cmzENS ADVICE NORTh OXFORDSHIREAND SOUTH K)RTHAMFTONSHIRE (A company limited by guarantee) AUDITED ACCOUNrs FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022 COMPANY NO: 3842133 CHARrrY NO: 1079719 crnzENS ADVI￿ NORTH OXFORDSHIRE AND SOUTH KIAThAMPTONSHIRE coNrENrs Page Mcssagc fro￿ the Chair Report of the Directors and Tn 4t020 Auditor's Re￿)rt 21to23 Statement of Financial ActivitiGs 24 Balance Shcct 25 C&sh flow statement 26 Notes to the Financial Statements 27to36 ￿T￿EN5 ADVICE NOIITH OXFORDSHIRE ANO SOUTr1 TrKJRTHAMPTON5HIRE MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR FOR THE YEAR EM)ED 31 MARCH 2022 On¢e again in the finan¢ial year 202 Ir22, Citizens Advice North OxfordsELirc and South Northamptonshirc (CANOSN) faced a seri&s of new challenges. and l am plcascd to be able to report on behalf of the Tn￿teeS that the organisation met those challenges with great confidence. As we saw in 2020121, CANOSN'S income for the year 2021122 increased due its position &s a trusted partt]er for local government for the distributton of addÈtional funding to counter the impact of the pandemic. This report sets out some dctail the varicty of wtys in which CANOSN sthv&s its local commvnities, particularly some of the most vulnerable within the￿ On pages 9 and 10 of the rewrt. we attempt to quantify the impact the organisation h&s made during the year achievements of wbich everyone in the organisation can be proud. We remain focusstd on how wc can maintain that positive impact into the fijture in the face of our two main strategic challenges: a higbly competitive fundraising enviromnent. aod the d)aoges itt lo¢al government and particularly loca] goyertunent funding. Oll bcbalf of thc Trustco%, I would like to thank everyone in the orgallisation, both our volunteers and those on the payroll, for their outstanding efforts during another difficult year and for the difference that their work for CANOSN bas made in our community. In particular. I would like to thank Pat Coornber-wood for her leadership, vision and ellergy whicb has been vital to the progress made by the orgatLisation this year. Alan Buchanxn 7* 2oZL- CITIZÉNS ADVICE NORTH OXFORDSHIRE SOUTH NORTHAMFTON5HIRE Report of the Directors and Trustees We have pl&￿￿re in presenting our AJ)nual Report and the audited financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2022. ORJECTIVES, AIMS AND ACTtvrrIES Founded in 1965, we are a local charity which bas been providing quality advice and support in our community for over 50 years. Our objcctivc is to help people find a way forward by providing advice and supFh)¢ and by campaigllktkg on big issues tILat affect people's lives. Combining the expertise and commitsnent of 246 volunteers. 32 staff and 8 trustees, we aim to provide free, independent, confidential. and impartial advice to everyone on their rights and responsibiIities, and deliver services and projects that meet locat needs. Operating mainly ID the areas of North Oxfordshire and South Northamptonshire. we have oiTices in Banbury and Bicester. We also WO￿ in v￿LoUS outreach venues. we restarted an outreach in the TowcesteT Forum and at Towcester Food Bank (for food bank users) in March 2022. We also started a llew outreach at the Kidlington Food Bank OD a Friday morning in April 2022. tn addition to tha¢ we stsrted a hub at the Sunshine CentsE in Banbury in February 2022. We plan to open more outreach venues and are in discussion with various parthe￿ to host Ihese. We are a member of the Citizens Advice charity network which comprises a network of 259 local Cittzens Advice, all of which are independent clwities, the Citizens Advice consumer service and the nationa] charity Citizens Advice. This year advice services were delivered from over 566 local Citizens Advice offices and over 1,743 outreach cornmunity locations in England and Wales by nearly 1.7￿ paid staff and 16.700 volwiteers. We are grate￿1 to the following fvnders for their new or continued support over this yw. Cherwell Distiict Council _ Adwee SeThice, Volunteer ConnecL Volunteer Driver Service. Connect! digital inclusion project and Containing Outbreak Management Fwiding (COMF). IT) addition, Chetwell District Council commissioned us to distribute the Cberwell Winter Support Fund 2nd Household Support Fund which were support Tneasures introduced by the government to help people affected by the impact of thc pondemic. Oxfordshire County Council - Household Support fimd administration costs Bicester Town Council - Advice Se￿l¢e and Volunteer Driver Service. Kidlington Parish Council - Advice service. WestNorthamptonshire Council (fornierly South Nonlwnptonshire DistiictCouncil)- Advicc Service Public Health Oxfordshire - Benefits in Place advice service to Prtmary Care National Cttizens Advice - Gamblc Awarc, Hclp to cl￿ Big Energy Saving Nctwork, Energy Advice Programme and Money and Pension Service (MaPS) Increasing Capacity projects. Department of Health, Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group (OCCG), Chcrwell District