2021-03-31-accounts - Samphire

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Samphire

Changing atti udes to, and improving the lives of, ex-detainees and migrant communities Annual Report 2020 - 2021

Patron: Rt. Rev Rose Hudson-Wilkin Registered Charity No. 1106667

www.samphireproject.org.uk

samphireproject @samphire_

Chair’s Report 2020-2021

To say it’s been a momentous year is an understatement. No one could have predicted the effect on our lives Covid 19 would have and for our clients, a particularly scary and difficult time navigating this new world without the support of loved ones, secure housing, access to appropriate hygiene, a lack of information and even more uncertainty about the future. Samphire’s staff have risen to the challenge incredibly. It’s a privilege to be involved in a charity whose staff work with such dedication and passion for the people and the cause Samphire supports. A huge thank you to you all, your efforts this year are much appreciated.

We are sad to see Tanya Long, Samphire’s Director over the past three years leave the organisation. Tanya has given such fantastic leadership during that time. She has carefully overseen several projects which have gone on to flourish, championed her team and the clients and given the Board of Trustees expert guidance and support. She has an incredible fundraising record which has given Samphire the financial security it needs to go on into the future in a strong position. We will miss her, but we wish her all the best in her future adventures overseas. Thank you, Tanya, for all you have done for Samphire.

I am delighted that the National Lottery Fund have awarded a three-year grant for the provision of the Post Detention project, the Roma Inclusion Project based in Dover and advice and guidance to be provided to Asylum Seekers currently housed in Napier Barracks in Folkestone. This award is vital for sustaining our work as we continue to support those who have been in Immigration Detention through our helpline, deliver community support and events in Dover and increase capacity of the Legal Project so that more people can receive appropriate and timely advice.

Our Community Engagement work, although on hiatus due to the pandemic, evolved to support those housed in Napier Barracks through regular fitness sessions and through the coordination of donations and we look forward to beginning to see more of the East Kent Dover community face to face through our important schools’ work and our events.

The Trustees this year have been instrumental in providing constant professional guidance and support in terms of the strategic direction we wish to

pursue. Thank you for your time, which you give voluntarily, and for your expertise and commitment to Samphire. In line with Samphire’s strategy for 2020-2023 we have begun to give serious consideration to our Advocacy, Communications, and Policy position. There is much that Samphire can contribute to in the migrant sector and we believe that alongside our practical support it’s important that we share our experience and learning with stakeholders and the public to influence the wider conversation around immigration. This can be seen with our position on the New Immigration Bill, which would take away many people’s right to claim asylum in the UK, our opposition to Napier Barracks being used as appropriate accommodation for Asylum Seekers and of course our opposition to the use of indefinite Immigration Detention in the UK. Our work with the East Kent community contributes towards this as does our recent Post Detention steering group, which is made up of those with experience of detention. We wish to grow this arm of the organisation and we hope to do so over the next year.

I will be stepping down as Chair, but I am delighted to hand the position over to Joy Stephens who has been a Trustee for three years now. Joy brings with her much experience in the Refugee and International Development world. She is a social researcher and will be key in developing our advocacy work going forward.

Thank you to all who have supported Samphire during this particularly challenging year. Here’s to making change and serving those whose voices are often marginalised and misrepresented going forward-there is much to be done.

Sara Hutchinson, Chair

July 2021

The Ex-Detainee Project

In this reporting period, we have registered 95 new ex-detainee clients and dealt with over 2400 individual requests for assistance. There are 494 active users of the project, of which 16% are women. The average age of our service user remains the same as last year: 41.

Our Freephone helpline continued to be open 5 days a week from 10am-1.00pm or anyone who has been in or been affected by immigration detention.

The issues that ex-detainees call us about are largely the same as in previous years. The most common type of support provided by the project was ‘Emergency support funds’ at 31%, this was followed by ‘general advice’ at 26%. 21% said they were helped through the provision of information and 20% said they were helped through being put in contact with other organisations. These results are comparable to the results of the survey in 2020 (Annual Survey, Sept

2020). Destitution amongst ex-detainees remains a huge problem due to the hostile environment and worsened by the temporary suspension of face-to-face support due to the COVID19 outbreak. This year we provided emergency support, phone credit and help with travel on 629 occasions.

The emergency support remains one of the most challenging aspects to fundraise for. We continue to offer £500 a month in small grants to individuals for phone credit, travel expenses or to enable them to buy essentials such as food items and toiletries. This means that on average we financially support 30 people a month. Fundraising by volunteers, supporters and staff keep the fund topped up and this year’s seasonal appeal ‘Make Christmas count’ raised over £1000! This helped 37 individuals with purchasing small gifts for their children.

As in the years before emotional support remains the biggest part of our work. In fact, we have seen a huge increase in requests for emotional support compared with the previous year, up to 44% which could indicate the detrimental effect the Covid-19 Pandemic has had on peoples’ mental health and feeling of isolation. People call us because they feel lonely and isolated, have anxiety issues due to the fear of being re-detained, etc.

From our most recent telephone survey in September 2020, 61% agreed that the project has helped them feel less anxious; 42% agreed that they have been sleeping better since working with the project. 60% of surveyed agreed that the project has helped them feel less lonely and isolated.

Manchester Community Champion programme – a peer support group by exdetainees for ex-detainees – had to be suspended due to the Coronavirus outbreak in late March 2020. However, the group kept in touch via a WhatsApp group. With England going through several stages of lockdowns, the group continued to meet outside in the groups of 6 until late 2020, when it was not feasible anymore due to the weather.

In autumn 2020 the Ex-detainee Project was granted a 6 months’ extension by the Big Lottery, which then followed a successful 3 year grant to cover our post detention work supporting some of the most vulnerable people in our society.

Following the two grants we started to organise a group of our clients – some of them from the Manchester Community Champion group – to come together to establish a service user-led steering group. The Steering Group will work to shine

a light on the impact of immigration detention within the current crisis and its aftermath, as well as inform the current/future work of Samphire in postdetention support. The group has been leading discussion on Covid vaccinations, participating in the Census, campaigns to end detention and reporting.

