SAMARITANS Mid Cheshire 4S?b celebratlng 60 y•ar% gf Ilsteni Annual General Meeting th Tuesday 6 August 2024 at 7.00 pm Owley Wood Recreation Club Barrymore Rd, Weaverham, Northwich, CW8 3LS Contents Samaritans, Vision, Mission, and Values. Samaritans of Mid Cheshire. Director's Report. Branch Strategy Review. Treasurerfs Report. Financial Statement. Thank You. Health & Safety and Building Report. Trustees. Page2￿12 nuai Roth 202>2024 1. Samaritans, Vision, Mission, and Values It's now generally acknowledg&J that to genuinely reduce sujode we must reach pewe oarfier on in th8 crisis cycle, which means reaching oul to and helping people who would not consider themselves to be suicidal. We want all FX)tential &qllers to understsnd that our semcè is here for anyone is 8xperi8ncing pain in their lives. Our Vision Our Vision is that f8wer people die by suicid8. Our Misslon We make 8ure there's Someone there for anyone who needs someone. Every year. Samaritans volunteers spend over one million hours answering calls for hèlp via our unique 24-hour listening service, email. letter, face to face and through our Welsh language service. Wo glve poople ways to copo and the sklll$ to be thore for others. Wè want lo encouragè, promote. and ¢elebrate those moments of connection between people that can prot8Ct and ev8n save liv88. To do Ihls, w•'ro worklng In 8¢hool$, prlsons, Workpla￿8, and communltles, and In partnershlp wlth organlsatlons Ilke Network Rall. Wo Gampalgn to mako •ulcld• prov•nllon a natlonal and I￿1 prlorlty. Our staff 8nd volunteer8 run natlonwKle and communlty campalgns to ralse awareness and Inffluence dectslon-makers. Our Values W8 have five core values. Th8Vre supported by these behavlours. whlch w8 8har8 wlthln th8 Samaritans organi$ation.' support. trust, aspirallonal. and r8sped. Llstonlng. Explorfng feelings 0118vlat88 d18tr888 and helps people to reach a better understandlng of thair sltuatlon and the options open to them. Confldenllallty. If people fe85 safe, they are more Ilkely to be open about their feelings. Non4udg•merrtal. We want P80ple to be able to talk to us w11h￿jt fear of prejudice or reJectlon. People m8klng thelr own decislons wherever posslble. Peoplè maklng thelr own deelslon8. We believe that people have the rigm to find their own solution and that telling people what to do takes responsibillty away from tt)em. Human contact. Giving people tim8, undNbJed attentK)n and empathy meets a fundamental emotional n88d and reduces distres8 and despalr. P￿92(*12 Dn￿ ReviBw2ry2&2024 2. Samaritans of Mid Cheshire Samaritans of Mid Cheshire, a charity registered in England (11705751. is a recognised branch of SamarÉtans Central Charity and is a charitable in(x>rporated organisation (CIO) and governed by a constitution. As an affiliate branch we are financsally independent and responsib￿ for fundraising to meel our oparating costs. Our branch has been providing support to people nationally and in our local area sin 1964. We offer emob'onal support by telephone, by email 8nd soon, we hope, on-line chaL our branch covers the followng areas.. Outreach activitles a￿ Increasing, and we now have 17trained team members. This will enable us to reach more people in the community. and build on actNities already in place wtth supporbng Thom Cross Prison, Ne￿Ork Rail and local schcMJls. Altrlncham Hale Hale Bams Knutsford Lymm Mlddlewlch Northwtth Tirnperley Winsford Desptte the issues highlighted the Branch continues to comply with all aspects of good charity management and is committed to building on previous strengths. Again, the Branch