OpenCharities

This text was generated using OCR and may contain errors. Check the original PDF to see the document submitted to the regulator.

2024-02-29-accounts

Annual report & accounts

The Board of Trustees present their annual report and accounts for the year 28/02/2023 to 29/02/2024

info@fromebirthtalk.org.uk 07399 356863

www.fromebirthtalk.org.uk

Welcome!

2023-2024 was yet another year of growth for Frome Birth Talk.

Demand for our services grew again, we raised an extra £37,000 on top of our National Lottery grant, and we had a couple of key staff changes.

We also started preparing and planning for when our National Lottery grant ends in 2025.

There is a lot more work left to do, but we are feeling optimistic and excited about the next stage of our development!

Jess Taylor Chair of Trustees

info@fromebirthtalk.org.uk 07399 356863 www.fromebirthtalk.org.uk

Table of contents

Aims, objective and 3 Safeguarding 17
activities
Our finances 17-18
What our service
users say		 4 Community fundraising 19-20
Our impact
5-7
Other highlights		 21
Groups and activities 8-10 Our governance and 22
organisational management
Our people:
Staff 11-12 Public benefit 22
Trustees
Counsellors		 12-15
16		 Risk management 23-24
Providing opportunities 16 Our future:
Vision, Mission & Goals		 25
to trainee counsellors Strategic aims 26

Aims, objective and activities

The objective of Frome Birth Talk is for the public benefit by the relief of sickness and the preservation of health of pregnant women and new parents in Frome and the surrounding area by the provision of a free counselling service and wellbeing events and activities.

In October 2023 a group of volunteers, staff, trustees and service users created our Vision, Mission and Goals for 20242027. Information about this can be found in the Our Future section on page 25 of this report.

3

What our service users say

We invite everyone who use our services to give qualitative feedback. Please see below for just some of the responses:

“I never knew that I could talk about how I felt and not feel judged or scared to open up. My counsellor was just incredible and helped me to understand my feelings and how there were all valid! I now miss being able to freely talk to someone in that safe space that she created.”

“It was a really positive experience for me. I would not have been able to access otherwise and am incredibly grateful for it.”

“After talking to someone, I felt my worries were heard and that my experiences were valid. I have felt less overwhelmed and anxious since completing the counselling too.”

“I am so happy Frome Birth Talk exists! Without it, I would have felt very lonely at a very difficult time. The service is excellent and invaluable .”

“You got me through the toughest stage of my life yet and helped me to get through the other side. I think had I not had the chance to speak and be listened to, we would have been in a very different situation . My counsellor was just incredible, and I couldn’t rate her highly enough! Thank you so much!”

4

Our impact: Counselling

We continued this year with a mixture of face-to-face and remote counselling, with an approximate percentage split of 65% in-person to 35% remote.

Remote 35% In person 65%

The number of new referrals we received was 116, with 26 referrals from returning clients – 142 in total.

Throughout the year, we were in a financial position to add extra sessions in order to keep 142 up with demand. Certain regular slots Referrals alternated between remote and in-person, usually based on client needs.

Towards the end of 2023 and into early 2024, we implemented a new registration process which will allow us to securely process and store new clients’ information.

Clients now fill out a Microsoft Form when registering with Frome Birth Talk, which has streamlined the referral process and means counsellors no longer need to take paper notes.

This will allow us to see at a glance exactly how many referrals we have received, as well as analyse this information to understand our clients’ circumstances better.

5

Our impact: Counselling

We request feedback from counselling clients via an online questionnaire at the end of their sessions.

Throughout this year:

100% said the counselling made a difference to their lives

97.5% of clients told us they were ‘very satisfied’ with the service they received

82% say they feel less anxious since having counselling with Frome Birth Talk

more 60% say they feel they are now able to be open about their feelings

54% say they feel hopeful about the future thanks to counselling

“I was in a very difficult place in my life, dealing with a lot of stress from many different areas and my counselling sessions helped me cope and have a more positive and optimistic mindset .”

6

Our impact: Counselling

To measure the impact of our counselling service, we use a clinically validated evaluation tool, Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation (CORE). Not only does this provide us with useful data about percentage improvements in client wellbeing, it also helps us practice safely and can help our counsellors recognise where there is a risk of harm and the need to involve other health professionals.

Improving the way in which we collect and analyse our CORE data has been a key strategic aim for us this year. In late 2023 we developed a new data input process for the CORE scores, which was implemented from the 1st January 2024.

Counsellors now input CORE data from both the start and end of their client’s counselling block into a Microsoft Form, which is securely saved within the Frome Birth Talk server. This now means all CORE data input is uniform no matter which counsellor the client saw, and the scores can be more easily analysed to look for trends, patterns and improvements.

