EDEL HARRIS

Edel Harris é directora executiva de Mencap, unha grande organización benéfica do Reino Unido que traballa con e para a xente con discapacidade de aprendizaxe, onde emerxeu como unha das voces máis importantes na defensa dos dereitos das persoas con discapacidades de aprendizaxe da actualidade. É unha firme defensora do valor do traballo social como profesión. Traballa de xeito entusiasta para asegurarse de que as persoas cunha discapacidade de aprendizaxe sexan incluídas e valoradas na sociedade.

Entre moitos outros logros, obtivo en 2015 o premio de Directora do Ano do Institute of Directors North East, foi Emprendedora do Ano Escocesa en 2017, e foi nomeada doutora honoris causa pola Universidade Robert Gordon no Día Internacional da Muller de 2018 pola súa contribución á caridade e aos negocios en Escocia. En outubro de 2019, recibiu unha bolsa do North East College de Aberdeen.

En 2021, Edel foi nomeada pola raíña Oficial honoraria da Excelentísima Orde do Imperio Británico (OBE).

Edel non é unha líder no sentido tradicional, senón que exerce o seu papel dun xeito innovador, e para facelo apóiase na súa ampla experiencia en establecer e liderar iniciativas sociais frutíferas, e en desenvolver novos servizos de traballo social. Esfórzase moito por desempeñar o seu papel con humildade e honestidade, o que significa que non considera que teña todas as respostas soamente polo feito de ocupar unha posición afortunada.

O liderado de Edel é humano, aberto e auténtico, pois interésanlle as outras persoas e sempre adica tempo para escoitar calquera opinión, tanto se está de acordo coma se non, e nunca toma decisións difíciles sen escoitar, especialmente a aquelas persoas coas que podería discrepar; detestaría que alguén pensara que ela non está dispoñible ou que está demasiado ocupada para falar. Ademais non ten medo a amosarse como é, e a súa vulnerabilidade. Outra das súas habilidades é que ten un profundo coñecemento da forma na que a xente traballa, algo que usa a diario; esfórzase por empoderar a outros na organización, e dese xeito consigue sacar o mellor da xente.

Edel criouse nunha familia numerosa, e ir á universidade non era para ela unha opción accesible nin probable, así que aos 17 anos comezou a traballar como oficial da Policía Metropolitana. Un día, uns traballadores estaban facendo folga na rúa coas súas familias e tiñan fame, así que entrou na cafetería da policía e encheu unha bandexa con bocadillos de liscos e cuncas de café e levoulla aos piquetes. Por suposto, meteuse nun problema por isto, e ese foi o momento no que empezou a pensar en que lle iría mellor desempeñando un papel máis relacionado co lado social da vixilancia, en lugar de levar a cabo un tipo de vixilancia onde se aplica a lei punto por punto. Así que deixou a policía e matriculouse na universidade, e o resto é historia.

Obtivo un grado en Saúde e Traballo Social con matrícula de honra e distinción e pasou moito tempo traballando no terceiro sector e no sector público. Foi subdirectora executiva de Aberdeen Foyer, unha organización benéfica que apoia ás persoas do nordeste de Escocia cara a unha vida independente, a aprendizaxe e o traballo. Máis tarde, durante oito anos traballou para NHS Grampian, un dos 14 consellos de saúde rexionais de Escocia, responsable da planificación e da prestación de servizos e atención sanitaria á poboación do nordeste.

Traballando en NHS Grampian deu os seus primeiros pasos no liderado. A transición dende formar parte o equipo ao papel de liderar foi moi dura; deuse conta de que facer as cousas que non fixeran os líderes previos, algo polo que acostumaban a queixarse ela e mais os seus compañeiros cando aínda estaba no equipo, non era tan simple, porque cando unha persoa pasa a ser líder ten unha perspectiva máis ampla e conta con información que antes non tiña. Nesta etapa tivo dificultades para equilibrar as súas amizades no equipo co seu traballo xestionando o cumprimento das tarefas, dos obxectivos e dos presupostos, pero aprendeu moito sobre ela mesma e o seu estilo de liderado.

Dende 2008 e durante once anos foi alta executiva de Cornerstone, unha das principais organizacións benéficas de Escocia, que proporciona servizos ás persoas con discapacidades de aprendizaxe, discapacidades físicas, autismo e demencia, onde foi unha pioneira desenvolvendo novos servizos de asistencia social. En Cornerstone pasou de dirixir un equipo a dirixir unha organización, e alí aprendeu que interferir continuamente no traballo doutros, aínda que sexa con ánimo de axudar, resulta desmoralizante para eles, así que hai que darlles liberdade para facer o seu propio traballo ao seu xeito.

