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2021-12-31-accounts

ANNUAL REPORT JAN - DEC 2021

Registered Charity: 1095416

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS
THE CHARITY 3
Registered ofce & contact details 3
Patron 3
Objectives 3
Trustees 3
Associate Trustee 3
Employees 3
CHAIR’S REPORT 4
DEVELOPMENT OF OUR GROUP 5
SOCIAL AND WELLBEING ACTIVITIES 6
In-person social drop-ins 6
Expansion of our online activities programme 6
A new Nutrition and Cookery programme 6
Feedback form our online activities 7
Phone support 7
Magazine 8
ENGAGEMENT AND OUTREACH 9
Social media 9
Website 10
E-news 10
WELFARE AND BENEFITS ADVICE 11
Overview 11
Financial outcomes 11
Feedback from benefts clients 11
Additional activity 12
EVENTS 13
Millions Missing – 12th May 2021 13
Marie’s hair-razing fundraising launched 12th May 2021 13
Consultation on the NICE draft guideline on long COVID- 23rd September 2021 14
AGM - 22nd October 2021 14
Christmas social - 10th December 2021 14
Online talks and Q&A open to all 14
Dr Sanjay Gupta – 13th February 2021 15
Cort Johson – 27th May 2021 15
Des Quinn – 8th September 2021 15
Prof Ron Davis and Janet Dafoe – 11th October 2021 16
MEMBERSHIP 17
Overview of our membership 17
Fees 17

1

VOLUNTEERING 18
Development in volunteers management 18
Estimated volunteer hours 2020 18
GOING FORWARD 19
APPENDICES 20
Appendix I: Engagement report for our online activities 20
Appendix II: Engagement report of our online talks 22
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 23

2

THE CHARITY

Registered with the Charity Commission: 1095416

Registered office & contact details

Patron

Objectives

Trustees

Associate Trustee

Employees

3

CHAIR’S REPORT

2021 was another exciting year of development for the charity with growing membership and increasing participation. We noted that it was 20 years since the charity adopted its first formal constitution and decided that was cause for some celebration, while acknowledging the many years the group had been running prior to that date. In October 2021, NICE published the new guideline for ME/CFS which local members had lobbied hard for and had contributed to its development. This provides a sound basis for future discussion with health care professionals.

This report tells of the wide range of activities run by the group and our ongoing efforts to reach out even further to those isolated by the conditions. We were fortunate to receive further funds from fund-raising efforts and grants in addition to our core National Lottery Community Fund grant enabling us to extend our activities. However, the funds are just one part of the story - we could not have achieved everything described in this report without a huge amount of hard work by members, volunteers, Trustees and staff. The contributions from everyone are too many to mention but our aim is to run an inclusive group where people can offer to do as much as they feel able and can be supported to do so, while developing skills and fulfilment.

Delivering services online and our remote way of working (initiated out of necessity in 2020) has proven to be effective and popular with members in 2021 too. Our benefits advice service has become more efficient and effective. Our online activities are well received and reach new people who are housebound and bedbound. We have managed to engage our existing community, and reach out to new members, as well as creating and strengthening partnerships.

Conscious of the higher engagement and information available to people with ME/CFS compared to people with fibromyalgia, we have tried to engage better with people with fibromyalgia and dedicated guest speaking events to this condition.

We have also wanted to support local groups to develop in other areas and so have been part of the creation of a UK-wide network of local ME support groups, called the ME Local Network, aiming at increasing networking between local groups, sharing support and best practice around the work we do, joining forces on campaigning issues, and raising the voices of local groups to a national level.

One thing that has been unique for our group is our ‘Science to your sofa’ series where we have invited very eminent scientists from US and UK to talk directly to those living with the conditions through online talks. We have been truly humbled by the willingness of those working at the highest level of research to share their expertise and time with us, sometimes across challenging time zones.