We have 97 complete sets of CORE scores for people who used our counselling during 2023-24. Despite not using our new and improved data collection system until January 2024, all of these scores show some improvement following the last session, some by a very significant amount.

We are excited by the prospect of using more detailed CORE data in the future.

7

Groups and activities

Bump to Baby Group:

Our group for pregnant women and new parents continued to run on Wednesday mornings at Frome Community Hospital for the whole of 2023-24, with approx. 4-10 families attending each time. Our regular volunteer and retired midwife Sarah Hartley continued to facilitate the group. She was joined by Margaret Graham, a retired counsellor, in March

2023, then Dinah Smith in February 2024. They take turns running the group, with staff stepping in when they are away.

The group continues to be well attended, with parents reporting that it is a friendly and welcoming place to go. We organised several special events at the group throughout the year:

In January, Veronica from Restack Pilates ran a Pilates session. Most of the mums present took part while our volunteers kept an eye on their babies.

8

Groups and activities

Toddler Group:

Our Friday morning toddler group continued to run at Trinity Church Hall throughout 2023 with approximately 5-10 families attending each time, sometimes up to 20. Parents and children are provided with a safe, warm and fun place to relax and play, as well as free healthy snacks and hot drinks. Volunteers Leah Jones and Helen Curry continued to support the group and were joined towards the end of the year by Lisa Richards and Emma Metcalf. We are recruiting more volunteers to facilitate the group, as this will relieve pressure on paid staff.

We organised several special events to attract new people to the group during the year:

9

Groups and activities

Feedback from people who came to the group continued to be positive, but one of our priorities for this year is to attract more families to this Friday session.

During 2023-24 the toddler group was attended by 105 different families. Of those who attended, nine attended five times or more (including two who attended over 20 times). We continue to receive positive feedback:

“Frome Birth Talk toddlers' group is one of the most warm, welcoming groups I have been to. Everyone is super friendly, and my children both really enjoy coming here.”

Childrens’ Festival & Cheese Show: For the third year running we provided parent and baby spaces at Frome’s annual Children’s Festival and Cheese Show. These were safe spaces where parents could feed their children, enjoy a snack themselves or allow overwhelmed toddlers to meltdown in peace. The Cheese Show was held on the 9th September, the hottest day of the year, so we helped overheated families by providing shade and handing out lots of cold drinks and ice-cubes! Thank you to volunteers from Baby Connections for helping out in the space.

10

Our people: staff

All our trustees, staff and volunteers have either used our services, have lived experience of post-natal depression or baby-loss or are active within the community of young families in Frome.

Staff:

Suzy Cristinacce was contracted to work 10 hours a week for Frome Birth Talk until June 2023, when, thanks to the support of the National Lottery, we were able to secure extra cost-ofliving funds to increase her hours to 14 per week. These hours were needed due to the increased demand for Suzy’s time during this period of growth for Frome Birth Talk.

Administrator/Counselling Coordinator:

Lucy Hill continued to co-ordinate our counselling service until April 2023, when she went on maternity leave. Her role was covered by Rebecka Mau, who had been shortlisted and interviewed during a previous recruitment process. Again, from June, extra cost-of-living funding from the National Lottery was used to increase her hours from 5 to 8. Despite this, we still needed to pay Rebecka for extra hours every month. Lucy Hill returned at the end of December.

Volunteer Coordinator:

This role was funded by grants from Frome Town Council and Somerset Community Foundation. Alice Caudle continued working 7 hours per week in this role until mid-September, when she left for a job that offered more hours.

11

Our people: staff

This role was left vacant until the beginning of November, when our new Volunteer Co-ordinator, Becky Newton, took over the role. Becky is also a Volunteer Co-ordinator for Dorothy House hospice.

It is worth noting that the salary and number of hours for all our employee roles are low given the amount of work and responsibility they involve. In order to ensure our organisation’s long-term sustainability, we will factor this in when creating our future fundraising strategies.

Our people: trustees

The voting members of the charity are the board of trustees, and their number must be no fewer than three and no more than twelve. The board seeks to meet the needs of Frome Birth Talk by recruiting and retaining trustees with relevant skills and expertise.

The trustees who served the whole period from 01/03/2023 to 29/02/2024 were:

12

Our people: trustees

13

New trustee appointments

Trustee resignations

Jessica Cornwell (resigned 18.11.23)

Fiona Willis (resigned 16.01.24)

Hayley Clements (resigned 18.04.24)

Thank you to all retiring trustees!