Due to government regulation The Annual Ex-Detainee Conference, which was to be held in June 2021, was postponed until further notice. We hope to be able to host this again in May 2022.

Due to the Coronavirus outbreak and systematic release of detainees from IRCs across the UK we have been experiencing a significant increase of new referrals and casework over the months of March, April and May 2020.

As more and more organisations in the last year have shifted their focus from detention work to post detention work following the systematic detainees’ release from IRC in the beginning of the first lockdown, we have been consulting a number of charities about post detention work.

A significant change which has immensely improved Post Detention caseworkers’ ability to support clients effectively has been an update of our client management system. The system is now modern, user friendly and much more secure.

The coronavirus outbreak in the last year has once again shown, that in times of global hardships, it is the most vulnerable who suffer the most. Therefore, in the last year there have been a number of campaigns and policy papers circulated within the sector calling for policy change. Moreover, the Government’s New Plan for Immigration invoked a substantial response from the sector and the ExDetainee Project staff has been co-signing a number of papers, participating in a number of surveys providing evidence of the impact on migrant and ex-detainee communities.

Immigraton Legal Project

Samphire’s Immigration Legal advice project has entered its second year in the beginning of this reporting period. In March 2020 it has also received a continued funding from Allen and Overy. This, in combination with a grant from Kent Community Foundation, allowed us to expand the project to two days a week.

The second year of the project was a challenging one. Due to the global pandemic most of the services moved online, with Legal Project being no exception. April to June 2020 all consultations and appointments were strictly online. However, remote working is difficult when assisting vulnerable and hard to reach communities with limited IT and English language skills. This, in combination with EUSS deadline, has led us to start offering face-to face appointments on emergency basis in June 2020. With lockdown restrictions easing over time, Samphire’s immigration legal adviser has combined online and face to face consultations and casework.

In the year of April 2020 – March 2021 Legal Project assisted 77 individuals and dealt with 141 requests for assistance. 52% of requests were related to EU Settlement Scheme. This is a drop of 25% compared to the last year. Other requests covered a variety of topics such as Nationality and Citizenship, Points Based System, Visitors visas, Family visas, etc.

We have noticed a significant increase in requests for advice on British Nationality and Citizenship. This is a clear outcome of Brexit and people wanting to secure their future in the UK.

The key issues, that emerged over the year, were mostly related to the EU Settlement Scheme and the failure to reach the most vulnerable. Despite extensive campaigning that was done in the sector, the Home Office did not extend the EUSS applications deadline and it remained the 30th of June 2021. With pandemic restricting access to support, a lot of people remained without assistance for their EUSS applications. Additional key issue around EUSS is the failure by the Home Office to communicate that EUSS application had to be submitted by ALL EU nationals living in the UK by the end of 2020 - including the children. A lot of children that we have assisted have been born in the UK and parents have misconceptions that their children are British nationals.

Feedback from a client consulted in July-August 2020

“Thank you for your quick response and your help. I need to confess that I've never expected I will meet someone so responsive and accurate in their work. It usually takes ages and lots of efforts to deal with people in public administration. I just want you to know that your help is very much appreciated.”

Moreover, the pandemic has restricted people’s access to embassies in order to renew/issue national ID documents, which then precluded them from using online application system for the EUSS.

The beginning of 2021 brought a lot of changes in Immigration Rules – due to Brexit, the end of free movement and the Home office’s pledge to simplify the Immigration Rules. With the EU nationals being unable to benefit from free movement anymore, there is a lot of confusion in the community about bringing

to the UK existing and new family members from the EU and elsewhere.

A major milestone in Samphire’s Legal project development during the last year was Samphire’s Immigration Advisor raising their competence level to the OISC Level 2 . This means that we can now offer advice in a much wider variety of more complex cases. This will vary from late EUSS application past the June deadline, to settlement application following grants of protection and family visas when applicants fail to meet certain requirements.

Stakeholder liaison and advocacy. As Coronavirus outbreak put migrant communities in even more vulnerable situation, there has been a lot of advocacy work going on in migration sector, with different charities participating in putting public pressure on the Prime Minister and the Home Secretary and calling for policy change. We have co-signed a number of policy papers on topics such as physical proof of residence for EU nationals in the UK under EUSS, EUSS deadline, suspending non-recourse to public funds condition for migrants, etc.

In August 2020 we provided a submission to the Independent Chief Inspector’s for Borders and Immigration call for evidence on the EUSS, which contributed into his third report on the scheme. The contribution highlighted the Scheme’s benefits, but also – shortcomings.

Samphire’s Immigration Adviser remains an active member of various local and national networks , such as South East Strategic Partnership for Migration and Kent Roma Interest Group, regularly providing updates on Samphire’s immigration legal work.

In spring 2021 we also joined EUSS Alliance – a network coordinated by New Europeans. This group consists of immigration advisors and campaigners across the UK and is meant to enable experience sharing, raise common issues, good practices, advice and forming a coordinated response to systematic issues.

The Future. In April 2021 Samphire was awarded a three year grant by the National Lottery. Community Fund. Amongst other activities, this grant also covers Samphire’s immigration legal advice work. The stability of funding allows us to develop the Legal Project further and we would like to see it expanding beyond two days a week. Following Samphire’s OISC Level 2 accreditation, we have established connections with Kent County Council and the British Red Cross office in Kent which resulted in referrals of more complex cases. Subject to capacity, we anticipate this relationship to continue going forward.

Despite the June 30[th] deadline, EUSS will remain our focus as the Scheme remains open for those upgrading their status from pre-settled to settled, existing family members of those with status under EUSS and some late applications.

September 2021 is likely to mark the end of the Home Office funding scheme for some organisations providing assistance with the EUSS. This means that

Samphire is likely to remain the only organisation it the area qualified to provide specialised support. According to the research mapping access to immigration legal advice and legal aid, currently being undertaken by the Refugee Action, Kent has serious shortages of pro bono immigration legal advice. Therefore, Samphire’s Legal Project remains a crucial source of support for many local migrant communities.

Christmas message from a client whose family of four was assisted in 2020.