Nesta organización tamén tivo unha das experiencias máis valiosas da súa carreira. Nunha reunión do consello discutiuse se era posible pagar o salario mínimo aos seus traballadores sociais, e ela estaba moi descontenta e farta desta situación. Así que emprendeu unha serie de viaxes con algúns dos seus colegas para visitar outras organizacións e empresas e aprender delas. Unha vez de volta, marcáronse un ambicioso obxectivo: transformar o traballo social no Reino Unido. Para facelo, tentaron cambiar o sistema da organización, comunicando claramente aos seus colegas a súa visión, que implicaba asumir riscos mediante o establecemento dunha estrutura plana ou horizontal, na que se eliminarían niveis de xerencia intermedia.

En 2020, despois de pasar un proceso de recrutamento durante o que ela tamén se asegurou de que era unha organización guiada polos valores, Edel Harris uniuse a Mencap como directora executiva, un traballo no que emprega a súa ampla experiencia. Este supuxo para ela un gran paso adiante, porque se trata dunha organización moito máis grande e complexa, con 9000 empregados, así como moitos voluntarios. Mudouse a Londres, e oito semanas despois de incorporarse, apareceu a pandemia de COVID-19.

Durante a pandemia, Mencap levou a cabo con éxito unha campaña para que o goberno do Reino Unido incluíra ás persoas con discapacidades de aprendizaxe no grupo prioritario 6 para ser vacinadas, algo que era preciso facer con urxencia á vista das estatísticas: as persoas con discapacidade de aprendizaxe teñen seis veces máis probabilidades de morrer por COVID-19, e aquelas que teñen entre 18 e 34 anos teñen ata 30 veces máis probabilidades de morrer.

Mencap quere poñer en cuestión a forma en que o traballo social se valora e se recoñece no Reino Unido e lograr unha maior igualdade de oportunidades, mediante a redistribución dos recursos da organización e recompensando moito mellor aos traballadores sociais. A visión de Mencap presentouse no seu Novo Gran Plan en 2021, que consiste lograr que o Reino Unido sexa o mellor lugar no mundo para que a xente cunha discapacidade de aprendizaxe vivan vidas felices e saudables. Para isto, a organización comprometeuse a poñer ás persoas con discapacidades de aprendizaxe no centro de todo, que implica escoitalas e ser verdadeiramente guiadas por elas, o que significa que desenvolven unha estratexia traballando de tres formas:

- Apoiando aos individuos e ás súas familias.

- Apoiando ás comunidades nas que viven, para atopar solucións locais.

- A nivel social, por medio do seu traballo facendo campañas ao lado das persoas con discapacidades de aprendizaxe.

A organización presentou esta estratexia como un mapa de ruta no que deixarán espazo suficiente para actuar con liberdade e a axilidade, dentro dun proceso continuado de escoita, algo que de tódolos xeitos xa se viron forzados a facer durante a pandemia da COVID-19, durante a que necesitaron reaccionar con rapidez.

Despois da pandemia, Mencap premeu ao Goberno para abordar doutro xeito a crise na asistencia social: “A reforma do traballo social é a clave para a reconstrución despois do COVID-19. Queremos un sistema de traballo social que satisfaga as necesidades das persoas que necesitan atención e das que a prestan: un sistema axeitado para o século XXI”, en palabras de Edel.

A xustiza social consiste en buscar xustiza para aqueles que a miúdo son ignorados, non soamente para os que nos rodean. No Reino Unido, a taxa de emprego das persoas con discapacidade de aprendizaxe está entre o 5 e o 6%. A Edel gustaríalle ver que a sociedade fixera que aumentase esa porcentaxe, de xeito que as organizacións e empresas exerceran a súa responsabilidade social. Cada vez máis, os consumidores, especialmente os máis novos, valoran ás empresas asociadas cunha boa causa, coma as que valoran e priorizan empregar a persoas cunha discapacidade de aprendizaxe.

