Mason Moore | Hinckley Reporter | 9 July 2023

A HINCKLEY based Liberal Democrat campaigner has celebrated the work of small charities at an event held in the Houses of Parliament.

Former charity trustee and chair, Mathew Hulbert, attended the meeting, held by the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), which focused on charities and the voluntary sector.

Small Charity Week has been running since 2010 and exists to help celebrate and raise the profile of the small charity sector. It sees various activities held up and down the country to celebrate the occasion.

And, one of the aims of the week is to be able to work with the small charity sector in order to further develop political engagement on both a national and local level, including the work of the APPG.

APPGs see both Members of Parliament and peers from across the political spectrum come together to help highlight issues around a particular issue, or sector.

During the meeting, Mathew met Lord Alan Beith, the former Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats and Berwick-Upon-Tweed’s Member of Parliament (MP).

Mathew highlighted issues around recruiting and retaining charity trustees and the need for a greater focus on the mental health of trustees and others volunteering their time.

He said: “It was a real honour to attend this event at Portcullis House in the Houses of Parliament.

“The work of small charities is vitally important, but it’s been a tough time with the pandemic and so on.

“I was pleased to highlight the need to do all we can to ensure the mental health of Trustees and volunteers more widely is a focus both nationally and locally.

“I look forward to attending future meetings of the APPG and contributing to its important work.”