Napier Barracks Support

In September 2020, the Home Office signed a contract with the Ministry of Defense and started accommodating asylum seekers in the disused military barracks of Penally in Wales and Napier in Folkestone. The use of these sites have been extensively covered in the media, and have been inspected by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons and Chief Inspector for Borders and Immigration.

Penally camp was closed in March 2021, but Napier remains in use despite a recent High Court decision that the use of such sites is unlawful. The main concerns of using the site are asylum seekers’ mental health and access to health provision in general, their welfare, access to legal and other kinds of advice, etc.

Since September 2020 Samphire has been involved in talks with stakeholders, including the Home Office, Clearsprings, other local and national charities, regarding the access of the site and the wellbeing of the people living on-site. Samphire’s Community Engagement Officer was granted access to site in late 2020 to provide yoga sessions. In October 2021 Samphire, together with other local charities, organised a Welcome event outside the barracks, to show the solidarity with the residents.

At Christmas time, we ran a Christmas card project. We wanted every person staying at the site to feel a little less isolated, so our Community Engagement Officer approached local schools and the charity groups we work with to ask them to get involved. So many local school children made cards and we had enough for everyone!

Following the Covid-19 outbreak in Napier in early 2021, the access to site has been suspended until April 2021. In the meantime, Samphire has provided a witness statement about the site to the DPG Solicitors, who participated in the strategic case in the High Court regarding the lawfulness of the use of the site.

In April 2021 Samphire, together with other local and national organisations, established weekly Drop Ins for Napier Barracks residents. The Drop In is a safe and friendly space away from the barracks, where people can come in and receive advice, help accessing lawyers, receive aid and participate in activities such as arts, sports and English.

Samphire’s Napier Barracks support work also involves providing support on-site, such as Yoga and Fitness classes, and developing an on-site library. Within a few weeks we had 4000 books and shelves donated by a charity in Exeter called BookCycle, who build and provide resources for libraries to displaced communities around the world. The library is very well used and will be throughout the use of the site. These activities are supervised and delivered by Samphire’s Community Engagement Officer Kay.

– Inclusion Development Roma Project Dover

Samphire has been involved with the Roma community of Dover for many years, principally through the Folkestone Road Community Hub. This year in February 2021, Iveta Janova joined the Samphire team as our Inclusion Development Officer. Iveta continues the great work that was previously achieved with Roma in the Lead, and is working now with Dover’s Roma community who are mainly from Slovakia and Czech Republic . Key to this work is the development of partnerships with different services to make sure that Roma community knows how and where they can access help and support. To this end, Iveta runs a weekly Drop In at Dover Big Local and another at the new Community Café – Hoody’s.

Much of the work to date has focused on support for applying for EU Settled Status. Iveta has worked closed with Indre, our Legal Adviser, to ensure that as many Roma apply for the settled status as possible but with the deadline of the 30th June 2021 there still remain families who have yet to apply, especially for their children. Some include complex cases, but with Indre’s legal advice, we aim to continue to support these as long as we can.

Family support is fundamental as people try to navigate the UK systems. The Monday Drop In at Dover Big Local supports families with applications for universal credit ,employment, benefits , food bank, education, and engagement with different services.

English lessons started in June, in partnership with Dover District Council, with 6 students currently but we anticipate more joining in September. Our English teacher is from Slovakia and has built a great rapport with our Roma students.

Hoody’s Community Café opened in April 2021. This new Community café has been launched to support Community groups in Dover and has been set up and funded by Kent and fire Rescue service, in partnership with the Police and Crime Commissioner, Samphire and another agency. The service operates within Hoody’s Community Café at the Charlton Centre and the new owner is from the Roma Community. The Community café has an office space which is used by Samphire, Kent and Fire Rescue Service and other agencies who might want to give clients more privacy. Hoody’s Community café gives us a great opportunity to engage not just with the Roma Community but all residents of Dover.

Samphire took part in a Covid 19 Vaccine research project run by Compas Charity and led by Peter Torak. Peter Torak is from the Roma community and has his own organisation in Peterborough. The research was funded by Kent Community NHS Trust to address the lack of information on the vaccine for Roma, and to see what barriers might exist with uptake. We ran an event in Dover where we hosted 25 people from the Roma Community who were asked a series of questions, in their language, about their knowledge of the vaccine and reasons why they might not trust the vaccine. Training in self testing for the virus was also provided.

Census 2021: For the first time, the 2021 census included Roma ethnic minorities in the list which made the Roma community proud. Iveta encouraged and supported 35 people from the Roma community to complete the Census and shared information on our social media, in Slovak and Roma language provided by Roma Support Group, on the purpose of the census.

Iveta took part in Canterbury Christ Church University Study Day for Social Service students. Iveta delivered training on how to work and build trust with the Roma community .The event took place in March 2021 and was great experience both for Iveta and the students.

Samphire has been approached by various agencies wishing to access the Roma community for research or provision of services. Recently, the organization EK360 provided research showing that Roma women are not accessing Sexual Health

Centre services. Iveta was contacted by EK360 to see if she can help them with further research looing at how they can support Roma women aged over 45 to access the service. We involved 11 Roma women to help us find out what are the barriers that may be stopping them accessing the sexual health Centre. Working in the partnership

As we come out of the pandemic, Iveta will further develop her partnership workings with DDC, NHS Health Advisor, DBL, KCC, Dover Children’s Centre, Porchlight, Roma Support Group, Compas Charity, KRRS, Priory Field Primary School, Kent Police, Hoody’s Café and others. Through these partnerships will emerge: Kent and Fire rescue service home safety visits and safety advice; weekly Healthy Eating & Lifestyles; Priory Field School Coffee weekly coffee mornings; Yoga & fitness; a 6 week Art Project which will be displayed at Margate Turner Gallery; Halloween and Christmas parties! 2021-2022 is set to be a busy year!

Community Engagement Report

The past year has brought with it some unique challenges. Trying to stay engaged with the community, while navigating government restrictions and lockdowns seemed almost impossible at times. But, as we begin to return to business as usual and imagine what our brave new post-covid world will look like, it is interesting to look back and see what we learned from the experience and what we managed to achieve through such unprecedented times.

