## Uttlesford Foodbank Annual Report and Statement of Accounts 20242025 Registered Charity Number 1176230 Registered in England and Wales ## **Contents** **Trustees’ Report – pages 1-2** **Operational Report – pages 3-5 Treasurer’s Report – page 6 Statement of Accounts – pages 7-10 Independent Examiner’s Report – page 11** **“We provide emergency food and practical support to people in their hardest moments. We also work with partners and local communities to ensure everyone gets the right help long before they need a food bank”** Uttlesford Foodbank (Registered Charity Number 1176230) Registered in England and Wales 1 ## **Trustees’ Report** Uttlesford Foodbank’s objective is to relieve persons in Uttlesford and the surrounding area who are in financial hardship in such ways as the Trustees from time to time think fit by: - Providing emergency food, essential toiletries, and household items to individuals and families in need and/or for distribution by charities or other organisations working to prevent or relieve poverty - Such other means, including (but not limited to) the provision of support or signposting to relevant information and/or referral to other support services. We achieve this by distributing parcels containing food and other essential items to last, on average, seven days. We also distribute food vouchers either to augment the food parcels provided or to provide immediate relief to those individuals identified as being in urgent need of support. During this financial year we have expanded our approach to include the provision of tailored advice and guidance. The Trustees have due regard to the Charity Commission’s guidance on public benefit and are confident that we continue to meet these requirements. We do so by operating under the Trussell umbrella but as an independent charity. The names of trustees who served during the financial year and of those appointed since the year end are as follows: Gemma Copping Katherine Douch Jane Jones (resigned June 2024) Edward Middleton (appointed October 2025) Victoria Lockie (appointed January 2025) William Pike (appointed December 2024) Richard Porch (resigned October 2024) Robyn Rankin (appointed October 2025) James Shepherd (appointed October 2025) Sophie Storey To replace those trustees who left a wide search was conducted and appointments made in line with our trustee recruitment policy. This completes our programme of renewal of the Trustee Board. During this calendar year with the help of our new trustees we have also conducted a thorough review of our policies which have now largely been updated or rewritten. We are targeting completion of this process by the end of 2026. Through the last financial year and since the year end we have continued to provide food parcels to those in need and we have experienced increases in demand and some shortfalls in the level of food donations received. As usual, we used some of our financial reserves to purchase and fill the shortfall last year and we will do so again this year. Our reserves policy has been revised now to cover six months of operational costs and to retain funding for strategic projects. Whilst we have a reserves surplus at present, we shall need to work hard to maintain our financial reserves over time. Our longer-term strategy is to deliver all our services consistently across the whole Uttlesford District. As a Trussell food bank, we work in line with Trussell Trust processes, guidance and Uttlesford Foodbank (Registered Charity Number 1176230) Registered in England and Wales 2 strategic direction. We recognise that our facilities will require further development, and we have already set aside funds to support this. The Trussell Trust’s Strategic Plan is built on the understanding that food poverty stems from income inequality rather than a lack of food. As part of this shared mission, we are committed to enabling access to advocacy and specialist financial advice by providing funding for these services, ensuring our support reflects both local need and the wider strategy of the Trussell network. Providing services in line with the Trussell Strategic Plan will include continuing to adapt our operations, such as running campaigns and undertaking advocacy work within our community. We have also delivered a successful programme of funded financial advisory and support services for our clients. These initiatives have benefited from initial Trussell Trust grants, which enabled us to resource this work while still building a surplus by the end of the last financial year. Funding for our Financial Inclusion Officer from the Trussell Trust is expected to conclude in June 2026, after which