## **Fightback Charity**
Society of Disabled Refugees and Asylum Seekers
Annual Accounts and Reports
April 2023
## **Trustees’ Annual Report for the Year 2022/2023**
## **Overview**
Fightback was formed in Sunderland in 2004 as a multicultural, one-stop, holistic, user-led, not-for-profit organisation. Fightback continues to be one of only a few projects that works with people who experience multiple disadvantages arising out of intrinsic factors, such as, disability, race, ethnicity, language, cultural barriers and immigration status.
Fightback charity provided a range of practical, social and educational services and activities to refugees, asylum seekers, failed asylum seekers and other BME and marginalised groups.
Fightback’s holistic approach aims to improve the mental health and well-being of our clients by involving, supporting and engaging marginalised and disadvantaged individuals, facilitating autonomy, building confidence, reducing social isolation, and promoting integration into the wider community and community cohesion.
The ‘Cost of Living Crisis’, the massive increases in fuel, utilities, food, and other commodities, have significantly increased the demand for our services.
## **Practical Services**
## **Drop-in Service**
Our twice-weekly Drop-in service offers a comprehensive range of everyday practical support. Clients can come by for advice and information.
Fightback's holistic approach aims to reduce or remove this anxiety by engaging with, supporting, advocating, mediating and representing clients while also providing practical information, advice, facilitating and enabling clients to deal with everyday practical issues, such as reading, writing and replying to letters, making appointments, paying bills, dealing with utilities, doctors, solicitors, hospitals, schools, social services, debt agencies and other service providers, applying for bank accounts, housing, driving licences, college courses, benefits, and jobs etc.
Clients often tell us that dealing with these practical everyday issues causes them the most stress in their lives because the processes, forms and criteria can be so complicated and confusing. However, feedback from our beneficiaries has indicated that knowing they can access help with working through these practical issues in a welcoming, non-threatening, nonjudgemental atmosphere really helps. It not only reduces stress and anxiety but provides them
with understanding, skills, and autonomy to be able to cope with the everyday issues and processes that affect their lives and improves resilience and life chances.
We also provide access to phones, the internet, the use of a laptop and a printer.
The Table below shows the amount of people we have helped since our drop in was reinstated from April 2022 to April 2023
|Advice|Advocacy and Mediation|Signposting|
|---|---|---|
|1255|267|150|
## **Form Filling**
It is an absolute lifeline for so many of our clients who have difficulties with language, reading and writing, levels of understanding or other difficulties understanding the forms the need to complete to access support.
Fightback Charity reads and write letters on behalf of clients with language or cognitive difficulties and fills in a variety of forms including Housing application forms, housing benefit and council tax benefit, PIP, DLA, Universal Credit, ESA forms including medical questionnaire forms, driving licence, Passports, etc. Since April 2022 until April 2023, we have filled in 203 forms.
## **Provision of Food Parcels**
Covid 19 created exceptional circumstances, and highlighted the issue of food poverty in Sunderland, increasing the demand for food parcels and hygienic products from 34 to 100+ parcels a week. This has increased again due to the ‘Cost of Living Crisis’, the massive rises in the cost of fuel, utilities, food, and other commodities, making everyday living expenses less affordable.
We continue to distribute much needed food parcels each week to refugees, asylum seekers, failed asylum seekers, BME groups, the destitute, and local elderly and disabled residents who have no family or friends to support them, families on low income or universal credit.
A standard Food parcel will have a mixed selection of basic meal base makers, such as, Rice, Pasta and Potatoes, a selection of difference fresh vegetables and fruit, tinned foods such as tuna, ham, corned beef, beans and tomotoes, and every day essentials, such as, eggs, milk, bread, teabags etc, with food parcels varying in size according to the size of the family, to ensure that people have enough food for at least one nutritious cooked meal per day.
Since April 2022 to April 2023 we have provided 5,905 Food Parcels to single people and families with children.
## **Food Parcels Referrals**
Fightback continues to receive referrals from other agencies, such as CAB, Churches, Sunderland City Council and Charities.
## **Provision of Hygiene Products**
Many people who are locked in poverty or those who find themselves in times of crisis often experience severely restricted options. This leaves them caught between being able to heat their home, pay their rent, buy food or keep clean. Hygiene poverty can be shaming, humiliating and excluding and can result in social isolation. Hygiene poverty can lead to a lack of confidence and can negatively affect good health, mental well-being and social interaction **.** At Fightback we provide hygiene products to clients. Since April 2022 untill April 2023 we have provided 1,550 hygenic products to our clients.