Dover Together

During the lockdowns the Dover Together steering group was unable to meet in person and due to the general uncertainty at the time people were understandable a little preoccupied so the group took a break from meetings. However, our core group members stayed in touch to check in with each other from time to time.

As restrictions lifted towards the end of 2020, some of our dedicated members worked incredibly hard to help with our collections for Napier Barracks, regularly taking car loads of donations to the site.

This actually feels like a very positive time for the Dover Together group. With the increased media attention Dover has been receiving, more and more people are becoming interested in what we do. We can now relaunch fresh, welcome back our existing members and hopefully inspire lots of new people to come and get involved.

Digital communication

For most of the last year, community engagement moved almost completely online which was a huge challenge as digital communication can be quite impersonal. However, our Community Engagement Coordinator—Kay Marsh, started putting out a weekly newsletter with info on local support available, news, activities for online learning etc. This ran throughout lockdown and, as an unexpected positive, more than doubled our mailing list numbers.

Activities

During the school closures of early 2020, we became aware that many of our local families particularly those within the Roma community were struggling with a lack of internet or devices to home school their children. With a small grant from Dover District Council, we began putting together packs of printed worksheets, covering a variety of school subjects for children of primary school age. We distributed 50 of these packs every two weeks to local families. The packs were so well received and made a real difference to struggling families.

On Tuesday 27[th] October 2020, a Kurdish Iranian Family of four were on a boat which sank trying to cross the channel.

Samphire’s Community Engagement Coordinator decided to hold a vigil at the seafront as we thought it was important to mark this tragedy and give local people the opportunity to pay their respects. The weather on the evening of the event was cold and windy and raining, but as the sun went down a steady stream of people began to make their way down the promenade, tightly clutching candles and braving the storm. Nearly 100 people arrived—the show of local solidarity was very moving.

In the past year, with small boat crossings across the channel increasing and the unexpected opening of Napier Barracks, Dover and the South East have been thrown into the media spotlight. Following excellent training through IMIX, we began giving media interviews to speak about the work of Samphire and the situation here in Kent. We have now been featured on BBC, ITV and Channel 4, BBC Radio Kent and National, Samphire’s Community Engagement Officer has been quoted in the Guardian and the Independent and has done several smaller interviews with local outlets. This is something we wish to continue and get better with going forward as we believe it is important for us to spread our positive message and work.

Going Forward

After planning what would have been the most amazing Dover Together Festival to date for 2020, it had to be cancelled. But, against the odds and with funding from Dover District Council, we did manage to put on a slightly smaller than usual event this summer! We had fantastic music and workshops and the days was enjoyed by all who came. Although it does not fall within this reporting period, we think it is important to end on a positive and see this as a sign we are beginning to emerge from our Covid hibernation. Despite its challenges, this year has brought with it some incredibly inspiring moments and I look forward to seeing where this next year will take us.

Our favourite Napier ‘positive’ to date has got to be our shoe collection! Samphire’s Community Engagement officer Kay completed a charity fire walk across hot coals in the name of Samphire to raise money to give everyone at the site a new pair of trainers. She raised an incredible £1000! Working together with Migrant help and other voluntary groups, we managed to purchase and distribute shoes to everyone.

Finance Report

Accounts for the year 01[st] April 2020 to 31[st] March 2021

	2021	2020
	£	£
Income
Donatons and Legacies	3211	3129
Grants	202234	184793
	205445	187922
Other Trading Actvites
Fund Raising		83
Investment Income
Bank Interest Received	56	2
Expenditure on Charitable Actvites
Grant funding of actvites	23505	29818
Staf Costs	122771	124909
Allocated Support Costs	16950	19319
Governance Costs	1840	1440
	165066	175486
Staf Costs During the Year
Wages and Salaries	110879	111454
HMRC	9084	8423
Pension Costs	1802	3070
Other Staf Costs	1006	1962
	122771	124909

Funds Held at Year End 31.03.2021	2021	2020
	£	£
Reserve - Contngency Fund	21061	9031
Restricted Funds	100986	74380
	122047	83411

Director’s Report

It has been a privilege to lead Samphire over the last few years and it is with mixed feelings that I am now leaving Samphire. I would like to thank all staff, trustees and volunteers for their hard work and commitment to Samphire, and for making a difference to the lives of people we work with. It is an exciting time to hand over the responsibility of leadership to a new Director. At this juncture last year, Samphire was facing possible closure due to limited access to new funds. I am delighted to share with you our news that the National Lottery Community Fund has awarded us a new three-year grant. Along with several other funding awards, Samphire is now financially secure for a few more years. This stability will enable us to develop our existing projects as well as exciting new ventures such as our new Inclusion Project working with Roma residents in Dover.

During this past year, the issue of migration, as ever, remains at the top of the current government’s agenda and sadly it is clearly evident that the hostile environment for migrants is only worsening. The New Immigration Bill is evidence of this with the introduction of new measures including the threat of inadmissible claims for asylum seekers not entering the country via approved Resettlement Schemes. As channel crossings increase, further ideas are being floated of off-sure asylum processing centres as far away as Rwanda! Samphire continues to advocate against such inhumane developments which contravene international protocols. During the past year, I am proud that staff have represented the views of Samphire through several interviews with local and national media. Indeed, in accordance with Samphire’s Strategic Plan 2020-2023, we have been working with trustees to develop an Advocacy Policy which will be implemented under the guidance of the new Director.

The Home Office decision to open the old and dilapidated Napier Barracks, in Folkestone in September 2020, to house newly arrived asylum seekers has also been met with much controversy. Samphire has joined other NGOs in the call for the centre to be closed due to the inappropriateness of housing asylum seekers – many of whom have fled militarily repression – in former army barracks. The outbreak of Covid was inevitable with the poor cramped conditions forcing many residents to sleep in close proximity with just curtains acting as ‘room’ dividers. The far right are a constant presence at the gates making life for residents very hard who are fearful to leave the site. Nevertheless, Samphire along with local NGOs including Care4Calais have established a regular off-site Drop In offering immigration advice, food, and activities and emotional support to help support the residents.