Council. and Wcst Oxfordshire District Council _ Comtnunity Connect Social Prescribing Energy Redress - energy vouchers Cherwell Councillor Priority Fund5 _ Voluntrcr Driver Service Department for WO￿ and Pensions - Kickstart gtants ￿ develop Community Fundraiser and Digital Marketillg roles Oxfordshire Community Foundation Supporting Communitias Through Covid-19 Fund Grant - Connectl digital Inc1￿￿10n project Sanctuary Housitig- Connectl digital inclusion project Peter Sowerby Foundation - Bicester healthy Groups South Central Ambulance Service non-&ssential hospital appointhient transport delivered by volunteer drivers We are equally grateful to all those who bave engaged in community fimdrnising or kindly made donations to the Charity, whether large OT sntslL cmzENS AWCE NoKfH OXFORDSHIRE ANO SOUTH NORTHAMPTOMSHIRE We seek to achieve our objectives by engaging in the following activities and projects. Core Advice Service Our principal activity is to providc frcc advice to everyone on their rights and rcsponsibilitics regarding bencfits, work. debt and money, consunier issues. ho￿ltig. family. law and courts, immigration, health, and morc. Our advice is provided through multiple channels" clients can self help using our up to date and quality assured national advice website for England and Wales which contains information and guidance regarding 9 key advice topics; bcllcfit& work. debt and money. ¢onsunier, housin& family, law and Courts, immigtation gnd health. The national Citizens Advice website's advice pages had over 40,625,283 visits - almost l O million more than in the previous year. In Cherwell thcrc were a total of 92,(K)8 visits from 72,519 devices attd in South Northamptonshire 55.515 visits from 43.405 devices. We also hosta local website with local infOrn￿tiOn and links to the other services we offer www.canosn.org.uk as well as a joint website with the 3 other Oxfordshire local Citizens Advice www.caox.org.uk. Our advisers provÈde advice on the telephone, by emaiL web chal and througb face-to-face consultations. We run a Debt and Money Advice Service in Chenvell, funded by Cherwell District Council, which pmvides support to Cherwell residents to maximise income, reduce debt and improve their money n]anagement skills. We run a further advice seryice for residents of South Northamptonshire which is funded by West Northamptonshire Council (formerly South Northamptonshire Council). Our Advisers (one of our volunteer roles) understand that one problem is often the cause or result of another, so they look at a client's situation bolistically rather than as a single issue. This way, potential problems can be identified early or pre*mpted, which helps lo prevent them from escalating into more serious issues. For a client strnggling with unmanagcable dcbL our PTioriti¢s are to preserve their home, fuel supplies and liberty, to make them aware of their rigbts and responsibilities. and to help thevn makc infomied choiccs about how they deal with their debt problem. Of our tot21 income. 43.7 /0 w&s fdis¢d for our Core Advice Service from local Councils. The amount of £412,500 was received from Cherwell DTStrtcI Council lo deliver the Household Support Fund. Th&se funds wcrc directly distributed to local peoplc cxperiencing financial hardship. Citi2ens Advice (Help to Claim) The Department for Work and PensioTJS (DIVP) extended tbe contract with National Citizens Advice to provide extra Universal Credit Support thereby extending our sub-grant frotn National Citizens Advice to help rcsidcnts in our cotrLtnuntty nccding to Ulakc thcir inttiai Universal Credit clainL Of our total incomc, 1.81J/rb was rai5cd for Hclp to ClaillL Benefits in PracticelBenefits in Place For 18 years, the Benefits in Prnctice project w&8 funded by Public Hcalth Oxfordshirc to providc benefits advice in two B&nbury GP surgeries. Horsefair and West Bar. which serve patients, many of whom live in aTe&s of greatest deprivation. tnconsisteDcies in uptake of the service and the catalyst of LoCkd0￿mS enabled us to completely redesign the provision and change it to Benefjts in Place. as GP surgeries were no longer as accessible to the publi¢ and many people were using other services such as food banks for the first time. The four Oxfordshire Cit12ens Advice cbarities used additionat funding from Oxfordshire County Council Public Health to redesigll the provision lo create an easy to access digital front doorand the service is now countywide Ipreviously it had not been available in South Oxfordsbire and Vale of White Horse). Now, not only can Primary Core stafflGPs refer clients but food bank staff can do so also. Of our total incom4 1.60/0 w&s rdised for Benefits in Place. crnZENSADw￿ NORTh OXFORDSHIRE PJ40 soimi NORTHAMPTONSHIRE Legal Cost5 Fund Onc of our volunteers h&s donated money for a fijnd to help clients with their legal costs. The fiLnd is uscd when an urgent need arises that merits financial help. Of our total income. 