Our Governance & Community Approach

At A Positive Start CIC, we believe community work is strongest when it is collaborative, transparent, inclusive and informed by lived experience.

As a Community Interest Company, our purpose is to create meaningful social benefit through counselling, education, prevention and community-based support.

Our governance approach combines stable organisational leadership with opportunities for the people connected to our work to contribute their knowledge, experience and perspectives.

Core Directors

Our core leadership provides continuity, governance and a shared commitment to the communities we support.

Together, our Directors support the organisation's governance, sustainability and development, while maintaining a shared commitment to compassionate, person-centred and trauma-informed practice.

Developing Support Around Community Needs

Alongside our ongoing counselling, education and training services, we develop and deliver funded and community-led projects responding to identified needs.

Our work has included initiatives such as Reconnect & Regulate, Self Discovery for Recovery, Cycling for Mental Health & Wellbeing, SPACES (Separated Parent And Child Emotional Support), and Trauma Informed TRUST with Lived Experience Insight.

These projects sit alongside emotional wellbeing programmes, psychoeducation, safeguarding education, early intervention and community initiatives focused on safety, connection and recovery.

Making Space for Community Voice

We recognise that people with direct experience of an issue often bring valuable insight into the development and delivery of meaningful support.

Wherever appropriate, we involve project participants, volunteers, practitioners and stakeholders in consultation, planning, evaluation and service development.

This involvement helps keep our work responsive to the experiences and needs of the people it is intended to support.

Project-Specific Board Involvement

Individuals involved in particular funded or lived experience projects may occasionally be invited to join the Board of Directors for a defined period.

These opportunities are voluntary and are intended to encourage meaningful participation, shared understanding and accountability.

Any appointment is subject to the organisation's governance procedures and the legal responsibilities associated with being a company director.

As projects evolve or conclude, project-specific Board members may choose to step down. Such changes can reflect the time-limited nature of project involvement, while the organisation's core leadership continues to provide oversight.