Caroline Hope | Our Trustees

Caroline's values and experience

What skills and experience do you bring to your Chair role?

I started out my career as a children’s social worker and now I am a consultant working in social care and health. Alongside some of the skills I bring from this experience, I also bring a passion and commitment to making sure we listen to children and young people and involve them in everything we do.

Which of our values do you relate to most, and why do you think it’s an important value for us?

I relate most to 'we celebrate what makes you, you.'

To many people it might be assumed that you will be welcomed and accepted whoever you are but sadly this isn’t always true. At YoungMinds we work really hard to make sure that everyone is not only welcome but also celebrated for being who they are. As a lesbian woman this is really important to me and I know it makes a real difference for young people too.

What do you do to switch off and take care of your mental health?

I am in a different place when I am on my allotment with my partner Jo and my dogs.

We celebrate what makes you, you. What six words describe you best?

Creative
Feminist
Bee-keeper
Explorer
Environmentalist
Campaigner

Meet more of our Trustees

Find out more about our Trustees and their role at YoungMinds

Our Board is made up of 12 amazing volunteers who bring a huge commitment to our cause, some with own and family lived experiences of mental health needs, as well as a wealth and diversity of experiences and skills. They expertly oversee the charity under the leadership of Caroline Hope, our Chair of the Board.

The role of trustees is to share their knowledge, skills and expertise, as well as give up some of their time unpaid as volunteers, to help us achieve our mission: to make sure all young people get the mental health support they need when they need it, no matter what.

They help us to enhance our three main strategic programmes:

Never alone: Helping young people to look after their own mental health.
Someone to turn to: Making sure young people have adults around them who can really help.
Powerful young voices: Building a youth-led movement to make sure mental health support is there for anyone that needs it.

Our Trustees oversee everything we do, from setting our strategy to being responsible for our work and finances, in line with the key duties as set out by the Charity Commission. They empower our CEO and Senior Leadership Team to take responsibility for the day-to-day running of YoungMinds, but they are the final decision-makers with ultimate responsibility for our success or failure. The Board are supported by the Senior Leadership Team, our wider Leadership Group and our Youth Panel; a group of 14 young people directly involved in our governance and strategy.