We hope you enjoy reading our report and that we meet at some activities or events in 2022. Carolyn Leary, Chair

4

DEVELOPMENT OF OUR GROUP

New funding secured enabled us to provide all our members with varied online wellbeing and social activities, as a way to keep socially, mentally and physically active. We intend to pursue this service delivery after receiving extremely positive feedback from our community. ‘Zo�m ���si��� h��e ���n a ���p���e ga�� �h���er fo� ��, t�e ��l��� li���g �� �he ���k���n�! It’s a ���y ���lu���� wa� ��r pe���� w�o ���l� �av� ���b�e�s ���h ���en���g ���ul�� ��s�i��s �� a ve��� �o j��� i� s��� a�t����i�s ���h a ����al�� �n���ac���� g�o��.’ R. O., member

This year has also seen the birth of our new befriending scheme, to support the most isolated with friendly weekly or fortnightly phone calls. We recruited and inducted 9 volunteer befrienders, one of whom is a member of our Group. ‘The ���r�e���n� �c�e��is ���d���ul, it ��� m��e � ��si���� diff����ce in �� li��. I’m �o���n� �or���d �� e��h ���l. The ���l� ��e� b���� up ���g ���i�d� �� ti�� �� be��� �n �� ow� - I ca� �p��� d��� wi����t �a�k��� t� a���n� [...] it’s �o�� t� �a�� s��e��� w�o’s �e�� t� �efi��t��� ri�� y��.’ - Kathy, befriendee

We have worked to develop our links locally and reach out further to people living with the conditions. Our Group achieved status as a community partner of Healthwatch Sheffield, providing more visibility and opportunities for engagement and collaboration. Thanks to the DPO COVID-19 Emergency Fund, our staff team was reinforced with 6 additional hours, used to outreach to people with long COVID. We strengthened our partnership with the ME Service in Sheffield, and put together a bid (as yet unsuccessful) to create a better pathway for people living with long COVID and ME/CFS - with the CFS/ME Service and the AWRC[1] . We will support the implementation of the new NICE guideline for ME/CFS with our local CFS/ME Service and primary care services and work for a better NHS pathway for patients.

In July 2021, our Group underwent a staff restructuring, appointing our Communications and Office Coordinator to the full time role of Charity Manager, after receiving approval from the National Lottery Community Fund. This enabled our Group to further develop by providing a management infrastructure to support new staff members and volunteers. This relieved our Chair of some of the management duties and hands-on tasks, making this role accessible for people living with the health conditions.

1 Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre, leading research on long COVID in Sheffield Hallam University

5

SOCIAL AND WELLBEING ACTIVITIES

In-person social drop-ins

Our members organised 9 in-person meet-ups around Sheffield, reaching 37 beneficiaries. Regular meet-ups were also organised especially for people with long COVID.

These were organised safely in outdoor venues, and allowed members to get together near their own homes, chat with others who understand these illnesses and gain support and friendship, thereby reducing the isolation these illnesses can cause.

Expansion of our online activities programme

With additional funding from Sheffield City Council for our online activities over winter 2021, we provided a packed programme including seated tai chi, mindfulness, qigong, nutrition, singing and gathered feedback from participants afterwards.

Our lasting partnership with our Qigong instructor Orla O’Connor enabled us to continue the online sessions over Spring and Summer free of charge. In addition, we secured funding from South Yorkshire Community Foundation for our online activities from October 2021 to May 2022.

At the end of 2021, thanks to our member Marie’s fundraiser, we were able to start our programme of arts workshops with writing, drawing, singing and painting classes. We had surveyed our members throughout Summer via online and paper questionnaire, to shape the programme with their input.

Our online wellbeing and social group activities attracted a total of 284 registrations throughout the year. See the full engagement report in Appendix I.

A new Nutrition and Cookery programme

A survey was sent out to our members to ask for themes of interest, to help us create the programme with our trustee, and registered nutritional therapist, Isabel Hemmings. We linked up with further local professionals to create a diverse programme. The programme was of 7 sessions covering topics such as energy production, healthy fats, managing body weight and reducing food waste. All our 410 members received via email and post write-ups of talks and resources, as well as our Members’ Cookbook, made from our members’ contributions, containing easy nutritional recipes and cooking tips.

6

Feedback form our online activities

We have collected feedback from our members after our winter 2021 programme of online activities, highlighting the following impacts:

For all activities the rating was above 4.4/5 and the intention to continue participating was over 90%.

