News / Bristol Drugs Project
Tributes paid to Bristol Drugs Project chief exec Maggie Telfer
Tributes have been paid to Maggie Telfer, the co-founder and chief executive of Bristol Drugs Project, who has died aged 63.
“Bristol has lost one of its truest champions,” said BDP’s chair of trustees.
Maggie, along with a group of probation officers, founded BDP in 1986 in response to the lack of support for people who used drugs and alcohol in Bristol at that time.
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Maggie was instrumental in BDP’s early pioneering work, and since then the St Paul’s-based charity has led the way as a provider of Bristol’s services for the people, families and communities affected by drugs or alcohol.
BDP said that Maggie’s work “was defined by her drive to challenge the inequality and stigma faced by some of the most vulnerable people in our society”.
Maggie Telfer was one of the founders of Bristol Drugs Project – photo: BDP
From 2002 to 2004, Maggie was key to establishing the Omari Project in Kenya, the first sub-Saharan needle exchange and treatment programme.
In 2007, she was awarded the OBE in recognition of her achievements and the following year was nominated as one of the 100 most influential women in the West.
BDP’s chair of trustees, John Long, said: “We are all devastated by the loss of a much-loved colleague. She has led the charity from strength to strength, across five decades.
“Maggie’s leadership, compassion and indomitable spirit inspired all around her. Our sadness will be matched by the sorrow of many people and their families whose lives were improved and transformed by her work.
“The city of Bristol has lost one of its truest champions. Our thoughts are very much with Maggie’s family at this difficult time.”
Main photo: Bristol Drugs Project
Read next:
- Behind the scenes at Bristol Drugs Project
- ‘Volunteering at Bristol Drugs Project is a glimpse into how spaces of community and support can be fostered’
- ‘We need to ensure that people are safe when they’re choosing to take drugs’
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