Gaya Butler | Our Trustees

Gaya's values and experience

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

In my line of work, I design strategies and programmes that tackle the barriers preventing young people from flourishing. A big focus of my work is making sure we’re not only looking at the economic and political barriers affecting young people but also the social and cultural influences (positive and negative) that are having an impact on young people’s wellbeing and how we think about change.

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

The value I relate most to is 'we are optimistic'.

I think even in the hardest of situations, there is always a sliver of hope if you look hard enough! I am naturally an optimistic person and have found that working with young people, and recognising what a force for progress they are, only reinforces this mindset. This is also one of the reasons I was drawn to YoungMinds.

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

I switch off by being with my family, spending time in nature and exploring new places.

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

Passionate
Friendly
Curious

Meet more of our Trustees

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.