Quotes about our programme of online activities:

‘Lot� �� b��efi�s, p��si���l�, an� ��n���l� �op�� ��c� �et���. Im��ov�� ��la���, co����na����, ab����y �o re��� �n� �le��, an� ��l� ��p�i�� �n� �al���. Won���f�� �o b� ���e t� ���ti����te ���h�u� ��v��� to t�a��l.’ - Tina M., member [about seated tai chi]

‘I lo��� t�� �la���s, t�e� h����d �e ��n��e �y ��m��om�, m� �a�n ���el� ��r� �e��l� ��wa�� l��� f���ow��� a s����on. The� ��v� a��� h���ed �� ��t�e� c��� �it� �h� ���k�o�n ���c� ��s �e�� v��� is����in�, an� he���d �� �a�n��i� s���a� �n���ac����. The ���s��� al�� ��c�e���d �� k�o�l���� in ��� fi�l� (I k�e� f�� le�� b����e), an� ��d� �e ���l �e�t�� �h��ic���y ��� me���l��.’ - Emma, member of SMEFG [about mindfulness]

‘I en����d ��e Z��m �e�s���� wi�� Or�a. Do�n� �h� �e�t�� ��ve���t� ��s �a�m���. Ac�i��t�e� ��k� ��is ��� t�e ��l� ��y I �a� �n���ac� ��t� ��op�� �h� �e��l� ��de��t���.’ - Caroline, member of SMEFG [about qigong]

‘Hel���l �� �ep�� �n���ma���� on ���r��i��. In��ir��� t��� on ��� t� e�� ��re ����t�i�y ���h ���it�� en���y. Go�d ���or����t� �o c��� �bo�� �h� i����s.’ - Sue, member of SMEFG [about nutrition]

‘Li��d �� mo��, im���v�� �y ��e�t���g, re����d �o��l��e�s, an� ��l��� me ����lo� � ��w ��il�.’ - Frank, member of SMEFG [about singing]

Phone support

Our office phone is answered by our Communications Officer/Charity Manager all year round.

An estimate of 215[2] phone queries were responded to via the office line, concerning our services, membership, the conditions in general, specific events or local services, or simply seeking a listening ear from someone who understands.

2 We set up a new office phone log at the end of April to record all the queries coming through the office line. From April to December 2021, 161 calls were answered, which gives an estimate of 240 for a whole year.

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Over the winter lockdown, we phoned those members that we had identified as digitally excluded (not having an email account). 30 members without online access were reached by our staff and volunteers to have a chat and see if there is anything they would need. We also posted a letter at the start of the lockdown in January 2021 via post and email, to reassure our members and ask if we could help any further in these difficult times.

Magazine

The Group’s magazine was distributed quarterly to all members, via post and email. Over its usual 24 pages, it contained a range of informative and entertaining content, part of which was contributed by our members. Content included:

A very special thank you to Becca Gransbury, our editor, and to all who contributed.

8

ENGAGEMENT AND OUTREACH

In 2021, we made reaching out to people with long COVID one of our priorities. This has involved the whole staff team as well as some trustees. We participated in local forums and meetings on local long COVID support services. The survey we created gathered insightful data about the needs of people with long COVID. As a result, we have developed information content on long COVID on our website, developed our long COVID Facebook group, and hosted long COVID in-person meet-ups. We have also encouraged our guest speakers to talk about long COVID. We are still actively looking for new ways to reach out to people with long COVID, as well as how to adapt our services better, and have plans to invite guest speakers who specialise in this topic.

In order to improve the engagement of our existing members, we initiated a digital inclusion project, this involved recruiting a student from Sheffield University to coordinate the project via a fully funded placement over Summer. The project aimed at offering IT equipment on extended loan to our members, and providing them with support to use the internet. Members found it helpful to have someone to talk through their IT issues with.

Social media

9

We were, as always, very active on Facebook and Twitter, to keep our community informed both with what we were doing and with news relevant to them. Our Facebook groups are the main platform for peer support used by our members. People can share experiences, ask questions and give tips to others. We have a volunteer moderator in both our Facebook groups.

All our talks were broadcast live on Zoom and on our Facebook page, and available to watch afterwards through our website and on our YouTube channel.

Our long COVID Facebook group numbered 81 people by the end of the year.

Website

conditions, on benefits and social care, and of our educational talks

E-news

In 2021, we sent 45 newsletters via email (e-news) to our members and a wider audience of subscribers, to inform them of our activities and to share information and news of the sector. At the end of the year, our mailing list comprised 607 recipients.

10

WELFARE AND BENEFITS ADVICE

Overview

In 2021, our benefits and social care advisers supported 64 individuals, dealt with over 98 new referrals and responded to over 400 one-off queries.

Financial outcomes

Feedback from benefits clients

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What difference has this award made to your life?