we will need to support this service from our own resources, alongside ongoing development of our advocacy and campaigning activities. We do not expect to have a financial surplus in the current year. We are deeply grateful for the generosity of all those who donate food and money to the food bank. We receive food donations via supermarkets, schools, churches and via private donations. The people of Uttlesford have again demonstrated how caring they are and that support is fundamental to what we do. Some of our financial funding comes from local businesses and other organisations raise money for us. In these difficult and uncertain economic times, we very much appreciate all those who continue donations to us. We are working hard to try to avoid future financial shortfalls as we try to provide as complete a service as possible, and we need to undertake more active fund-raising to achieve that. Our small team of employed staff and our large team of volunteers do a fantastic job for us, keeping us operational and providing a valuable service to the local community throughout the year. Thankyou for all that you do. More information about how they do that is given in the Operational Review which follows. ## **The Trustee Board** Uttlesford Foodbank (Registered Charity Number 1176230) Registered in England and Wales 3 ## **Uttlesford Foodbank Annual Operational Report 2024-2025** ## **Executive Summary** The 2024-2025 year was marked by sustained high demand. We reopened the warehouse for client collections in April 2024 alongside deliveries, introducing a walk-in safeguard for urgent cases. Uptake has been modest, likely due to rural transport barriers, but the model strengthens signposting and client engagement. Volunteer commitment remained strong, with around 125 active volunteers supporting daily operations and seasonal peaks. We trained client-facing volunteers and ran appreciation activities to maintain morale. However, reduced donations led to occasional shift cancellations, posing a retention risk. Advocacy and partnerships advanced significantly: we used combined data to influence local decisions, helped shape the Mobile Community Supermarket, and launched the “I AM MORE” exhibit. Internally, we formalised the Operations Manager role, introduced monthly stats updates, held quarterly hub meet-ups, and achieved J9 Safe Space recognition. Looking ahead, priorities include stabilising supply, protecting volunteer engagement, deepening wrap-around support, and securing dedicated capacity for administration and fundraising. ## **1) Demand & Service Delivery** Cost-of-living pressures and inflation continued to drive need, with more parcels distributed. The warehouse reopened in April 2024 for client collections, fulfilling a key goal from last year. Footfall has been limited - likely due to rurality and transport costs - but on-site visits allow us to offer a hot drink, listen, and provide signposting similar to delivery follow-up calls. We introduced a walk-in procedure for clients without referrals, offering a 48-hour emergency parcel and an immediate Citizens Advice referral for further support. This ensures urgent needs are met while connecting clients to longer-term help. Client complexity increased, with longer booking calls and more safeguarding issues due the broader nature of the conversations. To strengthen wrap-around care, we created a client call-back role in the south to mirror provision in the north, ensuring follow-up and referrals for all clients. ## **2) Supply Chain & Inventory** Donation volumes increased from the previous year, which reduced the need for large quantities of stock to be purchased; those purchases that were made were to fill gaps in our inventory of staple items in our parcels. We continue to work hard on focusing our donations on items in need, updating our website, displaying new posters every two weeks at our donation points across the district and utilising/advertising the Bank The Food app which prompts the public that they are close to a donation point and what we are particularly in need of. Stock management remains disciplined, but tighter and more focused supply management will be a priority for 2025-2026. ## **3) Volunteers & Workforce** Volunteer numbers held steady at approximately 125, reflecting strong community commitment. Fifteen volunteers were trained for client-facing roles, ensuring coverage Monday to Friday. Volunteers also supported supermarket collections and Christmas hamper deliveries. Uttlesford Foodbank (Registered Charity Number 1176230) Registered in England and Wales 4 We promoted inclusion by involving volunteers with additional