Annual Report 2023
Overview
There is a clear and longstanding under-representation of girls and women in engineering, science and technology subjects and careers. There is a greater under-representation of girls and women in non-traditional trades. WEST have run a bursary scheme for more than 10 years which aims to offer a little support and encouragement to girls and women who face financial hardship or other challenges near the start of their study or career. Funding for our bursaries comes from donations or special fundraising events. (Bursaries are available in spring for girls and women in Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire).
Girls do not easily aspire to engineering subjects and non-traditional trades, so over the last 10 years we have developed resources that are trusted. We deliver outreach to primary and secondary schools in our region and we draw on our role models. Our funding for this work usually comes from grant applications but we are sometimes commissioned on the basis of our track record. Our recent development work has been to create a series of nontraditional career videos of women working for use in schools and colleges – but also in the hope of appealing directly to young women and girls.
In 2023 we decided we needed to do more to promote WEST and our resources including our new online non-traditional career videos of women working. Our trustees take the role in promoting WEST online, but we do recruit volunteers to help when we can. This year we were fortunate to work with students from Sheffield Hallam University in a scheme offered within digital marketing and computer studies subject areas. We have also continued to deliver our STEM outreach across South Yorkshire schools with support from our local funders. We have again raised funds to provide bursaries to support women working and studying in non-traditional subjects and careers.
This year WEST was approached by a sixth former who wanted to help promote STEM subjects to girls and we were happy to develop new set of procedures for under 18 volunteers. The female sixth former co-delivered a session at a school with our career consultant. WEST has also continued to recruit female role models to support our outreach.
We would like to thank our funders for helping WEST in our aims to advance the education and careers of women and girls in non-traditional subjects.
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Careers Video Teaching Event
We held an event to promote our new carers videos to teachers and received some very positive and helpful feedback.
“Fun and uplifting…affirming…excellent”
Liaison with Sheffield Hallam University (SHU) Students
We briefed a group of students about WEST and asked them for advice on how to reach young people on social media. They did research on our area of work and then produced a report for us including a SWOT analysis. They found that while we had some good content to promote we didn’t have enough, and we didn’t use the main platforms that young people use – Instagram and Tik Tok.
We then recruited an intern from SHU with help from the staff to assist us in taking forward a plan and to support us with our social media skills. This scheme supports students who cannot get a funded placement. The university pays the student and the charity provides the student with a project. The trustees all made progress on our various social media platforms including Instagram, Facebook, TikTok.
During my internship at WEST Trustees, I worked on creating a new Leaflet, Business card and Redesigning some presentations for the Trustees and attended the meeting of schools. I assisted with the development of social media campaigns, created an Instagram account, and conducted market research. I also had the opportunity to attend meetings and observe the inner workings of a successful and committed team. I brought marketing suggestions for the website and how to promote the charity through digital media. Overall, my internship was a valuable learning experience that allowed me to develop new skills and gain practical experience in the field of digital marketing. (SHU Intern, from her final report)
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Bursaries
We awarded 15 small bursaries of £150 each to women engineering students at SHU and to women working / studying non-traditional trades in colleges across Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.
Outreach
We have found it takes longer than expected to arrange visits since the Covid pandemic – schools are still experiencing problems with Covid and we have found it harder to fix dates or have had to rearrange dates – when there is a Covid break out.
Teachers are very positive about our outreach and the benefit to the children – and the books are very much appreciated by teachers. We have been asked to go back to our schools the following year – and would like to do workshops for teachers so they can run things themselves. However we are aware that it is hard for teachers to find time to organise role models and activities – it is much easier to ask us to do it for them.
Gwenda’s Garage and Women in Trades
Ros Wollen, as one of our original trustees was also one of the founders of Gwenda’s Garage in Sheffield in the eighties and a play about the was performed in the Crucible at Sheffield in November 2023. You can find out more on our website.
https://www.westskills.org.uk/gwendas-garage WEST has had close links with Women Working in Trades across South Yorkshire for many years and we held an event in 2023 to
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look back at the history of women in trades in Sheffield and to bring women now working in the trades. There was lots of debate between the now retired and current women working in trades.