At the start of the pandemic, one of our clients was working full-time as a key worker, now she says, ‘I am ���t�� �n �e� �n� ��l� a�l� �� �o t���g� ��ke ���s��a� c���, bu� ���n ��is �� ��ha����n� a�d ����s ti��. I am ����le �� ��r�, d�i��, co�� � �e�l, wa�� f��, co���n���te �� ��y��in� ��r ���g, p�u� m��� ot���s’.

We supported her to claim disability benefits, and, when her claim was initially denied, to help her challenge this decision. This led to a weekly income increase of £120 and a back pay of £2,700.

Additional activity

In addition to the core support service, our team also:

12

EVENTS

Millions Missing – 12[th] May 2021

As the provisional NICE Guideline for ME/CFS was being reviewed, we turned this annual campaigning event into a celebration of our community.

We organised an online members-only event and invited everyone to share their creativity as well as positive events that had happened since lockdown.

It was a lovely 2-hour event with 35 people attending on Zoom, and 13 members contributing with photos, readings and testimonies.

The live stream on our private members Facebook group was very successful with 184 interactions generated.

The event also marked the launch of Marie’s hair-razing fundraising!

Marie’s hair-razing fundraising launched 12th May 2021

We helped our artistic member, Marie, who initiated a head-shaving fundraiser to support our Group, to:

£1,235 were raised from 65 generous donors.

We have organised a programme of art activities, both online and in person, starting at the end of 2021 and over to 2022. These include drawing, writing, singing, painting and

photography. Our art exhibition will be organised in 2022. A huge thank you to Marie!

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Consultation on the NICE draft guideline on long COVID- 23rd September

2021

As a recognised stakeholder in the NICE process, our charity was committed to send a response to the consultation on the new updated draft rapid guideline for the definition, diagnosis, support and management of long COVID. We invited our members to feed in to our official submission with their views and comments. For this purpose, we organised a discussion on Zoom and invited people to send feedback via email or phone call. 18 members engaged in this consultation.

AGM - 22nd October 2021

Our AGM was hosted online on Zoom on the 22nd of October. 21 people participated in the Zoom event or watched the YouTube recording.

Christmas social - 10th December 2021

Our Christmas social took place online on Zoom, and was a lovely social event. It included a Christmas quiz, a ghost story, a Christmas craft activity, songs and a natter! 48 people registered and 28 made it on Zoom.

Online talks and Q&A open to all

We have been very fortunate to be able to organise online talks and Q&A sessions with a number of highly prestigious speakers, people who are leaders in their fields. These have attracted national and international audiences. These talks are organised to share knowledge about the health conditions, and are aiming at:

Every talk is organised on Zoom with a chat open for people to ask their questions. They are also live streamed on our Facebook page where people can comment and ask their questions live. Each talk is recorded, then uploaded for a later watch on our website and YouTube channel. A write-up of the talk is created by our team and published in our quarterly magazine, to ensure that those members who are not online also have access to the information.

Our 2021 talks reached over 40,000 people. The full engagement report can be found in Appendix II.

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1. Dr Sanjay Gupta – 13th February 2021

POTS (a remarkable condition)

Dr Sanjay Gupta is a Consultant Cardiologist and heart Specialist at York Teaching Hospital. Dr Gupta’s work includes a focus on the diagnosis, management and treatment of Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) which is something many people from our community live with. This talk had been requested by one of our members.

2. Cort Johson – 27th May 2021

Q&A on Fibromyalgia

Cort Johnson has written over a thousand blogs on ME/CFS and fibromyalgia in the past 15 years, making scientific research accessible to anyone thanks to their comprehensiveness and depth. Cort was elected Prohealth’s Advocate of the Year 2015 and received the Special Services Award from IACFS/ME (International Association for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis) in 2016.

Health Rising is an extremely valuable website providing timely, accurate information to people with chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) and fibromyalgia. It's been rated as one of the best fibromyalgia blogs. Subscribers of this website include people living with the conditions, as well as doctors and researchers.

3. Des Quinn – 8th September 2021

Fundamentals of Fibromyalgia

Des Quinn is the Chair of FMA UK (Fibromyalgia Action UK) which is a national charity supporting people with fibromyalgia. He gave a presentation on the basics of fibromyalgia and how it affects the large community of people who live with it every day. We dipped into some of the science of fibromyalgia and the research that underpins what we know of the condition today. We also spoke about the charity FMA UK, its mission and its activities. This was a great opportunity for anyone who might wish to be introduced to fibromyalgia, or to gain a

greater understanding of the condition.