0.80/0 w&s fdised for our l£gal Costs Fund. Energy Redress This year wc reccived funding from the Energy Saving Tn￿1 whicb has been appointed by Ofgem to distribute payments frotn energy companies who may have breachcd rulcs to registered charities to help people who are most at risk from cold homes and higb energy bills. This funding enables the issuing of energy voucbers to people using pre-payment meters. People on prepayment meters usually pay more for their fuel because prepa)ryncnt laritTs Mrc more cxpellsive than other payment methods. Rasearch from Citizcns Advice in 2020 showed that se1f_discot￿eCtion is part of life for loo many customers who use prepaymenL Citizens Advice researcll bas sbowll that l in 3 had been disconnected ID 2019120. Our research has also shown that these disconnections Can have a serious impact on both the physical and mental healtb of those affected. Of our totat income, 5.10/0 w&s fdised for the Energy Redress projecL Social Prescribing (Community Connect & PCN lank Workers) Social prcscEibiDg is a systctu in which GPS, nurses, alld other pnmary-care professionals refer patients to a range of local, non-medical Se￿iCe$. The objective is to improve beaIth and wellbeing by addressina social pmblems that affect health, using services provided by thc volwitary. community, and social enterprise sector rather than prescription medication. Recognising that health is detern)ined primarily by a range of social, economic, and environmental factors. social prescribing seeks ￿ addTess people's needs in a holistic way. It also aims to support individuals in tsking greater control of their own hcalth. Our Community Connect social prescribing service is funded by NHS England. Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group, Cherwell District Couucil and West Oxfordshire District Council, and is delivcrcd in partnership with Citizens Advice West Oxfordshire. It is staffed by a ￿ll_tiMe Project Manager. supported by two Community Navigators, an Administrator and volunteers. The social prescribing tcaTn connects people whose health is being affected by socia] problems lo community groups and services for prdctical and emotional supwrt. For CXMTnple, we introduce people to befn"ending schemes and encourage them to meet ￿eW people by joillÉllg local activities such as the newly formed Coronavirus Helpers Bi¢ester, Tribus Fitness & Boxing Club. and local art classes. We also help people to gain confLdence and skn.lls by attending training courscs which might then lead to volunteering alld on to paid employment. Those with debt or advice needs are referred to the Advice Service. Generally, we seek to promote a healthy lifestyle by helping clients to bccomc morc physically and socially active, which can improve long term health conditions. The team were challenged by lockdown measurcs and Spent a significant part of the year conducting wclfarc checks and providing emotional support to patients who were sclf-isolaling, alld fLtLding new ways for clients to rctnaill COllllCGted to the outside world to reducc i501ation during the palldemic. Of our total iticome, IIP/o was raised for our Social Prescribing services. Volunteer Conne¢t This is a projec¢ fvnded by Cherwell District Council, in which we aim to develop community connectedncss and because volunteering is beneficial for communities and in turn, society. The service aims to encourage local residents to bccome volullteer5. It increases commLtnity engagemenL supports the dcvelopment of vibrant non-profit orgattisations in the local ar￿ and helps p￿pIe use volunteering &s a pathway into paid woL*. In this project we collaborate with voluntary organisations, employers. and individuals. Of our totsl income, l.lo/o was raised for our Volunteer Connect activiti&8. CmZENSA(WI￿ NORTh OXFORD5HIRE AND SOUTH NORTHAMPTONSHIRE Volunteer Driver Service Cherwcll District Cowi¢il also fi￿dS our much valued Volunteer Driver Service (VDS) in which volunteer drivers transport rcsidents to medical appoititments, non-urgent hospital appointmenty and social engagemeDts. This service brings multiple benefits for the health. wellbein& and social inclusion of those who have little or no acccss to public transport as well Ls volunteer drivers, most of wbom are retired people. Examples of non-urgent hospital appointments include dialysis alld radiotherapy. The VDS is also an income-generdtitLg aetivity. For wme passenger journeys we receive money from the South-CeDtral Ambulancc Service {SCAS) which uses our volunteer drtvers to transport patients who do not rcquire spccialist ambulgllce services. For non-hospitsl journeys, passengers pay a miteage fee directly to the driver to cover the driver's costs, but ai a significant saving for them over the cost of other forms of transpo It is fair to say that mony of our passengers do Doi have the financial means to take t&xis and were it not for the VDS they would have di￿lculty getting to their destination at all. Of our total incom4 23 was raised for or genernted by our Volunteer Driver Service activiti&s. Gamble Aware The Gamble Aware project continued