The past year has indeed been very different to previous years. Whilst we have successfully operated our Ex-Detainee Project remotely, the pandemic forced us to suspend much of our community work. We continued to reach out to the community via newsletters and other support, however we eventually realised that we needed to shut down this work for a period. Dover Together is only just emerging once again and yet in full force with a Dover Together Festival in July 2021 – following government Covid guidelines – but hugely successful in bringing our community together after such a challenging period. We were honoured that once again the Mayor of Dover opened this event. Similarly our very successful Kent Schools of Sanctuary Project has been closed since the start of the first lockdown. We anticipate a re-opening of this project in October 2021. Conversely, whilst suspended at the start of the first lockdown, our Legal Project has exponentially grown in recent months as the demand for support to apply for EU Settlement Status has reached a crescendo with both Indre and Iveta working hard to reach as many in the Dover community as possible.

2020 was a challenging year for many in the charity sector. Our first challenge was to set staff up to work remotely from their home. With the award of two small Covid 19 Emergency support grants from Kent Community Energy and Kent Community Foundation we were able to establish remote server connection and purchase laptops for all staff. Many large funders closed their doors to new applicants and with the imminent end to our three-year Lottery grant we were faced with potential closure. Thankfully we were able to access a six-month extension to the Lottery grant which enabled us to continue to support clients via our Ex-Detainee Project, and in March 2021 we were awarded a new three year grant from the National Lottery Community Fund – the support is widened to include our Legal Project and our new Inclusion Project working with the Roma community here in Dover. It is very exciting to have the capacity to expand and develop these newer projects. I want to also thank our other funders who have continued to support the work we do. People’s Health Trust and Henry Smith and Hilden Charitable Fund continue to support our community work and have been very understanding allowing us to put on hold the grant at various times and allowing for changes in our delivery. We are grateful to Allen Lane Foundation, Colyer Fergusson Charitable Trust and Allen& Overy Foundation for awarding continuation grants contributing to the salaries of the Director, Finance Manager and Legal Advisor. These have enabled us to maintain staff capacity during this busy and challenging year. We also thank the support we receive from our local authorities – both Dover Town and

Dover District Councils – your support is invaluable and a great recognition for the work we do locally. I wish to thank all our funders (listed on back cover) and individual donors.

This year we welcomed the wonderful patronage of Bishop Rose, Bishop of Dover. This is a great honour and as well as joining us in our September 2020 AGM via zoom, and speaking out for refugees at various local events, we look forward to her presence at our 2021 AGM. I wish to thank trustees who stood down at the last AGM – former Chair Soeren Keil, former Co-Chair Christine Oliver, David Bates and Viktor Dubrava, and welcome new trustees Dominic Howden, Kumba Kubrally, Noel Urbain, Martin Burrell and Sara Jones. I am hugely grateful for the support of all trustees, and especially to the Chair Sara Hutchinson and also Joy Stephens who have listened, advised and helped me to provide effective leadership. Thank you!

This year brought the retirement of our most long-standing member of staff – Brenda Hounsell – who managed our finances with great caution and expertise for many years! We all wish her well in her retirement. We welcome Julie Lawrence who has taken up the challenge of Finance Manager and has settled in very well indeed! We also welcome Iveta Janova who joins us to lead our Inclusion Project having successfully worked with Dover’s Roma community in the former Roma in the Lead project. Already Iveta has thrown herself into her new role and is a wonderful new member of the Samphire team. We also welcome Judy Farmer in her new role of Post Detention Coordinator as she takes up the new position in July 2021. I want to thank both Indre and Kay for their continued commitment to Samphire and the huge contribution they have made to supporting the residents at Napier Barracks – without you this work may not have materialised. And finally, we look forward to Frederika joining us again in the autumn when we hope to resume our Kent Schools of Sanctuary Project. To my staff – the Samphire team – I wish you all the best going forward and I will miss you! And I wish the best to the incoming Director whom I am certain will lead Samphire forwards, together with our wonderful trustees, over the next period.

Tanya Long, July 2021

Staff:

Indre Lechtimiakyte Legal and Migrant Support Manager

Ana Sanchez Salgado /Shaun Owen – Post Detention Caseworker

Kay Marsh – Community & Migrant Support Coordinator

Iveta Janova – Inclusion Development Officer

Frederika Treeby – Schools Coordinator

Julie Lawrence / Brenda Hounsell – Finance & Office Manager

Tanya Long - Director

Trustees:

Sara Hutchinson - Co-Chair

Christine Oliver - Co-Chair (Stood down Sept 2020)

Joy Stephens - Secretary

Sara Jones - Treasurer

Liza Seed - Trustee

Duane Poppe - Trustee Noel Urbain - Trustee

Kumba Kubrally - Trustee

Dominic Howden - Trustee

Beccy Sawbridge - Trustee

Martin Burrell - Trustee

Soeren Kiel - Trustee (Stood down Sept 2020)

David Bates —Trustee (Stood down Sept 2020)

Victor Dubrava - Trustee (Stood down Sept 2020)

Thanks to our funders: National Lottery Community Fund Allen & Overy Foundation Allen Lane Foundation The Henry Smith Charity People’s Health Trust Colyer Fergusson Charitable Trust Hilden Charitable Foundation Gibbons Family Trust

Garfield Weston Foundation

Dover District Council

Dover Town Council

Lawson Endowment Fund

Kent Community Foundation

The Nicky & Eileen Barber Charitable Trust Tesco Groundworks

LUSH

London Churches Refugee Fund Brook Trust for Kent

Woodward Charitable Trust Kent Community Energy

and to all our individual funders

Contact Samphire Tel: 01304 242755 Address: 56 Castle Street, Dover, Kent. CT16 1PJ Email: info@samphireproject.org.uk 24

Charity registration number. 1106667 Samphire AtmuaI Report and Financial Ststements for the Year Ended 31 Mairh 2021 Chartered Accountants

Samphire Contents R¢feren and Administrative Details Ttwsiees, Report Stal¢ment of Tnlees, Responsibilities Independeni Examinels Report Statement of Financial Activities Balance Sheet Notes to the Financial Statements 7t013

