Well ….quite a lot really….every second organisation seems to be changing their names at the moment. Sometimes it’s through choice, sometimes through need. 

We hope that what has always defined IA has been about the value of the people that make up the organisation rather than our initials as an organisation. I, for one recognise and understand the organisation by the relationships and actions of the people – not the name. 

IA took the decision to ‘remove’ the ‘Central’ part of our name which was voted on by IA members at an Extraordinary General Meeting in December, to become:

INDEPENDENT ADVOCACY CHESHIRE

This was due to the fact that there is no longer a ‘Central’ Cheshire (well...we all know it’s still there physically…it’s not been carried off by the fairies in the night….) in the County administrative structure. 

The move towards East and West Cheshire Counties potentially left our organisation with a name that was meaningless at best, and confusing at worst – especially to potential County commissioners and community teams etc.

After much thought….and debate…and thought…and debate….we decided the simplest and least intrusive action would be to remove the word ‘Central’ from our name. 

This allowed us to be differentiated from our sister organisations in East and West Cheshire, yet still retain our work and focus across both the new County areas as people tend to live, work and exist between communities that are not always governed by artificial and perhaps transitory County lines. 

Paul Dodd, Chairperson