Engagement

Mr Pelton attended the AGM and now should be aware that a year was not long enough for the interim steering group to do all the work needed to move from one system to an other.

Unfortunately, the Patients Forum was told there would be a “seamless move” from one set up to the other and it was found (as we all knew it would be) to not be possible.

LINks is going to be patientled and to ensure that the election of the board allows for a wide, fair system that elects a membership of interested people it was realised that this could not be achieved for this AGM. From April 1, there had to be at least a chairman to ensure there was a leader.

The interim committee believed that these elections were too important to rush. The following AGMs will be up and running with all the relevant election procedures in place.

Also, Mr Pelton will know that there will be local groups and that this was always the intention.

There were local groups in the Patient Forums and there has never been any indication that this would cease for LINks.

The North Yorkshire LINks has to make a start and the election at this AGM of a chairman only is the right step and that if Mr Pelton is going to be a member of a local group near him would it not be a better idea to help the organisation by getting people interested to join their local groups?

Those at the AGM, who were interested, put their names down to be members of the seven groups who would cover the large area that the North Yorkshire LINks would cover.

We now need more people from those communities.

We need local people to speak on issues relating to the services they have experienced; not necessarily bad services but the development of perhaps new services as well as improved ones. Phone 01482- 499043 for further information.

JANET SEYMOUR KIRK Northallerton LINk group member, Brompton, Northallerton.