Para iso, é preciso cambiar actitudes e educar ao persoal das empresas acerca dos beneficios que aportan as persoas con discapacidades de aprendizaxe como empregados fantásticos e leais, así como acerca dos obstáculos que deben superar. Durante o proceso de recrutamento, as empresas teñen que pensar na equidade, e sobre os axustes razoables que precisan as persoas con discapacidades de aprendizaxe. E durante o emprego, é preciso que sexan tratadas igual ca o resto das persoas, e achar cales son as súas necesidades individuais para que poidan facer un gran traballo. Para facer isto, organizacións coma Mencap poden proporcionar moita información e apoio ás empresas.

Ademais de todo isto, Edel traballou moito como voluntaria, onde fixo amizades e realizou aprendizaxes, o que contribuíu moito ao seu desenvolvemento persoal e profesional. Actualmente forma parte do consello de Robertson Trust. Foi directora do Aberdeen Football Club Community Trust, e directora do Scottish Council for Development and Industry (SCDI). Ademais Edel foi a primeira muller presidenta da Cámara de Comercio de Aberdeen e Grampian, durante 2 anos, e estivo no seu consello durante 11 anos. Tamén foi unha das primeiras directoras de Opportunity North East (ONE), antiga presidenta de The Life Changes Trust e antiga presidenta do Social Investment Fund do goberno escocés.

Edel ten un fillo, Ross, que foi diagnosticado co síndrome de cromosoma X fráxil cando tiña 5 anos, e dixéronlle que non sería capaz nin de atar os seus zapatos. Hoxe en día, vive nun piso co apoio de outros e desfruta dunha vida plena e activa, facendo traballos voluntarios, estudando, facendo deporte, e vida social co seu irmán e amigos.

Gústalle nadar, e durante o este mes de outubro de 2022 nadará 26 millas (o equivalente a unha maratón) ao aire libre para recadar fondos para Mencap; tamén lle gusta pasar tempo coa súa familia, e é unha seguidora entusiasta do fútbol.

Edel Harris is CEO of Mencap, a large UK charity working with and for people with learning disabilities, where she has emerged as one of the most important voices for the rights of people with learning disabilities today. She is a strong advocate for the value of social work as a profession. She works enthusiastically to ensure that people with a learning disability are included and valued in society.

Among many other achievements, she won the Institute of Directors North East Director of the Year award in 2015, she was Scottish Entrepreneur of the Year in 2017, and she was awarded an honorary doctorate by Robert Gordon University on International Women's Day 2018 for her contribution to charity and business in Scotland. In October 2019, she received a Fellowship from North East College, Aberdeen.

In 2021, Edel was appointed by the Queen as an Honorary Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE).

Edel is not a leader in the traditional sense, but exercises her role in an innovative way, and to do so she relies on her extensive experience in establishing and leading fruitful social initiatives, and in developing new social work services. She goes to great lengths to play her role with humility and honesty, which means she doesn't consider herself to have all the answers just because she's in a fortunate position.

Edel's leadership is humane, open and authentic, as she cares about other people and always takes the time to listen to any opinion, whether she agrees with it or not, and she never makes difficult decisions without listening, especially to those with whom she might disagree; she'd hate for anyone to think she's unavailable or too busy to talk. In addition, she is not afraid to show herself as she is, and her vulnerability. Another of her skills is that she has a deep knowledge of the way in which people work, something she uses daily; she strives to empower others in the organization, thereby bringing out the best in people.

Edel grew up in a large family, and going to university wasn't an affordable or likely option for her, so at 17 she started working as an officer in the Metropolitan Police. One day, some workers were on strike in the street with their families and they were hungry, so she went into the police canteen and filled a tray with bacon rolls and cups of coffee and took it to the pickets. Of course, she got into trouble for this, and that's when she started to think she'd be better off playing a role more related to the social side of surveillance, rather than doing a kind of surveillance where law is enforced in black and white. So she quit the police and enrolled in college, and the rest is history.

She obtained a 1st class honours degree (with distinction) in Health and Social Care and spent a lot of time working in the third sector and the public sector. She was deputy chief executive of Aberdeen Foyer, a charity supporting people in North East Scotland towards independent living, learning and work. She later worked for eight years for NHS Grampian, one of Scotland's 14 regional health boards, responsible for planning and delivering health care and services to the population of the North East.

Working at NHS Grampian she took her first steps into leadership. The transition from being part of the team to the role of leader was very hard; she realized that doing the things that the previous leaders had not done, something that she and her colleagues used to complain about when she was still in the team, was not so simple, because when a person becomes a leader they have a broader perspective and they have information that they didn't have before. At this stage she struggled to balance her friendships on the team with her work managing the fulfillment of tasks, goals and budgets, but she learned a lot about herself and her leadership style.