Samphire Reference and Administrative Details Chairma Joy Popp¢ Trustees Sarah Jones, Treasurer Liz& Seed Duane Poppe RebCa Sawbridge Noel Urbain Kumba Kubrally Dominic Howden Martin Butrell Sara Hutchinson Senior Martagement Tea Julie Lawrenc¢. FinCe and Offite manager Itmlre Lechtimiokyte, Ex-Deiainee project coordinator Judy Fanner Ex.deiainee ¢oordinator FTederika Treeby. Community Engagenient Coordinator Kayleigh Marsh Community Engagement coordinator Iveta Jallova Roma Community COOTdinalor PriDcipal Office 56 Castle Str¢et Dover Kent CT16 IPJ Charity Registrfitlon NumbeT 1106667 Independei)t Examiner Slones Accountancy Limited Chartered Aceountants 5 North Court Amstrollg Road Maidstone Kent ME15 6JZ Page I

Samphire Trustees, Report The trustees present the annual report together with the financial statements of the chariiy for the year ended 31 March 2021. Objeetlves aiid aetiwities Objeels and aims The promoiion of social inclusion among migrant Communities (including those who have experienced inuniwtion detention) Public benefit l. Providing a local network group that encourages and enables members of migrant communities to participate ore effectively wilh ihe wider Community; 2. IncreasinbF and coordinating opportunities for members of migiant communities to enLFage with seryi¢¢ providers, at)d to enable those providers to adapt services to address the needs of that community.. 3. Raising public awareness of the issues affecting migrants (including Ihose who have experienced immigration detention). The trustees confirni that they have complied with the requirements of section 17 of the Charities Act 2011 to have due regard to the public ben¢fLt guidance published by the Charity Cotnjnission for England and Wales. Achievements and performance Review of charitable a¢tivities undertaken Strueture? governanee and management Nature ofxoverning dociiiNen¢ The Charity is governed by constitutioll adopted 13 May 2004 and as most ¥e¢ently aended on 29 September 2016. The annual repori was approved by the trustees of the charity on 30th September 2021 and signed on ils behalf by.. Jo oppe Chainnan and T tee Sara Hutchinson Trustee Page 2

Samphire Statement of Trustees, Responsibilities The trustees are Tesponsible for preparing Irustet8' report and the financial stalemeTrt5 in accordance with th¢ United Kingdo Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Ac¢epted Accounting l)racticc) aE applicable law and regulation%. The law applicable to charities requires th¢ Iru5tee5 to prepare finawlal statements for each financial year which give a tru¢ fair view of the stale of &ffaits of the charity and of the ino(TrmEng resources ajid applEcatlOLi of resources of the charaly for that ptyiod. In preparing Ihese financial statements, the tNstees are required to- select suitable accounting policies and then apply them cowistellily; observe the methods and principles in the Charities SORP. ntske judgement& and estimates that are reasonable and prudent. Sta whether applicable accounting SndardS Ive been followed, subjwt to any material depar¢S disclosed and explained in th¢ financial statements; and prepare the financial gtatement% on the goit)8 concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that tl Charity will continue in business. The lrnstees are responsible for keeping proper accounting recgrds that disGlose wtth reasonable accuracy at any time the financial posjtion of the ¢harity and enable them to ensure that the financial siatements comply wfftth the Cfrwities Act 201 I, the applicable Charities (Accounts and Reports) Regulations, and the provisions of the constitution. The truste¢s aTe also rcRponsible for safeguardng tlie 855els of the charity and hence for taking reasonable Steps for the preveniion and d¢teciAon of fraud and other itTegularities. Approved by the trustees of the Charity on..knJ.C4 l.ai and signed on its behalf by.. Popp Chairnlan Sara Hutchinson Trustee Page 3

Samphire Independent Examiller•s Report to th¢ truste of Srdmphire l T¢POrt to the charity trustee5 on my examination of the A¢cout)ts of the ctwity for the year ended 31 March 2021 which ore set out OD pages 5 to 13. Re5pectiYe respDngibilities of trustees and exarniner As the charity'5 trustets of Samphire you ar¢ responsible for the preparation of the accounts in aecordance with the requir¢ill¢nts of th¢ Charities Act 2011 ('the A¢t')- I report in respect of my examination of ihe Samphire'8 a¢couAts ca]Yied out uder section 145 of the 2011 Act and in cbrrying out my examination I have followed all the applicable Directions giv¢n by the Charity Commission under wtion 145(5)(b) of th¢ Aet. IndepLbndent examiner's statement I have complet¢d my exami[lOn. I confm that no material matters have Come lo my attention ID ¢onnection with lh¢ examin8tion giving me c&use to believe that sn any material respect.. l. accounting records WeT¢ not kept in respect of Samphire as required by se¢lion 130 of the A¢t- or 2. the accounts do not accord with those T¢¢ords' or 3. the accow)Is do not comply with the accounting r¢quirements coneerning the form and conteni of accounts set out in the Chariti¢8 (Accounts &nd Keports) Regulations 2008 other than any requir¢nieni Ihat the Èccounts give a 'lrue and fair view, whith is Jjot a matt¢r consider¢d as p&rt of an independent ¢xamiYJation. I have no concerns and have COTne across no oiher matters in Lonnection with the examination to which att¢ntion should b¢ drawn in this report ITh order to enable a pThbper UnderS&ding of the accounts to be reached. ter Chartcred Accountants Instilute of Chatkned A¢¢ountants in England & Wales 5 North Court Annstrong Road M2idstone Kent ME15 6JZ Dat¢..IIL i.o.l.%i .. Pag¢ 4