15

4. Prof Ron Davis and Janet Dafoe – 11th October 2021

Progress and Challenges for a Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) Diagnostic

Ronald W. Davis, Ph.D., is Professor of Biochemistry and of Genetics at Stanford University School of Medicine, Director of the Stanford Genome Technology Center, and Director of the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Research Center at Stanford University. Dr. Davis is a member of the National Academy of Sciences. He is devoted to finding a cure for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). His research focuses on exploring causes for ME/CFS and establishing a diagnostic that can be rapidly disseminated.

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MEMBERSHIP

Overview of our membership

At the end of 2021, our Group was supporting 411 members, which is 32% more people than the year before.

91% of our members were living in South Yorkshire or North Derbyshire.

29% of our members subscribed to a recurring annual membership.

Our demographics were collected on a voluntary basis and the graphs below show the responses of 289 of our members. We wish to undergo additional outreach work in 2022 to reach more men and more people from diverse ethnicities.

Fees

The Group’s membership fees were maintained at £12 per year for 2021. We expect to be able to continue at that level in 2022.

17

VOLUNTEERING

We always welcome new volunteers and encourage members to be involved in our activities as much as they wish and are able to. Our new befriending scheme has attracted 9 more volunteers, some students, some in or out of employment. We recruited 5 additional volunteers to help us create communications resources and phone our members over the winter lockdown.

Development in volunteers management

Our staff team has developed a comprehensive induction pack for volunteers, comprising our updated policies and training materials on GDPR, safeguarding, health and safety, equality and diversity, volunteering, and data breach. Our befrienders also received a thorough guidance for volunteer befrienders including information on how to handle difficult conversations and a case study shared by one of our members illustrating the journey of living with ME, through diagnosis and accessing support.

Estimated volunteer hours 2020

Estimated volunteer hours 2020
Activity Number Hours Volunteers Total hours
Drop-ins 9 2 1 18
Online activities (host or co-host) 92 1 1 92
Xmas social 1 3 5 15
AGM, Talks & guest events 5 1 3 15
Millions Missing 1 2 3 6
Members phone round 5 1 5 25
Trustees meeting 12 3 8 288
Magazine 4 30 3 360
Social media admin 150 1 1 150
Befriending 103
Additional Trustee involvement 1000
Total hours 2072

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GOING FORWARD

The publication of the new NICE guideline for ME/CFS in October 2021 has given a huge boost to our ability to engage with health care professionals with some clarity about diagnosis and what services should and shouldn’t be offered. We will commit to working with health care services to improve access and quality and relevance of services on behalf of all those living with the conditions.

We have identified four key areas of focus for our own organisational development that we wish to address in 2022.

Increasing our team’s capacity further

Our membership has grown significantly this year and we have developed new successful projects. Our Group has many more ideas to improve our existing projects, and to work more closely with local NHS services on key issues such as the implementation of the new NICE guidelines. In 2022, we would like to secure funding for a new member of staff to support communications, engagement and outreach. We would also like to increase our volunteer capacity, which brings us to the next key issue.

Creating additional inclusive volunteering opportunities

Being online means that the previous volunteering opportunities in the office, such as being involved in administration or answering phone queries, which many of our members have done in the past, have become unnecessary. One of our objectives in the next year will be to design more accessible volunteering opportunities for our members, so they can help the Group in various ways, from their own homes.

Outreach to people with long COVID

There is an estimate of 10,000 people[3] with long COVID in Sheffield, many of whom will present similar symptoms as ME/CFS and will benefit from getting involved with our community. This year, we have reached 14. There is a need to reach out further to these people.

Outreach to males, young adults and BAME communities

Considering the demographics of our membership, we would like to try to reach out to more males and people from diverse backgrounds in the next year. We are also aware that the large majority of our membership is over 40 years old, however these health conditions affect people of any age, so we would like to reach out to young adults too.

