SRG Annual Report 2023

Trustees’ Annual Report for the period

From 1st September 2022 to 10th June 2023

Objectives and Activities

We give assistance and support for the needs of refugees and displaced people in Shaftesbury, Gillingham, Motcombe, and the adjacent villages and towns.

We provide refugees, displaced people, and their sponsors with practical advice,  a point of contact with the local community and links to other services.

We offer befriending services, encourage social inclusion and provide targeted financial support to assist beneficiaries to become self-sufficient in their day-to-day activities in UK

Note: As a consequence of our increased in-year income we will shortly submit an application to the Charity Commission to become a registered charity using the Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) Foundation Model constitution.  This required us to consider aspects of our objectives and their public benefit.  This resulted in an updated set of objectives as detailed above.

A summary of our main activities in relation to these objectives:

  • Provide befriending services that help refugees establish themselves within the local community and the life of the UK.

  • Provide some financial assistance to refugees to establish businesses, attend education, and meet domestic, health and well-being needs.

  • Continue to improve and add content to an active website which provides advice and support to refugees and their hosts, and establishes a point of contact with the community.

  • Organise the distribution and collection of IT equipment for refugees with our partners, DonateIT

  • Arrange events to raise funds such as a Quiz Night in Gillingham, free to Ukrainian guests.

  • Arrange events to enable refugees to meet together and with the local community such as Maslenitsa, Eurovision evening, Vyshyvanka day and Carol of the Bells film screening.

  • Support English language development through conversation partners and summer schools.

  • Help furnish accommodation for people new to our community.

  • Assist the matching and rematching of refugees from Ukraine and hosts in the area as part of the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

  • Develop a wider network of partners and friends that can provide support when necessary for the needs of refugees.

  • Raise awareness of the plight of displaced people through the website, media and our events.

  • Be advocates for refugees in situations where they need support to make their needs clear.

  • Signpost displaced people and those keen to support them to relevant services such as Local Authorities and Job Centres.

  • Developed and implemented a scheme to help with transport needs, including support for driving lessons and tests

A summary of our achievements and performance:

The numbers of people (displaced people, hosts), our service has been in direct contact with so far this year is over 200

  • We have had 27,726 visits and 26,080 unique visitors  to our website from over 50 countries since it was launched in May 2022, and in the period of this report an average of over 1500 unique visits per month for advice and support online, and the numbers are rising. 

  • OurTreasurer’s Finance Report, which follows, shows our income in the period to December 31st 2022, was £10,804, ten times more than in 2021.

  • We have arranged 6 social events that have helped people in the Homes for Ukraine scheme to connect with each other.  These were attended by over 400 people and raised funds to support our work.

  • We have distributed a number of laptops, tablets and  phones, offered grants for printers and also a 3D printer to meet the educational and professional needs of refugees.

  • We have written articles for local papers, spoken on local radio many times and used our events to raise awareness of the plight of displaced people and these have maintained 92 Friends of our charity from the local community, and 58 partner organisations.

  • We have established a group of 16 volunteers who are providing conversational English sessions with  18 refugees.

  • We have supported the rematching of a number of families in incompatible situations.

  • We have liaised the Dorset Council resettlement team and support workers locally where families have encountered hardship or additional challenges.

  • We have represented our group at Dorset Together meetings, enabling us to link to wider services and partners across Dorset.

Financial Review

Financial position: The opening bank balance on 1 Jan 2022 was £1969.  Income in the year to December 31st 2022 totalled £10,804.  Payments made under our Refugee Support criteria totalled £2,900, 3 times greater than in 2021, and we spent £1,268 on fund raising and similar events.    This resulted in a surplus of £6,636 for the year, reflected in the closing bank balance on 31 Dec 2022 of £8,605.  

The SRG’s accumulated funds at the end of May 2023 are healthy at around £5,000.  

Continuing expenditure on transport, language support and equipping of beneficiaries’ accommodation in the 2nd half of in 2023 means we should identify more funding by the autumn.  At the current rate of expenditure the SRG needs income of about £10,000 per year.  

(Please see the Treasurer’s Report appended below.)

Reserves policy:

We have been until recently a small charity with an income of less than £5000 per annum, and a typical balance less than £2000.  However, our work has been vital for the families that we have supported since 2017.   In order to continue with our vital work into the future we hold a small reserve of £500 which allows us to retain our capacity and to be resilient in the face of any issues such as declining donations.

