Labrador Welfare Registered Charity No 1012192
Trustees’ annual report for the period 1 May 2022 to 31 April 2023
Reference and administration details
Charity name Labrador Welfare Registered Charity Number 1012192 Charity’s address 2 Tapton Crescent Road Sheffield S10 5DA Phone Number 0114 2661756
Names of Trustees who manage the charity
Ray Carnall Chairman Officer of charity and Trustee Debra Ellis Treasurer Officer of charity and Trustee Susan Roberts Secretary Officer of charity and Trustee Ruth Leckie Trustee Rehoming Coordinator and Trustee Nicola Aldgate Trustee
Name and address of advisors
Vets 4 Pets Barnsley 161 Wilthorpe Road Barnsley S75 1JQ
Structure, governance and management
Description of charity’s trusts
Type of governing document
Constitution adopted 6 June 1992. Amendments made 1994, 2000, 2004, 2007 and 2009.
How the Charity is constituted Membership, renewable annually. Officers and Committee to be re-elected after 2 years.
Trustee selection methods
By invitation of the officers of the charity. Trustees to be re-elected every 2 years.
Additional governance issues.
Trustees must not have been convicted under the 1911 Protection of Animals Act, The Dangerous Dog Act or Animal Welfare Act 2006.
The charity is supported by Northumberland and Durham Labrador Retriever Club and is also listed as a breed rescue by the Kennel Club.
All trustees give their time voluntarily and receive no remuneration or benefits.
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Objectives and Activities
Summary of the main objectives of the charity
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To provide for the immediate needs of the dogs handed into our care.
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To support those members of the public who wish to adopt a dog or, for whatever reason, need to relinquish ownership of their dog.
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To provide and maintain new homes for displaced dogs and to offer advice and lifelong support to their carers.
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To work with our sister charities and other general rescues to ensure that no Labrador is left in need.
Trustees ensure that our work is carried out within the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit.
We continue to accept dogs for rehoming from all locations within the area we cover and to support those members of the public who find that they have to relinquish their dog.
Summary of the main activities undertaken for the public benefit in relation to these objectives.
When undertaking the rehoming of Labrador Retrievers, we follow the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit and this is embraced by our Policy and Procedure document.
We continue to accept dogs within our area from all backgrounds.
Where financial hardships are being experienced we continue to waiver the relinquishing fee.
Where the owner has no transport, every effort is made to help with the transportation of the dog to the kennels we use.
Our foster dog scheme for older dogs of 9 years and over enables those on low/limited income to enjoy the benefits of dog ownership as no adoption fee is required and Labrador Welfare helps to pay for major vet bills.
The ethos of Labrador Welfare is to offer support and guidance to the adopters of our dogs for the whole of the dog’s life whether this is by phone, email, other means made possible by technology or in person by our representatives,
Labrador Welfare has a non-discriminatory policy. No prospective owner will be refused the right to adopt a dog on the grounds of age, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, age of children, nationality or religion. The person’s ability to provide the dog with a safe, secure and loving home is the only consideration.
Additional details of objectives and activities
The 100 Club continues to help support the Lifetime Foster Dog Scheme. All money raised by the Club goes directly towards the payment of veterinary fees for these dogs.
Our Sponsor Dog Scheme enables supporters to make regular payments to help towards veterinary fees for any dog that may come into our care with a known chronic medical condition that cannot be covered by insurance.
Without funding from the 100 Club and Sponsor Dog scheme we would be unable to offer financial support to those people caring for these dogs.
Without the voluntary help of our supporters, all of which is unpaid, we would be unable to continue with our work.
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Achievements and Performance
As the situation has improved regarding the COVID pandemic, requests for help with rehoming dogs have increased as has the number of dogs coming into the care of the charity. The charity has, sadly, received some requests for help with dogs displaying serious behavioural issues and, where we have not been best placed to help, have directed owners to other organisations in the hope that their dogs can receive the help and care they need.
Despite the challenges posed by the Covid pandemic and associated financial constraints, we have worked hard to maintain our values.
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We care about Labrador Retrievers
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We value and respect our many volunteers and supporters
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We are committed to providing a high-quality service at all times
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We are committed to being open and honest with members of the public that adopt dogs from us
The main reason for dogs being handed in has become financial reasons and the cost of ownership. Some of these have been due to owners having to move into rented accommodation or emigrating in order to find employment. We still continue to see a growing number of dogs being handed over that have training and behavioural issues as well as many who are not neutered and without current vaccinations which must necessarily be funded by the charity prior to rehoming. The charity ensures that all dogs are vaccinated prior to rehoming and neutered prior to adoption unless there are reasons why this may not be appropriate. We have had no strays coming through this year. We continue to work with other Labrador Rescue groups, Dog Wardens and general rescues when they need help with any Labrador Retrievers.
