Annual review 2007/08
Our future
Involving our members
Making a difference
Rethink is committed to having a strong and robust membership and supporter base that is valued and supported throughout the charity. Membership provides people with a sense of fellowship that helps them to cope with the demands of living with severe mental illness, whether they have direct experience as a service user, carer, sibling or friend.
Making it happen
- Marketing and Communications - A recent membership taskforce scrutinised every aspect of Rethink’s membership and made recommendations for the future, which included recognising the many different ways that people support the work we do.
- Your Voice, Rethink’s membership magazine, established a new editorial group and is now widely recognised as the most read ‘mental health magazine’.
- A new Group Guide was produced to ensure that all Rethink groups have the support and information they need.
- In January 2007 Rethink conducted a survey across its membership into the support needed by siblings of those affected by mental ill health. 86% of younger people who responded wanted web-based activities and information. As a result Rethink Siblings (www.rethink.org/siblings) was launched at Rethink’s National Members Day in November 2007 to provide an on-line support and information network. One of our activists, Lucy Canning, whose sibling is affected by severe mental illness, offered crucial guidance in setting up this area of the Rethink website.
Making an impact
- Rethink members and activists are increasingly engaged in organisational activities including campaigns, research, policy development and governance.
- We’ve improved internal communication routes and are working to ensure that people receive the information they want in a format that suits them.
- Since its launch Rethink Siblings has generated a great deal of interest and support with over 7,000 unique page views, the launch of Rethink’s first ‘blog’ page, and press coverage in the Guardian Society on 21 November 2007.
- 216 members attended the national members day in November and feedback was positive:
“Well organised and inspiring”.
“An excellent day that’s made me want to get involved even more”.
“All Rethink staff need a pat on the back for all the hard work – well done”.
“This is my first exposure to Rethink. I am very, very, very impressed”.
Moving forward
- We’ll implement the findings of the membership taskforce, raise the profile of activists, and increase the number of groups nationwide.
- We’re now looking for funding to develop our support work for siblings including additional sibling-specific information, further sibling support groups and workshops dedicated to sibling’s needs.
- We’ll continue to ensure that Rethink beneficiaries are at the heart of everything we do and everything we say.
Moving you forward
If you’re not a member – then please join. The more members we’ve got the more impact we have and the bigger our ability to campaign to transform lives.
If you are a member then perhaps you can find a way to give us a little more of your time – to help us with our research, our campaigns and our committees.