The charity is not in deficit and there are no uncertainties about the charity as a going concern.

Governance of the Charity

The charity has a Small Charity Constitution as its governing document. https://www.shaftesburyrefugeegroup.org/constitution.

The charity is managed by a committee of trustees. There are currently 8 trustees, 7 trustees appointed at the AGM, one resigned and 2 co-opted in year.

  • Carolyn Godfrey: Chair

  • Sara Delano Jacson MBE: Secretary and founder member

  • John Macpherson OBE: Treasurer: Treasurer from 12th May 2022

  • Andrea Blows: Founder member

  • Rosalind Hanby: Vice Chair

  • Monica Macpherson, Resigned March 2023

  • Stuart Twiss: Health and Safety Officer, Information Officer, Website Manager

  • Eric Squires Co-opted January 2023

  • Julia Markus Co-opted March 2023

We would like to acknowledge the immense service provided by Monica Macpherson and recognise the time and heart that she put into her role. Thank you most sincerely, from your fellow Trustees.

We are delighted to welcome Eric Squires and Julia Markus as Trustees, they bring a wealth of experience and expertise to the group.

Meetings

The trustees have held 6 quorate and minuted meetings our last Annual Report 

Probity

The Trustees are all fit and proper persons and have agreed to  act in line with the following policies, 

  • Code of Conduct

  • Equality

  • Safeguarding

  • Health and Safety8

  • Finance

  • Reserves

  • Expenses

  • Personal Data and Privacy

  • Risk

  • Complaints

See our website. https://www.shaftesburyrefugeegroup.org/our-policies 

Members and volunteers supporting our work need to be aware of and agree to the same policies and all hold a current enhanced DBS certificate..

Public benefit

The Trustees of the charity are aware of the guidance on Public Benefit (PB1, 2 and 3) provided by the Charity Commission and have taken it into account when making decisions to which the guidance was relevant.  We have had no reason for departing from this guidance.

Thanks

I would like to thank all Trustees for their support and dedication to our charity during a period of significantly increased work and pressure.

I would also like to thank all of the hosts who have welcomed Ukrainian guests; the Syrian families and the Friends of Shaftesbury Refugee Group who have welcomed new refugees into our community.

We have been able to achieve more by working within a community of partners upon whom we can rely for additional services such as lT, clothing, furniture, fund raising and advice.

Our English Conversation volunteers are in regular contact with families and meet a prime need to learn fluent English but also support in many ways, as friends and local support.

We welcome, and celebrate the courage and resilience of all refugees coming to Shaftesbury and the surrounding area.

The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above. 

Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees at the AGM.

Chair: Carolyn  Godfrey

Secretary: Sara Jacson

Correspondence:

Shaftesbury Refugee Group

Small charity: HMRC No. 061000042248EW88514

C/O John Macpherson OBE

The Treasurer

Shaftesbury Refugee Group

Hill Farm

Buckhorn Weston

Gillingham

Dorset

SP8 5HT

Appendix

Shaftesbury Refugee Group, Treasurer’s Report 

AGM 10 June 2023

Charity Accounts

The financial year for the SRG runs from 1 January to 31 December each year. The Annual Treasurer’s report has been compiled based on the guidelines issued by the Charity Commission. The attached Charity accounts for the financial year to 31 December 2022 have been prepared on a Receipts and Payments basis, and have also been compiled in accordance with the guidelines issued by the Charity Commission.  They have been examined by an external examiner who has no connection with the charity.

2022 Accounts Overview.

The SRG finances saw a significant change in 2022, the year covered by this report, due mainly to the SRG’s decision to support refugees from Ukraine arriving in our area.  The number of beneficiaries we were supporting by the end of 2022 was around 100.  This included the 3 Syrian families who in 2021 had been the SRG’s only beneficiaries.

Consequently our expenditure increased significantly, as did our fundraising to cover these costs.  Most of our new funds came from generous grants and donations from a handful of local organisations and government bodies.    And the effective ending of Covid restrictions meant we could also carry out some public fund-raising activity. 

