our 11 september presenters were helen bingley OBE and victoria blakeman
Helen Bingley OBE DL JP is the current High Sheriff of Lancashire
Helen Bingley OBE DL JP is the current High Sheriff of Lancashire and has kindly agreed to give a presentation to FCR about the 2025 Kings Award for Voluntary Services.
The High Sheriff is the King’s representative in the County for all matters relating to the Judiciary and the maintenance of law and order. In current times the office of High Sheriff is held for one year. Her main role is to protect, and assist in upholding, the dignity and well-being of HM Judges, as well as undertaking other public duties, including the support and encouragement of the voluntary sector and the Emergency Services. The office of High Sheriff is carried out on a voluntary basis and the holder does not receive any salary or expenses.
Victoria Blakeman is the CEO of The Big Food Project (Blackpool Foodbank)
Victoria is also Director of Offender Management and Specialist Services at Prospects Services. Prior to joining Prospects, in her role as an International Counter-Terrorism Consultant, Victoria advised the UK Government and UN on counter-terrorism measures in the rehabilitation of offenders and management of prison populations in places such as Somalia, Somaliland, Kenya, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Algeria and Tajikistan. She will also be talking about her work on the The Big Food Project at Blackpool Foodbank and her work with people suffering from dyslexia and head injuries.
Victoria served as the Head of UK Corrections and Detentions in Afghanistan and was involved in the construction and restructure of management at Lashkar Gar prison. She has previously worked at HMP Garth in various operational governor roles and HMP Chelmsford, where she was Deputy Governor, after initially joining HM Prison Service as a direct entrant to bring in a new perspective to change the culture. Prior to joining the prison she worked in adult and youth training, and the FE sector. She is a Director at Blackpool Sixth Form College, a Governor at Brookfield Special School on the Fylde Coast, and a Trustee of the Cascade Foundation, a charity that works with people with dyslexia and head injuries.
wednesday
may
8
wednesday
july
10
wednesday
sept
11
wednesday
nov
13
meetings from 1-3pm
Fylde Coast Resilience is focused on making a difference in the region by bringing the VCFSE as well as the private and public sectors together to provide knowledge, information and support to businesses and organisations, helping them to make positive, powerful connections though the expertise of others within their community. We also welcome would-be and established entrepreneurs that are looking to start a new business or community organisation.
Unlike traditional ‘networking’ groups, we don’t have time-consuming presentation agendas that prevent attendees from talking with each other. Tell any of us in the organising team what you need and we’ll see if we can help you by making useful introductions, hopefully right there at one of our meetings. We don’t expect referrals, set targets or make any demands from attendees. Together we intend to support our community, re-shape business and create sustainable, successful futures for us all. If this sounds like something you’d like to be a part of, contact us today and we’ll let you have full details of our events calendar.
Our networking group is open to EVERYONE, but especially:
- • VCFSE (3rd sector) professionals
- • Public sector representatives
- • Non-profit orgs, CICs, faith groups, charities, etc.
- • Entrepreneurs
- • Small business owners
- • Business startups
- • All other ‘community oriented’ volunteer groups and individuals.
