## **Oxford Paddlers For Life Annual report and financial statements for the year ending 30 March 2021 Registered Charity no 1178628** ## **Contents** ||**Page**| |---|---| |Charity details, structure, governance and management|2| |Charity overview|3| |Achievements and performance|3| |Membership|4| |Financial review|7| |Thank you!|17| |Looking ahead|17| Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 1 ## **Charity details for the year ended 31 March 2021** Charity Name: Oxford Paddlers For Life Charity registration number: 1178628 Company registration number: 1032145 Website: www.oxfordpfl.org Registered Office: 56 Coniston Avenue, Headington, Oxford, OX3 0AW ## **Structure, governance and management** ## **Trustees:** Anne-Marie Haigh - Chair Lyndsey Miles - Treasurer Sonia Ambrose - Trustee Trustees are voted from within the club. The management structure comprises 3 trustees, with preferably at least 2 of whom should have had cancer in order to perpetuate the ethos of meeting the needs of a club for those with a lived experience of cancer. As per the constitution and as recommended by the Charity Commission, at every AGM one trustee is elected or re-elected. This time it is the turn of Sonia Ambrose. ## **Sonia Ambrose Trustee re-election statement:** Since joining Oxford Paddlers’s for Life in March 2019, I have gained so much on a personal level. It has been my first water sports after a life of fearing water! It has brought a great group of people into my life. I enjoy the group work behind the scenes but nothing beats a peaceful paddle in the sunshine amongst nature. Happy to continue in the role of Trustee to help the club grow from strength to strength _Please note, Trudy Johnson was elected as Trustee in July 2020. Sadly Trudy died in November 2020, although she was Trustee for a short period of time, she made a significant contribution to us as a group and to us as individuals within this role and outside it._ _Jen Scrimshaw delegated her Trusteeship and Treasurer position due to ill health in October 2020. Susan Renn very kindly stepped into the role as a temporary measure. Following elections in January 2021, two new trustees were elected. Sonia Ambrose as Trustee and Lyndsey Miles as Treasurer with Susan Renn continuing to offer support as needed by Lyndsey._ _Esmee Haigh stepped down from the position of Secretary in February 2021. This position remains open._ We now have formal roles for: Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 2 Head coach - _Esmee Haigh_ Membership secretary - _Sally Crowe_ Secretary – _**Vacant**_ Safeguarding officer - _Anna Lamb_ Quartermaster - _Simon Haigh_ Welfare officer – _**Vacant**_ Social secretary - _Sonia Ambrose_ Social media - _Sam Evans - we’d like help with Facebook and Instagram_ IT/Web and general technology - _Toby Shepheard_ To share the workload within the club we have separate informal committees/ groups which look at fundraising and other topics/issues depending on current needs. We hold committee meetings every 2-3 months which are minuted, and these are open to everyone within the club to create an environment where individuals feel they can contribute. However, the ultimate decisions are made by the trustees. ## **Charity overview** Our aims and objectives have remained the same as last year. We are a dragon boat paddling team, set up to promote and support the good physical and mental health of people who have been affected by cancer, in particular but not exclusively breast cancer, and their friends and family by providing facilities and training in dragon boating in Oxfordshire. The aim is to keep things fun, full of camaraderie and mutual support. ## **Achievements of the club** ## **Paddling and fitness** - Happy delivery of Kintsugi, our beautiful new dragonboat from Race the Dragon which had been delayed many times due to Covid importation limitations and also impacted after a ship was hijacked off the Isle of Wight. - Given the year of Covid 19 which was just experienced, the club has held paddling sessions when allowed to within the regulations and guidelines when numbers have been adequate as there have been times when the numbers have not been sufficient to run sessions. - Esmee Haigh has delivered an online Helm and Coach training program to a club cohort on Thursday evenings since January 2021 to present. - Trainee helms and coaches undertook training session at Caldecotte Lake, Milton Keynes, by special arrangement with Secklow Hundred dragon boat team. This was part of the training program being undertaken by 7 members to enable the availability of fully trained and qualified helms and coaches to deliver sessions on a more regular basis rather than relying on the availability of one person which is the current status. - Safe delivery of 2 O1s on 26th June 2021. Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 3 - 4 online yoga sessions delivered by Kate Binnie on Friday evenings resulting in four recordings which can be downloaded for future use. - New winter location identified with Dorchester Sailing Club (DSC) since December 2020 who have been very kind and flexible in hosting and have offered help with identifying help to launch, paddle, recover and move Kintsugi. We had planned to paddle back up river to the Isis River Farmhouse in spring when the water levels were better, however have not been able to due to the pandemic affecting our paddling sessions. We’re very grateful for DSC allowing us to stay longer than initially planned. - Forthcoming first aid training in July 2021 for a group of volunteers. - Forthcoming Helm and Coaching qualification course to be delivered by Dan Windsor from Race the Dragon in July and August 2021. - We have strengthened and made many new links with other local community organisations. ## **Membership** The membership numbers are broken down into the following groups, the same as the last 2 years: |**Category**|**2021**|**2020**|**2019**| |---|---|---|---| |Oxford Paddlers
personally affected