has been recognised by the Central Charity, via the Quality Review Process, as being a Branch with a strong strategic approach to branch development, with an ethos of collaboratlon, communi¢%tion, and teamwort<. The year 2023-2024, as previous year5, has proved lo be very challenging, but still arnazingly rewarding. We finally finished the building works in August 2023, and now have a secure, stable building which will last for many more years to come, allowing us to continue our very valuable work. Changes in the Ops roorn have also improved the wmf¢Jrt, safety. and operation for our volunteers. And hopefully the costs of maintaining our building will now reduce. We h8ve also ujnlinued to embrace technology and Central Charity support Vla the Training School to enable wider. more accessible training both for new recruits and existing volunteers via d￿lt21 modules. Zoom meetings and WhatsApp groups have enabled more people lo be kept in close conlact with developments and Opportunit￿S. There was minimal disruption throughout this process enabling us to conlinue to provide ernotional support to all our callers, and also to cy)ntinue to recrutt and train new volunteers. Our normal operating costs are obviously increasing in line ¥Mth rising priix. and an updated fundraising strategy is undervrdy. But V￿ have not forgotten the power of being together, and the return to face to face training and meetings such as the AGM and Branch meetings has been weltt)med by all. P￿￿30f12 Annu￿ ￿￿sW2￿3-202I 3. Director's Report What an eventful year this has been vAth some real challenges t￿rt a bt of successes too. The biggest challenge 2022-2023 was the building restoration works which thankhjlly were finally cL)mpleted at the end of July last year. After the AGM, we hosted major Branch Meetings in ￿rsOn in August 2023 and January 2024 to look at our strategy. and agree tactics logether. still wth the key operatsng ethos being communication. collaboration, co-operab'on, and teamwork. We are a family with lots of talent, passion, and commitment! We were able to continue to buihj on past successes and reGcgnise and reward new initiatives. The four main strands remain: StrengtheniThJ the tearn. Developing our Outreach opportunities. Developing a sustainable fundraising policy. Improving our provision of night hours to meet callers. needs. SucGesses'. We re(xuited and trained 15 new Samaritsns from mid-2023 - July 2024. There are 6 more potentially for August and 8 more for October.... we could be up to 80 by the end of this year, which will be an amazing resulL Realistic*lly know we do not operat8 at full strength, all of the lime, so thank you everyone for dolng what you can. Our Outreach activrties have grown, and we have attended 8 events. several street collections, and as well as raising awareness, and making new (x)ntacts we have raised some moneyl There is so much more scope to reach oul and help in the community. Talks to organisations and businesses have started with many more anticipated. We have launched our £60 for 60 years initiative which is going well. with six months still to gol And we have a 60th Annr¥eTsary raffle to with some amazing prizes donated. We have had several edtiorials in the press to raise avRreness and a press and on-line recruitmenl drive. Jen 483 secured a place on the curriculum in Rudheath Senior Academy Stsrt￿l in September 2023, and this year worked wth Petty Pool Col￿e, and we are going to be in Knutsford Academy from September 2024. We have strengthened the prisc￿ team aTrJ maintained monthly visits to the Listeners. Our