For any company to function there must be good governance with defined roles at Board level filled by those with relevant expertise. Board directors are responsible for running the company but need to be supported by others who help turn their strategy into supporting plans and put these plans into action.
Our Board has five areas of responsibility which are set out below. Helping the Board meet their responsibilities are a Support Team and a subcommittee of Internal Arts experts (Technical Panel).
Below we give more details of the Union organisational structure and the people who are in the roles. To get an outline of the positions and how they are overseen by the Board, you can read our Overview of Union Roles and Responsibilities.
Board of Directors
Marketing & Public Relations; Tina Faulkner Elders
Tina Faulkner Elders studied kungfu from an early age. But, she says, she was inspired watching her father (Gordon Faulkner) practising Tai Chi ‘constantly’. She says that she just loved the movements. “I was maybe around 12 when I started with tai chi and qigong”. She says “There still seems to be this mystery about Tai Chi so a great many people shy away from it. The reality is that it does cover a great range from martial to health to spiritual and philosophical. Whatever angle you approach it from, Tai Chi is hugely beneficial to anyone who takes up the art.”
Training & Education; Colin Hamilton
Colin is a highly experienced and successful instructor who supports all the Chinese Internal Arts of Tai Chi, Baguazhang, Xingyiquan as well as Qigong. He is a qualified Fitness Instructor and Personal Trainer and will be known to many of you already particularly for his work as Joint Chair of the Technical Panel. In addition to this he is a published author and you can see his publications here.
Health & Research; Dr Ben Morris
Ben Morris has been practising tai chi since 2005. Having practised judo he had become interested in the ‘elusive’ concepts around ‘chi’ and the internal arts. It seemed that tai chi was one of the key arts in this area. There was also an appeal to practising a martial art that did not require a dojo and partners; at times both can be hard to come by. He says: “I think the union should be a leading representative for tai chi and qigong practitioners in the UK. It should also interact with other governing bodies in Europe and farther afield. Ben is a senior lecturer in psychology and a researcher in the area of health and wellbeing. In recent years he has focused some of his research time on understanding the benefits of mindful practices and tai chi. In addition to this he is a published author and you can see his publications here.
Operations; Roy Williams
Roy is one of our Senior Instructors with a wealth of operations and systems experience including managing multiple critical services in a national organisation. He has been studying traditional Chinese martial and health arts for 35 years and holds black sash’s in Li style Tai Chi and Feng Shou kung fu. Both of which he has been teaching for over 20 years. He has also studied Sun Style Bagua, Cheng Man Chin 37 form, Qi Gong, Kai men and Tui Na. In addition to this he is a published author and you can see his publications here.
Finance; Peter Ballam
Back in the 1980’s Peter spent some time searching for a Tai Chi teacher and, after attending workshops run by Dan Docherty, he says: “I was hooked.” Peter sees Tai Chi as a no nonsense martial art but with elements of training that are also beneficial for physical and mental health.” He says: “I liked the idea that Tai Chi practitioners could come together as a community. I would like to see Tai Chi Chuan and Qigong reclaim their own identities and dispel the current confusion. They are both a good form of exercise and, in the case of Tai Chi Chuan, an effective martial art for those seeking and prepared to commit to the training.”
NB: ALL BOARD ROLES ARE FILLED BY UNPAID VOLUNTEERS
Support Team
The Board could only run the Union with support from members.
Membership Secretary & Treasurer – Aileen Mandic – Paid Employee
Aileen is a highly experienced member of the Support Team and a Senior Instructor. Many of you will have already come across Aileen over the many years in her role as Treasurer and Membership Secretary. She is the only employee and a key member of the team who keeps the Union running (and the Board on its toes!). Some of you will have met her either at her classes or at Tai Chi Caledonia which she also helps to organise.
You can contact Aileen at enquiries@taichiunion.com.
Magazine Editor – Ken Symon – Volunteer
Ken is a writer and editor who brings a wealth of experience from his career at various mainstream publications. He has a keen interest in Tai Chi Internal Arts and has been a Tai Chi teacher for many years. As with other team members, this is an unpaid volunteer role.
You can contact Ken at editor@taichiunion.com.
Courses and Events Manager – Vacancy – Volunteer
We are looking for a highly experienced individual to join our team who can provide and developing training courses as well as working with third party specialists in training areas such as data protection, safeguarding etc. Please note that this is an unpaid volunteer role.
Full details including how to apply or get more information can be found below.
Courses and Events Manager Role Description
Communications Manager(s) – Vacancy – Volunteer
We are looking for highly experienced individual(s) to join our team to support our Marketing & PR Director with promoting the Union both externally to the public and internally to our members. This is an exciting chance to influence the Union’s approach to becoming the “go to” place for people wanting classes and information on Tai Chi Internal Arts in the UK as well as support our members delivering what they need to be the best at what they enjoy doing. Please note that this is an unpaid volunteer role.
Full details including how to apply or get more information can be found below.
Communications Manager(s) Role Description
Technical Panel – Board Subcommittee
Our Technical Panel reports to the Training Director. They are the people who assess the Instructors applications to make sure they meet our high standards. Between them they have over 200 years of expertise in various styles and practices of Tai Chi Internal Arts including, Tai Chi Chuan, Baguazhang, Xingyiquan and Qigong. They usually meet every other month and in between work hard to make sure assessments are dealt with fairly and as quickly as possible.
- Colin Hamilton – Joint Chair
- Betty Sutherland – Joint Chair
- Gordon Faulkner – a published author; see his publications here.
- Tina Faulkner Elders
- Jane Launchbury
As with all organisations there are more people “behind the scenes”. If you think you have a skill set that would be useful to help run the company then please get in touch at enquiries@taichiunion.com. You may be able to help on a one-off project or regular ongoing support; we welcome new ideas from people who are willing to help implement them.