needs, offering placements for six Year 10 students, and hosting corporate teams for special events. Appreciation initiatives included individual thank-you letters, a summer tea party, and a 10th Anniversary celebration in November. Close coordination between Operations and the Volunteer Coordinator, plus flexible tasking and recognition, will be critical to sustaining engagement. ## **4) Partnerships, Advocacy & Outreach** We maintained a strong presence in local forums, including the Uttlesford Health & Wellbeing Board and Essex Children & Families Network. Our data-led advocacy combined food bank data with DWP StatXplore to produce packs for councillors and UDC officers, ensuring rural hardship informs planning and investment. Community projects included Cook Club sessions in Wimbish and recipe cards such as “Pulse Power” and “Potato Power” added to parcels. We collaborated with Touchpoint Foodshare on “Ham For Tea” and continued circulating the “Worrying About Money” leaflet district-wide. We helped steer £70k investment in a Mobile Community Supermarket, shaping its route of eight stops over two weeks. Nationally, we joined Trussell’s “Guarantee Our Essentials” Lobby Day at Parliament and launched the “I AM MORE” exhibit to challenge stigma and amplify lived experience. Engagement highlights included an October day-rave fundraiser and the 10th Anniversary event, which strengthened partner collaboration. Quarterly hub meet-ups and monthly statistics emails improved communication and transparency with our volunteers. ## **5) Client Triage & Financial Inclusion** There has been an increasing emphasis in the current year on ensuring our clients are listened to and provided with onward referral and signposting to other organisations who can help them address both the financial circumstances that led to their food bank referral, and any other issue that they may be experiencing concurrently, for example domestic abuse, mental health issues or addiction. The ultimate aim being a return to self-sustainability and wellbeing, This support is offered to clients who collect via trained volunteers, and on the phone either at the point of referral call back by our Operations Manager or as a follow up call from a trained volunteer. Many of our clients are facing significant debt issues which impacts their monthly outgoings and can also lead to insecure housing and poor mental health. We have continued to fund two part-time specialist debt caseworkers provided by Citizens Advice as part of a 3-year Financial Inclusion funding agreement with Trussell. This service is focused on current food bank clients and those at imminent risk of needing food bank support. This funding ends in June 2026. ## **6) Safeguarding & Safe Spaces** Longer and more in depth conversations with our clients has naturally resulted in a greater amount of safeguarding concerns; the safeguarding lead and deputy continue to follow these up with the relevant agencies. We continue to maintain up-to-date staff and volunteer safeguarding training. In June 2024, the Saffron Walden warehouse became a recognised J9 Safe Space after Alpha Vesta training. This provides a discreet environment for those affected by domestic abuse, with trained listeners, resources, and access to private phone calls. Uttlesford Foodbank (Registered Charity Number 1176230) Registered in England and Wales 5 ## **7) Priorities for 2025-2026** 1. Maintain supply through targeted fundraising and retail surplus partnerships. 2. Protect volunteer engagement with purposeful rotas and inclusive recruitment; develop further client engagement roles. 3. Maintaining our Financial Inclusion (debt casework) service 4. Scale client call-back model and strengthen referral and signposting pathways. 5. Continue data-led advocacy and monitor the impact of the newly launched Mobile Community Supermarket. 6. Secure admin and fundraising capacity to relieve operational bottlenecks. 7. Repeat high-impact volunteer engagement events and maintain monthly stats updates. ## **8) 25/26 Progress to Date** 1. We are anticipating an overall reduction in food donations this year, a trend that Trussell has been seeing across the country, and have been making regular purchases of stock. We are utilising the newly launched Affordable Food Hub to purchase low cost stock, partnering with other food banks to share bulk purchases and connecting with other local food providers such as the Country Food Trust to bolster stock. 2. We will be expanding our client engagement team as part of the development of our triage (signposting and referral) support. 