At Support Staffordshire one of our core values centres around being inclusive and making sure people from all groups within society are given opportunities to thrive. As such, over the next couple of months we will be highlighting some of our members who do fantastic work to support inclusion within their communities.
The first organisation we will be shining our spotlight on is SAGE (Sexuality And Gender Empowerment), who have worked tirelessly to help members of the LGBTQ+ community and support them in engaging with the wider community they live in; something that is vital in helping individuals thrive.
Although we’d like to believe as a society, we are more accepting and tolerant of differences, there is still a way to go in ensuring all LGBTQ+ Q+ people feel safe to be themselves within their communities. According to figures published by Stonewall: almost half of the LGBTQ+ community feel able to be open about their sexual orientation or gender identity to everyone in their family; more than a third of LGBTQ+ staff (35%) have hidden that they are LGBTQ+ at work for fear of discrimination; a third of lesbian, gay and bisexual people of faith (32 per cent), and one in four transgender people of faith (25 per cent), aren’t open with anyone in their faith community about their identity; two in five LGBTQ+ students (42%) have hidden their identity at university for fear of discrimination. These statistics show that there is still work to be done in supporting individuals in embracing who they are within different sections of their communities.
Stonewall has done great work at commissioning research and raising awareness nationally but there is still need for support locally for individuals who are facing these challenges. This is why organisations like SAGE are so important. Not only do they have the knowledge and understanding of what the individuals face personally, they also have an in-depth awareness of communities within Staffordshire. This is great for helping them bridge the gaps between individuals and communities, enabling people to feel comfortable to be themselves and communities to be inclusive spaces where this can happen. That is the brilliance of SAGE and why their work is so important.
SAGE began its journey just before Lockdown. In March 2019 SAGE’s patron Kathy Coe was given a surprise celebration in honour of her retirement as CEO from The Pathway Project, a charity she had founded which she held close to her heart. During her speech, she now told guests it was ‘Over to them’ to carry on work that was close to their heart and help the communities that matter to them. James Battrick, the Service delivery coordinator at SAGE, was one of those guests and felt inspired to do so after hearing her speech. Having now worked with LGBTQ+ organisations and charities for more than 13 years, James had made connections with several families in the area. These families were still reaching out to James for support so this along with Kathy’s speech motivated James to set up his own charity and that is how SAGE was born.
SAGE’s aim is to empower LGBTQ+ individuals to be active and full members of the communities in which they live. As stated on their website ‘They believe everyone should have the opportunity to live authentically and with dignity, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity,’, working with a range of individuals and organisations to achieve their goal.
In terms of supporting individuals, a range of tailored support is offered covering the full age spectrum of people in the community. Although James is a trained counsellor, SAGE doesn’t offer counselling sessions. It is more about empowering people to become independent. This is done through 1-1 and group support. Groups take place across the county but are commonly held in Stone and Stafford. Within these groups they offer support to individuals in understanding their own sexuality and gender identity; in coming out to their families and dealing with changes to family dynamics once they have; in empowering them to advocate for themselves and their rights independently and be confident to be open about who they are. James likens them to Nanny McPhee in that when you need them but are unsure you want them, they will be there but when you want them and no longer need them, they must go and let you thrive by yourself.
However, they don’t just support individuals, they also support their families, friends and organisations within their communities in being inclusive, tolerant and accepting of the individuals and their identity. This is a vital part of their service, as in order for individuals to thrive they need to feel safe to engage in different sections of their communities. For this reason, SAGE also works on delivering training and educational workshops to local organisations and government agencies to ensure their policies and procedures support the LGBTQ+ community. The have also made links within the NHS gender pathway within the ICB, to ensure they are kept up to date with developments and can try to ensure the voluntary sector have their say in the decision making process.
SAGE has made a conscious choice to not establish their own premises, instead they hold their sessions in a range of premises within communities. For example, they meet at least once a week at a local college. The idea behind this is to encourage people to make links within their communities. James explained that if SAGE had its own premises, it would create an artificial environment where people felt safe but this wouldn’t be able to accomplish their goal of being confident in their identities in their communities. Raising visibility of these individuals in these location goes a long way to bridging gaps and overcoming boundaries, which in turn leads to safe and inclusive environments for all.
In the future they are looking to expand their services and are currently looking to recruit a youth worker, who will help them be able to hold more sessions in organisations such as colleges. It’s really important to them to support the younger members of the community in accepting themselves and being accepted by others. They also have a wish to ensure they can support neurodivergent youngsters have access to support with their identity and helping them fit into communities when they feel comfortable with this. This new role will hopefully give them a wider scope to do this.
