## **SHINE Mentoring |Annual report** **Report and Financial statements for year ended 31[st] August 2020** SHINE Mentoring Registered as a charity in England and Wales: 1124105 www.shinementoring.org.uk ## **SHINE Mentoring** Charity registered number: 1124105 Report of the Trustees for the year ended 31[st] August 2020 ## **Business address and postcode:** 14 Galpins Road Thornton Health Surrey CR7 6EE ## **Business email address:** admin@shinementoring.org.uk ## **Trustees** Sonia Akrimi Chair Shafaq Adnan Treasurer Alice Penfold Trustee sonia@shinementoring.org.uk shafaq@shinementoring.org.uk alice@shinementoring.org.uk **Bankers:** HSBC Business – Community account SHINE Mentoring Registered as a charity in England and Wales: 1124105 www.shinementoring.org.uk ## **Annual Report** ## **1.1 Introduction** SHINE Mentoring is pleased to provide its annual and financial report for 2019/2020. SHINE Mentoring is a not-for-profit community intervention organisation registered as a charity in England and Wales. The organisation operates three mentoring programmes across the London Borough of Southwark. Annually, SHINE provides approximately 100 university student volunteers to mentor children aged 9-11 within local schools, providing both academic and pastoral support. Set up in 2004, the organisation has to date provided more than 1,800 volunteer mentors to local schools. SHINE Mentoring has been recognised both within London and on the national stage as a successful grassroots initiative receiving a Southwark Community Award and a Gold Award from Student Volunteering England. The organisation also received the Approved Provider Standard for Mentoring and Befriending in 2014. The specific methods by which SHINE Mentoring delivers its business aims are: 1. Recruiting, training and supporting university student volunteers to become mentors 2. Working with schools to provide each child with targeted support designed to meet individual development needs identified by their teachers 3. Raising aspirations of local children for further and higher education through mentoring and a programme of events including university visits and career activities 4. Supporting volunteers in their professional development through supported volunteer placements and a programme of training events 5. Supporting research and quality improvement activity concerning educational support for children and university students Notably, to date all of its activity has been conducted through voluntary activity by its operational staff, with none of its budget required for salary or wage support. The aim of the next financial year will be to continue to deliver a high-quality mentoring service to local children and schools. - **1.2 Constitutional structure** SHINE Mentoring Registered as a charity in England and Wales: 1124105 www.shinementoring.org.uk SHINE Mentoring was established to increase support for children in inner London schools through mentoring. During this financial year, SHINE Mentoring has changed its structure to a Charitable Incorporated Organisation and adopted a foundation model constitution on 27[th] February 2020. The objects of the CIO is: • To advance the education of schoolchildren in London by the provision of mentors The activities of the organisation in this reporting year have all been in pursuit of these objects. ## **1.3 Organisational structure** The organisation is led by the Board of Trustees. The trustees are responsible for meeting the requirements of the Charity Commission and other relevant bodies, for developing the overarching strategy of the organisation and for volunteer supervision and the provision of training. Trustees are appointed for a period of three years (as of the date of adoption of the CIO structure). After this point **,** trustees can stand for reappointment for up to three consecutive terms after which the trustee must stand down for a period of at least one year before appointment can be considered again. In addition, trustees have specific remits within the organisation. Dr. Sonia Akrimi leads relations with external organisations including schools and funding bodies. Dr. Shafaq Adnan is the treasurer and leads the financial governance and management. Ms. Alice Penfold is the lead for Child Protection and is responsible for the organisation maintaining high standards of working with children. Decisions are made jointly by the board and need to be agreed by a simple majority of all the trustees, with the Chair having the casting vote in the event of no clear majority. All members of the Trustee Board have a role description which outlines individual roles and responsibilities. Roles are reviewed annually. Collectively, the responsibility of the board is to: _1._ Ensure the charity is carrying out its purposes for the public benefit _2._ Comply with the charity’s governing document and the law _3._ Act in the charity’s best interests _4._ Manage the charity’s resources responsibly _5._ Act with reasonable care and skill _6._ Ensure the charity is accountable The day-to-day running of the mentoring programmes is achieved by a team of committee members who are trained and supported by the Board of Trustees. These volunteers are experienced volunteer mentors having completed both the mentor and Team Leader roles. SHINE Mentoring Registered as a charity in England and Wales: 1124105 www.shinementoring.org.uk Committee members lead the annual recruitment strategy, provide induction training, are the first point of contact for schools and volunteer mentors, and organise events including the end-of-year Celebration Events. Committee members also provide training and support to the Team Leaders, and individual volunteers. ## **1.3 Fundraising** SHINE Mentoring fundraising is performed solely for public benefit, that is, for the advancement of educational support for children through the provision of mentors. Funds are raised through competitive grant applications made to organisations working to achieve similar objectives. SHINE Mentoring operates with an ethos of value for money and therefore has successfully remained entirely volunteer-led since its inception in 2004. The greatest cost to the organisation are in support of project activities, most