## **The Social Services**
Fightback holds a twice weekly **'Coffee Morning' and 'Befriending Service'.** These social activities enable people to come together and enjoy a selection of refreshments in a safe and welcoming environment. Our aim is reducing loneliness and social isolation promoting social inclusion and promoting mental health wellbeing amongst our user groups. Many families and single parents with children attended our coffee morning illustrating that people needed to socialize.
We have received positive feedback from our clients who are so happy to be able to get out again in a safe and relaxed atmosphere.
The **Chat Club:** gives people the opportunity to engage with others, make positive social connections and break down barriers.
We provide a safe, friendly, relaxed environment where clients can talk about everyday life, their hopes, fears, plans for the future and mental health without being judged. They can share experiences, information, and strategies for coping with life’s ups and downs, connect with others who understand what they are going through, and be heard. This service is designed to build self-esteem, self-worth, and self-awareness, promote autonomy and increase motivation.
## **Tabletop Day**
Fightback takes in donations of previously loved items and then redistributes them free of charge to anyone in need at our tabletop days. Items include clothing, toys and household items.
## **Educational Services**
## **Job Skill Support**
Fightback provides advice on how to look for jobs and apply for them online, creating and updating CV's, advice on approaching an employer with you CV or where to look for advertised vacancies. We also provide guidance on updating Universal Credit journals and fulfilling job search requirements. This service increases skills, promotes autonomy, enables clients to take advantage of employment opportunities when they arise, prevents clients who are already economically and socially disadvantaged from being sanctioned by the DWP, and increases positive life chances.
## **Volunteers and Volunteering Opportunities**
We have 20 dedicated volunteers on rotation who organise and run our weekly coffee morning, befriending service and drop-in services, collecting, packing, distributing and delivering food parcels. Fightback is a continuously evolving user led project that actively encourages user
participation at every level and to take up various roles within the project, such as, acting as trustees and using their skills and competencies for the benefit of the whole project.
Whether it is simply giving their time to help organise and run the coffee morning, befriending, or drop-in service, provide or enhance their clerical skills and IT support, use their bilingual or multilingual skills to act as an interpreter or assemble and distribute food parcels. User participation through volunteering is essential as it helps us to continue to provide a wide range of services that are responsive to the needs of the users themselves. Also, providing our clients/users with volunteering opportunities also helps them to gain new or enhance transferable skills which they can then use to secure paid employment, college or university courses and Fightback is always happy to provide volunteers with references.
## **Other Services**
## **Free Hair Cuts**
As our clients have many challenges to face, one of them often being low self-esteem. A haircut can have a great effect on someone’s self-esteem, by giving them a real boost and feel good about themselves. We continued to provide free haircuts for our clients.
As part of **'Refugee Week'** Fightback extended its usual Thursday coffee morning and provided Lunch for our clients.
Thank you to all of our volunteers, Dominos Pizza in Sunderland who provided the food, and all those who attended. The weather was glorious and the children and adults alike really enjoyed their ice creams afterwards.
## **Christmas Hampers**
In December 2022, we provided 170 Christmas Food Hamper to family and single in need. This heartfelt initiative aimed to bring joy and warmth to those facing challenges during the holiday season, ensuring that they could experience the spirit of Christmas. We also made the holidays special for 168 children by providing each of them with a thoughtful gift, ensuring that the magic of the season reached the younger members of the community as well.
11
## **Working in Partnership**
Although many other organisations closed down to the general public and their clients during Covid-19, Fightback maintained contact with these agencies and engaged in regular updates,
urgent case referrals and collaborations behind the scenes via Zoom and Teams meetings. Many of these other organisations have now reopened and we continue to work closely with various charities, organisations and agencies, such as, NERS and the wider Connect network, MEARS, FODI, City of Sanctuary, ICOS, Action Foundation and Sunderland City Council.
## **Medical Placement**
Fightback has been working with Sunderland University and have had three year 6 medical students assigned to our Charity as part of their community placements.
The students have visited our organisation on a few occasions and observed our activities, interacted with volunteers, did some background research and interviewed Fightback Charity’s staff.
The students also spoke to other clients/ service users, to gain insight into the experiences of refugees, asylum seekers and minority ethnic groups.
## **Funding**
## **National Lottery Community Fund**
In Nov 2021, the, National Lottery Community Fund kindly donated funding for five years to cover the costs of our accommodation, rental, salary of our existing part-time manager and accountancy charges.
