Friday, 2 March 2007

I arrived at the office to find two letters on my desk addresseed to “Bob” and marked “Private and Confidential”. I knew that this was Not Good. It turned out to be Sue registering her four-weeks notice – a short formal note alongside a more personal explanation. In her year at WCVS, Sue has made a massive contribution and I shall be very sorry to lose her. But the change is a good one for Sue and the news does not come as a complete shock.

My Chair of Trustees Pam arrived promptly for our 10:00 am monthly meeting. We talked through recent developments and as ever she was spot-on with her local knowledge and political instincts. Enjoying the luxury of distance and perspective, Pam will identify two or three key points in the landscape and bring them into sharp focus. For me, being too close to see the wood for the trees, this is of course an essential service.

Pam and I spent an hour or so together, and talked over the morning’s news from Sue. Then we had a staff meeting at which Pam spoke on the trustees’ recent decisions. This was an “outcome” of the recent annual review meetings at which several people said they would appreciate more communication with the trustees. The meeting seemed to go very well, and there was a useful exchange of views.

Immediately the staff meeting was over, I had to hurry to Whitechapel for a 3:00 pm meeting at the Disability Law Service.

The CEO (Linda) is struggling with a mountain of difficulties as all major funding streams have some sort of crisis or decision date this coming summer/autumn: the Big Lottery, London Councils, the Legal Services Commission, and Lloyds TSB. If all goes well, DLS will emerge even stronger. But the 2007-08 budget-setting process is very scary, and the Worst Case Scenario cash flow ends with a vertical plunge to a desolate plain and the arrival of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. We had a very sober meeting looking at alternatives. There weren’t many. But the DLS is a robust little tub with an excellent crew and I am confident she will weather the storm.