Juliette Rayner - Chief Executive Expand I joined ERIC as CEO in May 2015. I'm passionate that children and teenagers have the support, tools and opportunities they need to thrive, so I'm delighted to be leading an organisation dedicated to ensuring every child and teenager with a bowel or bladder condition should live free from embarrassment, shame, isolation and fear and can access the support they need. During my time at ERIC the team has worked hard to clearly articulate our vision and put steps in place to demonstrate the positive impact our work has. One special highlight was when we welcomed Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal to our Bristol offices in March 2016. HRH met some of our beneficiaries as well as our corporate supporters, donors, trustees, staff and volunteers and undoubtedly left with a deeper appreciation of the issues facing children and teenagers with bowel and bladder problems. The best thing about working for ERIC is the enthusiasm and commitment of everyone involved to listen, learn and grow our expertise so that we can continue to provide the best and most relevant services to the children and families we support. Follow me on Twitter @JulietteR9k.
Brenda Cheer - ERIC Nurse Expand I'm the ERIC Nurse and am the first person to hold this post. I started working as ERIC Nurse in May 2013, but I was already familiar with the charity, having done freelance work as an ERIC trainer for some years before that. The ERIC Nurse role was created to find ways to improve early intervention into childhood continence problems. I designed easy-to-understand information for parents and provided training for healthcare professionals and early years workers. I also produced a generic children’s continence care pathway, which ERIC is promoting as a model of best practice. I was truly honoured to be shortlisted for - and then win! - a Nursing Times Award 2016 for this early intervention work. Continence nurses work in an unglamorous profession but we love what we do and we're passionate about the children in our care. The Nursing Times Award recognised ERIC's work in the field, but also the work of children’s continence nurses everywhere. Whilst the ERIC Nurse project finished in May 2016, I continue to work part-time with ERIC. I’m proud of what we've achieved so far and believe that together we make a big difference to children’s lives.
Alina Lynden - Communications Manager Expand I joined ERIC in September 2012 as a helpline advisor giving information and support over the phone and via email. I took on the role of Communications Manager in January 2017, though I'm also still involved with the helpline on a part-time basis. It’s hugely satisfying to feel we are making a big difference to people’s lives through the helpline service every day, but the piece of work I’m most proud of is the children’s area of the ERIC website. The characters wee and poo (now much loved ERIC mascots!) were suggested by local school children and we were able to bring these characters to life. The feedback we’ve had from parents about the children's area has been amazing. The thing I love most about working here is the feedback we get from the people we’ve helped, particularly when they’ve felt alone with the issue up until now. A mother wrote to us recently saying: “To be able to speak to someone who immediately understood the issues - both medical and emotional - was a huge relief to me and lifted a great weight off my shoulders. I also now feel that support is available should we need it going forwards.”
Diane Starr Savage - Finance Manager Expand I'm the Finance Manager at ERIC, responsible for book keeping and all matters of a financial nature. I re-joined ERIC in March 2015 after a break of almost six years, having worked previously for ERIC for 17 years. So I know the charity very well! Since its inception in 1988 I've seen it develop and grow into an organisation with a long and successful track record. I'm proud that I've re-organised ERIC's financial systems and brought greater rigour and efficiency to our internal processes. The best thing about working here is being part of a small organisation which helps children and young people who are going through some really tough challenges. Dealing with wee and poo might be an unglamorous cause, but we hear every day how the support we provide really turns lives around.
Jackie Fuidge - Learning & Development Manager Expand I joined ERIC in December 2011. I organise training seminars for healthcare professionals - our aim is to ensure that all those supporting children with continence problems receive the best possible training so that these conditions can be identified and treated as early as possible. I also manage our bi-annual conference which brings together professionals working in childhood and adolescent bowel and bladder health to hear the latest research in the field, discuss innovative approaches to managing problems and network with others. I'm really proud of the conferences I organised in 2014 and 2016. The feedback we received from those who attended was incredibly positive, with many saying they found the day inspirational. I love working for ERIC because I have the opportunity to be involved in so many different things. It's very rewarding hearing from the families and health professionals who really appreciate the help and support that we provide.
Julia Bishop - Learning & Development Assistant Expand In December 2018 I became ERIC’s Learning & Development Assistant but I have been volunteering at ERIC since May 2012. I work mainly with Jackie, the Learning & Development Manager, helping to organise training seminars, exhibitions and leaflets. During my time as a volunteer and now as an employee, I am most proud of helping towards the success of the 2014, 2016 and 2018 conferences. We're now hard at work to deliver a diverse range of training courses and roadshows for the year ahead. ERIC is a really friendly place to work, whether as a volunteer or an employee, and I love hearing about the children and families we help. I've also learned a lot about wee and poo since working here!