## **Fundraising 2021-2022**
- Jill Franklin Trust
- City of Sunderland Council
- Barbour Trust
- Community Foundation
- Groundwork
- Souter Charitable Trust
- Cash Philanthropy Donation
- Lloyds Bank Foundation
- Fightback is currently being supported by Sunderland City Council with Fareshare donations which help us to provide a wide range of food products in our food parcels.
## **Thank You for your Support**
- To all of our funders for their kind generosity
- Greggs (Union street Sunderland), who provides unsold pastries for our coffee mornings.
- Tesco for donating unsold food.
- Sunderland City Council for financially supporting us with Food share contributions towards our weekly food bank.
- SVP Charity for their kind donations
- Sunderland Police Constabulary Community Officers.
- Northumbria Fire Brigade.
- Chris Howson, Sunderland University Chaplin
- Fightback charity trustees, staff and volunteers.
- Sunderland University for their kind donations of food, toiletries and cleaning products.
## **Business Information**
## **Committee Members**
Chairperson: Diana Lambton
Secretary: Sabina Bain
Treasurer: Claudia Conteh
Committee Member: Monique Gorvel
Committee Member: Naghey Amine Masola Committee Member: Mohammad Azizi
Committee Member: Mahmood Sharif Rahim
Committee Member: Janet Nalweysio Committee Member: Daniel Pearce Committee Member: Ali Mirzaei
## **Accountants**
Accountability Nautilus House, Durham Rd, Birtley, Chester-le-Street DH3 2PA
## **Bankers**
4 Brindley Pl, Birmingham B1 2JB
## **Address**
Fightback (Society for Disabled Refugees and Asylum Seekers) Registered Charity; Charity number: 1168874 Units 4-6. Eagle Building High Street East Sunderland SR1 2AX. Phone: 01915652707
## **Fightback**
## **Approval statement**
I approve these accounts which comprise the Income and Expenditure Account, the Balance Sheet and the related notes. I acknowledge my responsibility for the accounts, including the appropriateness of the accounting basis as set out in note 1, and for providing all the information and explanations necessary for their compilation.
Diana Lambton
19 December 2023
## **Fightback**
## **Accountants' report to the members on the unaudited accounts to Fightback**
You have approved the accounts for the year ended 31 March 2023 which comprise the Income and Expenditure Account, the Balance Sheet and the related notes. In accordance with your instructions, we have compiled these unaudited accounts from the accounting records and information and explanations supplied to us.
Accountability Accountants
Nautilus House Durham Road Birtley County Durham DH3 2PA
19 December 2023
## **Fightback**
## **Income and Expenditure Account for the year ended 31 March 2023**
|**Fightback**
**Income and Expenditure Account**
|||
|---|---|---|
|**for the year ended 31 March 2023**
**Incoming resources**
**Resources expended**
Wages, salaries and other staff costs
Travel, volunteer expenses & consumables
Rent, rates, power and insurance costs
Telephone, fax, stationery and other office costs
Food parcels
Bank, credit card and other finance charges
Accountancy, legal and other professional fees
Other business expenses
**Surplus**
Balance brought forward
Balance carried forward|Total
Unrestricted
Restricted
Funds
Funds
Funds
**2023**
**£**
**£**
**£**
15,588
63,144
78,732
-
18,715
18,715
5,920
1,000
6,920
909
8,386
9,295
2,906
-
2,906
2,112
31,009
33,121
104
89
193
62
578
640
1,168
371
1,539
13,181
60,148
73,329
2,407
2,996
5,403
69,549
11,103
80,652
71,956
14,099
86,055|Total
Funds
**2022**
**£**
103,136
29,313
7,490
8,906
2,621
41,156
153
505
3,688|
|||93,832|
||||
|||9,304|
|||71,348
80,652|
## **Fightback Balance Sheet as at 31 March 2023**
|**Notes**
**Current assets**
Bank/building society balances
Cash in hand
**Current liabilities**
Trade creditors
**Net current assets**
**Net assets**
**Accumulated fund**
Balance at start of period
Net surplus
**3**|Unrestricted Restricted
69,549
11,103
2,407
2,996|86,665
49|**2023**
**£**
86,055|81,225
-|**2022**
**£**
80,652|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|||86,714||81,225||
|||659||573||
|||||||
||||86,055||80,652|
||||80,652
5,403||71,348
9,304|
||71,956
14,099||86,055||80,652|
**Fightback Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2023**
## **1 Accounting basis**
The accounts have been compiled on a basis that enables surpluses to be calculated in accordance with UK Generally Accepted Accounting Practice and that provides sufficient and relevant information to enable the completion of a tax return if necessary.
