Phil Taylor reflects on his time as Trustee, as he retires after 10 years with Right There.

When I was first asked to become a trustee with Right There, I already knew its reputation of working with those who were homeless and vulnerable. But I had no real idea of the scale of the problem, and the effort and dedication that Right There’s team devoted to the people we support.  I admired the organisation and thought I should like to help and so I agreed to join.

That was back in 2014 and here I am retiring from the role after 10 years of challenges, struggles and joy, as the organisation with a history of 200 years continues to make a massive contribution across Scotland to those who are blighted by homelessness or the risk becoming homeless.

Providing help and support to people in difficulty is one thing. Helping them through those challenges and then to move on to a better place is another and it is here that Right There excels. For me, our key metric has always been how many people leave us for a positive destination; not just back to where they were when we first met.

One case that sticks in my mind is a young man whose behaviour meant that we had to ask him to leave our accommodation 7 times.  But we kept at it and his eighth departure was a positive one; to his own accommodation with his partner and new baby daughter.  His gratitude that we had stuck with him was palpable and lives in my mind as a stunning example of the “never give up” attitude the Right There staff have in their challenging daily work.  The point here is that we don’t forget.  Even when someone feels confident to move on with their lives they can still come back for help and support if they find they are struggling.  We are, in every sense, Right There!

I was also struck by how many in our society are on the edge of becoming homeless.  It is frightening to think of the number people who are only one pay packet away from chaos. The work that Right There does in preventing homelessness is critical to so many of those we work with.

I recall the man whose marriage had broken up and who, despite having a good job, was sleeping in his car.  His wife and children were staying in the marital home which he was funding.  As result he could not afford the deposit to rent accommodation for himself.  Right There provided the deposit through our Help To Rent programme, so that he could afford a home and a life that was sustainable despite the challenges he and his family still faced.

There was also the young man with a well-paid IT job in academia who, post-surgery for a brain tumour, could no longer function as fully as he had before and had become unable to deal with the day-to-day management of his finances.  Helping him get back on track was critical to preventing him ending up on the street and continuing to lead a life of value and self-worth. Too often our society can leave issues like homelessness until someone at risk, actually becomes homeless.

As with most things, prevention is better than cure and working to help people stay in their homes and punch through the challenges they face is essential if we, as a society, are to truly address the scourge of homelessness.  That too is something that Right There sees as an essential part of our mission.

Helping people through rough patches in their lives and removing the barriers that prevent them fulfilling their full potential is something that we should all be concerned about.  Those whom Right There support have a value and a worth to society. Right There believes it is our job to unlock that value, and I believe we do that – in spades.

As I pass on the mantle to the next generation of Trustees I must record my admiration of the Right There staff at all levels.  I am genuinely in awe of the work they do to make people’s lives better in the most challenging of circumstances.  Their enthusiasm, determination, care for others and humour is astonishing and it has been my privilege and honour to have played a small part in trying to help them do what they do so magnificently.

If you care, as I do, please think about what you might do to help Right There continue in its amazing work.