cruryal night hours provision is still showing a great improvement. but V￿ now need to concentrate on growng more, with sustainabilty for the future. We have continued to dellver high qualty training, both for Nss and existing volunteers, who have embraced the demands of new initiatives and refresher training. Two new courses that were undertaken were Outreach Training and Veterans Awaren8ss Course. Athough there are digital modules for both of these Emma hosted Fac8 to Face sessions as well, which were well received. These are just a few of the things we have achieved together. There are many more things planned for this c(Kning year, and l am confident we will have more success to share next Ume. I want to thank you all. Thank you to the Branch Leadership team their support. expertise and advice and the amazing worf( they have done. together with their leams" to the Trust￿ for their SUPFQrt and guidance,. but most importanly, to every single one of you for Gonlinuing to be there for our callers, helping us dolivor our vision that people die by suicide. You remain my inspiration, and the reason I want to c￿ntInUe to do my best to help us all achieve our aims. Thank you. P89&4d12 Annual Rèvw 202&2024 4. Branch Strategy Review Ewand rerruitment epwnun￿to 3th*ve90 Il#tniry lurrteefs bytr endof 2026. re<￿*th￿ree0ln 'Recn*thent team eApanded by 3. ° Twitterand SOci31 media is wKrEash¥￿TrnesS'B8Thther0n theou￿e of the buihlin8. *2 rttwu¥tmeTrtcaMpryr4 •4￿￿rkn￿thr0U8btheyearIndudlnZ tsfrtin8 Jbour recruftrnent InsLKtal ar￿)d*￿V201*V 'New bannersfDrwtreach ÈvÈnty "ZCrfJ3-24￿￿ hav23 nEw ohorts. 2 F2Fand I SamaritansTrnlnkn8 SchoDI.'15 no artefsthce March tsstyear. and another12 by yoar end.. Evw l*aV￿r￿￿ Coukl b•at8Oby yeaTend. "Eath bein8 r•¥***d & kncreased.to enabk m•ximum strethKth. andgJCttssTh and th& b aPws4)Nwr Oeldop and delfvera raweofoutreath Theteam nowha5 17fitllytrained Outsxch L￿trners. Fatots lacetAknif**05deknred by wrDDfOTtr￿in￿v￿th more P￿Tr￿ed. otherbrattcP￿haPpens at meetin45 apd, and vAth specT￿C t*ettorson rE&uJarEoom meetkng& RÈSearthtr* t[hrW3￿ o arÈ*ttetbdm￿th•Che5lMre5h0wkn ¢vnjunctk•n W*rTi¥toTr and Che5ttrhr3nches*thkhwW (TrvohethÈtsnntn£ toihmunthf. other01¥an￿a1￿￿kgNing u5manyopDrtvnfapsto ￿¥th the b)talcofftmunSly.' Wehavesetured pLxes h) 2seniDrxhooL% there￿ar&o￿theCUTrlCUk1rn foryear9andabo¥& Rudheaih & Knutsford. Atso undertaken *¥>¢kshpps￿ Pttty Pool aTM(atiDTral rolegetot Youni Adukswlth karnln8 dNIku￿. was¥ery5uccessfvL *W* then'5group5andlwthl thbs*rtd ve k>okKTrz anygroup5 who cotsk1 beTrofftfromta&s. •WèaTr in contact n¢)wwryth bxalSul£NlePrEvention8fOIIP5 Id Secu￿ knfrrfmatk*n on h*h vbkgroups •+lave trtad * ￿ rninute knradxj inter¥lewon Ilorthwkh Radk> l are hopkn8to beon otherkxal stat￿n$s0on. 'We attactivety bo*AigfortomrNnty champknn4 notonty conjunttion with gur 60th but ongolng. iisk8WXintsiks*rrfe5S inswal Inve5ti8ateand iMp￿ment n*•0 approache5 to fundr•5ingand fin￿r￿[s￿rIty. ¥ 5wrain3ile 'PrDiettfund rai*g Shand￿ ¥eryt8pab￿ byoLErtreasurerin CWinKfvndrnth8 forbrnnth COSE5 has¥arfousathlt*5 thruuth0uttheytor￿ ￿*￿t￿)nsand ewetyi& I now ha¥0¥ rewtth Truddy'to h*fo¢v50n a8reed tsr¥ets and a re8¥lar meetlngs vAh an infver*lialfundratsevs. • £60 lorUIVÈar5 initiJ*Neattd tsffipjtsrted Aprl tst 'Target &£2Ok peryear. Targetfor'£60for6Ovears' i*>£6t￿. Raflk 14£SK By baDd e4ent £ZL and I wm trrEeUn8 £15k-£2 from k*al bU51r￿ fu•der& andwEatthYalbu(th PEOPk. 