David Yeats delights in discovering a volunteer- led HIV support
organisation with a grassroots ethos, one that has survived the relentless
march of charity sector corporatism
I took the plunge last year after a winter of discontent and ill
health to move out of London. Decades living in the capital made me extremely
metro-centric and I didn’t come to the decision lightly.
I chose Shrewsbury because I have lived and worked in Shropshire and have
family here, although I am not so naïve as to believe that moving nearer
your family (often a mistake made by the elderly) means you actually see them
more often.
I discussed it with friends, my GP and consultant and although I have not
changed hospitals, here I am. It has been a productive time. I have written
90,000 words on the first draft of a novel.
One reason for choosing Shrewsbury was the support available there. I had
read good things about Shropshire Buddies and Body Positive (SB & BP).
Imagine my disappointment to find out after my move they had lost PCT funding
to THT who were moving services to Telford.
When I contacted SB & BP, I was delighted to find the organisation was
determined to carry on despite losing funding. It was downsizing and planning
a more volunteer-led, hands-on operation.
Having seen many organisations closed down by arbitrary funding decisions
in London over the last few years, I became excited by the challenge to save
and contribute to the continued development of SB & BP. These organisations
are all valuable resources and only made possible by grassroots support, volunteer-led
initiatives crafted by dedication and determination.
Having done extensive voluntary work for organisations like Wandsworth Friends
of the Earth in the past, I felt it would be a chance to use my skills and
ideas within a listening environment in a way not possible when I volunteered
for larger HIV organisations. These organisations, by their very size, marginalise
volunteers and make it impossible for them to influence policy.
Shrewsbury, and indeed the whole of Shropshire, needs a resource like SB &
BP to continue operations. SB & BP, because of the diversity of its client
base, has always been an inclusive organisation. Given that government and
PCT services are primarily aimed at black Africans and gay men, the majority
of service users in the county thus fall outside both of these categories
meaning they have to access services designed for those specific groups.
SB & BP, an independent organisation, uses its local expertise and knowledge
to support all groups affected by HIV. By taking an inclusive approach to
service provision rather than a targeted one, it provides the services needed
and desired.
Stakeholder events were recently held to gauge client opinion and services
are determined through this type of consultation with service users as well
as professional partners. Day-to-day feedback is very important in decision
making. And, of course, because governance is local and if necessary immediate,
there are no delays from seeking out-of-county decisions made without local
knowledge. Local decisions made by local people for local people. A body like
SB & BP, now out of the funding cycle and all the connotations that go
with it like quotas, government PR etc, is able to speak with an independent
voice. The tendency since the 80s for government to fund charitable organisations
to supply services that government once might have provided, has in some respect
tempered the voices of protest and criticism; something somewhat unhealthy
in a democracy, even if the handcuffs are golden. With SB & BP being a
small organisation, there is transparency in operation not apparent in larger
charitable organisations where often the emphasis is on accountability upwards
to the detriment of downwards. Recently, Archie Norman, Tory MP and former
chairman of Asda, told the BBC Today programme that when he took over the
supermarket chain he went straight to the shop floor to find out the state
of the company because middle management had told him what they thought he
wanted to know.
Working over the years in PR and on grant applications and the like for fringe
performing arts organisations and companies, I do recognise the element of
bullshit one needs to use when dealing with ‘the powers that be’.
A slogan for SB & BP could be “Small is beautiful” and in
these days of globalisation, multi-national conglomerates and corporate bullying,
perhaps a lot could be learnt from E F Schumacher’s book of that very
name.