3 Alun Windle, Chief Nurse and Vaccination Lead NHS Sheffield CCG, 11 Aug 2021

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APPENDICES

Appendix I: Engagement report for our online activities

Activity Number of sessions Engagement
Mindfulness 18 44 registrants
Up to 24 attendees per session
Qigong 24 44 registrants
Up to 22 attendees per session
Seated Tai Chi 17 42 registrants
Up to 16 attendees per session
Nutrition 7 32 members registered
Up to 22 attendees per sessions
Singing 14 18 registrants
Up to 7 attendees per session
French conversation 9 12 registrants
Up to 9 attendees per session
Quiz 5 18 registrants
Up to 7 attendees per session
Online social get together 5 23 registrants
Up to 6 attendees per session
Writing 2 15 members registered
Up to 5 attendees per sessions
Drawing 2 18 members registered
Up to 7 attendees per sessions
Painting 2 18 members registered
Up to 7 attendees per sessions

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The story of our member, AC

How online qigong and mindfulness have helped me cope with the lockdown - AC

I have felt unsettled and anxious at times during the pandemic and I have found the Mindfulness sessions very helpful indeed, I have felt more relaxed and calmer after the sessions and it has also encouraged me to practise Mindfulness on my own at other times when I have started to feel stressed. I find it very beneficial practising Mindfulness with a group. I also enjoyed the social interaction during the Zoom sessions which I find helpful in reducing feelings of loneliness and isolation which have been worse during the pandemic. I have felt better mentally as a result of Mindfulness, I also think that Mindfulness does help with reduction of pain and fatigue by helping the body and mind to relax more deeply.

The Qigong sessions helped distract me and help with the feelings of isolation and loneliness which were further increased by lockdown. Helped with having social interaction with people outside my own household. Qigong is something that I wanted to try before but I wasn't able to find a class close enough to manage to attend. I actually feel that I have a life now due to having some Zoom sessions thanks to the Sheffield ME Group. I wasn't able to manage to do the full class, but I did feel that as I was able to do a bit more each week that it was helping me to feel better physically and I found that over time I was starting to feel more relaxed and calmer. Having the class on Zoom was good for me because getting to a face to face class is very problematic and I probably would have found it too difficult to attend.

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Appendix II: Engagement report for our online talks

Dr
Sanjay
Gupta		 Cort
Johnson		 Des
Quinn		 Prof Ron
Davis
117 68 98 261 Registrants to the Zoom event
92% 88% 94% 76% From the UK
32% 51% 52% 24% From the wider South Yorkshire area
29% 43% 30% 17% Members of SMEFG
74% 88% 86% 81% Living with ME/CFS, Fibromyalgia or
long COVID
26% 21% 9% 17% Caring for someone who has ME/CFS,
Fibromyalgia or long COVID symptoms
11% 10% 26% 18% Working for an organisation who
supports people with ME/CFS,
Fibromyalgia or long COVID symptoms
52 31 47 134 People present on the Zoom call
4,600 2,600 1,100 4,800 Reach on Facebook4
20,994 479 367 5,158 Views on YouTube/website5

4 Number of people reached estimated by the Facebook analytics tool from the number of views and interactions with the video. Data collected on 5[th] Oct 2022.

5 Data collected on 5th Oct 2022.

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SHEFFIELD ME GROUP FINANCIAL STATEMENTS for the year ended 31 December 2021 (registered Charity Number 1095416) Contents Page Legal information 24 Trustee's report 25-26 Independent examiner's report 27 Receipts and payments account 28 Statement of assets and liabilites 29 Notes to the accounts 30 23

SHEFFIELD ME GROUP Legal information Trustees Carolyn Leary Simon Briggs Beatrice Greenf ield Becca Gransbury Isabel Hemmings Duraiya Kapasi Alison Millar Emma Saville Chair Resigned 28 October 2021 Registered Charity Number 1095416 Principal address The Circle 33 Rockingham Lane Sheffield SI 4FW Bank Lloyds TSB Church Street Sheff ield Independent examiner Craig Williamson White Rose Accounting for Charities The Ghyll Threapland Aspatria CA7 2EL 24