'We are ¢ontsctwlth many ofthe bu5kne55¢saDd funders IromthLstheaThd kncMI can 50mesupport trr Av*etstoenat4e use ffr￿n specificno&ts. Send rerywrthr riihts 5tktegyvJithr4wce Continueto pursue thedelNeryofthe core night hours servK& 4SuCt￿lIur rneetinÉs he￿, CurrÈnty achievin£ a minirnum of A0%of$erv￿*trn￿J5 pernath1na1￿Utr*￿rtt Imeetkngs he Hdd a rO￿k 'We have a N¥htRots Secretary spocllkaHyawned'We now have a Nt8htCtr*ktpam of 24¥0￿n￿&s￿￿Eand happy to do nWsa5¥4*1 ￿0th•rSh￿ *JhatsApp &o¥p5&tUP tr*¥d commvnKation too. Working wpll. Compkn the building repairand 'Bu￿A¥￿￿1kSDMP1È￿4 ￿¢te55￿1￿hIVin8 Tatsed £4((L¥J thywhurnntsand donaUonL ThÈTIW￿5Wer￿￿rnpletÈd with arrfJty•Yr*. Pag95d12 AmuaS Rwi 2023-2Q4 5. Treasurer's Report The Trustees have approved the Arx¥)unts the year ended 31 March 2024 on 2W July 2024 and these are attached for reference. As we all know, there were signtficant costs in the yearfor building ar)d refurbishment v￿rk. In total the building repairs inclLKling surveyors and architects fees. and excluding refurbishmenc amounted to just under £42,000. We are extremely grateful that so much ofthis cosl was covered by generous donations from various organisations and individuals. Although some of these donations were re￿iVed in the prior y8ar, most of the cost fell in this current financial year. Therefore. although we had a surplus of receipts over expenditure last year of £14,407, as expected in the current year, we have an eX￿SS of expenditure over receipts of£32,571. However, wtth G9sh reserves on hand of £40.000 at the year end, the branch is secure and financially viable for the f(weseeable future. After a vote at last yeaffs AGM, the Trustees agreed that Chris Jeffries. an accountant and voluntser at stockport Branch, should be our Independent Examiner tor the March 2024 financial year. Chns has confirmed that there are no matters of COn￿M to be reported from his review of the Ae£x)unts. Thank you, Chris, for perfomiing this Examination for us. We really appreciate your suprort. With regards to our incorne, thanks are due to everyone who has helped raise an ama￿ng £34,000 in the year including Diana who organised another Brg Band concert to entertain many of you and your friends. Everyone who took part in the Samarathon sponsorship when volunteers vRlked. ran. or cycled the equivalent of 26 miles during Juty. Our 100 Club also continues to contribute towards our income. some winners donating back their £20 pnze. Currentiy we have around 60 m￿nbers, but we are always on the lookout for more. Only £12 a year. for £20 monthly prizes and extra in De￿Mber. Those families who. when their Iov8d one has died, ask for donati￿ to be given to us in their memory. All indNidual donations. whether regular or one-off. Those who do their intemet shopping via ww.easytundra1slng.(￿ and help to boost ourfunds. Those donations from kKal organisations. churc*es and businesses whose generosity is so muc* appreciated. Anyone who is in a [￿lt[On to Grfl Aid thair donation. As always. we are so very gratefijl to everyone who has donated so generously. With regards to expenditure: These are Receipts and Payments accounts and therefore inc¢)me and c4Jsts are accounted for on the date they are paidlrecetved (not the year they relate to e.g. Insurance for both 2023 and 2024 {£2.391) was patd in the year, and both the 2023 and 2024 Grants were received for our Prison work in Thom Crrjss (£4,179). Regarding our expenditure we hava ¢x)ntinued to upgrade. repair. and refU￿rsh our propety using restricted and unrestricted funds. Through careful monitoring we have managed to keep our fuel, telephone. and photocopying costs under control. Changes in broadband and telephone needs nationally have meant v have had to