This year the birth of Robert Burns and the Lunar New Year fell on the same date, 25th january. A time for Scots and Asian heritage to be celebrated, a time for reflection and forward planning.
My favorite Robert Burns poem is ‘To a Mouse’, written in 1785 it tells the story of Burns disturbing a mouse nest whilst plowing a field, a panic stricken mouse, its ruined nest and with winter just around the corner, its world in disarray .
There is a line in the poem, ‘The best laid plans o’mice an’ men gang aft agley’ that resonates within OSH world. That despite our reflection on ‘what works’ and our forward planning, things don’t always go our way… and we need support to bring the best out in ourselves and our organizations.
Every year since 1956, RoSPA has provided the opportunity for people and organizations to ‘tell their story’ and share their successes through the internationally recognized RoSPA Health & Safety Awards. This network extends to 40 countries around the world and working with the people involved in bringing submissions together is the best part of my role! At present, we now have 25 RoSPA Awards Ambassadors, with three active overseas; Stephen Storey in Chennai, Mathew Jackson in the United Arab Emirates, and Ben Legg based in Madrid. All of our Ambassadors act as mentors, and Stephen is delivering an event in Chennai later in March.
However, with almost 2000 entrants and even with the extra day available in 2020, bringing the best out in this global network needed extra pairs of hands. People with an understanding of the RoSPA Awards process and the ability to construct an effective submission reflecting local context and culture. Bringing to life the work of OSH professionals and practitioners and demonstrating the value they add not only to their organizations but to society as a whole.
The role of the RoSPA Awards Ambassador was created to help ‘us’ become more accessible, provide mentoring opportunities and encourage organizations to tell their OSH stories. Our Ambassadors are unique individuals who give their time to help others progress, they are catalysts for change in their own organizations, who recognize the importance of connecting around current and emerging OSH issues. They know what works and what to do when things ‘gang agley’, led by Graham Parker MSc CFIOSH FIIRSM CIWFM, RoSPA Trustee and Past President IOSH.
If you are already part of the RoSPA Awards and would like to benefit from mentoring, please get in touch with [email protected].
If you are reading this and want to be part of this elite Awards community, drop the awards team at [email protected] or myself [email protected] a message and we will be happy to help.
And remember each 10,000 mile journey begins with one step…