SHEFFIELD ME GROUP Trustees. report The trustee5 are pleased io present their repofl and financial statements of the charity for the year ended 3 1 December 2021. The tru51ees have adopted the provision5 of the Statement of Recommended Practice ISORPI "Accounting and Reporting by Charities" issued in March 2005. in preparing the annual report and financial statements of the charity. Organisation Sheffield ME Group is a registered charity and is governed by 3 constitution dated 11 October 2001. 35 amended 8 December 2002, and was entered on ihe register ol Ihafities on IS January 2003. The group is managed by a voluntary commiiiee who are elected at each Annual General Meeting. Since 2002, part-time staff have been employed160 hour5 totall. Objects of the charity The objects of the charity are:_ to relieve those suffering from the illness variously known as Myalgic Encephalomyelitls IMEI, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome ICFSI or Post-viral F3tiLrue Syndrome IPVFSI and. in particular, by the provision of help and assistance Ihrough mutual support and information exchange. io educate the general public through the piomotion and dissemination of knowledge about M EICFSIPVFS. We do this through our newsletters. drop-in5, library, IT support. information services, Listening Ear service, website, nerworking, h05tin8 events and also via media coverage and I￿alsOn with other voluntary 3nd 51ètuiory organisations. We do not give medical advice nor do we offer Individual treatment programmes. Ivhere possible we 51gnposi to relevant bodies and resources. bve are a 5elf-help group with finite resources and we are. therefore, restricted to providing the above services. Public Benefit Statement Sheffield Id E group Is a self-help group which encoufages and help5 SLlPPO¥t those with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis IMEI. Chronic Faiigue Syndrome ICFSI and their families and caiers to use their own resources so ihat rhey are better able to n)3nage the illne55 and the chaiiLtes it has made to their lives. We do this by providing a wide range ol service5 lailoied to iiieei a variety of needs and/or circum51ance5 and by raising awareness ol the condition. The trustees regularly give due consideration to (he Comniission's guidance in deciding iyhat Jctivifies they should underiake, by reviewing ihe need5 of iheir beneficiaries. by ensiJrin£ that the Ser￿'ICe is Ivlly inclusive and rhat no delrirvieni or ha¥rii ar15es Iioni the organisation by carryiiig OLII Its acti¥ Ities. We operate with respect to each individual i)erson aiid ¥ve aii)I to gik'e eiich oiie ai) opportunity to have their say and to becoiyie ii)ove 1r1vol￿e￿ in ilie 8COLJI). whilsi ￿'0[kIng ￿'IthIn oiir adopted policies and guidelines. Our core vèlues are based on our cliarilalile objectives as stated Iii our coiistil(iiioii. 25

SHEFFIELD ME GROUP Trustees, report Icontinuedl Reserves policv Sheffield ME Group aims to hold free reserves 013 monihs running costs. which would equate to £23,030 based on the 2022 budget. The GfOUP currently holds £21,255 in free reserves, just £1,775 short of target. Thi5 will be met in 2022. The reserve fund will be rii)g-lenced to offer protection lo employees, lo meet any OLJtstandinE overhead costs. contracts and leases plus payment of any other out51anding Iiabilitie5. Trustee5' responstbilities for the financial statements The trusrees are responsible for preparin8 financial statements lor each financial period which sho%w the state of affairs of the Charity and ol the surplu5 or deficit of the Charity for that period. In preparing those financial statements the trustee5 are required to:_ select suitable accounting policies and apply them consistently make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent prepare the financial starements on a going concern basis unless il IS inappropriate to prestjme that the chartty will continue in business. The trusiees are responsible for keepinE proper aciounting recoid5 which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Charily and enable the trustees to prepare financial statements. The trustees are responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention of fraud and other irregularities. Signed on behalf of the trustees on................ Print name................... Trusiee 26

SHEFFIELD ME GROUP Independent examinerfs report to the trustees of SHEFFIELD ME GROUP I report on ihe account5 for the year ended 31 December 2021. which are set out on pages 6 to 8. Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the account5. The charity's trustees consider that an audit is noi required lor this year under section 144121 of the Charities Act 2011 Ilhe 2011 Act) and that an independent examination is needed. It Is my responsibility to.. examine the accounis under section 145 of the 2011 Aci.. io follow the procedures laid down in the Eeneral Directions given by rhe Charity Commission under section 14515llbl of the 2011 Act.. and io state whether parricular matter5 have come to my attention. Basis of independent examiner's report My examination was carried out in accordance with the general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison ol the accounts presented with ih05e records. li a150 includes consideration of anv unusual items or disclosures In the accounis. and seeking explanations from you as trusiees concerning any such matters. The procedure5 undertaken do not provide all ihe evidence that ivould be required In an audit and consequeiitly no opinion Is Eiven as 10 whether the accounts present a 'true and fair view. and the report Is limited ro ihose matters set out in ihe statement beloiv. Independent examiner's statement In connecrion with my examination, no maiter has come to my aiiention.. 111 which gives me reasonable cause to belieiie ihar In any maierial respect rhe requiieniei)Is'. q to keep accounting records in accordai)ce wilh seciion 130 of ihe 2011 Act., and q to prepare accounts vihich accord vlith (he accoui)lii)B records and compl¥ Nvitl) the accounting requiremenis ol the 2011 Act have not been met," or 121 to vihich. in m'i opinion. attention should be drawii in order io enable a propèr uiiderstandiiig of the accouni r F rpached. Signed.. Craig Williamson White Rose Accounting for ChBriiies The Ghyll Threap1dnd Aspatria CA7 2EL Oète.. 27

