A decade of service
This week (16 March 2025), we proudly celebrate 10 incredible years of supporting LGBTQ+ people in Wales, and those closest to them.
A big thank you to…YOU!
Umbrella Cymru began from a desire (and sadly, a need) to support LGBTQ+ people in Wales in 2015. The idea was simple… help if and however we could. We didn’t know exactly what we would be helping with, or how many people that would be, or where that would take us, but we were committed to improving the lived experiences of anyone who wanted or needed our support.
We opened our services to anyone in or around the Gwent area of South Wales, and within weeks we were receiving requests for support from further afield. In 2016 we rebranded to be Umbrella Cymru (as we are today) and the rest, as they say, was history.
Over the last 10 years, we’ve had the privilege of meeting, talking to, and supporting so many truly remarkable people who continually inspire us with their resilience, courage, and determination to live authentically, even in the face of adversity and challenges. We’ve learned so much from everyone we’ve supported, and we hope we’ve made a positive difference (big or small) in the lives of everyone we’ve worked with.
We are deeply humbled by the trust placed in us throughout the years, and grateful to everyone for allowing us to be a part of their journey. Whether we’ve supported someone once, or over a longer period, we appreciate the opportunity to help in any way we can.
Together, we’ve come so far, and we can’t wait to see what the next 10 years will bring.
We want to thank each and every person we’ve spoken to over the years, we would be nothing without YOU!
A time to reflect
At this significant milestone, we’ve found ourselves reflecting on our own journey. We haven’t always got it right, we haven’t always been perfect, and we’ve had our own difficulties… but we have definitely tried.
As we look back, we’re reminded of some of the most important things to us. Here’s a list of the ‘top ten’ things we’ve realise or learned along the way… (there were so many more, but we tried to keep it ‘brief’).
1 – Person-centred, Client-led approaches are at our core
From the very beginning, we’ve always been guided by the people who access our service, and this will always remain our approach to developing our services. Ten years ago, we started with nothing but a blank sheet of paper, eager to design a service that would meet the needs of the community. Although this made it difficult for us to define exactly what we do, it meant we could design services around what people actually wanted, rather than offer something we ‘thought’ was needed. Co-production and client-led always has been, and always will be our priority and approach, even during challenging times with limited resources and funding.
2 – The Power of Partnerships
We believe collaboration is vital to achieving the most beneficial outcomes for the people we support. Although not always the simplest approach, working alongside other services and professionals allows us to more effectively support individuals, whilst improving knowledge and understanding of the needs of LGBTQ+ people in Wales more broadly. We focus our support to individuals mainly, but where there is an opportunity to deepen knowledge, open minds, and enhance wider services… you bet we’ll take it.
3 – Change is inevitable, AND an opportunity
Change, though challenging, can be a catalyst for progress. We embrace and even invite it. We adapt quickly, remain person-centred, and actively seek to overcome barriers and solve problems. This helped us to keep delivering support throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, changes in governments, increased division in public opinions and attitudes, and pretty much everything we’ve seen over the last 10 years. Each of these have affected our services in different ways, but adapting to changes quickly has meant we could maintain a focus on helping people navigate the negative, celebrate the positive, and realise their strengths.
4 – To Learn, Adapt, Repeat
We acknowledge we don’t have all the answers and accept that mistakes are part of the journey. Welcoming feedback and reflecting on our impact drives us to continually improve. Learning excites us, and we are always exploring innovative ways to enhance our service.
5 – To do more with less
As a charity, we’ve navigated tough times, especially in the early days with a small team and limited resources. We’re always looking for new and better ways to master the art of maximising our impact with minimal means, striving to grow and improve to meet increasing demand. Technology has helped us along the way, and we’re proud to be a digitally strong service, and team. However, we are people supporting people at our core. The tech just helps us speed up some of our processes to allow more time for the human touch.
6 – Teamwork makes the dream work
Yes, yes, we know… live, love laugh… but we truly mean it. Over the years, we’ve been fortunate to support students, staff, and volunteers whose dedication and hard work have enabled us to deliver essential services to thousands of people. Their commitment has been the heartbeat of our success. We would never have been able to do it without them. We hope we can grow our team in the future and deliver more support to even more people.
7 – Diversity is a strength
We believe diversity should be celebrated. Hearing the unique stories and experiences of individuals (staff, volunteers, and clients) enriches our service. We aim to reflect the beautiful complexity of the world as much as we can, and we’re always willing to learn and improve. As a small team, we could never reflect the full richness of society, but we ae proud to have a strong team with diverse experiences, skills, and knowledge. We will always engage with as many people, to hear as many voices and opinions as we can. This principle is also at the core of our support. One size will never fit all, which is why we remain adaptable, and person led.
8 – Empowerment is key
Supporting people to develop the skills they need to self-advocate, build confidence, and thrive is far more impactful than doing things on their behalf. Empowerment is at the heart of what we do – always! We offer a wide range of services, and whilst we can act on someone’s behalf if needed, we will always work with people to set goals, and support to them to achieve them. We focus on strengths to develop the skills and capability we know the community has to take control of their lives, access services and fulfil their potential.
9 – Celebrate Every Win
We treasure every bit of positive feedback we receive and celebrate every achievement, no matter how big or small. The voices of those we support guide and inspire us daily, and we value feedback immensely. We see suggestions for improvement as equally valuable and celebrate the fact that someone has taken the time to help us improve. We genuinely want to learn and develop, and if someone is willing to tell us how we could… we’re listening.
10 – To be proud!
Over the past 10 years, we’ve received thousands of requests for support, and we are incredibly proud of what we’ve built together. Every person who has turned to us for help has been important to us. We are deeply grateful to have played even a small part in their lives. We will continue to help in any way we can for as long as people want us to.
Let them eat cake!
Here are some of the photos from our birthday lunch in the office…