Fiona was one of Frome Birth Talk’s founding trustees and served for over seven years. She continues to work as a volunteer assisting with our social media and website.

14

Trustee payments

Rebecka Mau continues to do occasional paid work providing cover for our Counselling Co-ordinator role.

The trustees are satisfied that this is for the benefit of the charity as she was recruited in an open and fair manner before becoming a trustee and training someone else to take up this role would take more time and resources away from the organisation.

Rebecka does not contribute to discussion where there would be a conflict of interest e.g. discussion of staff pay.

Hanna Fisher was paid a small one-off fee for creating and delivering an organisational development day in April 2024.

The trustees were satisfied that this was for the benefit of the charity as the fee was a fraction of the usual fees charged by someone with Hanna's qualifications and experience, and Frome Birth Talk would not have been able to afford such an intervention otherwise.

“Becoming a parent, whether it’s for the first time or not, can be so exhausting and so overwhelming. I have two boys, and when they were tiny I really benefitted from Frome Birth Talk’s free groups. I’m now a volunteer trustee for the charity!” - Jess

15

Our people: counsellors

In 2023 we welcomed new student counsellor Lynne Gregory. Our counsellor Kat Cross (previously a student, then a volunteer counsellor) has now joined us as an ad-hoc paid counsellor for when demand peaks. We were also joined this year by experienced volunteer counsellor Sue Pollock. This is in addition to our existing qualified counsellors (Helen Enright, Jane Henderson, Tracy Creed and Amanda Falconer) and trainee counsellors (Melina Robinson, Lisa Beattie and Lucy Edwards).

This means at the end of February 2024 we had 10 counsellors providing 16 in-person and 12 remote sessions per week (28 sessions per week in total).

Providing opportunities to trainee counsellors

We now have four counsellors in training working for Frome Birth Talk. Counselling students must complete initial training before seeing clients, then accrue clinical hours for full professional registration. By using trainee counsellors, we can significantly increase the number of sessions we can offer, for the cost of professional supervision (provided in-house by our qualified counsellors) and mileage/travel costs.

Working with student counsellors also helps us build a team of qualified counsellors who know our organisation ready for increased demand.

16

Safeguarding

All staff, counsellors, trainee counsellors and volunteers have DBS checks, renewable every three years, organised and paid for by the charity. Safeguarding training has been provided for staff, counsellors and trustees and will be repeated every year.

We have a safeguarding children and vulnerable adults policy which is reviewed and ratified annually. Our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) is Karen Patrick. Our safeguarding procedure is backed up by a ‘due diligence’ process where any concerns not necessitating a full escalation are discussed with the DSL, recorded and stored in a password-protected folder.

Our finances

Financial sustainability

FBT has been sustained largely by grant funding from the National Lottery Communities Fund and other organisations during this financial period. Our National Lottery grant covers our core costs and will last for another year.

Our income during this financial period was £58,191 and our expenditure was £53,541. We aim to hold sufficient unrestricted reserves for three months’ expenditure, which is currently £13,385. We currently have £18,643 in unrestricted reserves.

17

Our finances

We consider Frome Birth Talk a going concern for the next twelve months because we will continue to receive core funding from the National Lottery Community Fund and fundraise before undertaking any additional activities not covered by this grant.

Grants

In 2023, we secured the following grants and large donations, totalling approximately £52,000:

“I found it incredibly helpful to have a space to process my birth and long-lasting physical impacts. And it was “guilt free” for me in the sense of being free for me and possible for my baby to be in the sessions too - at a time when she was too young for childcare and cash was tight for us .”

18

Community fundraising

Easter Egg Hunt:

This year we trialled an Egg Hunt over the two-week Easter holidays. This involved families donating a suggested amount of £5 for a clue sheet, which led them to different businesses in and around the

town centre, who were displaying a hand-made cardboard Easter egg in their window. Once families had found all the clues, they could take their sheet back to the Discover Frome office for a small prize, such as chocolate or craft materials.

Feedback from families was very positive and the 10 businesses were very happy to participate, as they saw the benefits of bringing more visitors into the town centre.

Alice’s Steps challenge Our Volunteer Co-ordinator Alice walked a million steps from June to September to raise money for us. She managed to complete the challenge just before leaving for her new job. She reported that it was fun and helped improve her wellbeing in many ways!

19

Community fundraising

Adam’s Snowden challenge For the second year running, local dad Adam Way undertook the Snowdon challenge for Frome Birth Talk.

This year, he managed an incredible five ascents in 24 hours and raised £191!

Vicky’s Yoga fundraiser

In September, yoga teacher Vicky Hall organised a family fundraiser event for Frome Birth, after benefitting from our services.