to raise the profile of gdmbling4elatcd harn] (GRH) a5 a public health issue and to raise awareness of SUPFK)rt services and education available for the benefit of clients. The PToject produced valuablc insights into good practicc and GRH identification methods, and supported individuals in lacklitlg the problem. The project follows the Advisory Boasd for Safer Gambling Priority Action 8 (Education to Prevent Gambling-Related Harni) 2nd w&% due to be Tecommissioned when the 2 year contract via national Citizens Advice ended in March 2021 with the expectation of a new service Starting in April 2021. Decisions about the recommissioning of the service had not been completed by Mareh 2021 and thus National Citizens Advice provided fimding until there was clarity about the commissioning intentions by Gamble Aware. Unfortunately the decision wa5 not to recotnmission the service so it ceased in February 2022. Thc legacy continues however with the number of frontline advice sthff and volunteels who have been rrnined to identify gambling relatcd haTm and dircct clicnts lo support is available. Of OUT total income, 0.7/0 was rdised for the Gamble Aware projecL Bieester Health Group Clinics We commcnccd a new scrvicc in partllcr5hip with Dr Ellen Fallows supported by Cherwell District Council Bicester Healthy Towns initiative to develop and provide Bicester Health Group Clinics. Group clinics arc a tried and tcstcd process for consulting with a group of pcoplc with similar conditions. Groups of 6-8 people meet online in a Vid￿ group clinic for 90 minut&s with a facilitator and a GP. During this time they will discuss their health ond treatmeni goals. share eXperIen￿S with the group and benefit from time to discuss their particular questions with a clinician such as a GP. The BetLefits: There's no rush in a group clinic- an experienced local GP will be with the group for over 40 minutes. What tnattcrs to the patients will shape how the scssion runs. Thc GP and facilitstor hclp patients makc a plan- this could itLvolve changes in medicatiotL and Lifcstyle 501utions so that patients are in control and feel confident about their own health. Everyone in the gmup h&s similar experien￿8 and can hear what others are strnggling with and about wbat's worked for them. There's no need to a￿￿ge transw)rt to the GP surgery. Joining virtually from a patient's own home makes for a relaxed setting where it is ￿ler to &sk about the issues most important to them Of our total in¢om4 2.3 /0 was raised for the Bice5ter Health Group clini￿ proje¢L cMZENSAN￿ NORTH OXFORDSHIAE ANDSOUTH NORTHAMPTOKSHIRE Connect! Dlgltal Incluslon The pandemic catapulted the digital agenda forward and for many they feel left out in this very digital worl particularly the elderly. Born of the Age Fricndly Banbury partnership, Connect! is a free, Oxfordshire wide service to belp anyone overcome digital exclusion by accessing digital devices and cor￿eCtio￿ getting online safely alld building confidence so they get the most out of their digital devices. We recrui¢ vet and train Digital Coach VoluDteers who visit clients at home or in a public space, to help them do the things that ttLey w¥llt to do online. This may include setting up an email accounL 118ing online banking or social media. Of our total income. 3.40/0 was rdised for the Connect! Digital Inclusion project Big Energy Saving Nehvork (BESN) Big Ellergy Saving Network is an energy advice project deS1￿¢d to reach out into communities to help the pcople who are most in need. The project is delivered by a network of Energy Champions who will deliver energy advice tsrgeted at vulnerable conswners in their local comMu￿tICs. Of our loial incomc. 0.340/• was raised for the Big Energy Savin8 Network projecL Energy Adviee Programme (EAP) The Energy Advice Progratnme is kndustry Initiative funded thmugh contributions from energy suppliers, Wami Home Discount obligations. Industy tnitiauves are projccts that belp customers who are fiLel FK)OT Of at risk of ￿¢1 povery thmugh a variety of activities. and every consumer who is supported under all iDitiitive must receive energy advice and smart meter advice, so far as is reasonably prdcticable. Of our total income. 0.40/0 was raised for the Energy Advice Programme. Our Advice Delivery Channels We offei our advice through a wide and growing range of channels including online self_help (fact sheets, advice podcasts, budgeting tools, debt management tiyols and self-help guides). email advice, telephonc, facc- io-face discussion, ouireach sessions, droFin community advice hubs (such as librnries. GP surgeries, d*y centres and food banks). and home visits. Much of this delivery w&$ impacted by lockdown with face to face services being suspended and nearly all the SUPEKYrt shifting to digital channels for a large part of thc year. The graph below shows the chatkge in Char￿Cl usc from last year to this year. 2020121 and 2021122 )2W21 • 20 ,Ii etota(e Our Clients We help some of the most vulnerable people in society.. this year 60/0 of our