Our people are crucial to the delivery of our services. We are indebted to our Patron, Board Members, Staff and Volunteers for the hard work, energy and enthusiasm they bring to Welcome.
Our Patron
Caroline Spelman served as Chair of Welcome’s board of directors for nearly a decade. She was instrumental in setting up the charity in 2001, when Job Centres under the New Deal initiative realised they were struggling to get young people with substance misuse issues into employment.
The Welcome drop-in centre started in a church hall in North Solihull with just two members of staff. As Chair, Caroline supported the growth and development of the charity to where it is today.
Welcome now has a staff team of 16, delivering high quality drug and alcohol services throughout the Borough of Solihull as a member of the SIAS Partnership.
In 2010 Caroline stepped down as Chair due to her new role in Central Government, but we are pleased to say that she remains the charity’s Patron.
Our Board
Lyn Williams
Being on the Board for me is about working with my valued colleagues, who are innovative, creative, knowledgeable and action-oriented. It is very exciting to be part of a lively organisation that is developing to meet the needs of the local community. Being a Board member is about giving back and contributing to a growing charity whilst being able to develop myself in my role and learn from my colleagues as part of a team.[/acc_item]
Mark Lewis
As the treasurer for Welcome, I understand the importance of funding, grants and donations to ensure the delivery of services to local people. My role is to assist the Chief Executive to set annual budgets and to provide regular inforation in the form of Profit & Loss accounts to the Board. The overall aim is to ensure the sustainability of services allowing the charity to offer quality alongside value for money.[/acc_item]
Adam Darkes
Having worked in social housing for more than seven years, I am keen to contribute to other organisations who may benefit from my skills and experience. After meeting the Welcome Board I was impressed with their enthusiasm and commitment to helping people and hope to make a similar positive contribution.[/acc_item]
John Elsegood
Cairo Nickolls
Our Staff
Sally Edwards – Chief Executive
My role is to lead the organisational development of Welcome to ensure its sustainability. I look after organisational policy, strategy and funding.
SIAS Contract Team
Welcome has three staff members who provide the SPOE (Single Point of Engagement) service, answering the phones to callers and carrying out triage assessments on those entering treatment and recovery.
We also have five Substance Misuse Practitioners working with Adults and four working with Young People. Two of our YP Practitioners specialise in supporting children affected by parental substance misuse.
We also have a Community Engagement Support Worker, who helps to promote SIAS services, ensuring all those who could benefit from support are aware of what is on offer and how to access services.
Our Volunteers
We are very grateful for the support of our wonderful volunteers who give their time to support our work.