Welcome to Third Sector Talk
Having been involved in the Third Sector in both a volunteering and paid role for a number of years although coming from a primarily commercial background, I have been toying with the idea of writing a blog to share some of my experiences and thoughts. In my current role I have been active in trying to raise the profile of the Third Sector to encourage and foster relationships with, in particular, the Public Sector, to secure the place of this flexible, problem solving and innovative sector as a credible partner in the delivery of public services. The power and knowledge which can come from lived experience, which often underpins many Third Sector Organisations (TSOs), cannot be underestimated.
As we know, since the middle of March 2020, life changed from how we knew it to be. The COVID19 Crisis has changed our normal and we do wonder if the normal will ever become the normal it was…and indeed how much of that normal would we want to return to…
At the start of the crisis I and many of my colleagues and partners started on a treadmill of near 24/7 attachment to our various devices, watching news updates, seeking out key important information to share with our communities…emails; Facebook; Bulletins; Conference Calls; Virtual meetings; planning; resilience; support; information; more meetings; more calls; incident groups; communication; more emails; Facebook; Twitter; must not switch off…must make sure we get the information out now…changing information…updates….still cannot switch off…we might miss something…..
We are now entering a new phase, a slight calming and a focus on how this can be sustained…the calm comes with the apprehension that this may be the calm before the storm. We are far from the end of this crisis, so what else do we have on the horizon to tackle?
So it is during this moment of cautious calm, I thought I would start this Blog Page, if anything writing down my thoughts is part of my coping strategy. I had a big wobble at the start of this crisis, but having a purpose has helped me focus on doing the best I can to support who I can; from community groups and organisations, colleagues, partners, family and friends…being needed can be what you need to get you through.