Welcome! If you’re reading this, our brand new website successfully went live on Wednesday, May 15, 2024. It’s been quite the journey developing the West Mid website over the last 10 months, a project that has filled many of my evenings, weekends and holidays. I want to extend heartfelt thanks to everyone who participated in our focus groups and provided feedback on early drafts of the content.
Recently, a conversation with a trainee highlighted an interesting perspective. She informed me that she took a ‘gamble’ choosing West Mid. The lack of an online presence had made her question if our training scheme was too old-fashioned and behind the times. However, on joining the scheme she discovered that it was rich in community spirit, had authentic leadership, and provided genuine pastoral support – qualities that her friends had found lacking in their schemes. This made me ponder whether our lack of a website had inadvertently fostered stronger interpersonal connections and more direct interaction with our Programme Directors. For a moment, I questioned if moving online was the right move.
Yet, the need for a website became more and more apparent through discussions with trainees and trainers. I realised that a good website doesn’t detract from our community spirit. Instead, it has the potential to provide an additional tool for strengthening our network, enhancing engagement, and facilitating the easy sharing of resources and knowledge. Collectively, we decided that if West Mid was going online, we’d infuse the site with our ethos, tailoring information and resources specifically for our training community.
I must give special thanks to two people: Noel Timothy, for his patience with my relentless focus on this project, allowing me the space to commit to it; and my incredibly talented niece Aleeza, who not only taught me how to code “properly” but also provided essential support whenever the website threw a tantrum!
I truly believe we have created something exceptional here. I hope this site not only establishes our online presence (at last) but also strengthens our community by facilitating the sharing of resources and learning. If all else fails, it should help keep our inboxes a bit tidier at the very least!
Love, Nad
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