with breast
cancer|30|38|34| |Oxford Paddlers
personally affected by
other
cancers|4|3|0| |Friends and family|17|25|11| |Members from other
dragon boat clubs,
including
other breast cancer
clubs|59|31|28| |Other supporters|5|20|10| |Total|115|117|83| ## **Safe, respectful and supportive community** - Opportunities to meet socially in person have been limited during 2020 to 2021 however we did enjoy zoom catchups, a river walk, a riverside “learn about waterflow” session and picnics as well as contributing to the physical maintenance of the boat park at Isis River Farmhouse and then at Dorchester Sailing Club. Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 4 Ongoing frequent communication via WhatsApp chat group to provide support, information and fun - Ongoing email communication of key information to members - Opportunities to emotionally support each other in an unstructured and a separate structured setting ## **Funding** We are very grateful for all the monetary donations, time and items given to us. Particular fundraising has been from: - Successful grant application to Sport England for a Return to Play grant. - Waitrose Community Matters Scheme in Thame - Amazon and Ebay - from members’ items purchased and sold - Virgin Money Giving ## **Training** Opportunities have been given to members to develop skills in addition to paddling to benefit the club and use those transferable skills, including confidence building, teamwork and empowerment, for themselves: - Helming - Coaching - Fundraising - Committee skills - Club development skills via Club Matters workshops and discussions We’re very grateful to all the club members who have stepped up to additional roles (helming, coaching, committee etc) within the club, a big thank you to everyone who has helped out; every contribution counts towards the teamwork. ## **Social media** We have had an active and regular presence on social media platforms, including Facebook, twitter, Instagram. Followers and interaction on all these platforms have increased. We have taken part in breast cancer month, mental health awareness week and other relevant campaigns to raise awareness of these issues. ## **Six Questions on Pooling Our Thoughts** Thank you all very much for your responses. Having received 20 responses out of 52 sent questionnaires, we have analysed the responses as follows: ## **Question 1: How often would you like paddling sessions over the summer?** 9 people would like to paddle once or twice a week, and 8 respondents cannot paddle at the moment. Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 5 Thank you. This really helps us to plan. We currently have 7 club members undertaking helm and coaching training from Esmee who will also complete certified training in July and August delivered by Dan Windsor from Race the Dragon. We will then have more flexibility for planning future regular sessions with more notice. We also have experienced helms from other clubs happy to come and helm sessions over the coming months whilst our helms become more confident. ## **Question 2. Since the pandemic, are there factors which make you reluctant to paddle?** Covid 19 was a significant factor – some people are waiting to be double jabbed, other factors are increasing infection levels and concerns about socialising regardless of what the guidelines are. Others have mentioned reduced fitness levels or injuries. Other concerns are the difficulty in getting to Dorchester Sailing Club, low income and costs. We realise that these are still on going concerns for everyone. Please feel free to message / contact any of the trustees (Anne-Marie, Lyndsey, Sonia) with any comments or suggestions in the future. **Question 3: How would you like to see the club develop once restrictions are lifted? For example, pre-pandemic we had plans to go to race festivals in Liverpool and Barcelona, and do the Voga Longa in Venice (not a race), as well as visit other cancer related dragon boat clubs for a paddle and tea and cake with them (eg Pink Champagne, Hurricane Paragons) and have them visit us.** 11 positive responses to the multiple suggestions in this albeit with some consideration of timing and costs. 2 were undecided of their interest. 2 not interested. These were suggested events which we had planned out for 2020 and 2021. In the past when we have attended an event we have carpooled and shared airbnb accomodation and taken our own food. National events do not need to be a large cost. When attending these events, national and international, we can be flexible with the number of people attending as we have the option to partake in the composite dragonboat team called Pink Royals, masterminded by Wendy (Grose) indeed 4 of our members were part of the inaugural launch of the team in Liverpool 2019. We do understand that people have other financial commitments and priorities. Our plans had been to fundraise for events and as part of this to be able to provide financial support to members. **Question 4: It takes quite a lot of work behind the scenes to keep the club running and to plan paddling sessions. In order for this to be shared amongst members, how do you think we can all help each other?