TONBRIDGE WELCOMES REFUGEES ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS FOR YEAR 1ST APRIL 2021 TO 31ST MARCH 2022 TONBRIDGE WELCOMES REFUGEES chartty number 1173758 TONBRIDGE WEI foMES REFUGEES Trust8és' Annual Report for the Flnancial Year from 1 St April 2021 to 31 gt March 2022 Reference and adminlstratlon detall$ Tonbndge Welcomes Refugees clo Bums & Co 2a Bank Street Tonbridge TN9 1BL Registered charity number: 1173758 Trustees: Jane Blessley (Chair) Termls) of offic6'. January 2019-January 2022 and January 2022- July 2017- July 2020. July 2020 - January 2020- December 2018- December 2021 and January 2022- Ruth Connelly Jan Lloyd Nicky McGr6gor Lee Mead (Treasurer) Fiona O'Brien August 2020 - July 2017 - July 2020, July 2020 - Stru¢ture, governance and management Tonbridge Welcomes Refugees was registered with the Charity Commission as a CIO {Charitable Incorporated Organisation} on 11 July 2017. Our governing document is our conslitullon (foundation mod81)_ AppointmÈnt of trustees The charity's first trustees were Johanna Elderfield, Fiona O'Brien and Ruth Connèlly {sèrvin9 from July 2017 for an initial period of three years). Subsvqueiil trustees are appointed by a resolution passed al a properly convened meeting of the charity's trustees for a tenn of three years. Nicky McGregor was formally appointed a trustee al the AGM on 11, De￿mber 2018. Jane 8lessley was appointed trustee al a trustees, meeting on 17th January 2019. Jan Lloyd was appointed as truslee in January 2020 and Lee Mead became trustee and Treasurer in August 2020. Fiona O'Brien and Ruth Connelly were reapwinted trustees in July 2020. Nicky McGregor and Jane Blessley were reappointed trustees on 6 January 2022. Oblectlves and Actlvltles Our charity's objects, as set out in our constitution. are as follows: 1. For the relief of those granted refugee stalus and Iheir dependants, or those seeking asylum living Ilemporarily or permanently} in Kent. The relief of financial hardship., The preseNation and protection of their physical and mental health., The advancement of their education and training so as to advance th6m in life and assist Ihem to adapt within a new community. 2. To advance the educatFon of the public in general about the rights and needs of refugees and asylum se6kèrs. Overvlew- TWR'S oblectlve 1 to provlde rellef for refugees. Most of the refvgees supported by the charity have reached the UK under one of the Government's Resettlement Schemes. At 31 st March 2022, Tonbridge Welcomes Refugees was suwx)rting ten families living in Tonbridge and Malling and Maidstone who had arrived under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons, Resethement Scheme ISVPRS) and its r8plac8mént, the UK Resettlement Scheme 2021 IUKRSI. 9 families w6r8 from Syria and a further one from Sudan. The charity also supported o Syrian families who had claimed aS￿uM and a further Syrian family who had reach8d the end of the five-year p8riod und8r the SVPRS and had iThJefinite leave to remain. Two Afghan families arrived in Tonbridge and Malling and Maidstone {in De￿mber 2021 and February 2022} who had been evacuated from Afghanistan under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy 2021 (ARAP). At 318t March 2022, the totsl number of individuals supported was 75. TWR works closely with Kent County Council and Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council ITMBCI and slaff from KCC'S appointed social care provider, Clarion, lo support relugees resettled under the SVPRS, the UKRS and the ARAP in our area of Kent. As Maidstone does not have a Welcomes Refugees Group, we have a group of volunteers working lo support families within the Maidstone Borough Council area. Our Maldstone volunteers also work wrth some of our bVPRS familiès in TMBC, as sometimes their location is closer to Maidstone. The Maidstone team of volunteers complete their DBS with us. We also work very closely with our sister charities. Tunbridge Wells Welcomes Refugees and Sevenoaks Welcomes Refugees. Support provided Befr4ending. Each reftjgee family is assigned a small leam of volunteers io assist th8n7 on ai i ivol. Wliilst the Glarion Suppon Officers manage applications to schools, to GP registers, to the Home Office and lo th6 DWP for benefits, Ihe volunteèr teams make welcoming and befriending visits. The support is tailor-made to the family, bul often includes such matters as explaining the transport services locally, explaining how the NHS operates or the refuse and recycling system. Families are often taken out lo visit local attractions or lo be shown the shopping facilities. Befriending volunteers can appeal by means of WhatsApp groups for household items needed by the families or apply to the trustees for funding for an item. if a suitable donation cannot be found. English teaching. In addition to befriending support, there 1$ an experienced and dedicated team of leachers who supplèment the English lessons provided under the various resettlement schemes by local adult education providers. Often the small group leaching or individual coaching TWR providés is more successful, especially with those who have limited experiencè of èducation or who are illiterate in their first lanGL&ag&. At 31st March 2022. most adult teaching was happening online. using laptop computers provided wtth grants to TWR. However, some was tsking place in P8rson and volunteers wer8 once again golng in to provide