This month, we sadly wave goodbye to Annette Dale-Perera as trustee for Build on Belief as she disappears off to Quatar to continue her adventures in the international world of drug treatment. 

Annette was a friend of the organisation when it was still known as the SUDRG, back in the distant days of Drug and Alcohol Action Team in local authorities and was happy to become a trustee when we created the charity Build on Belief. Annette has been with us from the very beginning and has been hugely supportive over the past decade as we slowly grew the charity step by step from its small beginnings.

Annette was one of the small handful of people who instinctively understood the value of what we were trying to do in the days when we were still building the original weekend service and championed our view of service user involvement when many considered us a high-risk experiment that was bound to fail. Her support in those early days was pivotal in convincing some of the doubters to take us seriously.

Annette’s extensive experience in the treatment field has been of enormous value to the staff team, and the Chief Executive especially, in helping us navigate the minefield of turning a small peer-led project into one of the oldest and most well-established Lived Experience Recovery Organisations in the country. Build on Belief has always been a collective effort and Annette’s enthusiasm for what we do, coupled with her willingness to be a ‘critical friend’ when necessary, has been invaluable in getting us to this point. We couldn’t have done it without you!

We therefore thank her whole-heartedly for the time, energy, and effort she has put into her role as a trustee and wish her the very best on her travels. We don’t have sunshine envy, honestly Annette!

Tim Sampey 

CEO Build on Belief

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March 2022