clients had a disability and 33•/0 a long-temi health condition (LTHC). This is a re￿rn to the pre-pandemic levels unlike last year where we saw CITIZENSADVKE Nolml OXFORD5HIRE ANDSOUTH N0RTHAMITfo￿H1RE fewer people with bealth conditions (5ty/0 with a disability and 260/0 with long tenn heaIth conditions) due to temporary support mcaswes that were put in place due to the pandemic which provided respite from the challenges that people with LTHCS or disabilities regularly experience. particularly in relation to accessing benefits or managing dcbt duc to loss of in¢ome. We help all ages: 4 /0 of our clTrents were 24 or under, 710/0 between 25 And 59. And 250/0 were 60 or over. Wc provide our advice services on a free. confidential. and impartial basis aud we believe that our clients appreciate the work that we do. We would like to share a few of the comments that we have reccivcd: 'I honestly canl thank you enougb. My health was decIillt￿g very rapidly due to this.... You have saved rny life., 'Thanks ever so much ivs a massive relief for all of us will sleep a lot better that's for sure. 'You were a rock for my son and I through the pandemic. Such kindness I never expected. Your siipport really made us feel safe. A big thank you although it doesn't seem enough, 'To have the support on lop of what has become the worst ycal ID our live5, it has been a great cornfort to know that people ￿t and help and support is there., 'You've been very friendly and helpful and I'm g￿Le￿I for the support and underst2nding'. OUT People In total, we have 240 Vol￿teerS which is a 26/0 increase from last year. They are made up &$ follows: Governance 7 Trnstees Advice Service 22 Advisers 19 Assessors 5 Supervisors I Case Checker 9 Reccptionists 3 Rescarch & Campaigns 5 Adrnin Assistants 19 Conmnunity Advice Hub volunteers Connect! Digit*l Incluslon Project 18 Digital Coach voluutccrs Community Connect &)clal Prescribiug Servlce 5 voluntecrs Volunteer Drtver Service 121 Volunteer thivers l Journey broker Other Volunteer Roles I "Benefits in Place" volunteer 2 "Move Togethef. buddies 2 "GambleAware" buddies We bave 10 ￿[l-time staff ond 20 part-time staff. ACHIEVElI￿N[s AND PERFORMANCE Our work in 2021122 had value to society far in excess of our funding. It's impossiblc to put a financiaL value on everything we do. but where we can. we have. We've used a Tre&8ury-approved model to do this: aT￿EN5 ADVICE NORTH OXFOR05HIRE VID SOUTh KIRIHAMPTONSHIRE Our value to our Community this year was £1,954,589 savings to govertllnent and public setvices (fiscal benefits) £12.981,795 in public value £5,272,035 in value to the people we help £113,439 savings to our IA)cal Authority by preventing bomelessness & housing evictions and mental health services £12,784 Savings to Criminal Justice System by preventing housing evictions, homelessness & court actions £1,203,974 Savings to DWP by keeping people in work £307,271 to the NHS by reducing use of GP and Mentsl Health Savi￿5 These figures have not been audited. From our robLk5t Advice Scrvice tnanagement Infom￿tion, we've also separdtely considered the financial benefits to the people we help. We are happy to report that during the year we helped clients achieve income gains totalling £1.393,685. This includes debts written-off of £192,333 where it was impossible to find other solutions, atLd repaytnellts rescheduled of £122,680 enablillg people to mallage on their income. We also helped clients to access over £2(KJk of Covid support grants. This year 7,916 unique clients used our vaxious setvices. In the Advice Service wc supported 5,226 clients to address 10,692 issues that were causing them diificulties. To help resolve their problems we carried out 11,910 activities. Whilst thc pandemic resulted in a reduced range of issues, the issues were of such significance or complexity that the number of interventions required to ￿Solve them illcreased putting grea￿ pressure oll staff and advice service volunteers working in very challenging circumstances. often from home. Helping people to understand the social benefits system and making claims is our largest arca of enquiry, accounting for 33.60/0 of our Work this year. The next bi&gest area of advice this year was Housing at 10.9 % followed by Dcbi advice at 9.70/0. This year debt increased to being the third largest area of enquiry froTn fourth largest in 2020r21. Despite Covid control measures, our Volwiteer Driver Service operated througbout the year delivering 7.328 individual passenger journeys. Technology Initiatives This year we have bcdded in the changes to technology that facilitate access to scrviccs. This includes getting the full benefit of the bespoke software for our Volunteer Driver Service and enhanced use of social ￿edia to raisc awarencss about advice i&sues, reC￿&t voluntc¢rs and promote services. We have fully transitioned telephony to an Intemet platforni (VOIP) whicb makes remote working much easier to accommodate. This has been particularly helpfid &8 we trdnsitioncd to hybrid or home working