I was Managing Director of Bacup-based E. Sutton & Son Ltd in 2002 when I first heard Ernesto Sirolli talk about his passion for Enterprise Facilitation and it immediately struck a few ‘home chords’. One thing we gave freely to each employee at the Suttons Group of Companies was opportunity. The opportunity to succeed to ensure succession and sustainability along with the help and support needed to enable each individual to achieve their full potential. This in turn contributed to the Group’s ongoing success.
I interpreted Ernesto’s message as an opportunity to take the ‘Sutton’s ethos’ beyond its own Group to be freely available to anyone in Rossendale who asked for help to achieve their own personal dreams of starting or expanding a business. The success of that vision depended on finding like-minded people, outside of the Group, who had the right range of skills and experiences to form a volunteer community board. A board made up from a broad diverse section of the community, from all walks of life, having the trust and credibility of their peers. They would give freely of their time to help to open doors and knock down barriers helping their neighbours with the type of guidance that is not available through traditional business support.
Over the eight years of PEER’s operations I have had the honour, pleasure and privilege to Chair over one hundred past and present Board Members ensuring succession and sustainability in its own right. During that time my involvement has led me into accepting many other voluntary roles within the Community, since my official retirement from the day-job in 2005, thereby increasing my own network of contacts and resources on which to draw.
In particular as a Community Governor at Alder Grange Community and Technology School (which led to accepting the position of Vice-Chair of Governors) I get to see ‘talents’ being developed from an early age as the Students become highly skilled Citizens with our future in their hands.
PEER has rewarded me with much satisfaction in being able to give something back to the community that has given me so much over my own lifetime, meeting and working with so many new friends, and seeing Rossendale benefit from the combined skills and those of our trained volunteer mentors.