This involved a couple of family-friendly yoga classes and a raffle with some wonderful prizes. Altogether Vicky raised over £500 for us.

20

Other highlights

Make a Difference Awards

We were delighted to be shortlisted for BBC Somerset’s Make a Difference Awards, Community Group Award this year. The award ceremony at Haynes Motor Museum was hosted by BBC Points West’s Alex Lovell and BBC Radio Somerset Breakfast Show presenter Charlie Taylor. The aim of the awards is to shine a light on the everyday, unsung heroes who go that extra mile for others in their own community. As part of the process, Suzy was interviewed by Vernon from BBC Somerset. The interview can be heard here: https://on.soundcloud.com/gtzds

Frome Carnival

Staff, trustees and volunteers had great fun supporting midwives from Frome Birth Centre at the Frome Carnival in September. The theme was “Call the Midwife” so everyone dressed up in vintage outfits and danced along to old-fashioned tunes. It was lovely to be cheered on by so many familiar faces in the crowd and to promote our brilliant local birth centre! The event also raised £1,000 for Frome Birth Talk.

21

Our governance and organisational management

Frome Birth Talk (FBT) is a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO) established on 8th November 2017. The charity is governed by its CIO constitution.

The board of trustees met six times during the year ending 29th February 2024. Frome Birth Talk is not currently an organisational member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) but chooses to follow its Ethical Framework for Counselling and Psychotherapy guidelines, in line with our self-employed counsellors’ practice and that of the Bath College of Psychotherapy and Counselling (BCPC), for whom we are an agency for trainee counsellors on placement.

Public benefit

The board of trustees confirm they have had regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit and have complied with their duty under section 4 of the Charities Act 2011 when reviewing the charity’s aims and objectives; and in implementing current and planning future activities.

The Charities Act 2011 sets out 13 different aims which are recognised as charitable purposes, and Frome Birth Talk fits within the aim of the relief of sickness and preservation of health . We have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit when reviewing our aims and objectives and continue to be committed to providing all our services free of charge, although donations are welcomed.

22

Risk Management

Effective risk management is crucial for ensuring the ongoing success and stability of our charity. We have identified two primary risks that require continuous attention and proactive management:

1. Long-Term Financial Sustainability

Maintaining long-term financial sustainability is essential for our charity to continue providing valuable services and support to our beneficiaries. To address this risk, we are implementing several strategies:

23

Risk Management

2. Loss of Key Staff/Trustees

The dedication and expertise of our staff and trustees are integral to our charity’s success. To mitigate the risk associated with the loss of key personnel, we have established the following measures:

Succession Planning: We are developing a

comprehensive succession plan to ensure a smooth transition and continuity of leadership and critical roles within the organisation.

Professional Development: we are enhancing our

continuous professional development opportunities provided to staff and trustees to enhance their skills and capabilities, promoting job satisfaction and retention.

Volunteer Engagement: We are actively cultivating a strong network of volunteers who can provide support and potentially step into key roles as needed.

By implementing these risk management strategies, we are committed to safeguarding the future of our charity and continuing to fulfill our mission effectively.

24

Our future: Vision, Mission & Goals

In October 2023 a group of volunteers, staff, trustees and service users created our Vision, Mission and Goals for 2024-2027:

Vision Mission

Our vision is better mental health for everyone throughout pregnancy, birth and early parenthood

Our mission is to provide free therapeutic support for people living in the Frome area who are pregnant or have recently had or lost a baby

Values: We are

Respectful: we treat everyone with respect and dignity

Sustainable: we work in ways that are sustainable for individuals, our organisation, our community, and our planet

Connected: we remain rooted in our community whilst reaching out to individuals, organisations, and communities who share our passion

Safe: we create safe spaces, where everyone is protected from harm and enabled to thrive

Courageous: we honour the courage of people who reach out for help, and we are never afraid of rising to new challenges

25

Our strategic aims 2024-2027

Continually strengthen our foundations:

Continue to make a positive impact on mental health and wellbeing:

Work collaboratively with organisations and individuals who share our values:

Be inclusive and accessible:

Strengthen our communications:

26

Thank you for taking the time to read this report.