|**2**
**Income and Expenditure account analysis**
**Incoming resources**
Fundraising
**Wages, salaries and other staff costs**
Wages and salaries
Pensions
PAYE & NI
**Building Capabilities**
**Travel, volunteer expenses and consumables**
Volunteer general expenses
**Rent, rates, power and insurance costs**
Rent
Rates
Property insurance
**Telephone, fax, stationery and other office costs**
Telephone and fax & stationery
Stationery and printing
Software
**Food parcels**
Food parcels
Toiletries for failed asylum seekers
**Bank, credit card and other finance charges**
Bank charges
**Accountancy, legal and other professional fees**
Accountants fees
Other legal and professional
Interpreter
**Other business expenses**
Other sundry costs
Christmas Celebrations|Unrestricted Restricted
Funds
Funds
**£**
**£**
15,588
63,144
-
13,549
-
1,359
-
3,807
-
18,715
5,920
1,000
909
7,710
-
412
-
264|**2023**
**£**
78,732
13,549
1,359
3,807
18,715
6,920
8,619
412
264
9,295
766
1,017
1,123
2,906
29,732
3,389
33,121
193
578
26
36
640
1,416
123
1,539|**2022**
**£**
103,136|
|---|---|---|---|
||||19,601
2,027
7,685|
||||29,313|
||||7,490|
||||7,805
276
825|
||909
8,386
766
-
1,017
-
1,123
-
2,906
-
2,112
27,620
-
3,389
2,112
31,009
104
89
-
578
26
-
36
-
62
578
1,045
371
123
-||8,906|
||||568
722
1,331|
||||2,621|
||||39,213
1,943|
||||41,156|
||||153|
||||505
-
-|
||||505|
||||2,066
1,622|
||1,168
371||3,688|
## **Fightback Notes to the Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2023**
**3 Restricted funds**
|**Restricted funds**||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Big Lottery Fund Grant
Greatham Hospital
Jill Franklin Trust
Community Foundation
Community Foundation
Community Foundation
Together For Children
Groundwork UK -On
Groundwork UK -Te|**Balance as**
**at 1 April**
**2022**
**£**
7,337
-
3,395
-
-
-
371
-
-
11,103|**Incoming**
**£**
34,419
-
15,600
7,000
3,500
1,000
-
500
1,125
63,144|**Transfer**
**Between**
**Funds**
**£**
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-|**Outgoing**
**£**
27,768
-
18,995
7,000
3,389
1,000
371
500
1,125
60,148|**Balance as**
**at 31 March**
**2023**
**£**
13,988
-
-
-
111
-
-
-
-|
||||||14,099|
CHARITY COMMISSION
FOR ENGLAND AND WALES
Independent examiner's report on the
accounts
Section A
Independent Examinerfs Report
Report to the trusteesl
members of
Fightback
On accounts for thè year
ended
3010412023
Charity no
(if any)
1168874
Set out on pages
I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above
charity ('the Trust") for the year ended 30 10412022.
Responsibilities and
basis of report
As the charty's trustees, you are responsible for Ihe preparation of the
accounts in accordan with the requirements of the Charities Act 2011
{'the Act.).
I report in respect of my examination of the Trust's accounts carried out
under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carying oul my examination, I
have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission
under section 14515)Ib) of the Act.
Independent I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have
examiner's ststement come to my attention in connection with the examination (other than that
disclosed below ') which gives me Cause to believe that in, any malerial
respect..
the accounting re¢ords were not kept in accordance with section 130
of the Charities Act., or
the a¢counts did not accord with the accounting records., or
the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements
concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities
(Accounts and Reports} Regulations 2008 other than any requirement
that the accounts give a 'true and fair, view which is not a matter
considered as part of an independent examination.
I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in Gonnection
with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in
order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts lo be reached.
Please delete the words in the braGkets if they do not apply.
Signed:
Date:
3110112024
Name:
Miss Darna
eng MAAT
Rèlevant professional
qualification{sl or body
(if any):
Association of Accounting Technicians
Address:
46 Fordlance Place
IER
Oct 2018
Sunderland
SR4 6UR
Section B
Disclosure
Only complete if the examiner needs lo highlight material matters of concern
(see CC32, Independent examination of charity acGounts'. directions and
guidance for examiners).
Glve here brief detalls of
any items that the
examiner wlshos to
disclose.
IER
Oct 2018