commonly education events including the annual celebration events and volunteer training. Other annual costs include project insurance. ## **1.4 Governance** All members (trustees and volunteers have completed their annual mandatory training (including safeguarding training). Risk assessment of all SHINE activities have been undertaken this year as required. There have been no safeguarding concerns or adverse events reported to the charity. In addition, individual trustees have completed further training this year in relation to the skills required for their role. This has included accounting and charity financial management training, ethical and sustainable fundraising, and further safeguarding training. The organisation has also completed reassessment with the Disclosure and Barring Service this year and has fully implemented their suggested developments in practice. ## **1.5 Public benefit** This work benefits the people of the London Borough of Southwark through greater education support for children who are of an age group approaching a significant life transition as they prepare to move to secondary school. Mentors are able to provide children with a positive role model and pastoral support in addition to support with their learning within the classroom. Through professional development events, volunteering opportunities and targeted support, SHINE Mentoring also supports students in developing professional and life skills essential for their own learning and for the workplace after graduation. ## **1.6 Impact of COVID-19 pandemic** SHINE Mentoring Registered as a charity in England and Wales: 1124105 www.shinementoring.org.uk Following internal risk assessment and consultation with schools, SHINE Mentoring made the decision to temporarily suspend mentoring activities on 17[th] March 2020. The organisation also restructured organisational activities required for the running of the charity (including trustee meetings) to operate using remote platforms only. This decision was made and communicated to volunteers and schools promptly. As remote mentoring had not been established by our organisation previously, and risk assessment and steps to ensure safety had not been explored, this was not pursued. SHINE Mentoring has since been working closely with schools to continually assess the risk of faceto-face mentoring activities and also to use this as an opportunity to repeat the needs assessment that led to the development of the SHINE Mentoring model. All grant funders were informed of the decision to temporarily suspend mentoring and were in full support of this. The organisation continues to work closely with funders in ongoing needs assessment and plans for resuming charity activities. In March 2020, the organisation was also preparing for its re-assessment for the Approved Provider Standard for Mentoring and Befriending. This assessment meeting was also originally planned to occur face-to-face and due to both this, and the capacity of the board of trustees being reduced as a consequence of their work commitments in relation to the pandemic, this was postponed with the agreement of the assessing body. Conducting this remotely in the coming year is currently being planned. ## **2.0 Strategic Aims for 2020/2021** Our strategic aims over the coming year centre on assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on education for children and university students and finding new, safe ways to operate meeting the needs of our beneficiaries. We are currently discussing this with schools as well as the student committee. ## **2.1 Future plans** In addition to the above, we plan to undergo reassessment of the Approved Provider Standard for Mentoring and Befriending. We also are looking for ways to use remote and online methods to successfully run all of the mentor application process and provide mentoring training. If mentoring activities are safe to continue this year, we will continue to focus on the monitoring and evaluation work using individualised targets that we initiated in all schools this year. ## **Financial Report** - **3.1 Brief statement of the charity’s policy on reserves** SHINE Mentoring Registered as a charity in England and Wales: 1124105 www.shinementoring.org.uk SHINE Mentoring raises funds to enable the organisation to undertake activities in pursuit of its objects. The mainstay of its charitable income/funding is from project grants from a variety of sources. Each grant received is applied for with a rigorously set out budget that is adhered to for each cost incurred and reported back to the grant provider. Any planned change in spending resulting from changes occurring to the project or the circumstances in which the charity operates are communicated to the grant holder and permission sought before any changes in spending outside the agreed budget occurs. Grant budgets include both project grants and core running costs. Many grants are paid in instalments once the provider is satisfied that the projects and the financial outlay is in keeping with that proposed. Thus individual projects are funded to a capped level as per the grant received. ## **2.1 Details of any funds materially in deficit** SHINE Mentoring is not in deficit. ## **2.2 Further financial review details** The principal sources of funding that SHINE Mentoring has received over the last year are detailed below: - **Southwark Giving** Duration: 3 months Value: £2000 This grant was applied for in support of increased professional development opportunities for volunteers and trustees and website developments. ## **2.3 Financial summary** SHINE Mentoring Registered as a charity in England and Wales: 1124105 www.shinementoring.org.uk SHINE Mentori Income and ExpenditureAccounts for the yearended 31st August 2020 Income ExpendlturÈ Recruitment SHINE 1018.21 Grant fundin8 Bank interest 2000.(M) Mentorin8 Safegu3rdin8 32.39 IS.00 696.40 977.65 Websiiè Bank char8es 655.3a 30.00 Total Incr>me zwo. Total experdlturÈ 3424.99 SHINE MprtorinB Balance sheet as at 31st August 2020 A55et5 Cash at bank 10959.82 Money owed Balantè brought forward Income over expenditure foryear 12384.81 -1424.99 10959.82 SHINE Mentoring Registered as a charity in England and Wales: 1124105 VIWW.5hinementoring.org.uk