Samphire Statement of Financial Aetivities for the Yvar Ellded 31 March 2021 Unrestricted fullds Total 2021 Tot1 2020 Restrleted funds Nots In¢ome ndowm¢nts from: Donations and legacies Other trading a¢liviies Investment income Other income 1,822 200,412 202,234 188,01 I 269 55 56 Total incom¢ 200 413 205 501 191586 Expenditure on: Chgrilable a¢tivities Other expenditure (12.033) {153,033) (165,066) (175,487) Total expenditure Net {expenditure)lincome Gross tran8fcrs between funds 154 832 166865 175 487) (6,945) 45,58l 38,636 16,099 N¢t movement in funds 12,030 26.606 38,636 16,099 Reconoillalion of funds Total funds brought forward Total funds carried forward 14 100986 122 047 All of the charity's activities deriv¢ from continuing operdtions duringth¢ above two periods. The fimd$ breakdown for 2020 is shown in note 14. The notes on pag¢s 7 to 13 forni an integrdl part of these finan¢ial statements. Page 5

Samphire (Registration number: 1106667) Balance Sheet as at 31 March 2021 2021 2020 Note Flxed assets Tangible assets 3.598 1,812 Current assets Cash at bank and in hand 12 121,937 82,849 Creditors: Amounts fHUing due within oli¢ year 13 (3,488 1,250 Net current assets 118,449 81,599 Net &ets 122,047 83,411 Funds of the charlty- Restrlcted incotne funds Reslri¢t¢d fund5 100,986 74,380 UThrt5tricted Ineome funds U[¢striCted funds 21.061 9,031 Total funds 14 122.047 83,411 Thefi cial stateJnell15 on pages 5 10 13 were approved by the trugtee& and authorised for issue on alld signed on their behalf by.. Poppe hairnian a tustee Sara Hutchinson TNste¢ The note5 Qn pages 7 to 5 3 fonn an integral part of these fiiian¢ial statements. Page 6

Samphire Notes to the Fillaneial Statements for the Yerdr Ended 31 March 2021 l Ac¢ounting polieles StatemeMt of compliance The financial statements have beeA prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities.. Statement of Recommended Practi¢¢ applicable to Charities preparing their account5 in accordan¢e with the Financial Reporting Standard applicablr in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) (effe¢tive l January 2015) - (Charities SOIIP (FRS 102)), th¢ Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and R¢public of Ireland (FRS 102) and the Chartties Act 2011. Basis of preparatio Samphire m¢ets the definilion of a public benefit entity under FRS 102. Ass¢ts and liabilities are initially r¢cognised at historical ¢ost or transaction value unless otherwis¢ stated in the relevant accounting policy nofrs. Exemptlon from preparing a eash flow $t#tem¢nt The charity opt¢d to early adopt Bullctin I published on 2 Febary 2016 and have therefore Dot included a cash flow statement in these financial slatements. Income and edowments Volwi(ary income including donations gifts, legacies and wnts that provide cor¢ funding or are of a get)eral nathre is r¢wgnised when the ¢harity h35 entitlement to the income, it is probable that the ineome will be reeeived and the amount ¢an be measured with sufficient Teliability. Donurflons andlegttcles Donations and legacies are wognised on & receivable basi3 when rec¢ipt ts probable and the amount be reliably measured. Cran1& recelvable Grants 4r¢ recogni5ed when th¢ charity has an entitlement to the funds and ally conditions link¢d to the grants have be¢n met. Where perfo]rnance conditions are attached to tbe grant and yet to be met. the income is recognised as a liability and in¢luded th) the bal8lhce sheet as deferr¢d income to be yeleased. IIiv¢sinieH¢ IAeome Dtvid¢nds are recognised th]ce the dividend has been declared and notification has been received of the dividend due. I xpenditure All expenditur¢ is recogni8ed once there is a Iwl or constructiv¢ obligation to that expenditure, it is probable settlement ig required and the amgunt can be measured reliably. All ¢¢)5ts are allocated io the applicabl¢ expenditure heading that aggregate similar costs to that category. Where costs catmot be direclly attributed to particular heading5 they have been allo¢ated on a basis consistent with the use of resource4 with cenh71 staff costs allocated on the basi5 Of time spent, and depreciation Gharges ollocated on the portion of the a&s¢1's use. Other support eosts are allo¢ated based on the spread of staff Costs. Charliftble acrfvlile Charitable expenditure comprises those costs incufftd by the tharity in the delivery of its activities and services for its beneficiaries. It includcs both costs that can b¢ allocated directly to such activities and those costs of an indirect nature necessary to support them. Poge 7

Samphir¢ NDtes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 Mrdreh 2021 Grnii¢provlslons Provisions for grants are made when the intention lo make a grant has been communicated to the reeipieth but there is uncei1ainty abOt either the timing of the grant or the amount of grant payable. Siipporl eost$ Support costs irt¢lude eentr&l fimctions and have been allocated to activity cost tattgories on a basis consistent with the use of resources, for example, allocating property eosts by floor areas, or per capit4 staff costs by the time speni and other costs byiheir usage. Covernanee costs 'rhe5e iDcludE the costs attributsble to the charity's compliance with constithtional and statutory requirem¢nts, including 8udiL strategio man&gement and trustees, meetings and reimbursed expenses. T&xation The charity is considered to pa$s the tests set out in Paragraph I Schedule 6 of the Finance Act 2010 and therefore it meets the definition of a ¢haritAbl¢ company for UK ¢orporatioD tax pu05¢5. Accordingly, the charity is potentially exempt frorn taxation itt respect of incotn¢ or ¢apital gains received within categories covered by Chapter 3 Part I l of th¢ Corpordtion Tox Act 2010 or S¢ction 256 of the Taxation of Chargeable Ggins Act 1992. to the extent that such income or gains are appli¢d ¢x¢lusively to charitable pUrpos. Tangible llxed assets Individual fixed assets costing £300.00 or more are inilially recorded at cost. less any subs¢qu¢nl ¢Mlated depre¢iation and sub$¢quw)t accumulated impairn)ent losses. Depreciation amd amortiwtlon Depreciation is provided on tangible fix¢d assets 89 to write off the cost or valuation, less any estimated residual value, over their expected useful eci)uomic lifr a8 follows- Asset tlxss Office and computer equip)nent Depyeciation method rAte 3 y¢ai' straight line Casb aDd cash equiyolettts Cash and cash equivalents wmprisE c4sh oJ] hand ond rall deposits, and other short-lerni highly liquid investments that are readily coDv¢rtiblE to a known amount of cash and are subject to an insi]rIcant risk of change in value. Trado credllors re obligations to Y for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordiDary c{rSe of business from guppliers. Accounts payable are classified as curreni liabilities if the doe5 not have an unconditional right, at the end of the reporting period, to defer settlem¢nl of the creditor for at least twelve months after the reporiing date. If there is an unconditional right to d¢f¢r settlem¢nt for al l¢a5t twelve months after the reporting date, they are presented as non.current liabilities. are recognised initially at the transaction priee and subsequently measured at &mortised cost using the effective inlerest method. Page 8

