• Trevor Palmer
Trevor is a full-time wheelchair user who runs his own business from Newport in South Wales and works with fellow disabled people. He has worked with a number of disability organisations to promote the rights, inclusion and equality of disabled people.
From 1981 to 1998 Trevor completed nine voluntary assignments for the British Executive Service Overseas www.open.edu/openlearncreate/mod/oucontent/view.php?id=5772§ion=1.2.7. He advised enterprises in countries including Trinidad, Mongolia, Zimbabwe, Turkey, Thailand and India to promote employment and sustainable economic development. He undertook these voluntary assignments whilst working as a design and manufacturing consultant in several Far Eastern, European and African countries.
Trevor also has interests in the Arts, and established the Azure Gallery and Studio in London during the 1980’s and was contracted to establish and run the Disability Advisory Group at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff Bay during its construction and fitting out. He is currently a director of Disability Wales www.disabilitywales.org a Trustee of See Around Britain and a member of the management committee of Disability in Wales and Africa.
In the 2018 Queens Birthday Honours Trevor was awarded a British Empire Medal for services to people with disabilities in Wales.
Being a committed humanitarian and having a passion for fairness and social justice inspired Trevor to found ResponsABLE assistance in 2005 and is the current Chairperson.
• Vaughan Temby
Vaughan first volunteered his experience soon after ResponsABLE Assistance was set up. He had spent many years living, working, and travelling overseas – working in agriculture; as a Teacher in a Thai language school; and as a Sales Manager of a Hong Kong based Import Company.
Profound struggles with his mental health saw him return home to Cornwall where he found a fulfilling vocation in the health & care sector, at a leading rehabilitation centre, as a Home Carer, also a Nursing Auxiliary and in Social Services as a Lifestyle Support Worker for young physically disabled people.
He has worked for the last 20 years for Disability Cornwall & Isles of Scilly (the county’s Disabled People’s User-Led Organisation) which, like its fellow organisations across England, aims to promote the full inclusion of disabled people in society. Recently their innovative new service, Humans Cornwall, set up as a response to the Covid-19 Pandemic, sees him working across the county as a Personalised Care Lead, assisting people home from hospital quicker and supporting others from hopefully reaching there in the first place.