Every fortnight, we’ll try to communicate all that’s happening with R4R from an internal perspective, to help you understand what we’re doing and why we’re doing it, so you can enjoy the ride, help us correct-course, or put your shoulder to the wheel.
23 January 2026
What’s in this update?
Key changes we’re putting in place to improve communication, structure, and clarity across our volunteer and board ecosystem.
We’ll start with the Safety Committee and if the changes work, we’ll introduce them elsewhere.
As always, these are open to feedback and not set in stone.
What action items are there?
Four practical changes to start immediately:
A fortnightly update to keep key people aligned as R4R continues to evolve quickly
A shared floating to-do list so improvements are visible, trackable, and owned (these will populate the fortnightly update for those who don’t have access)
A central “one-stop shop” on the website so volunteers, board members, and committee members always know where to go when they’re unsure
An organisational structure on the website (Board members + Committee structure) - a draft currently.
What we need from you:
Nothing yet, only feedback. If you spot gaps, confusion, or better ways to structure this, hit reply.
What should you take away from this update?
These changes give us a simple, repeatable way to keep improving while staying aligned. They also offer a potential blueprint for how our other committees/systems could work.
If we’re as good as we can be for safety, and in particular, for our Wednesday night run, these systems will filter through to other less demanding behaviours, ensuring we’re doing as much as we can to make our events as safe, and as good as possible.
Want to know more?
The first safety meeting of the year was held on 19 January, and with the holidays behind us and a big year ahead, energy was at an all-time high.
At times it felt frantic with all the areas for improvement being highlighted, but as the meeting unfolded, a few clear themes emerged.
Better communication was needed at all levels, more structure was sought after, and clearer definitions were required.
The changes below prioritise the simplest and most sustainable improvements first.
Better communication
Fortnightly email
The speed at which R4R evolves means that changes happen often, and with that comes the importance of keeping key stakeholders aware. As such, an update will be provided every two weeks, alerting people of key updates.
Floating to-do list
To facilitate this, and to enable others to contribute, a floating to-do list will be set up in our Notion account. Between the fortnightly email and the live to-do list, everyone that wants to, can stay aligned on what’s changing and what’s being improved.
Access to documents
When in doubt, where do volunteers go?
We need a one-stop shop that volunteers can go to when they have a question they want answered. This will be the Our Charity Page which includes the Volunteer Playbook (policies, roles, responsibilities, and key guidance) - links above.
Better structure
Charter & Principles
When in doubt, what do volunteers do?
Similar to our mission and principles structure with R4R, we can create a simple charter and principles for committees.
Better structure creates better communication. The organisational chart is now visible on the website so people can clearly see how R4R is set up and who owns what responsibility.
Committee specific charters are on the way!
Committees
Partnerships, Volunteer, Safety, and Communications committees will continue to be developed. While they may begin flexibly, it’s important they each have a clear remit so there’s accountability and progress over time.
The Safety Committee was established shortly after incorporation, and will continue to act as the “test committee” for these operating rhythms before we roll them out across the others.
Clearer definitions
Clearer definitions will come from the structures above, but we need to be clear about what’s expected when volunteering and contributing to R4R, and what frameworks we’re operating within when making decisions.
Wrapping it up
Ultimately, safety is a keystone for R4R.
If we’re as good as we can be for safety, and in particular, for our Wednesday night run, these systems will filter through to other less demanding behaviours, ensuring we’re doing as much as we can to make our events as safe, and as good as possible.
We believe the changes above will help do that.