Jill Rankin, chief executive of St Elizabeth’s Centre details a week in her life, and how she and her organisation are preparing for new challenges and growth ahead of the new term in September. As CEO of an organisation with over 500 staff, Jill details her week managing and overseeing many different services and teams.
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No day or week is ever the same at St Elizabeth’s, and the fast pace of the organisation certainly keeps me on my toes. Whether it’s a networking event, 1:1 or time at my desk, it’s always a hive of activity here within the St Elizabeth’s community and I’m delighted to share with you just a small insight into my working week.

What is the nature of our work here at St Elizabeth’s? Founded in 1903, we are a regional charity based in rural Hertfordshire supporting children, young people and adults with learning disabilities and other complex needs, often caused by or associated with epilepsy. We comprise of a school and college both with day and residential placements, a day opportunities programme for adults and specialist nursing and therapy services.

We belief that no disability should serve as a barrier to living a full life, and we strive every day to provide opportunities for everyone to develop independence and truly live life to their fullest potential.

Here is a glimpse into my diary and insight into the work we are doing to ensure we achieve such positive outcomes for the individuals accessing our services.

Monday: Accepting our awards

It’s a new week and an early start for me, as I head up to Chester to attend the Be Kind Awards 2024. Our school is nominated in the SEND Specialist School category, and have been awarded Highly Commended. Teaching kindness and compassion is very much part of our ethos and values, so I am delighted the school have been honoured in this way. I also learn on the journey up that we have been selected as a finalist in the Employer of the Year category at the SME National Business Awards, so it has been a fantastic day and a time to truly celebrate our achievements and commitment to both our staff and the individuals we support. We’ll find out in December if we are winners so fingers crossed! As I travelled up with our Director of Learning and Head teacher, it’s valuable time for me to catch up with them and discuss the school’s progress over the last year.

Tuesday: Meetings for growth & sustainability

Back to St Elizabeth’s, and once the essential morning cup of tea is consumed, it’s time to chair our weekly Executive Team meeting. The main topic on our agenda has been to finalise our people strategy, annual accounts and impact report and to discuss the progress in the school expansion. It’s very exciting to see our new classrooms taking shape ready for our many new faces joining us in September. I then head to a meeting with our nursing team to discuss current structure and clinics, and am reminded of what a fantastic job they are doing to keep our children and young people safe and well. After lunch, I host a meeting with our service leads to discuss our current registrations and service model, and how we can adapt to the ever-changing needs of our individuals and the requests from local authorities. I then head into London to attend ‘Rory Stewart in Conversation’ at The Conduit, an event I hope is a fascinating look into global affairs. Time on my journey home means I can catch up on our Trustee pack ahead of tomorrow’s meeting.

Wednesday: Our fundraising future

With the charity going from strength to strength, it’s time to look at our fundraising structure and potential returns on investments. For the last year, we have been working with Fundraising Consultant Ruth Sorby, who has been advising us and hosting workshops for some of our teams on the importance of fundraising and the different avenues of funding. My meetings with Ruth always give me lots of food for thought and today was no different! Our Director of Finance joined us on the call where we were able to discuss potential new roles and growth within our charity shops. I then head over to our quarterly Trustees meeting, where we discuss our current children’s home staffing structure, building works and future planning. Trustees are updated on our admissions pipeline and I am able to advise on key updates within our registrations, recent Ofsted inspections and our strategic plan. These meetings are very important to me, as they provide an opportunity to scrutinise our performance, celebrate our achievements and plan further developments.

Thursday: Our ethos is strong

My monthly catch up sessions with our Directors keep me up to date with each service and how I can provide the best support. Today I meet with our Director of People, and learn that our recruitment pipeline remains strong. In order to provide such specialist, person-centred care, our individuals benefit from the support of a high ratio of staff. As we continue to grow the numbers of children and young people we support, t’s important our recruitment pipeline can keep up with demand. I feel lucky that my office is located very close by to our HR office, so I get to meet lots of our new staff and those coming in for an interview. I then grab an hour at my desk to catch up with my emails and my Executive Assistant Sally, before heading over to a Governor workshop in the afternoon. Our Chairs hosted a presentation on Catholic liturgy and history, which included our Catholic ethos and how this ties in with education. Our School Council Chair Kwaku closed the meeting by leading prayers.

As we operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, we have a fantastic night team that take over in the evenings and work hard to ensure everyone is safe during the evening. I worked late so I could meet with the team around 8pm to catch up and discuss both the successes and challenges the team are currently facing.

Friday: Graduation Reflections
As the week draws to a close, there is a moment to ‘take a beat’ and reflect on how much we have achieved this week. My Fridays always start with a weekly catch-up with our Chair of Trustees, which is the perfect opportunity to do just that. We discuss our latest Trustee meeting action points, upcoming projects and next steps, and any support I may need in the weeks to come. I then head over to our school then our college, to watch both graduation ceremonies and say a few words. It’s an absolute joy to congratulate our leavers and reflect on the progress they have made and the adversities they have overcome. Everything we work for all comes down to this moment. After graduation and catching up with families, I head over to our monthly FARC (Finance and Risk Committee) meeting. Our Director of Finance leads on the agenda, and it’s encouraging to see the progress and positive steps we have in place to ensure financial growth. Once we finish, it’s time to head home to spend time with my family and rest before another busy and fulfilling week at St Elizabeth’s!

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