The Bracknell BID Board directors give their time voluntarily and without payment to help govern the BID and champion the work of our BID team.
Meet Susan Meyers, Head of Corporate Relations and Partnerships at Ozone Ice Rink…
Tell us a little bit about you and your company
I am married with 2 children and 4 grandchildren. Both our children followed their hobbies to professional careers. Our daughter Carly was a professional performer in musical theatre, travelling around the world and in London’s West End. Our son Danny was a professional Ice Hockey Player and played for the senior Great Britain team for over 10 years.
Ozone Ice training facility was created when Danny saw there was still a gap in the UK for young ice athletes to have access to extra ice practice and high-quality coaching, equivalent to competitors in other countries.
Ozone is the only purpose-built ice training rink in the UK. It has exclusive rights to the Power Edge Pro (PEP) Ice Hockey Development programme – which is recognised for graduating more players to the National Hockey League than any other development program.
From our learn to skate program to international skaters, Ice skating and dance is a big part of our community. We were delighted to welcome celebrities from the popular Dancing on Ice to Ozone, where they learnt to skate, train and practice new routines.
Can you tell us a little bit about your background/working career
I worked for 25 years in offender services, firstly as a senior manager at Broadmoor Hospital and then as a governor in the prison service.
As a trained investigator and qualified in Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD), I supported services through challenging and changing times, as well as the day to day operational running of prisons in England and Scotland.
My extensive operational experience has helped during the set up and start of Ozone Ice Rink and in my day-to-day role at Ozone as Head of Corporate Relations and Partnerships.
Why are you a BID board director and why do you volunteer your time for the local business community?
When I was introduced to the BID I saw an opportunity to support a programme that will attract new businesses to Bracknell, as well as one that was already helping businesses within the BID area to see the benefits of working together and to ‘trade’ locally.
The BID team have been incredibly welcoming to Ozone and to me as a new Board Director. We already feel part of the business community and have committed that Bracknell will always be the home of Ozone Ice Rinks.
Why are you passionate about Bracknell BID area?
We lived in Bracknell when our children were young and remember Bracknell as the preferred location for many large and small businesses.
When we chose Bracknell as the location for the first Ozone training facility we wanted to be part of the local business community and the place when residents met and created memories.
What skills and experience do you bring to the BID board?
As a previous prison governor, I am used to identifying opportunities within current resources, and bringing teams together to operationalise those ideas. At Ozone the coaches work with players to understand their strengths and to see how they can best use those strengths to form the most successful team. The prison service and all businesses are the same. I have experience of forming the best teams (staff) and working with them on opportunities to improve systems, the workplace and situations.
I am also a trustee of No 5 Young People Mental Health counselling Services in Reading. I understand the benefits of being part of a community and supporting people. We are all part of many communities, which thrive on giving and receiving support.
