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STARboard
STARboard is our young people's advisory board. It was established in May 2020 and the 2022-2024 cohort is currently made up of nine young Wish Alumni from across the UK who play a valuable role in guiding our decision-making.
At Make-A-Wish UK, our aim is to be not only child-focused, but child-led. STARboard plays a central role in helping us achieve this. It ensures that young people are at the heart of our wishes and at the heart of our organisation - helping Make-A-Wish be the best it can be for the families we serve.
A STARboard member’s role is to be a voice for wish children on the charity's biggest decisions; steering the direction of Make-A-Wish UK and advising on how we overcome challenges to achieve our goals. There are also exclusive opportunities for self-development, learning and socialising.
It's a vital role that's full of exciting opportunities like the ones mentioned below...
STARboard meeting for the first time in person after six months together as a new board.
“Hayden requires a lot of in-person support to be able to achieve his goals. Make-A-Wish has helped make joining STARboard an enjoyable experience by allowing me to sit in and help Hayden in meetings and holding pre-meeting video calls with him to go over the agenda before meetings where he is more comfortable to share his ideas on a 1:1 basis.
His ideas are always fully shared in the meetings even if he's unable to talk himself. He's also been able to take things at his own pace, participating in the activities and ideas that he connects with the most, with no pressure to do more if he can't. Overall, being on STARboard has been a wonderful, inclusive experience for Hayden and we've seen his confidence grow meeting-to-meeting. It's shown Hayden that he can make a difference to others whilst also having fun."
Karen, Mum to previous STARboard member Hayden
The Story So Far
April 2024
STARboard has achieved influential and valuable work over the last two years and its members continue to shape the vision and work of Make-A-Wish UK and wider organisations through their efforts.
Some of their hard work includes:
- Individuals chairing the monthly STARboard meetings.
- Participating in Q&A sessions with corporate partners to improve their understanding of the impact of a wish.
- Interviewing candidates for Director & Trustee positions within Make-A-Wish and feeding back their views.
- Performing social media takeovers to raise awareness of a variety of topics and events for the charity.
- Informing decisions on fundraising campaigns to increase their effectiveness.
- Advising companies on how to improve experiences for young people living with illness.
- Informing the charity's three-year strategy and Values & Behaviours refresh.
- Advising on how to improve the wish journey, particularly wish anticipation.
All of this, and more, has been achieved using the unique experience and views of wish recipients.
If you’ve got any questions, call us on 01276 40 50 60 or email [email protected].