repla￿lchange telephones and providers. The National Branch contr1but￿n (NBC) ￿ the money we pay yearly to Central Charity which is based on our income, expendrture. and reserves. Thanks. as always. to all who helped. pleaded. donated, participated and organised. Finally. after many years as your Tre8surer I have decided to hand over that job to Bernice. I will now be her deputy. You are in very gocrfl hands - she is very organised. a trained acc(xJntanl and knows what she is doing. Prfo6cI12 6. Financial Statement (HARITY (OMMISSION FOR EIWND AND WAL Receipts and payments ac¢ounts CC16a Section A Receipts and paymènts lunds Tolalfvnds L4EtV•ar A1 R•c 17* ST4 ST4 2.OJl 426 10.K¥) 2&115 L* 1.100 451 12Z 121 139 No￿rE*l&*d Bu 747 2) 715 IWT 152 Pffje7c¢12 R￿￿￿202￿2024 6. Financial Statement (cont'd) Section 8 Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period End(W￿èrtt r•J• 21 EnduhTTrMt B5 C()LES Page8￿12 RevEw2W2&2024 7. Thank You Samaritans of Mid Cheshire must thank .... . all our donors Including.. Those who give us donations (regular and on&offj. Those families who. when their loved one has died. ask for donations to be gtven to us in th84r memcKy. Those who have supp(Kted us for our fiJNJ raising events- Fish Lip Soup Big Band Concert. Those 100 Club m￿nberS who take a bit of a gamble while giving us money. Those who do their intemet shopping via WV•W.easyfundrar5ing.org and help to boost our fijnds. Those who sponsored c¥Jr volunleers wthen they ran, walked, or Gycled in aid of our Branth. Those people who put morey in our tins when we do a street collection. Those kn have responded to newspaper 8rb.des and 0th8r appeals. rth apolog￿8 to anyone I mwht have missgd. .and: Knutsford Bowling Club. Nodey Methodist Church. Knutsford and District LIC￿ Club. Bamton Memorial Hall. Northwich Rotary Club. Cheshire Freemasons. Jim Martin Family Trust. Brian Wilson ChaFitable Trust. Paw9d12 8. Health & Safety and Building Report What's happened at the Centre - 1 April 2023 to 30 June 2024.. 1. The followtng items have been servi(*d by varKJus extemal contractors.. Gas boiler and radiators Fire exllnguishers Fire alarm annual and interim serV￿S Emergency lighting Legionella risk aSsessM￿t 2. The following poliaeslrisk assessments have been developed (K rewewed and updated: Health & Safety policy Fire risk assessment First aid risk assessment Pregnant workerlnew mother risk assessment Fire Safety policy 3. First Aid6r5 idents'fied- details in the Centre. 4. Annual H&S Checklist completed Central Office. 5. Branch Risk Register review&J. simplrfied and updated. 6. Fire awa￿neSS training presentation and ￿de0 develoFed arKI cascaded to all volunteern. 7. New light fftttng installed at the top of th8 ￿lIar stsirs. 8. Ladder safety c￿e￿[St developed. 9. Legionella awareness training for Director and Branth Se￿etary. 10. Other smaller wues that have been identified and rectified include.. Lights have all been s(Kted and are w0￿1ng A light has been installed above the outside sign 2 spotlights near the kitchenll)athroom A robust chain installed on the front d(N Downstairs toilet door Icth replaced New battery pack in the fire alami syst Bags for storing headsets Central offi￿ health and safety dcKuments reviewed against Branch dclwments Replacement chairs for the Ops room purchased Zone map installed near the fire alarm panel Items to be arrangedlactioned: PAT testing Fire warden training Upstsirs kEithen flooring joists Page 10 0112 Building Refurbishment Works We were replacing the building's extemal render in late July 2022 a￿1, with the old render