Ginny Cullen came to our first Sharing the Cake event in March 2021, and attends regularly, online and offline. She’s CEO of CASBA, an advocacy organisation for people with learning disabilities, aimed at changing the systems that cause inequality and enabling people with learning disabilities to speak up for themselves and access services equitably. I asked her what she’d say to anyone thinking of coming along. 

"If you don't come along, you're missing out on so much. If you just step in to get a really nice lunch, come for that. But you’ll stay for the tangible, measurable difference it will make to you, your leadership, and your organisation. 

I came for the free lunch and what was on offer, but it just blew me away. The Return on Investment on my time was immediate. The first person I happened to sit next to turned out to be one of the drivers of the Integrated Care System (ICS) something that as a health charity we need to engage with.  I wasn’t sure how to make a start at building those relationships before I attended.  That first event got CASBA at the table, to understand the ICS, and who the right people are to talk to. We’re being invited to meetings now and we’re a key stakeholder. If that was all we’d got from that first Sharing the Cake event, that would have been enough.

If you don't come along, you're missing out on so much. If you just step in to get a really nice lunch, come for that. But you’ll stay for the tangible, measurable difference it will make to you, your leadership, and your organisation. 

But we got so much more and so will you:

• You’ll run meetings better
  Steph uses tools that help you run inclusive, equitable meetings. These are shared at the meetings and I've taken the rounds tool back to all of our team meetings, it's useful for everybody.

• You’ll develop as a leader
  I've gone away reflecting on my own behaviour and I'm now more empathetic and inclusive, and that's relevant to any organisation, but particularly for an organisation like ours which works with people with learning disabilities.
  
  
• You’ll grow your network
  The network has encouraged me to continue to value the people I meet and the talents and expertise they bring, be present and listen, not rush to try to solve things before I’ve listened. I’m using what I've learnt and recognise that there's more to learn. And the network is still there for the learning to embed further. You’ll pick up information you need. For example I needed to access some training, find trustees and staff from a wider range of backgrounds, and I’ve come away with a link for Mission Diverse, a fantastic local organisation with international experience and a community slant.

It’s important to me that we at CASBA not only talk the talk, but walk the walk: so that everything we advocate, we do here. This network supports with accountability, getting things done and making the space for others to be heard by using the tools I’ve learnt.   

None of that would have happened if I hadn't come along. And you still can!"

'Sharing the Cake' sessions will be taking place regularly until March 2023. They are coordinated by Steph Vidal-Hall, an experienced facilitator specialising in enabling people to do what matters to them, and in sharing those enabling skills with others. She’s trained in Asset Based Community Development and in the Thinking Environment – a structure for everyone in the room to do their own best thinking.

Find out more and book a place