Samphire Notes to the Financial St&tem¢nts for the Year nded 31 March 2021 Fund Itrueture UnTestricl¢d in¢om¢ funds are general ndS that are available for use ot the trustees, discretion in fitrthw¢e of th¢ objectiyes of the chority. R¢strictEd income fund5 are those donat¢d fDr use in a particular area or for specific purposes, the use of which is restricted to that area or purpose. Pensions other post retirem¢nt obllgatlons The charity operates a defined contribution p¢tLSiOn scheme which is a pension plan under which fixed contributions are paid into a pension fvrjd and th¢ ¢hawity has no legal or constructive obligation to pay further contributions even if the fijnd does not hold sufficient assets to pay all e]nployees the benefits relating to employee service in the current and prior periods. Contrftbutions to defined contribution pian5 arE rewgnised IEL th¢ Statement of FiDanrial A¢iivities wheD they ar¢ due. If contribution payments exceed the rontribution due for service, the exccss is recognised as a prepayment. 2 l#come from donalions aDd legacles Unrestricied fund General Restricted Total Donations and legacies. Donations from individuals Total for 2021 Tot41 for 2020 319 187.692 188.011 3 Inve$tm¢nt llleome Unrestricled funds General R¢strict¢d nds Total funds Interest receivable and similar in¢om¢' Interest receivable on bank deposits 55 56 Tot41 for 2021 55 56 Total for 2020 Page 9

Samphire Notes to the fi inancial Stat¢Jnents for the Yedr £4 ndcd 31 Marih 2021 4 Ei xi)eiiditiii'e 011 cliarilaL71e a¢livitlL Uiii'esti'iettd fiinds Geiieral Restricted fuiids Total Note 170 8,770 2,498 595 10.152 4,413 120,273 16,355 1,840 10.322 13,183 122,771 16,9.50 1,840 Gi'ant of aLlivitics Staff costs Allocated suppoi't costs Goveinance costs TDtal foi. 2021 12,033 1.53,033 165,066 Total for 2020 6.445 169,042 175.487 Total expenditiire S Other expenditure Restricled funds Total ruiids Note Depi'eciation, ainortisatioii and othei. siniilai. Losls 1,799 1,799 Total fnr 2021 1,799 1,799 6 Aiialy5is of £oveTr'naiiee siipporl cos15 Governance ¢o¥ls Restricted funds Totgl Indepeiideiit ¢Aaininer fees F.xamination ofilic finaiicial staieiiieiils 1,840 1,840 Total 101. 2021 1,840 1,840 Total for 2020 1,440 1,440 7 Ti'115tee5 t'eEnUlILI'atioii aiid expen51'S No ti'ustees, iioi. any pei'son5 connected Nvitl) thein, liave ieceived any remuiieration froin the charity duKiiig the year. No tl'U5tces have received any reimbiirsed expense5 01. any otlier beiicfils froni the cliai'ily dui'ing tlJe yoar. Page 10

Samphire Notes to the Financial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021 8 Stsff costs The aggr¢gaic payroll costs were as follows.. 2021 2O20 St8ff ¢o$ts during tbe year were: Wag¢s and salari¢s Social $e¢urity costs P¢nsion costs Other staff costs 110,879 9,084 1.802 111,456 8,422 3,070 124 911 No employee re¢eiv¢d emoluments of more than £60,000 during the year 9 Independent ¢xamln¢Y's reMneratIOn 2021 2020 Examitwtion of the financial ststements JO Taxatio The charity is a r¢8l5ted ¢harity and is therefore exempt from t&xation. Pag¢ll

saphIre Notes to the Finanefial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021 11 Tgrtgibk fixed assets Furn41ure alld uipment Total Co$¢ At l April 2020 Additions 1.812 1,812 Al 31 Mar¢h 2021 Depreciatio Charge for the year Al 31 March 2021 Net book value At31 Mawh 2021 At 31 March 2020 12 Cash cash equÉvaleots 2021 2020 Cash on hand Cash at bank 143 121,934 121937 13 Creditors: falling due wÉthin one year 2021 2020 Other taxation &nd socia] security Accru01$ 1,898 Page 12

Samphire Notes to the Finan¢ial Statements for the Year Ended 31 March 2021 A4 Funds B•l#Dee Mt I April 2020 Infoming rtsollrces Resources expended Balance at 31 March 2021 Transfers UDre5trlettd (Mnds Gen¢ral - Reserve fund 9,031 5,088 112,033) 18,975 21,061 Restrleted funds ContingeTrGy 28.100 28,100 Other restrirted funds 200413 154832 47.075 Totsl funds 166 865 Rtsotsr(es pended 122.047 Balance at 31 MrTh 2020 IrÉeoming esources April 2019 Tr#nsfers Ullrestvicted funds Genernl- Reserve fund 10.000 3,644 {6.44J) ,832 9,031 Re$trlcted funds 169042 Total fvnds 191586 175 487 15 Analysis of Net ¥4ssets betweeTr funds Unr¢strieted Total funds at 31 March 2021 Rtstrleted funds C¢Mernl Tangibl¢ fixed assets Current assets Current liabilities 3.598 100,176 3,598 121,937 21,761 701 Total net assets 100 987 122047 Total fllnds at 31 Mrch 202Q Unrestritted funds General Rtstrlct¢d fund5 ToTrgibl¢ fixed assets Current assets Cuiyettt liabilities 1,812 73.818 1,812 82,849 250 9,031 Total n¢t assets Page 13

Charity registration number. 1106667 Samphire AtmuaI Report and Financial Ststements for the Year Ended 31 Mairh 2021 Chartered Accountants