Natalie Thompson - Helpline Advisor Expand I joined ERIC as a Helpline Advisor in August 2015. I've learned a lot about the scale of bowel and bladder problems among children and teenagers and the emotional impact these issues can have. I'm enjoying being part of a small, dedicated team who make a big difference to the lives of children and families experiencing continence issues. It's great to build relationships with the people we talk to on the helpline and I’m really proud whenever we get positive feedback from a family we’ve helped. One mum recently said: “Your information leaflets are so informative and the helpline staff are amazing - very good listeners, helpful, full of great advice and information... Thank you for helping us through a very stressful situation.”
Amy Barber - Helpline & Early Interventions Officer Expand I joined ERIC in February 2018 as Helpline & Early Interventions Officer. I'm looking forward to providing support on the helpline and excited to help develop the early intervention work ERIC has planned to reach out to different groups across the community. As a mum of two young children, potty training is very familiar to me currently and I have picked up lots of useful tips already working here! I'm excited to help support the team here at ERIC and help to continue with the charity’s success.
Kate Shelbourne - Helpline Advisor & Trust Fundraiser Expand I joined ERIC as a Helpline Advisor in December 2018 and the Trust & Foundation Fundraising Team in April 2019, roughly 10 years after being diagnosed with a bowel disease. It’s almost impossible to appreciate how hard bowel and bladder problems can be until you have them, and I love supporting families through the Helpline one day and then fundraising for the Helpline the next.
Claire Sutton - Customer Service & Early Interventions Officer Expand I joined ERIC initially as a volunteer in 2016 after receiving much needed support from the ERIC helpline to deal with my daughter's chronic constipation. I transferred to a permanent role in June 2017. The customer service part of my job involves dealing with shop orders and queries and supporting the overall running of ERIC's trading operation. In 2017 ERIC successfully obtained funding to support the early years workforce who work with children between 0-5 years old. My role is to manage the Early Interventions Project, engaging with nurseries, preschools and any organisations working with young children to ensure they're aware of ERIC and the resources and support available. I organise training seminars for early years professionals, practitioners, volunteers and parents led by qualified clinicians. Our aim is to ensure that all those supporting children with potty training and continence problems receive the best possible training so that any issues or conditions can be identified and treated as early as possible. Working for ERIC is incredibly rewarding, especially listening to feedback after our training and knowing that we're making a real difference to the early years workers and the children and families they support.
Jayne Loveridge - Sales Coordinator Expand I joined ERIC in 2003. My role is Sales Coordinator. This involves dealing with shop orders, queries and the overall day-to-day running of ERIC's trading operation. I'm also always on hand to talk to parents or carers about the continence products available in our shop and advise which would best meet their specific needs. It's great when we receive lovely comments back from parents saying how helpful we've been, and how impressed they've been with the product and our customer service. I'm proud that I helped introduce a new accounts system to the charity which is now benefitting the sales team enormously. The best thing about working for ERIC is being part of such a great team and also the difference we make to the families and professionals that contact us for information and support.
Bethan Grant - Trust & Foundation Fundraiser Expand I joined the ERIC team in September 2015. I first became aware of ERIC’s work when I was struggling to get good advice on how to manage a condition my daughter was suffering with. After reading the information on ERIC’s website and speaking to one of the helpline advisors on the phone, I felt much more confident about how to support my daughter and reassured that I was not the only mum experiencing the stresses that these conditions throw up. I’m glad I’ve now got the opportunity to enable more families to benefit from ERIC’s work by securing much-needed funding from charitable trusts and foundations to keep these vital services running. The best thing about working for ERIC is hearing the success stories from families that we've helped. (The amount of chocolate brought in by the team is pretty good too!) I like this quote from a mum as it reminds me of how I felt after I'd spoken to one of the helpline advisors: “At ERIC I can talk to someone who not only listens but listens with complete understanding. ERIC has been a sanity lifeline.”
Anna Henry - Fundraising Officer Expand I came to ERIC in 2010 as a volunteer before joining the training department. I moved into fundraising 18 months later and have never looked back. I love my job, but it’s challenging: so much depends on the generosity of individual supporters to deliver the services that so many families rely on. What I love the most about my job is hearing the stories of the families we help and letting our supporters know the difference their donations have made to the lives of so many children and teenagers. I'm proud that someone once said: “You are the first charity I have donated to who have ever sent out a personalised thank you mail. It's a lovely touch and creates a lot of good will. We will certainly be supporting you in the future. Good luck - you guys have got it right.”