In January, we were delighted to welcome Graham Bell to the Nottingham Refugee Forum board, as our new Chair of Trustees. We asked him what inspired him to get involved, and what his aims are over the next few years.
Tell us about yourself
Although I am based outside of the county, I lived in Beeston for 12 years, and both my kids attended Chetwynd Road Primary and then George Spencer School. My eldest still lives in the city with his young family.
Work has allowed me to gain experience in a number of different areas, from energy and telecoms, to transport and pensions. For the last 7 years, I have been doing a variety of roles, and in addition to being Chair of the Board of Trustees at Nottingham Refugee Forum, I am Trustee of a multi academy trust based in Cheshire, an I have recently started working with a research company in Leicester.
Life outside of work tends to be dominated by our 3 dogs – 1 arrived from Croatia, and the other 2 from Spain.
What inspired you to become a trustee at Nottingham Refugee Forum ?
My passion is for social justice, by which I mean the fair and equitable treatment of people. I am fortunate to be able to work with a number of organisations in this area, and when the opportunity came up to apply for the Chair role, I was very keen to put my name forward.
The role which trustees play is vital to thousands of organisations across the land, big and small. We are the unpaid stewards of good order, overseeing the great work being done by staff and volunteers across the year.
Inspiration is a very personal thing. For me, it is partly about wanting to apply my skills and experience, and partly about wishing to counter the hostility and intolerance which seems to be all too apparent in certain areas of society. In the words of Elie Wisel , “There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest”. [Elie was a Romanian Jewish writer and activist who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986.]
So, what inspired me to give my support to Nottingham Refugee Forum? I believe that everyone deserves fair and equitable treatment, no matter where they came from or how they arrived.
What will your role of Chair involve?
The simplest explanation of the Chair role was captured recently in a magazine article – its all about helping to create the conditions within which the Board can govern well. The Chair has certain specific responsibilities, such as leading the relationship between the Board and the Director, but ultimately the Chair is one trustee amongst several others.
My focus this year is probably going to involve a review of the Forum’s priorities and looking at how the Board considers risks to our operations. I will also be focused on how the Board can best provide support and guidance to management, particularly in light of the challenging funding environment.
What are you looking forward to the most?
I am looking forward to learning about the work of the Forum and about the individual projects. I am also looking forward to meeting more clients, staff and volunteers during the coming months and at the AGM in November.
I am also looking forward to speaking with Baroness Ruth Lister, the Forum’s Patron, and getting a sense of how the refugee voice gets heard in Parliament.