The opening bank balance on 1 Jan 2022 was £1969.  Income in the year totalled £10,804, 10 times more than in 2021.  Payments made under our Refugee Support criteria totalled £2,900, 3 times greater than in 2021, and we spent £1,268 on fund raising and similar events.    This resulted in a surplus of £6,636 for the year, reflected in the closing bank balance on 31 Dec 2022 of £8,605.  

2022 - Change of Treasurer and accounting systems

In May, Malcolm Wilson, our Treasurer since the creation of the SRG in 2017, resigned.  We are immensely grateful to him for his professionalism in setting up and maintaining the accounts during these 4 ½ years, and in establishing our relationship with HMRC.   He has been a steady hand on the Board of Trustees, and we will miss him. 

John Macpherson was elected as the new Treasurer in May 2022.  He had been on the Board of Trustees since July 2020. 

Since May 2022, our accounts have been moved from a hard copy cash book to a digital format, and we now use internet banking.  This has significantly speeded up and simplified our financial procedures.   The introduction of the SRG website this year has both encouraged donations, and simplified the relevant procedures, including for Gift Aid.

Donations tied to specific aims meant that for the first time we have had to distinguish between Unrestricted and Restricted funds.  At the end of 2022 Unrestricted funds totalled £5,998, and Restricted funds totalled £2,607.  Recognising that the SRG’s current funds represent donations raised in the early years for the 3 Syrian families who were then our only beneficiaries, the Trustees also agreed in July to ring fence £1000 of the SRG’s Unrestricted funds for the benefit of those 3 families. 

Looking ahead to possible expansion of activity, we also took the opportunity to establish clear policies on finance, finance procedures, expenses and reserves.  Trustees agreed in mid 2022 to maintain a reserve of £500 to cover ongoing commitments such as website maintenance.

SRG Income in 2022

Anticipating the need for greater expenditure, we successfully applied for funding from local organisations.  Asda and The Dorset Community Foundation awarded a total of £5,500, both for Unrestricted use.  In mid 2022 a local business awarded us £500 to fund “Meet and Greet” events, aimed mainly at events to enable Ukrainians in our area to get to know us, and more importantly, each other. In November Gillingham Town Council awarded us a grant of £1,667, restricted to the benefit of residents of the parish of Gillingham.  

Private donations from individuals, at £1,295, was double the 2021 figure.   This welcome increase was probably due partly to the public awareness generated by our new website, which had 19,589 visits and 18,413 unique visitors between March and December in 2022. 

We applied to HMRC for a refund of Gift Aid for 2021 and 2022, but  have yet to receive the money, which we estimate at £440.

SRG expenditure in 2022

We established that local transport, accommodation, language and IT were the main common difficulties faced by our beneficiaries, both Syrian and Ukrainian. Our expenditure reflected those priorities. 

In September we made the first grant to assist beneficiaries over local transport costs and in obtaining British driving licences.  In October we made the first payment to a beneficiary to help over equipping new accommodation.   And in mid 2022 we made some modest payments for language classes. Expenditure in these 3 areas, aimed at both Syrians and Ukrainians, continued in 2022 and we expect them to increase significantly in 2023. 

In September, we donated £150 to Donate IT, a local charity through which we had supplied a large number of our Ukrainian  beneficiaries with free IT equipment (mainly phones, laptops) in 2022.

Exceptionally, we gave an £800 loan to one beneficiary facing specific urgent issues.  Half of this was repaid within weeks.  We expect the balance to be repaid in 2023. 

Our fund-raising events (e.g. a quiz night) brought in a modest amount of income over our costs,  but also served to raise local awareness of the SRG and of our beneficiaries including the Syrians’ nascent catering businesses.   

Prospects

The SRG’s accumulated funds at the end of May 2023 are healthy at around £5,000.  We have virtually used up all our Restricted funds, but can continue to fund the same type of expenditure from Unrestricted funds. 

Continuing expenditure on transport, language support and equipping of beneficiaries’ accommodation in the 2nd half of 2023 means we should identify more funding by the autumn.  At the current rate of expenditure the SRG needs income of about £10,000 per year.  

We will need to submit our income and expenditure for 2022 to the Charity Commission by end October 2023. 

If the SRG changes its status to a CIO (Charitable Incorporated Organisation – foundation model) in 2023, we will be required to send slightly fuller returns each year to the Charity Commission. 

John Macpherson

SRG Treasurer, 31 May 2023