Happy New Year to Our Members and Associates!
2024 has been an incredible year for ABSLTA as we celebrated our 35th Anniversary and marked 10 years of Emma Iliffe’s leadership as Chair. Emma stepped down in March, and since then, Matt Jenkins and the trustees have been working hard to lead ABSLTA forward.
We are extremely proud that ABSLTA has thrived for 35 years! Back in 2014, when Emma became Chair, ABSLTA had just 22 members and was at risk of closing down. Thanks to the hard work of the committee and members, ABSLTA stayed open and grew stronger.
In 2023, we reached an important milestone by becoming a registered charity. This change marks a new chapter for ABSLTA, and we are excited about the future as we aim for the next 40 years!
Highlights of 2024
BSL Horizon Conference
In April, the BSL Horizon Conference in Manchester was a huge success! Thank you to everyone who attended and supported the event. Special thanks to the trustees and volunteers who worked behind the scenes to make it happen.
Learning and Growing as Trustees
This year, we learned a lot about being a charity. To reflect our new responsibilities, we officially changed our titles from Committee Members to Trustees. Since October, all trustees have completed governance training, helping them feel more confident and prepared to lead ABSLTA into the future.
Farewell and Welcome
We said goodbye to two dedicated trustees:
- Jane Fulton – IT and Website Coordinator
- Judith Kidd – Treasurer and Membership Officer
We are truly grateful for their hard work and commitment to ABSLTA.
We also welcomed Dolapo Akande as a new Ad Hoc Trustee. Dolapo will officially stand for election at the 36th AGM next year.
Join Us as a Trustee
We are always looking for passionate people to join us as trustees!
Looking Ahead
Thank you for being part of this incredible journey. We look forward to an exciting 2025 and can’t wait to share more updates at our 36th AGM next year.
Happy New Year from the ABSLTA Team!