3. We are currently reviewing the impact of Financial Inclusion over the duration of the 3-year agreement to take a view on maintaining the service, and if so, looking into funding options. 4. We are currently developing a new team of volunteers to follow up with all clients on the phone. This service and team will require a level of management and oversight that is unrealistic for our Operations Manager to undertake on a day-to-day basis and funding options for a part-time client support manager are underway. 5. Our Advocacy & Engagement Lead continues to communicate with local government, informing them of food bank statistics and developing a Data Task Group, bringing together representatives from the district council and local support organisations to share data to influence change and decision making. We attend services, such as the SOS Hubs (recently renamed Help Hubs) and either engage with or sit on various boards and subcommittees, for example the district council’s Health & Wellbeing Board. Regular attendance at the Community Supermarket schedule stops is ongoing. 6. Recruitment for a part-time fundraiser has commenced, we have launched our Corporate Sponsorship Scheme. 7. Volunteer numbers remain stable; 1 recognition event is planned for February ’26. Monthly stats emails continue and feedback has been unanimously positive from volunteers. Uttlesford Foodbank (Registered Charity Number 1176230) Registered in England and Wales 6 ## **Treasurer’s Report 2025 Accounts** From a financial perspective 2024/25 has been a satisfactory year for the food bank with gross income increasing by £90k and costs down by £6k resulting in a surplus for the year of £31k compared to a deficit of £65k in the previous year. Fund raising from all groups, Churches, Community Groups, Corporates and Individuals was higher as a result of better engagement. The Local Authority Grant of £28k in the year includes an amount of £16k due in 2023/24. We were also very fortunate that our grant from the Trussell Trust increased by £50k to an aggregate of £74k, although £67k of this was for Restricted purposes principally for the Financial Inclusion project. We are very grateful for all the support we receive from all our donors. Tight cost control, careful buying of food stocks and the fact that we have not had to undertake the warehouse repair work of £11k incurred in 2023/24 has enabled us to reduce costs in the year by £6k. The overall salary costs in the year increased by £20k reflecting the additional cost of our paid employees for the whole year. At the year-end our unrestricted cash reserves totalled £257k of which £125k is represented by our new reserves policy of 6 months expenses and £65k for strategic purposes. However, the level of our cash reserves need to be seen in the context of a probable deficit in the year 2025/26 as a result, primarily, of a forecast reduction in income. During the preparation of the accounts it was observed that the 2024 closing bank balance was understated by £3k. As a result an amended statement has been prepared with the revised figures of bank balances and expenses now shown in the comparative position in these accounts. Uttlesford Foodbank (Registered Charity Number 1176230) Registered in England and Wales CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGIAND AND WALES UIYe¥ford F¢)od Bank 1178230 Recei ts and pa ments accounts CC16a For the pedod 0110412024 3110312028 Section A Receipts and Unr•strict funds Re$thctè funds Entlowmwi lunds Total fvr L•*¢ y•¥ nv•rt¥t £ toth• A1 Rec•ipt$ Don&tk)n8 722 3,227 9.301 12,033 9.2YO Church 15S ,168 13.507 17,013 14,1170 16,7J8 14 70 17 J7 76 di¥￿￿all0 di¥￿Ual IRecu 0￿1 720 31.1S8 C￿n¢ Futldr&g Chanties Giftaid 1944 2,201 2201 J.1NJ 3,1ty) b•$ Lrta *rthrrfl T[Uss￿ trust iants 198 7.351 28,46D 74.252 14,800 14.854 Hlr• ol hall 4nd Hiieol hall and equipm&nt ht¢re* roceiv Addttlonil In¢om• (Fily C3fO Re(und8 Event8r ht 1,276 1376 2,0ty0 1100 refvnd Cai b￿t rElund Amaz(4n refund 160 10 Sub total(Gross income forAR) A2 As8el and investment aaleJ. (see tabl81. 147,353 246.019 IE6,793 Sub total 147,353 98,667 248￿19 1SS,793 Uttlesford Foodbank (Registered Charity Number 11762301 Registered in England and Wales 2Pa ts AdrnlnlBtratlw cost Misc. office expendrttsre Te*phon8 and Intwnel Pnnung. Postsge & Staicmery l.T Software HR C¢yJts 1278 J29 437 442 3378 32• 437 442 55 1Y J28 608 ts56 582 Renvmeotsng VenL InsLY3fK Warehou50 Equipmen¢ i Ropaw¥ Iklin ory￿e eqL¥pment Lttk ups hl and Theat 651 131 987 299 651 831 236 143 299 1.042 2.897 76 eaners 1697 76 776 36S Donatson QAnts P UDI￿eS rect rant paY￿￿Trts Fin*Ki41 InclusK)n Community Co(* pl￿•(1$ Projed prom 1.026 1,249 10.934 42.369 1.720 210 1,720 210 Cook C￿b St