From 2008 and for eleven years she was Chief Executive of Cornerstone, one of Scotland's leading charities providing services to people with learning disabilities, physical disabilities, autism and dementia, where she pioneered the development of new social care services. At Cornerstone, she went from leading a team to leading an organization, and there she learned that continually interfering with the work of others, even if it's meant to help, is demoralizing to them, so you have to give them the freedom to do their own work in their own way .

In this organization she also had one of the most valuable experiences of her career. At a board meeting it was discussed whether it was possible to pay their social workers minimum wage, and she was very unhappy and fed up with this situation. So she embarked on a series of trips with some of her colleagues to visit other organizations and companies and learn from them. Once back, they set themselves an ambitious goal: to transform social work in the UK. To do this, they tried to change the organization's system, clearly communicating to their colleagues their vision, which involved taking risks by establishing a flat or horizontal structure, in which middle management levels would be eliminated.

In 2020, after going through a recruitment process during which she also ensured that it was a values-led organisation, Edel Harris joined Mencap as CEO, a role in which she draws on her extensive experience. This was a big step forward for her, because it is a much larger and more complex organization, with 9000 employees, as well as many volunteers. She moved to London, and eight weeks after joining, the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

During the pandemic, Mencap successfully campaigned for the UK government to include people with learning disabilities in priority group 6 for vaccination, which was urgently needed given the statistics: people with learning disabilities are six times more likely to die from COVID-19, and those aged 18-34 are up to 30 times more likely to die.

Mencap wants to challenge the way social work is valued and recognized in the UK and achieve greater equality of opportunity, by redistributing organizational resources and rewarding social workers much better. Mencap's vision was set out in its New Big Plan in 2021, which is to make the UK the best place in the world for people with a learning disability to live happy and healthy lives. To do this, the organization is committed to putting people with learning disabilities at the center of everything, which means listening to them and being truly guided by them, which means they develop a strategy working in three ways:

- Supporting individuals and their families.

- Supporting the communities in which they live, to find local solutions.

- At a social level, through their work campaigning alongside people with learning disabilities.

The organization presented this strategy as a road map in which they will leave enough space to act with freedom and agility, within a continuous process of listening, something that in any case they were already forced to do during the COVID-19 pandemic, when they needed to react quickly.

After the pandemic, Mencap pressed the Government to tackle the crisis in social care in a different way: “Reforming social care is the key to rebuilding after COVID-19. We want a social care system that meets the needs of the people who need care and those who provide it – a system fit for the 21st century", in Edel's words.

Social justice is about seeking justice for those who are often ignored, not just for those around us. In the UK, the employment rate for people with a learning disability is between 5 and 6%. Edel would like to see society increase that percentage, so that organizations and companies exercise their social responsibility. Increasingly, consumers, especially younger ones, value companies associated with a good cause, such as those that value and prioritize employing people with learning disabilities.

To do this, it is necessary to change attitudes and educate company staff about the benefits that people with learning disabilities bring as fantastic and loyal employees, as well as about the obstacles they must overcome. During the recruitment process, companies need to think about equity, and about the reasonable adjustments that people with learning disabilities need. And during employment, it is necessary that they are treated the same as the rest of the people, and find out what their individual needs are so that they can do a great job. To do this, organizations like Mencap can provide a lot of information and support to businesses.

In addition to all this, Edel worked a lot as a volunteer, where she made friends and learned, which greatly contributed to her personal and professional development. She currently sits on the board of the Robertson Trust. She was a director of the Aberdeen Football Club Community Trust, and a director of the Scottish Council for Development and Industry (SCDI). Edel was also the first female president of the Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce, for 2 years, and she was on its board for 11 years. She was also one of the first Directors of Opportunity North East (ONE), former Chair of The Life Changes Trust and former Chair of the Scottish Government's Social Investment Fund.

Edel has a son, Ross, who was diagnosed with Fragile X Syndrome when he was 5, and she was told he wouldn't even be able to tie his shoes. Nowadays, he lives in an apartment with the support of others and enjoys a full and active life, doing voluntary work, studying, playing sports, and socialises with his brother and friends.

She likes to swim, and during this month of October 2022 she will swim 26 miles (the equivalent of a marathon) in the open air to raise funds for Mencap; she also enjoys spending time with her family, and is an avid soccer fan.