The interview discusses Dr. Kate Brown's experience as the director of Learn English at Home (LEAH) and the HR support provided by LVSC's Peace Service, which helped her gain confidence and professionalism in HR matters. She sought formal HR advice to address specific needs, such as drafting contracts and managing employee status. Kate recommends LVSC's services to other small charities for their reliable and cost-effective HR support.

1. Listen to this interview online
www.lvsc.org.uk/audio
On taking up her first Director role at Learn English
At Home - a small charity based in Kingston - Kate
recognised a need for formal, in-depth support
in matters of Human Resources and approached
LVSC’s PEACe service for advice. PEACe provided
expertise not only in day-to-day aspects of HR,
but also helped LEAH identify wider employment
issues, supporting LEAH management to gain
confidence in HR matters and professionalising the
way the charity operates
Pathways to
Professionalism
Developing HR Expertise
Dr Kate Brown
Director, Learn English At Home (LEAH)
LEAH, Siddeley House, 50 Canbury Park Road,
Kingston upon Thames KT2 6LX
E: director@leah.org.uk
T: 020 8939 7935
W: www.leah.org.uk
LVSC helped with
• ad hoc HR advice, ongoing support,
cost effectiveness
• confidence building, increased
professionalism, focused prioritisation
• structured HR training courses

2. LVSC and Us
Having worked in the senior management team
of a larger national organisation, LEAH was my
first director role and I had limited HR knowledge.
LEAH had been receiving ad hoc support from
the local umbrella body, but no formal HR advice
and I was really keen to address that. We faced
no immediate challenges, but as soon as I needed
to do things like write a letter of variation or a
contract, I wanted to know I was getting it right.
I looked for three main things in terms of HR
support. One was just to build my own confidence,
being a new director to LEAH. I knew about
supporting employees and their development, but
significantly less in terms of law and the specifics
of contracts - what I could and couldn’t do and
how to prioritise. The second thing was knowing
someone I could go to as and when for ad hoc
advice and the third was a bigger HR issue that
LVSC helped me recognise - how to move our
casual workers in the crèche from their freelance
status onto our PAYE scheme.
Support came in two ways… an introductory course
run by PEACE Manager delivered at Richmond
CVS, which made me recognise their huge wealth
of knowledge and gave a full overview of types of
employees, contracts, job descriptions and so on.
And then I joined up for the initial 5 hour ’taster’
advice line and having just finished using it I’d say
the support I’ve received has met all my criteria. I
have since taken up the full 10 hours plus access
resources, increasing my confidence and LEAH’s HR
professionalism even further.
LVSC and You?
Kate told us that she would definitely
recommended the PEACe advice line to
other small charities; “It has been a huge
success for us as it’s both a reliable and
genuinely cost effective approach to HR
support for those who can’t afford the bigger
or insurance-based schemes. LVSC has really
changed the way that I, our staff and our
organisation works.”
To see how LVSC can help and support your
work in the voluntary community social
enterprise sector (VCSE), email us now on
info@lvsc.org.uk
“I definitely feel more confident. Part of
that - as a small charity which can’t afford
the bigger or insurance-based schemes - is
knowing that if I do get stuck or unsure of
something, there’s somewhere I can easily
go to… somewhere that not only offers
objective, reliable advice but does so cost
effectively”
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London Voluntary Service Council (LVSC), 200a Pentonville Road, London N1 9JP
020 7832 5830 info@lvsc.org.uk www.lvsc.org.uk
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