removed, discovered that the underfying brickwork was severely distressed with the gable end bulging and areas of the front and rear facades with cracked and non-existent mortar - the re￿Ier wotks could not continue. Folh)wing three months of aL￿rtIVe claims against our lyjilding insurance, we commissioned architect Harry Kennedy wth engineer Peter Hewitt to design the remedial works, which was carried out over the winter and completed. with all contratt documentstion. in February 2023. The insurers. loss adjuster5 had identified the cause as wntinuing settlement of the gable wall which had no effective foundation, and had indicated that the solution almost certainly lay in propping up the roof while removing and rebuilding the brtd(work wtth a new foundation along the gable wall. However, Peter Hewitt estsblished that the crittcal settlement had stopped and future gable settlement If any. would be minimal. The existing distorted brickwork could be reinforced with steel rods and pressure-injected mortar. tying the gable back to the rest of the buildirKJ and leaving it with the ability to accommodate any future vertical rnovement. This solution removed the need to support the rcof while suppo￿"ng brickwork was replaced, making a signifioxnl cost Savings and allowing the building to be used Samaritans. activrties throughout the refvrbishment pericmy. The contracl was awarded to our lowest tenderer, Bill Timperley Builders of Northwich, who started work at the end of May and achieved Practical Completion on 14 August 2023 wtth all latent defects remedied before the end of the year. Across ￿ financial years, the total final cost ofthe refurbishmerrt works was £42,000, of which £6,000 was spent on design, documentstion and supervision. and £36,C￿0 on the constructs'on contract. P•Ja11 c112 Re￿2[r￿&2024 9. Trustees The following individuals have served as Trustees for Samaritans of Mid Cheshire: Trustee Name Judi Boardman (410) Diana Brown (301) Peler Burke {200) Andrew Clarke {353) Susan Colgs {260) Annie Mills (431) John Munnery (490) Jani￿ Scaplehom (456) Ron McLaverty (346) Bernice Philps1508) viill be nominat8d at the 2024 AGM. Position Secretary (from 0110112022) Dates servod From April 2017 From May 2018 From August 2020 From April 2017 From Apnl 2017 From June 2022 From June 2019 From April 2017 From July 2023 Treasurer Director The role of Trustee is advertised to the Branch in the iwo months prior to 8n AGM. Volunteers are invited to stsnd to be elected at tha AGM. As the ConstitLrtion there will be a minimum of three Trustees and a Ma￿muM of thirteen. P4ge 12 of 12 Ravvw 2W23-2024 We're here to listen Call free doy or nlght on 116 123 Emall Jo@samaritan&org Web samarltan&org/midcheshlre Ww5it us 1 Manchester Road Northwich CW9 SLY SAMARITANS CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND ANO WALES Receipts and payments accounts CC16a To Section A Receipts and payments 31nW2024 Uthregtnct Re¥trictpd Endowmtnt funds TotalfvTrds L•9t>*ar A1 R8¢è1 IDtho 11.385 4BS 1.062 13.040 375 4179 376 171 IOOClvb co*e 574 aB 816 670 074 1M24 916 1,62 Sub lots1(G￿&S k)rAR) A2Ass•t and Investh*nt ts•h8,1¥80 tabl•. 10.9 io. 35.116 15284 34016 4D15 rnonts HDU5eke8p￿g & Ref￿hrne 88T F￿dIal C09ts 1￿5 1.Y41 1,150 451 1.U75 V(thnteeisUPPM 208 122 2291 Sun¢nes 278 Prison•wse8 14ffi.resirKted Buil￿1 NorpEstncted O r(w lefvr￿S￿rr￿ftts Con￿b￿b￿tO¢tssts 472 6,J37 1,127 6J37 SeeA*riur 747 6,28 2.126 2.021 2J16 2M16 39A46 A4Atsot aftd Inv8stsn•rt 29.715 39,446 2171 .871 39,446 AS Transfer8 lun¢lJ A6 Cash funds lastyear en 26.•71 25,971 72,5 58.152 72,5S9 CCXK R1 *1￿