Agreed by WEST Trustees
Dr Pat Morton Chair of Trustees Dr Ros Wollen Trustee Saj Parveen Trustee Anna Childs Trustee
Annual Report 2023 for Charity Commission Submission October 2024
www.westskills.org.uk
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Charity Name No (if any) WEST 1152219 Receipts and payments accounts CC16a For the period Period start date Period end date To from 01.01.2023 31.12.2023
Section A Receipts and payments
| A1 Receipts | Unrestricted funds to the nearest £ 10,000 287 271 - - - - - 10,558 - - - 10,558 305 2,250 397 60 133 2,561 1,002 160 - 6,868 - - - 6,868 3,690 - - 3,690 |
Restricted funds to the nearest £ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - |
Endowment funds to the nearest £ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - |
Total funds to the nearest £ 10,000 287 271 - - - - - 10,558 - - - 10,558 305 2,250 397 60 133 2,561 1,002 160 - 6,868 - - - 6,868 3,690 |
Total funds to the nearest £ 10,000 287 271 - - - - - 10,558 - - - 10,558 305 2,250 397 60 133 2,561 1,002 160 - 6,868 - - - 6,868 3,690 |
Last year to the nearest £ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GRANTS | 10,000 | 4,868 | ||||
| INTEREST ON DEPOSIT ACCOUNT | 287 | - | ||||
| FUNDRAISING | 271 | 1,233 | ||||
| - | - | |||||
| - | - | |||||
| - | - | |||||
| - | - | |||||
| - | - | |||||
| Sub total(Gross income for AR) |
10,558 | 6,101 | ||||
| A2 Asset and investment sales, (see table). |
||||||
| - | ||||||
| - | - | |||||
| Sub total | - | - | ||||
| Total receipts A3 Payments |
||||||
| 6,101 | ||||||
| INSURANCE | 305 | 280 | ||||
| BURSARIES | 2,250 | 1,350 | ||||
| INTERNET AND WEBSITE | 397 | 256 | ||||
| CATERING | 60 | 56 | ||||
| PRINTING / PHOTO | 133 | 1,254 | ||||
| CONSULTANTS OUTREACH | 2,561 | 6,236 | ||||
| CONSULTANTS FILM | 1,002 | 3,006 | ||||
| TRAVEL & EXPENSES | 160 | 170 | ||||
| - | - | |||||
| **Sub total ** | 6,868 | 12,608 | ||||
| A4 Asset and investment purchases, (see table) |
||||||
| - | ||||||
| - | ||||||
| **Sub total ** | - | - | ||||
| Total payments Net of receipts/(payments) A5 Transfers between funds A6 Cash funds last year end Cash funds this year end |
||||||
| 12,608 | ||||||
| 3,690 | - | - | 3,690 |
- 6,507 | ||
| - | - | - | - | - | ||
| - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 3,690 | - | - | 3,690 | - 6,507 |
CCXX R1 accounts (SS)
12/10/2024
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Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period
| Categories Signed by one or two trustees on behalf of all the trustees B5 Liabilities B3 Investment assets B2 Other monetary assets B4 Assets retained for the charity’s own use B1 Cash funds |
Details Details Total cash funds (agree balances with receipts and payments account(s)) current account savings account Details Details Details R Wollen Signature P Morton |
Unrestricted funds Restricted funds to nearest £ to nearest £ 3,690 - 8,982 - - - 12,672 - Agreement Error OK Unrestricted funds Restricted funds to nearest £ to nearest £ - - - - - - - - - - - - Fund to which asset belongs Cost (optional) - - - - - Fund to which asset belongs Cost (optional) - - - - - - - - - Fund to which liability relates Amount due (optional) - - - - - Print Name P Morton R Wollen |
Endowment funds to nearest £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| OK | |||
| Endowment funds to nearest £ |
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| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| Current value (optional) |
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| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| Current value (optional) |
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| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| When due (optional) |
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| Date of approval |
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| P Morton | P Morton | 7.10.2024 | |
| R Wollen | R Wollen | 7.10.2024 |
CCXX R2 accounts (SS)
12/10/2024
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