The next year will be pivotal for Frome Birth Talk as we continue to meet growing demand and strive towards sustainability. Please do get in touch if you would like to discuss any aspect of our work!

info@fromebirthtalk.org.uk 07399 356863 www.fromebirthtalk.org.uk

25

Frome Birth Talk 1175641 CC16a
Receipts andpayments accounts
For the period
from		 01/03/2023 To 29/02/2024
Section A Receipts and payments
A1 Receipts Unrestricted
funds
to the nearest £		 Restricted
funds
National
Lottery
Community
Fund - RC
South West
Region
to the nearest £		 Restricted
funds
Frome Town
Council
to the nearest £		 Restricted
funds
Somerset
Community
Foundation
to the nearest £		 Restricted
funds
LHC South
West
Community
Benefit Fund
to the nearest £		 Endowment
funds
to the nearest £		 Total funds
to the nearest £
Grants 22,500 21,000 5,988 5,000 - - 54,488 27,875
Donations 3,703 - - - - - 3,703 7,812
Fundraising - - - - - - - 567
-
 - - - - - - -
Sub total(Gross income for AR) 26,203 21,000 5,988 5,000 - - 58,191 36,254
A2 Asset and investment sales,
(see table).
- - - - - - -
-
 - - - - - - -
~~Sub total~~ - - - - - - - -
Total receipts
A3 Payments
26,203 21,000 5,988 5,000 - - 58,191 36,254

Counsellor Fees		 11,426 3,892 - 5,000 600 - 20,918 12,713
Student Supervision - 2,622 - - - - 2,622 2,240
Computer, Software, Admin and Consumables 604 - - - - 604 453
Salaries 2,000 14,011 2,939 1,011 - - 19,961 11,701
Printing& Marketing - 327 - - - - 327 472
Mileage and Travel - 1,446 - - - - 1,446 599
Training - 1,635 - - - - 1,635 2,097
Subscriptions 215 - - - - - 215 158
Activities 557 - - - - - 557 798
Mobile Phone 91 - - - - - 91 122
Insurance - 352 - - - - 352 351
Room Rental and Storage 2,493 - 1,920 - - - 4,413 4,003
Cost of Fundraising 50 - - - - 50 495
DBS Checks - - 259 - - - 259 444
**Sub total ** 17,437 24,286 5,118 6,011 600 - 53,451 36,646
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
17,437 24,286 5,118 6,011 600 - 53,451 36,646
8,766 - 3,286 870 - 1,011 - 600 - 4,739 - 392
- -
-
-
-		 - - -
9,877 6,571 3,210 1,011 600 - 21,269 21,661
18,643 3,286 4,080 - - - 26,008 21,269
1

CCXX R1 accounts (SS)

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
B4 Assets retained for the
charity’s own use
B2 Other monetary assets
B1 Cash funds		 Details Unrestricted
funds
to nearest £		 Restricted
funds
to nearest £		 Endowment
funds
to nearest £
Unrestricted Funds 18,643 - -
National Lottery - 3,286 -
Frome Town Council - 4,080 -
Details
Total cash funds
(agree balances with receipts and payments account(s))		 18,643 7,366 -
OK OK OK
Unrestricted
funds
to nearest £		 Restricted
funds
to nearest £		 Endowment
funds
to nearest £
- - -
- - -
- - -
- - -
Details Fund to which
asset belongs		 Cost (optional) Current value
(optional)
- -
- -
- -
- -
Details Fund to which
asset belongs		 Cost (optional) Current value
(optional)
Computer equipment
Unrestricted		 - 400
- -
- -
- -
Details Fund to which
liability relates		 Amount due
(optional)		 When due
(optional)
-
-
-
-

Signature		 Date of
approval
Jess Taylor 16/08/2024
Aaron Calver 16/08/2024

CCXX R2 accounts (SS)

16/08/2024

2

Independent examiner's report on the accounts

Section A Independent Examiner’s Report

Report to the trustees/ Charity Name Frome Birth Talk members of On accounts for the year 29 February 2024 Charity no 1175641 ended (if any) Set out on pages 1-2 (remember to include the page numbers of additional sheets)

I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity (“the Trust”) for the year ended 29 / 02 / 2024 .

Responsibilities and As the charity trustees of the Trust, you are responsible for the preparation basis of report of the accounts in accordance 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 carrying out my examination, I have followed the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(5)(b) of the Act.

Independent I have completed my examination. I confirm that no material matters have examiner's statement come to my attention (other than that disclosed below *) in connection with the examination which gives me cause to believe that in, any material respect:

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

Signed: Date: 28/8/2024 Name: Caroline Bee Relevant professional Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales qualification(s) or body (FCA) (if any): Address: 11 Cuckoo Walk Trowbridge Wiltshire BA147GG

1

October 2018

IER

Section B Disclosure Only complete if the examiner needs to highlight matters of concern (see CC32, Independent examination of charity accounts: directions and guidance for examiners). Give here brief details of None any items that the examiner wishes to disclose .

2

October 2018

IER