My Journey As a BuDS Trustee

Written by Ann Hedges

Disclaimer: this is a personal blog by a BuDS member. The views expressed are personal and don’t necessarily represent those of BuDS or our Trustees.

“I have been a BuDS Trustee since 2018, and it is a role I have found very rewarding. Having left work, I found that I am able to continue using skills which I have acquired over many years in my work with BuDS.?

My working life started when I did my general nurse training. Although I gained a range of skills during this time, I felt that my real passion, gained during volunteering, was in the field of learning disability. I did a shortened learning disability training in a local institution, which in itself was an eye opener. Apart from 2 years, when I worked back in general nursing, the rest of my working life has been spent associated with learning disability, initially as a community nurse, then in nurse education. While I was working in the community, the Community Team did not exist, and I was involved in the development of the future service. During this time, I worked with families which gave me an insight into the lives of both?people with learning disabilities and autism, and their families.?

I left the community to go into nurse education where I worked for the next 28 years. During this time, I saw a huge number of changes both in care philosophies in learning disability as well as in nurse education. I was involved in planning and running a number of courses, some very specific such as Enrolled Nurse conversion and Return to Practice courses as well the core courses such as Project 2000 and Learning Disability courses.?

I became involved with a learning disability Lecturer support group, which covered the Midlands and South West, eventually taking over both the role of the Chair and also the Secretary. At that time email was not widely used, so having to send about 30 letters by pigeon post was a mammoth task. I was so glad when members started using email.??

I am very much a people person. I enjoyed working with, and supporting practice areas, working with students both?1:1 and in small groups. I was responsible for managing both the Year one students as well as the learning disability programme. My role also included the Safeguarding lead. I was involved in teaching Safeguarding to all nursing students and was also a contact person if a student wanted to report a safeguarding concern. Safeguarding is an aspect of my BuDS role, which is very important to me, although one of my weaknesses is that I want to solve everyone’s problems, which in reality I can’t, and I find that quite difficult.?At BuDS I am buddying two individuals through the Buddy programme, I also support other Buddies in their roles should they need it.??

When I was initially involved in my first course validation, I never imagined that one day I would be on the other side of the table validating courses. Initially I worked with several universities as an External Examiner, which provided me with the opportunity to see what other universities were offering. But more importantly, I could ensure that students are being treated fairly and that institutions follow academic guidelines. Later, I had the opportunity to be involved in the validation and monitoring of new courses. This was a role I really enjoyed.??

Although I am retired, I still work at the University as a visiting lecturer, teaching learning disability and autism to students, as well as Safeguarding to some groups. I also do marking and have recently been involved in investigating students who have been reported where their fitness to practice has been called into question.?

As a Trustee I am involved in running a project focused on the people who are neurodiverse or have a learning disability. My experience in learning disability is a fantastic bonus in recognising the huge needs of this group and being part of BuDS provides a platform for me to help fight for these needs.”