We continue to benefit from the knowledge and expertise of the kennels (Cliffe kennels) we use. Their help and advice have been invaluable to us over the year. We are grateful to them for their continuing support especially during the current unprecedented circumstances this year.
Our dedicated team of Home Visitors continue to support those who adopt dogs from us, helping us to meet our objective of life long support for the dog and owner.
Changes to working practices have been updated to take account the easing of restrictions that came into force due to COVID.
We have only been able to produce one newsletter for our members during the period covered by this report but have continued to educate and advise as well as give news of our activities. We continue to receive contributions to our newsletter from our members and adopters. This helps to ensure that our newsletter remains vibrant and interactive and reflects the views and experience of our supporters.
Our web site continues to prove popular with the general public. With the help of our voluntary web master, our site continues to evolve thus encompassing and engaging with an ever-increasing number of people with a genuine interest and enthusiasm for our work. Thanks to our volunteers we also have a growing presence on social media platforms which are well supported and generate much interest.
Fundraising post-Covid has been exceptionally challenging but our supporters are to be congratulated on the many innovative ways they have devised to raise funds. Where face-to-face fundraising opportunities have been necessarily limited through the constraints of the pandemic, their use of social media and the internet has proved invaluable in raising funds to support our work. We hope to be able to return to more of the face to face events that we supported prior to Covid now that there is a semblance of ‘normality’ in the post-pandemic world.
Our 100 Club continues to help support our foster dogs but we have still had a short fall in funds. Unfortunately, this has meant that we have had to ask carers to make a donation towards vet bills
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where they have felt able to do so. Our Sponsor Dog Scheme has helped those owners who have taken dogs on that require lifelong medication and/or therapy or those who require professional support for behavioural problems; however, we do need more people to join. Wherever possible, owners are being asked to purchase medications through the internet as this can be cheaper than purchasing through vets.
The Kennel Club have developed their own Code of Practice for breed rescues. Compliance with these Codes of Practice will give the general public confidence in the standards we achieve and strive to maintain.
We continue to benefit from the support of the Kennel Club. Many people wanting to take on a Labrador visit the Kennel Club web site for information on breed rescues.
Financial Review
Brief statement on the Charity’s policy on reserves.
Money is held in our reserve account to ensure that, should we raise no funds in one year, we would still be able to function. This account also holds money that has specifically been designated for certain projects and developments. The remainder is to support the payment of vet bills for our foster dogs and sponsor dogs and to allow us to offer financial help to get people over difficult periods.
Further financial review details.
All dogs now leave us neutered, microchipped, treated for fleas and worms and with vaccinations as up to date as possible. All microchips are transferred into the owner’s name on adoption.
We also request a relinquishing donation to cover the first week of kennelling whilst we assess the dog to ensure that it finds the right home. This donation is waivered in cases of financial hardship.
We are now registered with a variety of additional on-line platforms which afford our supporters a choice in how they may wish to donate. Funds raised through GoFundMe and eBay for Charity are channelled through the PayPal Giving Fund which has proved a vital source of donations. We continue to explore new avenues by which donations can be generated in person or on line and actively promote those through which on-line retailers will donate direct to the charity with no cost to the supporter.
Declaration
The Trustees declare that they have approved the Trustees’ Report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s Trustees
Signature
Full Name Susan Roberts Position Secretary Date 24 September 2023
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Labrador Welfare - AGM Summary of Accounts for Financial Year 2022-23
Total Closing Balance of Bank Accounts at previous year end: £ 40,855.36 Total balance for new Financial Year £ 40,855.36
| Add Sources of Income: | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adoptions | £ | 12,610.00 |
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| Donations | £ | 32,045.44 |
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| Fundraising | £ | 15,393.09 |
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| Insurance Commission | £ | 1,520.85 |
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| Membership | £ | 845.00 |
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| 100 Club | £ | 5,705.00 |
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| Sponsor Dogs | £ | 1,422.00 |
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| Total Income | £ | 69,541.38 |
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| Less Expenditure: | ||||
| Annual Payments | £ | 1,516.42 |
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| Kennelling | £ | 28,022.83 |
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| Miscellaneous | £ | 125.00 |
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| 100 Club Wins | £ | 192.50 |
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| Transfers | £ | - |
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| Vet Bills & Internet Medication | £ | 34,497.55 |
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| Total Expenditure | £ | 64,354.30 |
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| Balance plus Income less Expenditure | £ | 46,042.44 |
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| Total Bank Accounts' Balance at Year End | £ | 46,042.44 |
Anne Hull
9 Kingswood Hall
Sheffield
S6 1RF
Tel. 07747189897
Email: hull.anne@yahoo.co.uk
31 October 2023
To whom it may concern
- Re: Labrador Welfare
In respect of the above charity, I confirm that the accounts for the financial year 2022 to 2023 have been checked and are in good order.
Anne Hull AAT