support in schools, both primary and secondary. This scho()I support is especially important as many children are placed straight into mainstream class8s where théy ar8 unable to aC￿sS the ¢urriculum because their English is so weak. Soclal SupporL The charity nornally trfes to organise social gatherings and events, but the pandemic lockdowns and restrictions on gatherings in Spring 2021 meant that the usual Eid Picnic could nol be held. The trustee5 reviewed th8 feasibility of gatherings on a number of occasions, but concluded that since many of the refugees have complex medical conditions. it would be wise to wait until the risks of infection subside(l. In the meantime, volunteers kept contact with refugee families 8ither remotely or by doorstep or garden meetings or socially dlslanced coffees. Some family teams arranged out door visils to Hastings or the Hop Farm for their families. Howev8r. in March 2022, the truslees decided il would be possible to hold a celebrallon of th8 Afghanllranian New Year at Now Ruz. 20th March. The ne%My arrived Afghan families in Sevenoaks. Tonbridge and Malling, Tunbridge Wells and Maidstone were invited and brought to Tonbridge where celebratory r6freshments were provided as well as activities for the children- art and craft and a seed planting activity. The trustèes had planning underway to celebrate Eid with the usual picnic in May 2022. Transport. 11 Is often difficult for the chanry's ben8ficiarbes to get to meuical or dentsl appointments or to social galhèrings held by the charty by using public transport. TWR maintains a WhatsApp group of vnliJntAArq whn AfA willing to provide lifts for these appointments or occasions. The charity dso provides bicycles and re18ted safety equipment for beneficiaries ￿ere this És needed and, for some beneficiaries, the Irustèes have agreed to provide some assistance to fund driving lessons. This is so expensive that it has been limited to cases where the beneficiary needs to drive in order to work or where the beneficiary is already a driv8r and only needs a few r8fr8sh6r dassès to enable a UK driving test to bè taken. Overvlew- objectlve 2 to advance the educatlon of the publlc about the posltlon and needs of refugees and asylum soekèrs In summer 2021. TWR started to participate in events once again. The following opportunrties were taken to publicis8 th8 plight of refug88s and asylum seekers in the months up to 3181 March 2022: In August 2021, TWR had a stall at Tonbridge Calling on the theme of'what would yrAJ tAka?' ThA Aim w8.8 tn m8k• thè choices faced by r8fugaes real to the public. The event coinc¢ded with the fall of Kabul to the Taliban and the activty require(I people to decide what they would takelleave. It8ms were displayed to make the choices more real. 11 initiated some touching conversations with adults and children. There was a photographic display showing the meagre belongings that many refugees left their homes carrying. In September 2021. the Dragon Boat Races again provided an opportunity to engage with the public and infomi them about our work in addition to ts primary purpose of fijnd raising. In October 2021, the Chair made a presentation to the congregation at Tonbridge Parish Church about the work of the charity and wrote an artide for the December 2021 Parish Church magazine, Perspoctiv8s. In early 2022, a trustee made a presentation to the congregation at St. Stèphen's church. In earty 2022, a trustse made a presentation at Hillview School for Gitls about thè lrfe of a refvgee. A further assembly was led by two trustees at Sussex Road Primary School The Chair was invited to the FEAST Food Larder with one of our beneficiaries to explain the requirements for a halal diet so the Larder could more effectively stock for refugees suffering hardship. The Chair and several volunteers were involved in a campaign with Citizens, UK to persuade MPS to support an initiative to r8gularise the position of undocumented migrants. The aim is to protect them from modem slavery and exploitation and allow them to take a proper place in the workforGe benefiting from the protection of employment laws. It provides a societal benefit loo b¢Gau$e of tsx and National Insurance payments and by fillin9 jobs in tho¥• S8Ctors now suffering manpower shortages, such as agricu￿ur8 or car8 sectors. Manag¢mfrnt and day to day runnlng of the charlty The Trustees nomially hold a monthly trust68s' meeting and in this financial year these were online. Three or fovrtimes a year, there is an Open Meeting forlhe charity's supporters and again these were online. Reports of the charity's activities were given and supporters invited to ask questions. In months where there is an Open m8ellng. a truste8s' me8ting Is not always hèld. The AGM was held on 7th December 2021 online. There are no employaes and all the support given to beneficiaries and the administration of the Charity is carried out by volunteers. Volunte8rs can reclaim expenses and a mileage allowance, but many volunteers simply carry those expenses themselves. There were six trvstees at the 31Èt MarGh 2022. In addltlon. Ihere were approxlmately 65 volunteers including trusteès and further supporters and donors of household items. Any voluntsyer who hes direct ¢ontaet with rafiJg•o familie$ through befriending. teaching or giving lifts follows a recruitment process involving an application fomi, an interview with two trustees and thè taking up of