Chair's Update June 2021

Dear Members,

I hope you are all safe and well and enjoying the wonderful weather and reduced restrictions we have had in the last month. The joint COVID-19 guidance has been updated as planned, and much simplified as we continue to progress through the pandemic. However, it includes important updates to comply with National Infection Control Policies which were themselves updated since January.  You can find the updated guidance on the BSA News page.

Many thanks to all our members who took the time to apply and to vote for open positions of BSA Trustee. We look forward to welcoming and introducing new trustees at our upcoming AGM which will be online on June 25^th. I hope many of you can join the meeting. Details, joining instructions, and this year’s annual report have been emailed to members.

Also hold in your diary the date for this year’s BSA Annual Conference, 6^th October, in Sheffield. Registration is now open, with many delegates and exhibitors already confirmed, which is very exciting. You have until Friday 13^th August to submit a poster abstract of your work.

A highlight for me this last month has been to be part of the BSA’s Equality, Diversity, and Inclusiveness (EDI) group, chaired by our membership lead Bhavisha. Together we reviewed member contributions to the BSA EDI survey, and discussed the findings with an external EDI expert. It was so useful and positive to see what motivates people to be part of BSA and BSA activities. The survey also provided clear evidence of where we as an organisation can do better. Our next steps will be to devise a strategy and plan activities to address the needs of those members less well served by what the BSA currently offers. So again, thank you for your valuable contributions to this work.

As always, stay safe and well.