re responsible for making decisions that always put parents’ needs first. We make sure that we comply with the law and safeguard the charity’s assets. Trustees are not involved with day-to-day decision-making; that’s down to the Chief Executive and their team.
The President has an additional ambassadorial role to represent the charity internally and in the public eye. My role is to help inspire our volunteers, practitioners, staff, members and supporters, and to engage external audiences to get involved and support our mission.
This is an exciting time for the charity. There’s been lots of development in recent years to build strong foundations. There’s now lots of work ahead to increase our reach and improve the services we offer.
Read more about the charity’s plans and vision here including our 2019-22 strategy.
I want us to be recognised as the gold standard – not just for our antenatal education – but for everything else we do too. Our breastfeeding support, our campaigning, and our parent-to-parent support.
I want to get fully involved and immersed in what our staff, practitioners and volunteers are doing. I want us to reach more parents. To make a difference. I want to be proud of what we represent.
