Helen McIntosh stands down from the Chamber board

As I sit in front of my computer screen proofing Issue 36 of The Masthead, my mind has been drifting back to Autumn 2016 when I first met with Benham Publishing, specialist publishers of chamber and professional magazines. Prior to this the Chamber had had a printed newsletter called the Masthead for many years, some issues of which I edited until the Board made the decision to go solely digital and this worked well for many years. However, when I took over the role of President, I felt there was the need to have a hybrid: a quarterly premium quality hard copy business magazine which would in addition be available in a digital format Benham’s Sales Director Karen Hall came down from their Liverpool HQ for a meeting to sign the partnership and we began working on the first edition which was published in February 2017.

Since then, the Masthead has been a showcase for businesses across the five boroughs in south east London. Each edition has ‘the big interview’ with a leading light in the local business community; it covers topics of general interest to business as well as news from the five boroughs; specific member company news and it provides information about SELCC events both past and future.

In case you missed them all previous editions of the Masthead can be found on Benham’s website which can be accessed from the Chamber’s own website.

All good things come to an end, and it was with a heavy heart that I decided the time had come for me to end my 20 year+ long relationship with the South East London Chamber of Commerce.

Thus, it was that I stood down from the Board at the AGM on Wednesday, 8th October along with Louise Wolsey, LSEC; Yildez Betez, Thackray Willams LLP; and Neil Coates, LSEC who had been co-opted. Asfa Sohail, LSEC has joined the board along with Mary Ivers, University of Greenwich and Susan Collins, Thackray Williams LLP. Yildiz Betez has been co-opted by virtue of her specialist legal knowledge.

Helen McIntosh

Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations; College Fellow London South East Colleges, Chair of LASER Education Foundation; Lewisham College Local Board; Christ the King Local Board; Former President, Strategic Partnership Director, Editorial Director of the Masthead, South East London Chamber of Commerce.