** Suggestion of subcommittees: We usually ask for a show of hands from people to get involved which was what happened previously in preparing the grant application, designing the team kit, ordering and designing the O1s, sorting out the club’s bank account; undertaking current helm and coaching training; upcoming first aid course offered out. Our committee and project teams are very informal and open to anyone who has time and interest to support these activities. Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 6 People are able to dip in and out of these things as we fully appreciate that commitments fluctuate. Several people suggested sharing out the tasks to prepare for a session and during a session. Going forward we plan to make use of the tasks wheel which is a fun way of having a random allocation: you add your name to the wheel and it will magically delegate tasks to you. If you are unsure of what is required of you, you can always ask the helm / coach or another paddler upon arrival - we've all been there! Suggestion to have a buddy system to show what needs to be done during a session: We do this for newcomers but we can look at a system to do this more regularly / or as needed. Noted that some people would like to contribute more but are currently busy at work or have family / other commitments. ## **Question 5: We had a grant for 4 yoga sessions to help us prepare for a return to paddling, did you use the yoga sessions?** 7 people attended one or more sessions. 6 people wanted to attend but were unable. 3 people downloaded a session. We have recently learned that the previously provided yoga session links have expired. We are now providing the downloaded session links stored in google docs which will be emailed out shortly. ## **Question 6: Did you find the yoga sessions helpful?** 7 positive responses that it was helpful 5 intend to use it at a later date. We are pleased some members frequently attended these sessions and found them useful. It is great that others plan to use the sessions in the future. These are there for you to use however frequently you wish. ## **Financial review** This is our third year of activity and during the year we have successfully received one Sport England Return to Play grant and donations. We relied upon the grant income to fund the purchase of large items such as the 01s, Helms Course, First Aid Course and smaller items such yoga classes, hand gels and contactless payment device. ## Executive summary Our starting Balance for the period was £1,386.00. On the 11[th] March we were awarded £5,368.00 following a successful grant application to Sport England. Of the £5,368.00, Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 7 £3,872.42 has been committed leaving a remainder of £1,495.58. Our total income for the period was £5,542.99. Our internally generated income totals £174.99. Our core operating costs for 2020 were £618.86. Our closing balance summated £6,919.35. Only one out going transaction of £10.00 to the environment agency was recorded. With regards to the Sport England Grant we must acknowledge that any deviation in committed spend when compared against specific costs within the Sport England grant schedule must be reconciled back to Sport England. At present his figure sits at £63.58 split across five-line items. Subject to final confirmed costs of a number grant specific line items, our projected forecast for the reporting period will see a positive balance of £906.23 post the release of monies for all ratified expenditure. However, it should be recognised that the unconfirmed costs, once qualified will diminish this total. Whilst this figure looks healthy, we must remember that during the reporting period our core outgoings were £618.86, and our self-generated income was £174.99. ## **Generating sufficient income to cover core operating costs remains a significant concern as our membership revenue alone will not cover the statutory and legal requirements to keep the club sustainable.** ## Introduction Continued protraction and poor practice in the administration of our Community Bank account by Barclays PLC has led to historical information prior to 1[st] January 2021 being unavailable for interrogation and dissemination. Barclays have acknowledged in writing that they are at fault and will be offering £500.00 in compensation as well as making available OPFL’ missing data. Figure 1 below demonstrates that we cannot access our records prior to January 2021 It must also be noted that because of Barclays remiss service, OPFL was unable to officially operate the bank account in line with the Charities Commission Charter guidelines. To this end individual club members kindly covered the cost of requisite functional needs from personal bank accounts to keep the club both compliant and operational. All incurred costs have been scheduled for reimbursement following a robust and auditable substantiation process. At the time of writing, information for the period 1[st] January to 31[st] May was referenced. Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 8 _Figure 1Screen shot capturing lack of data for 2020_ ## Statement of Account Reporting period 1[st] January to 31[st] May 2021 Starting Balance £1,386.86 Closing Balance £6,919.35 Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 9 _Table 1 Statement of Account 01.01.21 - 31.05.21_ For the benefit of analyses, the following cost centres have been applied. ## **Revenue** **Cost** **Grant In** Moneys earnt by OPFL through donations, membership and paddling subscription fees @ £3 per person per paddle Monies OPFL have had to spend to obligate requisite operating needs such as insurance and Environment Agency licences Monies received from organisations such as the Lottery Council and Sports England following an application process **Grant Out** Monies spent in relation to the equipment and services listed within respective grant / funding applications. **Miscellaneous spend** Monies spent on discretional purchases to support the group ## Total Transactions During the reporting period OPFL generated £174.99 in income via membership, paddling subscriptions, and donations from the Amazon Europe Smile function. Our operating costs totalled £618.86 leaving a deficit of £443.87. Boat and public Liability insurance are our most significant financial commitments. OPFL received £5,368.00 from the Lottery Council. Of this £3,872.42 has been committed. Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 10 Miscellaneous spending totalled £53.98 _Figure 2 OPFL Total transaction breakdown_ ## Revenue Our total income for the reporting period equated to £174.99 with paddling subscriptions accounting for 59% of the revenue generated. Only £50 in membership donations was received via our Virgin Money just giving page. Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 11 _Figure 3 Revenue Breakdown_ ## Operating Costs Our operating costs define the base income levels to be obtained to remain sustainable. The inclusion of public liability to our previous boat cover realised a circa 95% increase in premiums on our 2020 spend. This increased further with the addition of the two O1 packages. Berthing and Paddling fees to utilise the facilities of Dorchester Sailing Club account for a further £106.50. Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 12 _Figure 4 Operating Cost breakdown_ ## Grant Spend Upon a successful application, OPFL received £5368.00 from the lottery council to procure 2 No O1 kayaks and range of support services and consumable items to assist the club return to paddling. At the time of writing £3,872.42 has been committed in line with the accepted application proposal. Several confirmed costs for goods and services are yet to be established but it is understood that if the remaining £1,495.58 is not allocated in line with the agreed Sport England schedule, it shall be returned to Sport England. Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 13 _Figure 5 Grant Expenditure break down_ Figure 6 below depicts the agreed schedule attributes and associated costs Sport England agreed to cover following OPFL’ successful grant application. Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 14 _Figure 6 SE Grant Schedule_ ## Personal reimbursement application schedule The schedule below captures the substantiation process we are adhering to with regards reimbursing club members who kindly paid for services and products out of their own bank accounts in lieu of viable community bank account functionality. Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 15 _Figure 7 Personal application and Committed cost schedule_ Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 16 ## **Thank you to many people** These achievements could not have happened without the help of many people from our club, other clubs and local organisations. We can’t list everyone here, but you know who you are and we’re very grateful to you. In particular we need to thank: **Esmee Haigh** , for dedication, commitment and contribution in the role of Club Secretary and more recently in the role of Trainer delivering an innovative and engaging Helms and Coaches Training Programme and for all the neverending ad hoc tasks to arrange and lead sessions. **Dorchester Sailing Club** , for their warm welcome and unrelenting support to enable our paddling sessions. Special call out to **Rob Naisby,** their Harbourmaster. **Susan Renn** for her tireless efforts to resolve complications created by Barclays Bank. **Alison Muldal** for master minding the Sport England Return to Play grant which resulted in many significant wins. **Noreen and Adrian, owners of the Isis River Farmhouse** , for allowing us to store our boat on their premises until Kintsugi arrived and our winter move to Dorchester Sailing Club. Also for taking necessary boat manoeuvres into consideration when they rearranged their access due to Covid regulations. **Dan Windsor** - for his continued loan to us of the boat until he delivered Kintsugi. We also are grateful for his help and support with the delivery of Kintsugi and forthcoming Helms and Coaches training course in Summer 2021. **Sport England** for the award of their Return to Play small grant which has enabled us to buy two 01s, helm and coaching training, first aid training, yoga classes and ad hoc materials such as disinfectant, card readers, walkie talkies, throw lines. **Active Oxfordshire** for their help, support and advice in enabling us to understand a safe way to return to paddle post covid eg introductions to Right Directions. **Right Directions** for their guidance and review of our risk assessments and plan to return to paddling during and post Covid 19. ## **Looking ahead** We are looking forward to returning to regular paddling sessions in due course. We have not forgotten about a formal launch utilising local media to help rebuild our membership numbers. To help with this, we will also re-engage with Maggie’s Centre, the Lymphoedema Service and other networks with the help of the Falcon Club who are also developing their networks. Do please pass on the word about us in your own personal networks. Anne-Marie Haigh An�e-Mar�� �a�g� Chair Lyndsey Miles Ly��se� M���s Treasurer Sonia Ambrose Son�� A��ro�� Trustee Oxford Paddlers for Life Annual Report 2021 17