SHEFFIELD ME GROUP Receipts and Payments Accounl for the year ended 31 December 2021 Llnrestricted funds Restricted fund5 Total 2021 Total 2020 N¢t¢s Receipts Grant£ a-.d doryation5 le'"Ibe-s 1.746 42a6 66.832 68.S77 4.246 1.655 71.106 3.867 1.6SS Total receipt5 5Q92 74 973 Payment5 r- a iotioryal Insurènce 55.242 235 55.242 239 115 57 62 41.339 250 67 233 322 8L2 4tr5 2.172 3.6D6 563 227 317 l.L749 1.085 582 1,575 Jo !C5 Yer: & J85 check< 57 62 èvel "uQ-.EE-ra rin8 C￿￿ <très sac al rO--e"Èce. bvofkslOP5 ¢CI I'llies ?reff Ises reni3' èna room hire 2731 5.820 609 714 2,",31 5.82C 609 Sa.. clc Tf If Jr,one. ntL￿rn￿￿t oryd web 924 92J £'.&'. or.￿. 93 733 1 104 J3 205 93 P.J.Ic .1 3V¢ 36 C-&rge: 107 3?7 '.- er 327 Total paymenis 470 68.687 69,157 54".Ji Net re£eipt5llpaymentsl foi Ihe yeai 5,522 1201 5,321 D4.drcÈ dr Oli'011202 1 15.", 33 5b 36S .09b Cash arsd bank ba13ncÈ at 3111212021 56,164 77,419 28

SHEFFIELD ME GROUP Statement of assets and liabilities as at 31 December 2021 2021 2020 Monetary assets Balai)ce at bank and cash 77,419 72,098 77.419 72,098 2021 2020 Liabilities Rent and room hire Independent examination Post3ge ICT Office telephone calls & mobiles Zoom online IT subscription Flowers for retiring trustees 1,162 205 394 127 205 399 127 503 330 123 l.S64 2,020 Signed on behalf of the Trustees on... by Trustee PRINT NAME:....... 29

SHEFFIELD ME GROUP Notes to the accounts for the year ended 31 December 2021 l Receipts and payments account 8ecau5e the level ol Income expenditure 15 below £250.000. the gioup has opted fof 3CCOUnts to be prepared on a receipts and paymenis basi5 father than an acc¥uals basis This is in line with Chariiy Commission suide1￿￿o5 for small groups and 15 seen as more appropr131e lor IhI5 8roup. Unresiricted funds Restricted funds Total 2021 2 Granis aThd donations Grants'.- ig Loiters Fund DPO Covid-19 Enier8ency Fund South Yorkshire CorY)munily Foundation University of Sb.eff.,eld Ilriternslipl ZEST smal! granr5 scherne 3ward Sub total 60.328 2,274 2.480 1.000 750 66.832 60.328 2,274 2,480 1,000 750 66,832 Donations 1.746 1.746 Total grants and don31ions 1.746 66.832 68,577 3 Staff costs Sièff costs durin8 rhe periDd were... Gr055 salaries and employerr pen510n Employer s nÈiiona. InsuraniÈ 55.242 55.242 Number of 5tÈff 3 pari time sLalf 4 Restricted fund5 8313nte at 0110112021 Balance at 3111212021 Receipis Payments Big l o'.teri FJnO Loiierv DPO foyi#.1 9 EmÉrgency Fu-..d '. I Co.rtci! Comffluniiy COVIO-19 RE5ponse 48.397 5.022 60.3)8 2.274 56.361 7,296 52,i6i 2180 2 180 1.3bO SoJtr Yo.. ISTI'e CoTrr.Lriti FoJnc3iion Un 1.000 750 hemc. 750 766 1. )35 liio I,o-.s 42LI 56.365 68.487 68.687 56. 164 30