I was brought up in Ruislip, NW London . I moved to Nottingham in 1966 after university to join Boots. During my retirement after a career in production and personnel management I took up a number of voluntary rolls including Young Enterprise and The Princes Trust both giving business experience to young people. People's College ( as it was then) as a Governor and Citizens Advice Nottingham as a Trustee. I joined Open Minds some 10 years ago again hoping that my work experience would be
useful. Having an affinity with numbers I took up the role of Treasurer.

Although a small organisation it makes a positive difference for its members and is served by a friendly committed and enthusiastic staff and volunteers.

My name is Pip short for Phillipa, I am originally from Germany. I have been a volunteer with Open Minds for many years! I help out at our weekend sessions and enjoy it a lot. Recently I joined the board of trustees to be more involved in the running of the charity. I attend meetings every two months and use my perspective as a volunteer to help shape the decisions we make.

I have been a member of Open Minds for many years and am also on the board of Trustees. I like going to Open Minds because I enjoyed making and meeting new friends and going to the new places that I have never been before such as Trent Lock, Chatsworth House and some beautiful places.

Hi, I’m Kelly and I have been with the charity for nearly 20 years! What I love about Open Minds is that it always feels like you are meeting up with your friends. The activities we offer mean there’s something for everyone and as we move with the times and we are member led it feels like everyone has an input and this means we all get more satisfaction and enjoyment out of the group. I love how people come to us feeling isolated, alone, unhappy or for a multitude of reasons and then at the end of the sessions leave feeling much more positive. We have a great whats app group chat as well so that you have a friend there if you need it when we’re not at groups and friendships evolve in person too. It’s just a happy place to be!

Hello, my name is Sue and I am one of the facilitators for Open Minds. I have been with Open Minds for nearly 20 years now running groups and workshops. During this time the members and volunteers and everyone else who has come through our doors have made it a really, really, most enjoyable job to do. Delivering craft sessions once a month feeds into my love of all things crafty.

My craft room at home has almost everything for every craft you could think of and bringing all this to our sessions and encouraging and sharing this with others makes my hobby even more exciting. I love making things – sewing is my main love – it’s about giving things a go and producing something you love and feel proud of even if no one else sees it.

I also do a lot of 1 to 1 meetings with members – this goes along with my other love in life, cake and coffee as most of the meetings are around cafes. There is an aim though - to help people get out and about in their community and enjoy what is around them and support them with their isolation.