when the venue in Banbury was reduccd to save costs. Effieieney Initiatives The most significant cfficiency initiative this year w&8 the introduction of hybrid and home working for project and support staff, we bave been able to give up a unit of the Banbury venue reducsng fvture venue costs i Banbury by 60010 CtTFLENS ADVKE NORTH OXFORDSHIRE ANO soimi NORTHAMPTONSHIRE VOLUNTEERS Our volunteers are a diverse group of individuals frottL the local eommunity. with an age range from 16 (taken on througb a student placement scheme) all the way up to our cldcst voluntccr who is 83. Volunteers stay with us for an average of 2 years" however. we have many volunteers of long standing with our longcst serving volunteer having been with us for over 16 years. Our voluntecrs are people who want to make a differen¢e in their local are& They share our values and are committed to providin8 the advice people need for the problems they face. Local Citizens Advice are learning environments atLd volunteering in any role gives the person the challce to develop skills. For all role4 a volunteer needs to be open-minderate in resw)nse to the unitary authority. Core Contracts with Local Authorities are up for Recommissioll The corc cotltraet with Chenvell District Council was ¢r¢ommissioned in November 2020. however, the amount of funding was cut by 150/0 and will be recommissioned again in ALLgust 2022. The recent change to the partnetship between CDC and Oxfordshire County Council may have an impact on the service Commissioned as will the pressure on local authority budgets. The grant from the fonner South Northants District Council ]w been continued for one year by the new unitary West Northants Council. However. the continuation of this grJnt in the future is unclear. We have sufficient senior manogement capacity to have regular engagement meetings with the commissioners, respond to quesiion& and to engage in high-quatity contract monitorints and p￿rfOnjjallce delivery. Competition There is increased competition for funding from other charities and the private sector. To mitigate this risk. partnerships with other organisatioJ]s are in place as is a strategic business plan which focuses on parLnership working, and we employ both stakeholder management and competitor atlalysis to understand the position. Income Diversification We continue to work closely with local and county councils by ensuring a g(x)d relationship with councillors and officers to identify and meet local needs. Alongside our core ser¥ices we have developed new services to attract fijnding from other str&￿nS such as health fimding for our social prescribing activities and volunteer driver project for the ambulance service. We are looking to expand this into prisons and police servic£s in the filture. THE SERVICE IMPACT OF MEASURES AGAINST CORONAVtRUS Throughout thc ycar to 31 March 2022, our advice Servi￿ remained incredibly busy overdigitaL and telephone cl￿￿¢15 wittL Staff and volunteers working diligendy from boKne or in the office when it safe (o do so. We have increased advice staff and volunteer nutnbers working in the Banbury and Bi¢cster physical venues to provide a face-to-face scrvicc for clients who cannot bc helped through othcr chaDllcIs. Our ther proje¢ts have been delivered by staff and volunteers working at home or in the community ensuring that government guidellnes for lockdowns were implemented when and where ne¢essary. Ivhilst OUT physical Community Advice Hub in Towcester remained closed the volunteers operated the Digital Hub usitlg online and telephony instead. The Towcester face-to-face Hubs reopened in March 2022 and we opened new face-lo-face hubs in Banbury and Kidlington in quarter 4. Our Volunteer Connect service relies on the willingnw of Ioc21 people to become volunteers for the various volunteer organisations in our area. We have utilised social media to continu¢ to get people into volunteering as more opportunities have started io become available once again. aTIZENS ADVI￿ 140RTh OXFORDSHIRE ANDSOUTH NORTHAMPTOTriSHIRE We have continued lo deliver the Energy Rcdrcss Scheme which exists to distribute payTnents from energy companies who may have breached rules. It is regulated by Ofgem and administcrcd by the Energy Saving Trnst. Under this scheme we tTceive money from the Tn￿t and use it to provide energy advice and, in some cases. fllwlcial support in the fonn of cnctgy vouchers. RESEARCH AJND cA￿IPAIGNs What is it and why we do it Research and Campaigns IR&C) is one of the twin aims of our seryice. It aims to iEnprove the w)IicAes and practices that affect people's lives. As a service we have a huge amount of insigbt and data about the problems our clients and their wider communities face. Through R&C we use this insight to". help us ￿SearCh i&wes filltber develop our practice to be able to hclp our clxents in a changing world influence decision makers to chonge policies and practices campaign to get decision makets to change poli¢ies and practices. The coroDavirus pandemic has meant tbat we have