r6ferenc8S. They musl also have an enhanced DBS certificats to cover both vulneratsle a¢Jults and children and agree to the confidentialty, dats proteclion and safeguarding poIiGios. Family teams deal directly with Ihe beneficiary families, but report regularty to the trusteas on what is needed. The tsvo teaching cwrdinators also report back to the trustees on a regular basis. This is made easier because many of the trustees are themselves on family teams or are teachèrs. Thanks to a grant from KCC to provide safeguarding training, volunteers who work closely wrth families were placed on online safeguarding courses to cover the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults and the Safeguarding Lead and her deputies took further additional courses. Not all these were completed by 31 $1 March, but in many cases they had been. Finanual Revlew for the year ended 31st March 2022. Thè Accounts are attached and show net Income of £31.153.87. Of this, £29. 098.91 was from donations, including proceeds from the Dragon Boat Race, some large individual donations and £2000 in grant income. Some of these donations were to a restrlcted fund to pay for a student's universty faes. The Charity's running costs amounted to £1611.35. This represents a payment of £1170.00 to pay for safeguarding training for all volunteers who were actively involved with refugees as befrienders or teachers. £215.04 was paKI as an insurance premium for the charity's public liability insurance. This leaves administrative cost$ at £226. 31 and shows thè trustees, focus on efficièncy. A total of £6026.78 was paid direct to, or for the benefit of. refugees as res8ttlement costs. This included payments for IT equipment and fijnding broadband, payments for driving lessons, as5isiance for paying household bills. dothes. fumitur8 and travel o$ts for such thin98 as Family or Young Pèrson Railcard$. £440 was paid for r.liJbs and activities for school children and £385 for educational re￿urCeS as part of the Enolish teachirvJ programme. This was not a normal year bècause of the effects of the pandemic and expènditure on activities for children and on teaching resources would usually be higher. The trust88s of TWR reviewed the procedures for making payments in February 2022 to ensure that the charity's funds were safeguarded. Every payment made from the bank account must be second authorbsed by one of three trustees after the payment is input by the Treasurer. A trustee may authorise expènditure up to £50, but atjove £50 a second trustee must agree in advance. TWR does not have any outstanding guarantees to any other person or organisation. It does not havo any dobtg secured by ¥ charge on property. None of the trustees or persons related to them receive remuneration in any fom and there are no transactions with any trustee or related parties. The trustses aim to retain a reserve of six months, average expenditure in th8 bank and this was adhered to in th8 fmancial year 1st April 2021 to 3151 March 2022. Achievements and Perfomiance 1. Despite the conllnuing restrictions necessitated by the pandemic, TWR maintained its record of support to refugoes arriving in Tonbridge and Malling and Maidstone sourcing or purchasing household items, dothing and shoes, bicydes and safety equipment and issuing hardship payments in cases of need. 2. Voluntsers kept in touch with families through phone calls, WhatsApp messages and (when pemiitted under Covid regulations) by doorstep or socially distanced visits. They offered lifts for important medical appointments and made vaccination appointmènts for their beneficiaries and gave lifts to those appointments. 3. The adult and school teaching teams continued teaching by adapting to teach online when that was necessary or by returning to the school environment as soon as they reopened. 4. Despite anxieties about the effect of the pandemic on fundraising, TWR was successful in increasing its funding for the tinancial year Dy a cornblnatiuii ur record prO￿edS at the Dragon Boat Race, the kindness of regular donors and grant in¢ome. Strategic Aims at 3151 March 2022. To continue welcoming refugee families. induding through our befriending and English programmes. To support refugees with educational and vocational courses To m8intain a hardship fund for families struggling financially To 8ncourage famllies to $8t and athieve their own goals. encouraging self sufficiency To $har8 m￿e responsibility Wlth family teams and other vdunteers This report was approved by the trusteas at a meeting on 1 St December 2022 and signed on their behalf by Chair of Trustees ## ## CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND A14D WALES '.1$}￿lI￿V3 Receipts and payments accounts CC16a To 3110312tr Section A Recelpts and payrnents Unf•$trictsd Reslrxt•d Endowrwt A1 Ret• 26JJ72 4.027 $6 3,000 7162 uLwrgr&i 4￿21 47T t>aDts Sub fDl•l(Gns5 income tr AR) 31,164 19,62 21A4B A2Itssetw￿ in¥•slmEnt Sub k*>lal 21,118 9.$06 31.114 79.520 RUnt￿r¥j costs Re•Jgee swort 8￿28 440 383 13 J12 Suo lOt•i 14.7 A4P&set*￿ invesiTrnt s•• labl• Sub B,464 8A64 14,72¥ 13,184 C*1 fiir¥Js l•st ￿•r •nd Cash fund¥ th18 yearend 12,122 34812 24,236 10.57 12.122 Section B Statement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period UnYÈstricl¢d Restrithd End(Ywrnnt fu￿ fund5 CAeguties B1 Catyh tsnds Totdc•sh funds 24.236 10,576 fu￿ l)e14ils tr•nBar•*t£ Del*l* Oetsils 84As$èts retalned fforlh• ch•iiV• own BS Llabl*