About us

Working for and
with the community

Introducing The ACCI

The African Caribbean Community Initiative (ACCI) was initially set up in the 1980’s as a response to concerns raised by the Wolverhampton  Rastafarian Progressive Association about the disproportionate number of African Caribbean’s suffering or at risk of mental ill health in the local community.

ACCI was first registered as a charity in 1987 and has been at the forefront of supportive services for individuals affected by mental ill health as well as continuing to raising awareness within the local community.

Here’s our Director of Services, Alicia Spence explains who we are, what we do and how we support and care for our service members impacted by mental ill health.

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Our ethos and philosophy:

Enhance and where possible improve the quality of life for African Caribbean individuals experiencing or recovering from mental ill health.
 
The African ethos of taking responsibility for the care of members of the extended family is one that is central to the ethos held by ACCI. To foster this ethos ACCI addresses everyone connected to the service as ‘members’ of the ACCI ‘family’.
 
Acknowledge and value the culture and identity of each individual as well as recognising their vulnerability.
 
Although the main focus of the support / care offered by ACCI has been mainly directed at African Caribbean community and their families. This support is also available to all members of the community.
 
Maintains strong links with mainstream health and social care services.
 
Offer a supportive training and teaching environment for health professionals, social workers and volunteers.

We are doing
the right thing,
at the right time

We want our service members to feel safe, secure and enable them to develop their confidence and skills whilst maintaining their mental wellbeing. Here are a just few stories from the service members we support. Names may have been changed in some cases, but in every other way these stories accurately reflect the struggles African and Caribbean people experiencing mental ill health go through and, ultimately, how ACCI help them to recover through their mental health journey.

About us

What makes us diferent?

Our Mission

The African Caribbean Community Initiative (ACCI) aims to provide a culturally safe service that will meet the needs of the African and Caribbean community and their families affected by mental ill health.

Our Vision

To provide a service that will play a key role in delivering the national mental health agenda by improving the standard of service provision, reducing inequalities and hospital re-admittance among African Caribbean members.

Services

We offer a unique culturally service and strive to develop a better quality of life for our service members through; Our Wellbeing Hub, Day Centre, Outreach Support, Supported Housing, Housing Advice and Counselling & Therapeutic Services.

Meet the ACCI Family

Our people are the backbone of our charity and dedicated to supporting our service members. Our Board of Trustees, Staff and Carer’s Group are essential to helping us support the community.

Meet our staff

Our team are here to support and assist our service members. They are committed to helping service members maintain their wellbeing and provide them with access to opportunities to develop their confidence and skills.

 

Aeon Anderson

Omari Housing Operations Manager

Candeece Harvey

Activities Coordinator

Dawn Riley

Monitoring & Compliance Officer

Paul Walters

Lorna McKetty

 Senior Housing Support Officer

Patrick Ellis

Outreach Officer

Eileen Bennett

Carers Support Coordinator

Thess Gordon

Office Manager

Meet our Board of Trustees

ACCI is governed by a board of Trustees who act within the framework of a charitable organisation. The members of the board are individuals who bring a wide range of expertise as well as knowledge while volunteering their time to support the organisation. ACCI continues to recruit volunteers to the board who are willing to be active participants.  

Bridget Thatham

Chairperson

Jahnel Davis

Vice Chairperson

Maxine White

Maureen McCalla

Donald Macintosh

Steve Forsyth

Our Team

Meet our Patrons

Our patrons represent the African Caribbean Community Initiative (ACCI)  and help raise our profile. They are passionate advocates of our work to provide a culturally safe service that will meet the needs of the African and Caribbean community and their families affected by mental ill health.

Aggrey Burke

Patrick Vernon