Tim Holmes, North East Regional Manager on the Power of Inclusive Services
For Tim Holmes, inclusivity isn’t a buzzword — it’s a lived experience that drives his work at ABL every day. From fitness instruction in his early career, to his current dual role as ABL’s Operational Lead for smoking cessation services and Regional Manager for North East England, Tim works to strengthen services, shape strategy and support colleagues to deliver healthier futures for their clients.
“Inclusivity is not a slogan but a practice woven into every detail of client engagement and service delivery.”
“My career in public health has been a transition from day-to-day direct interaction with clients, through service management to focusing on the bigger picture — ensuring clinics run effectively, helping train new advisers, supporting service development and shaping how we tell the story of our impact.”
It’s a remit that touches every corner of ABL, from client engagement to organisation development. And for Tim, that breadth is energising.
Discovering the Power of Belonging
When asked about the moment inclusivity became central to his thinking, Tim pauses.
“For me, it’s personal and professional. Growing up gay in the North East, there wasn’t the internet, there weren’t safe spaces you could find easily. What I was really experiencing was exclusivity — being shut out, often unintentionally, simply because of who I was. That shaped my outlook.”
Later, in his professional life, the lesson crystallised. Delivering LGBTQI awareness sessions within the NHS, he recalls asking colleagues to imagine themselves in the shoes of patients:
“Walk into a GP surgery as a gay, lesbian or trans person — do you see anything that tells you this is an inclusive place…a safe space?” That awareness, he says, “never left me.”
Making Inclusivity Real
For Tim, inclusivity is not a slogan but a practice woven into every detail. At ABL, that has meant tailoring materials to ensure health literacy barriers don’t exclude anyone. It has meant adapting training to meet different learning styles — visual, auditory, practical — and reaching into communities that services have historically missed.
“We’ve begun co-production work with lived experience funding,” he explains, “to ask: which groups aren’t we reaching? What can we do differently so our services fit them, not the other way round?”
It’s an instinct that comes naturally: “After so long in public health, thinking laterally about equity and inclusion is just second nature.”
ABL’s Culture
That instinct is amplified by ABL’s own culture.
“I’ve felt more welcome here and had more opportunities in a short space of time, than anywhere else in my public health career,” Tim reflects. “The culture is personable, it’s open, it’s innovative — and those things go hand in hand with being inclusive. You can pick up the phone to Denise, our Chief Executive. You wouldn’t get that in most organisations.”
This culture, he believes, is not just internal to ABL, “Our clients and partner organisations feel it too. Our culture is reflected in how we interact with everyone and that’s as important as how we experience it ourselves.”
Belonging Beyond the Service Door
Tim is particularly proud of ABL’s role in the Sunderland Pride March, which the service sponsored and led this year.
“Being visibly supportive says: we are here, we are listening and our services are for you.”
That visibility, he says, builds trust. “It tells people they won’t be judged when they walk through our doors.”
It’s a principle he hopes to extend to other communities, where trust must be earned in different ways.
Why ABL?
Tim is very clear on what drew him to ABL in the first place.
“It was the chance to do things differently, to innovate while still keeping services personal,” he says.
Looking ahead, success for him has many layers.
“It’s about sustaining and expanding services, yes, but also holding onto the culture that makes ABL special. It’s about enabling staff across the board to step into their potential. Personally, it’s about seeing where my new role takes me and where I can be most useful.”
A Sense of Place and Confidence
With decades of service behind him, what is Tim most proud of? He doesn’t hesitate.
“It’s seeing others grow and develop. Bringing on the next generation, stepping back from the frontline and watching colleagues grow into their own leadership. That, to me, is success.”
As he speaks, one thing is clear: whether at Pride, in the clinic or shaping national services, Tim Holmes is not just helping people quit smoking. He’s helping them find their place, their confidence and their belonging in healthier futures.