had to look at new, ways of engaging with our clients. To ensure that our clients are being supported fairly, our Research and Campaign team have been monitoring the effects of the pandemic on our service and its ability to help ¢lienLS. Recent Campaigns With the lifting of Covid restrictions we saw more people hoping to return to some Dorniality in their lives, However the removal of the £20 uplift for those on Universal Credit left a big hole in the more vulnerable members of our societies income. The Household Support Fund (HSF) commenced in November 2021, this was a government initiative to offset the uplift Shortf￿1. Initially we were allocated £250.000, however it soon became appareni that applications for the fi]nd would be huge. and we were succcssful in obtaining a further injection of funds which mcant that wc wcrc able to help in excess of 21(M) people with £420,000. The fund was a huge success and we gained a lot of satisfaction by the fact that every complete application was processed. We have been able lo help a lol of people who were strngglin& including a mother whose child had Sever￿ operations for le@foot dcformities. We wcrc able to help a 93 y&2r old lady who had only had a sofa to sleep on for severn] years. More recently w¢ helped a mother with two severely autistic children. Alongside the HSF we have been runnirlg the Energy Redress Schemc (ERF) which allows people to claim help if they are on prepayment meters. This fill)d will end at the end of August 2022 by which time we hope Éo havc given out around 1000 vouchers. Other R&C work l Making clients aware of scam energy saving schemes and dcviccs 2. Using Social Media and Local radio io get our message more ividesprca(L 3. Research on the effects in our region olthe'cost of living crisis. in our region 4. Working alongside and with the Trussell Trust by having advisers at food bank 5. Establishing support for clients who suffer mentsl health i&sues as a result of {3) 6. Participated in the tkational Citizens Advice campaign to engage MPS about the Cost of Living crisis crnzENSADVICE NORTh OXFORD5HIRE AND SOiITH P4ORTHAMPTONSHIRE Effects of the Palldemie The table below shows thc i5suc numbers of our top enquiry are& 2019120. 2020121 and 2021122 ))XV21 • 2021P2 &mployrnEnt Thc table below shows the change in issue numbers against the previous year. A major factor in the swing in numbers is that in 2020121. we included clients wbo were supported with grants from the Energy Redress and Household Support Funds on our database. This risked double-counting clients, so in 2021122 we took the decision to not include clients offered that support. This means a dOM￿tUrn of c500 clients. Additionally. in 2020121. our Social Prescribing clients were included In the year's total client count. This service continued last year but wa5 ill its final year of delivery, with client numbers necessarily dwindling towards the end of March 2021. 2020121 and 2021122 COLLABORATORS We collaborate with a wide range of organisations. groups. and forums including: National Citizens Advice, the umbrella body for the ne¢woA( of lo￿ Citizens Adv2ce. Citizens Advice Oxfordshire {CAOX), a collaboration of Oxfordshire Ii)cal Citizcns Advicc charities. CA NorthaTllpÈonshire, a collalK)ration of the Nortbamptollsbire local Citiy£ns Advice clwities Commsorti4 a consortium of 43 voluntary, community, and social entetprises coming together to deliver scrvices and contracts for thc pcoplc of Nortbamptonsbir¢. aTIZENS ADVICE NORTH OXFORDSHIRE ANO SOUTH KIRThAMITONSHIRE Oxfordshire Volunteer Centres, working in collaboration with Oxfordsbire Cotntnunity and Voluntary Aetion (OCVA) alld Witney Volunteer Link Up Oxfordsbire Stronger Communities Allian¢e (OSCA). whose purposc is to help build and maintain strongcr commutlitics alld a thriving voluntary. community, alld faith sector to improve the quality of life for local people. Brighter Futures in Banbury, a steering group consisting of representatives from Cherwell District CoLLncil and local seTrice providers who work to address the i&8ues of deprivation in Banbury. Chcrwell Local Strategic Partnership Board which brings together local publio private and voluntary organisations to deliver the objectiv&8 detailed in the Cherwell Sustainable Community Strategy: 'Our district, our ￿tUre,. South East Social PrescrAbin8 Regional Network which brings logether health professionals, researchers. acaden]ics. social prcscribing pt*itioners. repr&seDtativcs from the Community and voluntary sectors. commi&sioners and funders, patients. and citkzens. The objective is to share knowledge and best prdctice, to supw)rt social prescribing at both local and national levels. and to infonn good quality research and evalu￿10 Oxfordshire Social Prescribing Leads FO￿ a group that brings together social prescribing delivery organisations to collaborntc and sbare good practice. Adult Social Care Transformation Group, a workmg group of Oxford Cowity Council staff and 3 Voluntary, Communiry and Sociat Enterprise (VCSE) organisations. This group seeks to better undeTStand our conllnunities, defme how we call support them to be more Tcsiliellt and to live independently. and identify priorities for change in related setvicas. Oxfordshir¢ VCSE Coalition a coalition of VCSE organisations whose aim is to help to build a pragmatic but ambitious strdtegic vision for thc VCS locatly and how it can contribute to strengthening our communities. Getting Oxfordshire Online- apartnership of ft)ur VCSE providers workingtogether to address digital exclusion. Buckinghamshire oxfordshi￿ and Berkshire Integrated Care Systems VCSE Alliance STRUCTURE, GOVERNANCE AIND MANACEMENT Governing Document Citizens Advice North Oxfor(Lshire and South Nonhamptonshire is a registered charity and a company limited by guarantcc. incorporatcd on 15 S¢ptember 1999 and registcrcd as a charity on 7 Marcb 2(KX). The company was estsblisbed ijnder a Memorandum of Association which establisbed its objects and powers, and il is govemed by its Articles of Associatio￿ In the cvent of the company being wound UPJ the maximum liability of each member is limited to one w)und. Recruitment and Appointment of Trustees The trustces of the Charity are also directors of the company for the pury)ose of company law. The maxitnum number of t￿￿teeS is 15 atLd the minitnum is 3. Trustees are either efiectcd at thc AGM (to a maximum of l O) or may be co-opted by the board (to a m&ximum of one-third of the total numbeE of tntstees). Induetion of Trustees Newly appointed trustees are provided with a comprehensive induction to the Charity through the provision of an induction pack and appropriate trainin& Organisational Structure The Charity is governed by its Trustee Boar& wljich is responsiblc for setting the strategic direction of the organisation and its policies. The trllSt￿ carry the ultimate responsibility for the conduct of the Charity and for ensuring that it salisfies its legal and contractual obligations. Tnwees meer at a minimuTn quarterly and delegate the day-to-day operation of the oroanisation to the Chief Executive Officer. A register of membets, interests is maintained at the registered office and is available to the public. cmzEN5 ADVICE NoirrH OXFORDSHIRE SOUTH IKIRTHAMPTONSHIRE Management Remuneration Remuneration is reviewed annually by the Human Resources and Equality Sub£ommittee and proposals are put to the board for approval. The HR&E Sub-committee bas established a job evaluatioll policy and related proCedu￿S to place staff posts within a local pay structure. Roles are evaluated againsi 8 factors to establish the appmpriate pay scale. with supervisory and managerial rolcs allocated by ￿Ints to 5 - 8. Pay comparisons are n￿de on an ad hoc basis to monitor that local pay scal&£ remain appropriate when compared with the public seetor and the local eMplO￿￿ent market. The rate of pay for thc Chief Executive Officer is deterniined by the board following pay comparisons from National Citizens Advice. National Cittzens Advice The Charity is amember of Citizens Advice. the operating narne ofthe National Association ofcitizens Advice Bureaux, which provides a framework for standards of advice and ￿eWork management as well as monitoring progress against these stAnd2rds. Operating policies are independently determined by the tn￿¢¢5 to fiLlfil the CILarity's objects and comply with national membership requiremenLs. Investment Policy As required in its Articles of Association paragraph 3.19, to promote its objects but not for any other purpose, the Charity has the power to invcst or deposit funds in any lawfvl manner whilst having regard to the suitability of investments and the need for diversification. Statement of Internal Control The rrustees oversee the infomjation security of procwed personal inforniation of clients. staff. funders. and strategic partners. They hold joint responsibiliry for cltent data that is held in our case-management system, with thc National Citizens Advice Service. ATJ infom)ation-assurance management team ¢xists to ensure that the confidentiality, integrity. and availability of personal and sensitive data is mainlained to a level compliant with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation and Data Protection Act 2018. Trustees, Responsibilities in relation to tbe Financial Statements The t￿￿[eeS (who are also the Direciors for the purpose of c47mpany law) are responsible for preparing the annual report and financial statements in accordance with applicable law and the United ￿"ngdOm'S generdlly accepted accounting practices. Company law requires the trust￿8 to prepare financial statcmcnts that give a truc and fair vicw of the state of affairs of the Charity at the end of the financial y&ir and of its sU￿1￿S or deficit for the financial year. In doing so the trustees are requircd to select suitable accounting p)li¢ies and apply them consistently, to makc sound judgemcnts a￿d estitnates that arc rc&sonablc alld PDJdenL olld to state whethcr applicablc accounting standards and SORPS have been followe