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  • What we do
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  • What we do
    Everyone deserves to lead a happy life – together, we make that possible

    What we do

    At the Together Trust, we deliver individual care, support and education services across the North West.

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    • Education
      • Bridge College
      • Inscape House School
      • Inscape House Vocational College
    • Caring homes
      • Homes for children and young people
      • Short breaks
      • Fostering
    • Therapy and specialist support
      • For schools
      • For families
      • For professionals
    • Helping families
      • Specialist information, advice and support
      • Mediation
      • Sleep services
      • Short breaks
    • Community support
      • Out in the community
    • Campaigning
      • Our campaigns
      • Our research
      • SEND reforms
      • Keep Caring to 18
      • Accessible travel
      • Mental Health
    • What we do
  • Get involved

    Get involved

    Whether it’s joining the team, becoming a foster carer or making a regular donation, your support changes lives.

    Read more »
    • Ways to give
      • Make a donation
      • Sponsor our support animals for just £3 a month
      • Celebration giving
      • Play our weekly lottery
      • Charity partnerships
      • Give monthly
      • Recycling
      • Shop with us
    • Come to an event
      • Fundraising events
      • Join Together Festival 2025
      • All events
      • Community events
    • Get fundraising
      • Take on a challenge event
      • Take on a fundraising challenge
      • Run the London Marathon for Together Trust
    • Help shape our work
      • Volunteer
      • Campaign
    • Get involved
  • About us

    Together we thrive

    At the Together Trust, our vision is a society where people thrive because they are valued within their communities.

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    • Who we are
      • About us
      • Our trustees
      • Our team
      • Our reports
    • What we stand for
      • Our history
      • Our values
      • Read stories from across the Together Trust
    • Learn more
      • Sign up for updates
      • Get in touch
      • Media centre
    • About us
  • Work with us
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  • Contact us
Contact us Contact us

Our commitment to addressing inequality

20 January 2021

In the UK, there has been a strong critique of the voluntary and community sector. Charity So White has highlighted institutional racism and challenged the sector to question whether it can say it is demonstrating best practice.

The evidence is clear that much has yet to be done.

In July last year, following events occurring in America, including the death of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement, many organisations released statements about how they would address racial inequality.

We didn’t because we know we have not always got it right - we have not ensured inclusion is in our DNA in the same way we have with safeguarding. As a leadership team, we felt there was a great deal for us to address at the Together Trust before we could issue a statement about our intent.

ACEVO’s Home Truth’s report revealed the depths of the things we didn’t know, and it caused us to reflect on what steps we needed take to see meaningful change for the people we support and our colleagues. We all agree that this change needs to be a fundamental shift in the way we do things at the Together Trust, and it must outlive us.

We still have a profound sense that we are at the beginning of this journey and whilst there will not be an end to this work, we are at the start of a two-to-three-year programme of activity focused on three key areas.

Workforce

Core and central is our workforce. We are working with Purple Infusion to understand how our workforce feels by building safe spaces for sharing and listening to lived experiences. We are open, honest and vulnerable by admitting where we have got it wrong and educating ourselves, so we start to create equitable opportunities, celebrate diversity, and build an inclusive culture of togetherness at the Together Trust.

Governance

Our board of trustees will oversee the strategic approach to building a greater equitable and diverse organisational governance culture, ensuring equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) principles are embedded to help deliver the best possible outcomes for the people we support. They will review the composition of their board and governing bodies and address any countering imbalances of power, perspective and opportunity. As they assess their understanding of systems and culture at the Together Trust, they will be setting context-specific and realistic goals, taking action and monitoring EDI performance.

Service delivery

We champion the rights, needs and ambitions of the people we support - they are at the heart of everything we do. We stand by them and we work together for change. We will ensure our service delivery is inclusive and culturally sensitive by listening to the people we support about what matters to them and understanding their lived experience.  

 

Mark Lee, Chief Executive

Jill Sheldrake, Director of Services 

Julie Isted, Director of Governance and External Affairs

Brian White, Director of Resources

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Contact us: Together Trust Centre, Schools Hill, Cheadle, Cheshire SK8 1JE | Tel: 0161 283 4848

Established 1870 | Registered charity No. 209782 | Registered in England 00301722 | Vat No. 611 4005 06