Meet Our Trustees
Darren Melia – Chair of Trustees
I became a trustee at BCT in 2023, having supported some of their charity events and projects previously. I was asked to become chair of the board of trustees in 2024 and was honored to accept the role.
I’m a local business owner in Liverpool and work tirelessly for the local community in helping raise funds and help those that are not currently in a position to help themselves as much as they would like to.
I support Liverpool in Arms and The Old Hall Street Kitchen, two charities that provide assistance to the city’s homeless population. I also support St Mary’s Pantry, a foodbank based close to my business Sureseal Windows.
As well as my local work I have been offering signposting, support and advice through my X (Twitter) page, Veteran’s Next Step, to veterans of the armed and emergency services. I feel that it is incumbent on those that can, to give back to their local communities if they are able to do so.
Joe Williams - Trustee
My first encounter with Beacon Counselling Trust was in 2015, as a service user, after the very sad loss of my son, Paul, to suicide.
In 2017 I co-founded Paul’s Place Suicide Bereavement Support Service, with Kathy Devlin and Agnes Williams. At this time, I also became a volunteer within the charity. This primarily involved organising fundraising events, promoting the Paul’s Place service to external agencies and co-hosting weekly held peer support groups.
In 2018, I was invited to join the Board of Trustees here at Beacon Counselling Trust and am very pleased to be able to continue in this role for the foreseeable future.
Agnes Williams – Trustee
Shortly after losing my son, Paul, to suicide in 2015, I accessed counselling at Beacon Counselling Trust. This proved to be an absolute godsend to me. Two years later, in 2017, I co-founded Paul’s Place Suicide Bereavement Support Service, alongside Kathy Devlin and my husband, Joe Williams.
I was invited to join the Board of Trustees in 2017, leaving in June 2018, on becoming employed by the charity as the Paul’s Place co-ordinator. However, since retiring from that position in February 2024, I have once again rejoined the board of Trustees. Also, I continue to be involved at Paul’s Place as a volunteer, predominantly as a fundraiser, and I regularly attend peer support group meetings and journeys of discovery.
The services offered by Beacon Counselling Trust are wide and varied and are delivered by highly trained and professional staff. Their work has been recognised both locally and nationally, resulting in them having received numerous awards; including The Queens Award for Voluntary Service, in 2022.
I am proud to be on the board of trustees at Beacon Counselling Trust and I am totally committed in continuing to support the charity in any way I can.