Due to their strict confidentiality policy and ensuring that they really are a safe space for all, it is difficult to give specific examples of how they have impacted their members and their communities. However, it is clear that the fact that James was unwilling to break the trust of the individuals he has worked shows why they are a success. They have built up trust and relationships with people and that is the huge achievement of the group.
However, their main impact can be seen when they have seen the individuals they work with engage fully with their communities. They use ‘O’Briens Five Accomplishments’, based on person centred work, as a model to measure their success. (See Image Below). As you can see supporting a person to reach these personal accomplishments, shows the impact SAGE has on that individual. Coupled with that, seeing the different communities embrace the individual by also meeting these goals and them complimenting each other, is one of the main successes of SAGE. The full impact being shown, when both the individual and community don’t need to rely on SAGE to make this happen – when they are no longer needed, they know they have had success and made an immense impact on the people they have supported being independent.
When asked about how Support Staffordshire have contributed to organisation, James was keen to point out that we have always been involved and even helped lay the first foundations of the organisation by helping with the writing of policies and procedures. This of course was vital in helping to establish the organisation and setting out its goals.
Another example James gave of the importance of Support Staffordshire in the evolution of the organisation, was through helping them secure funding. Support Staffordshire, ensure all its members are aware of funding opportunities and how to apply, often supporting with the process of doing so. Knowing our members as well as we do, ensures we can direct them to specific funding opportunities that are often targeted and tailored to meet the needs of groups like SAGE and the communities they support.
James was also eager to highlight how important our locality officers have been in supporting the development of SAGE. James talked about how encouraging Jamie Wells, in particular, has been. James described Jamie as a great sounding board, always willing to listen to ideas, give feedback and is extremely supportive in many ways; using his knowledge to help SAGE learn of all the funding and training opportunities to be the best they can. Through our locality team, James has also learned and been able to attend many training sessions that Support Staffordshire has led. Whether it be the workshops or refresher course we run, James has learned a lot through the training and been able to employ it within his organisation. It helps to ensure James’ own skills and knowledge are current and therefore the support offered is apt for those who access it.
Another key contribution that Support Staffordshire has given to the group, is through the locality forums. James talked about how the forums have given him the opportunity to network with other local organisations and provided opportunities to speak to people face to face and create vital connections. The forums have also helped the team build up more contacts within the sector who can support them as well. It also keeps them informed of what other organisations are doing and initiatives that are happening which they can be a part of. All of this helps them to maintain the links they’ve made.
As well as the forums, James also mentioned how The VSCE Healthy Communities Alliance, has also been important to helping SAGE grow. Support Staffordshire facilitates the alliance in the Southeast, Southwest of the county as well as the Countywide Mental Health and Children and Families forum. These forums have been extremely key in helping SAGE make links with both statutory and voluntary organisations. It has provided the opportunity for James to have feedback from the ICB and NHS representatives about initiatives directly linked to SAGE’s directives around mental health and gender pathways. However, it has given SAGE a voice to be heard by those organisations. James described that at times in the past the 3rd sector has been seen as a poor relation to statutory sectors. Through the alliance with Support Staffordshire, it has helped to show how vital the voluntary sector is in supporting people achieve their goals in terms of mental and physical health. James has been able to have a say in certain initiatives they have delivered and been able to represent his community within this. James also mentioned how he hoped the alliance Basecamp can further this and help him make further connections with both statutory bodies and voluntary organisations to ensure the LGBTQ+ community can be heard and representative in decision making processes.
SAGE is such a wonderful, supportive and important organisation. The work they have done for LGBTQ+ individuals and their community is so vital and although they may be not be able to shout loudly about their work, due to them ensuring they respect the confidentiality and maintain the trust of the individuals they work with, it is clear that it has a positive impact on the mental health, acceptance and self-identity of the individuals they work with. Not only that, they also support their families and communities in being accepting and inclusive to ensure they work together and help each other thrive. Now, more than ever, there is a need for such organisations in the LGBTQ+ community and society in general. Places of friendship, support and kindness as well as education about gender, sexuality and tolerance are what a lot of people in society need to support each other in living, openly and freely which in turn leads to better health and wellbeing for all involved. Thankfully, organisations like SAGE provide this and will continue to strive to make Staffordshire a place where all feel welcome, loved and safe.
